chuckakers

+1 Excellent point, Wendy. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Dood, give the kid a break. He's trying to learn. Leave this sort of shit for SoFPiDaRF. Kalrigan, ignore the idiots. They're all over dz.com. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

I like your style. A lot of jumpers feel the need to get under really sporty wings as soon as they can without considering the whole picture. I'm a big fan of learning to command the canopy completely before moving on, regardless of whether it's a downsize, a change to elliptical canopies, or anything else. That's how the old-timers did it in the days when manufacturers were increasing performance yet there was no real education or training in canopy work. It was the only safe way then and the statistics continue to bear that out today. You may decide to downsize later or you may not. There's a lot to be said for enjoying the canopy ride and not looking at increasing canopy performance as a challenge that must be conquered. In fact, some of us are actually going the other way. I just up-sized by 35% after 28 years in the sport and 14 years of flying hot rods. Your wing is YOUR choice and you should fly what you are comfortable with regardless of the trend of the day. Your job is to go home safe at the end of the day and your choices have more to do with accomplishing that than anything else in the sport. One thing is for sure. No one has ever been hurt or killed because they didn't downsize. Let that be your guide and you will contribute greatly to your longevity in the sport. Welcome to the rest of your life. We're glad you joined us and we hope you'll stick around for a long, long time. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

I doubt very seriously that a hackey could get pushed into the pouch very easily. Heck, just try it on the ground. My guess is it takes a very intentional effort well beyond a bump from a foot. I bet it was missed on the pre-boarding gear check and he just thought he checked it in the plane. At jump 54 it wouldn't be surprising if he "remembered" doing it but didn't. Assuming my guess above is correct, the bigger question is how did it get in there to begin with? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

http://menknowpause.fooyoh.com/menknowpause_lifestyle_living/8445344 Light the trash can on fire and have a ball! Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

That would be a problem for USPA. Care to identify the DZ? Seems that's the motivation. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

I didn't see anything in your post about contacting the manufacturer. I would think that would be the first and best place to go with an issue like this. Have you had a conversation with them? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Irish, I'm not sure about that. The OP didn't mention anything about the TI holding a non US rating. I know USPA recognizes foreign equivalent licenses, but I don't remember anything about ratings. As for a manufacturer's rating being enough - I doubt that. Otherwise no one would bother with a USPA rating. I believe TI's with a manufacturers rating were grandfathered in when USPA started its program, but only because there were folks with thousands of tandems that really didn't need to go through a USPA course to prove their qualifications. Can someone clarify for us? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Not sure what type of feedback you're looking for. I can say that USPA would put a stop to it or yank the DZ's group membership if the DZ in question continued doing it after getting caught. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

wtf? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Which FAR regulates operation and not just rigging? For example, 105.46 has some rules on maintaining tandem gear, using an approved harness, having received an approved rating to be a TI, and using an AAD. But that rule doesn't mention operations. (Interestingly, that FAR doesn't say anything about having to MAINTAIN any manufacturer rating - just get the initial rating. So that takes away any issue of the manufacturer deciding to pull a rating on a whim, or having to send anyone $25 a year. USPA might however have its own rules.) But I don't know the FAR's well enough to know what other sections might say on all this. One might as well say that for non-commercial operations, the example shouldn't be a 737 but playing with a dirt bike off road. I could be wrong, but I think there's an FAR, directive, or whatever that says all "certificated" equipment - planes, parachutes, etc. - must be operated within the limits set forth by the manufacturer. It's probably not utilized in enforcement actions except in extreme circumstances but I believe it can be. Can someone clarify? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

How long are we trained to dick with malfunctions for? We are trained to altitudes by which we should have a landable canopy above our head. The problem with that logic is - as I stated in a previous post - that a highly loaded spinning mal can go from manageable to deadly so quickly that the jumper ends up unable to take proper action without warning. This has been demonstrated time after time from first-hand accounts by people who have actually had it happen to them. I have been flying highly loaded cross-braced wings since the introduction of the Excalibur in the late 80's/early 90's. To say I have been a student of the discipline would be an understatement. Over those years I have personally known several highly accomplished canopy pilots who were stunned by how quickly a spinning mal became debilitating when seconds earlier it was a non-problem physiologically. You advocates of "fuck with it until the hard deck" are welcome to you opinions, but there is one thing for sure. There have been many, many, many skydivers die trying to clear mals on highly loaded wings and almost NONE that whacked them upon recognition. I rest my case. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Of course you can't stop thinking about it. This is going to change your life forever. You will never see the world the same way again. Your new perspective will guide you for the rest of your life if you allow it to, and very much for the better. An old friend of mine and a skydiver for 40+ years always says when asked by newcomers about the butterflies in the stomach that we never stop getting them, we just teach them to fly in formation. I think that's true. In AFF, you have chosen the most challenging and rewarding of all first jump options. You and 2 highly skilled instructors jumping as a team! Yes you will be nervous. You will probably question your decision - hell even your sanity. My advice to you is to focus and trust your training, your instructors, your gear, and yourself. When - not if - that door seems insurmountable, remember this. The jump you will make this Saturday will change you. It will change everything about you, everything you thought you were made of, and very possibly everything you want for your future. Go fly, and never look back!! And be sure to let us know how it goes. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

This ends the sensible thread. Let the dumbarsedness contiue

Not too sure about that, Wendy. US tandem manufacturers are pretty anal about the use of their gear. Lawyers, ya know. Legal or not, it's stupid as all hell. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Yeah I've been known to make a jump now & then...only between flower plantin' seasons though. What kind of soil do you use? I find that impact crater yields the best results...pure virgin soil sprinkled with bullshit ~ best fertilizer going! Mmmm, virgin soil. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

The real comedy is that your mind went there! Watching a little too much Home & Garden Channel? Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

I wasn't judging the person. I was critiquing the person's actions. Confusing the two makes constructive conversation nearly impossible. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

I totally understand the purpose of this topic, the name explains by itself... but when you are there, facing a situation like this.. it's your instincts, your training, your capabilities that will dictate how you will deal with that situation.. We don't know for example, how many cuts this guys have.. maybe this was his first one... which makes totally understandable the 30 secs that it took from him to realise that he need it to chop it.. Again, we don't know... Withme is simple.. I keep looking up and monitoring my canopy openning every jump that I make.. all the times I'm with my hands at my cutway chute... if something is not good, I don't think twice.. I cut it! That's my technique and works pretty well for me! Now, regarding the other jumpers around.. Dude, that's mainly THEIR responsibilities to check traffic and get away from jumpers with malfunctions... Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Your assessment of the velcro keeper is incorrect. I can't speak to the force needed to release a 2 x 2 inch keeper, but I use a 1 x 1 inch keeper and it requires only a couple pounds of pull force in any direction to release. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

I would NEVER buy gear without having it inspected by a trusted source, preferably a rigger who knows the market. If the seller isn't near you, set up a trusted person - a DZO is often a good choice - to act as an escrow officer to hold the transaction cash until you decide whether to buy it. If everything looks good and you want to finish the deal, have the escrow officer forward the money to the seller. If not, return the rig and get your money back. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

Several thoughts. - Depth perception beyond 50 or 100 feet is notoriously poor, making it difficult to tell if jumpers below are 100 feet away or several hundred feet away. - A mal that can be ridden one second can become a mal that will incapacitate a jumper the next second. - Altitude above is worthless. Every foot of altitude is important in the event of a post-deployment problem like line twists on the reserve, a spot over poor or even dangerous landing areas, etc. - Under a spinning canopy it can be difficult to pinpoint exactly where other canopies are. "Below" is a vague location by which to base a decision. Even if there are jumpers below, there's no way to know if chopping will create a hazard vs creating a hazard by riding a spinning canopy through traffic. - Finally and most important, a jumper's top priority under a mal is to get under a good canopy. Everything else is secondary to the task at hand. I'm sure there will be some super hero types who will offer loads of advice that contradict my opinion, but I would never sacrifice altitude because of jumpers below for all of the reasons listed here. The only exception I would make is if I could tell for certain that riding the mal for a short distance would clearly be better than chopping and those circumstances would be quite rare. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

That's the coolest post I've seen in a long time. I never knew Carl, but was inspired by him and his films. I'm anxious to see your work! Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

What do you think about the idea of bigger, slower canopies for formation jumps? I'm a fan. I am an organizer at a large DZ (Spaceland) and just up-sized with that very kind of utility in mind. I was 2:1 on a Velocity and I'm now 1.4 on a Stiletto. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX

I guess we'll have to keep breaking this down for you. After convincing you that the canopies this camera flyer descended into - uncontrollably, I might add - were dangerously close, now you argue that it's "safer to not chop if you can get it clear". You are very naive, my man. I suggest you look back in the history books a bit. There are countless incidents involving people who died trying to fix mals rather than chop them, yet only a handful who have died chopping at the correct altitude and deploying a reserve. Those who did die chopping mals usually made other mistakes that led to their demise. There have been very, very few cases in which a jumper performed textbook emergency procedures and died anyway. It's tough to argue with history. The statistics are against you - by a long shot. To think of performing emergency procedures as being more dangerous than attempting to fix a violent malfunction is nothing short of ludicrous. As I said in my earlier post, riding mals, especially spinning mals on highly loaded canopies, has proven deadly time after time. Chopping and getting a reserve out at an appropriate altitude almost never has. I suggest you rethink your logic. Chuck Akers D-10855 Houston, TX