interesting malfunction

[freeflyer58D 1]

Alright, had a Mal today that in retrospect was IMHO completely avoidable... but due to different equipment and not paying attention while packing i caused a unique mal worth sharing... after an average freefly jump i break off at 5,000, track til 3500 and wave and pull at 3,000. until this point all is well, then WHAM! i have a very hard opening. i came from a sabre 135 to a triathlon 135 so the slam wasnt new to me but when i looked up to visually check the canopy i notice that the slider is over half way up and the cinch piece on the slider has caught itself in the center cell right side C/D line cascade. because the slider was halfway up and stuck and the canopy was trying to open fully and push it down, it was for all purposes stuck there. the canopy was flying straight though so i thought why not try and clear it by unstowing brakes and wiggling the canopy rig around. well, as soon as the brakes unstowed the canopy dove hard and rolled right. at this point i said fuck it and glanced at my altimeter(2400ish) and becuz it wasnt violently spinning i took the extra second to correctly locate the handles. cutaway shortly after looking at alti, went back into freefall just long enough to get stable and raise my head, and went for the reserve. so, how did i cause all this??? the cinch plastic piece on the slider has a small pocket it should be stowed in. i however had just been pulling the cincher back to the end and quartering it and thats all. attached picture is from just after opening on a previous jump showing the plastic piece in the open waiting to snag something. well today it bit me and managed to hang on those cascades. so what to take away... know your equipment cuz anything can cause you problems no matter how small. if its not spinning violently, take a breath take a look and check controlability, maintain altitude awareness at all times, and keep practicing those EP's! hope someone else can gain from this little oops! Blue skies! [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfueHaylDfg]

[theonlyski 8]

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lfueHaylDfg

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[NWFlyer 2]

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so, how did i cause all this???

Looking at the video, that looks like a collapsed slider (which would contribute to the hard opening) - so you've got a whole bunch of kill line flying loose - which (as you described) hooked on the cascade and prevented your slider from coming down. The question is ... did you fail to uncollapse it during packing ... or did the fact that it got caught cause it to collapse during the mal?

At least that's how I see it.

"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke

[jdfreefly 1]

I would argue that the root cause was the slider you are using has a snag hazard on it. I'd be interested to know where you got that thing, it certainly wasn't given to you by PD.

Get rid of that slider and get one without that ridiculous snag hazard...or better yet order a new one from PD.

Methane Freefly - got stink?

[monkycndo 0]

The fact that the line cinch is not sown into the stow pocket is a hazard. If the slider is left collapsed or the cinch just "pops out", you have a chunk of plastic looking for a home to get stuck in. Take a look at a Nitro to see how the line cinches are kept secured on the edge of the slider and not a snag hazard. Yours should get fixed and soon.

Thanks for posting the video.

To all, let this be a good wake up call that if you have new to you gear, make sure you understand how it works and take time to pack your canopy. Being in a hurry can bite you.

50 donations so far. Give it a try.

You know you want to spank it
Jump an Infinity

[monkycndo 0]

Daless, it's a Tri. Unless you know something, he might want to call Aerodyne.

I had to look a couple times to figure out it has two kill lines held by one cinch. Not a stock slider I have ever seen before.

50 donations so far. Give it a try.

You know you want to spank it
Jump an Infinity

[Master_Yoda 0]

Another observation; In the photo you can see the tag end of the cincher has some fuzz from fraying on it. That fraying could have been what knotted itself around lines rather than the bulk of the cincher itself. Take a lighter and melt that fuzz off.

Just a thought.

[riggerrob 643]

Update to a modern - dual kill-line - slider.

Those cord-locks fell out of fashion a decade ago ... for a good reason!

[freeflyer58D 1]

hey guys, all good replies, i am 100% certain that the slider was not collapsed because i actually packed this canopy more than once before i jumped it. (just for practice cuz i just got done with a nine month vacation in iraq) the snag caused it to appear to be collapsed. however now that it has been identified as a snag hazard, im gonna look into modifying/replacing that thing... as for the hard opening??? i really dont know, i wouldnt say i was rushed, i packed at home, and took my time. sometimes that shit just happens, lol. glad to get some really good feedback and (re)identify problems or potential problems with gear! thanks for all the advice guys! Mike

[Hayden 0]

Tell me something -- would it be fair to say that everyone has cut their main at least once? I'm just curious as to the stats around how often the reserve gets utilized?

For those who have jumped at least a good few times (e.g. upward of 50+ jumps, I suppose), how many times have you needed your reserve?

Glad you made it back on the ground safe, FF

[theonlyski 8]

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Tell me something -- would it be fair to say that everyone has cut their main at least once? I'm just curious as to the stats around how often the reserve gets utilized?

For those who have jumped at least a good few times (e.g. upward of 50+ jumps, I suppose), how many times have you needed your reserve?

Glad you made it back on the ground safe, FF

I've got just over 120, 0 chops. I pay attention to my packing and keep it under control.

One day I will have to chop one, but I'm trying to make that years away.

(Also going after my riggers ticket soon)

"I may be a dirty pirate hooker...but I'm not about to go stand on the corner." iluvtofly
DPH -7, TDS 578, Muff 5153, SCR 14890
I'm an asshole, and I approve this message

[LongWayToFall 0]

No, definitely not fair to say everyone has chopped once.

There is a good thread in general about cutaway stats, you should check it out.

[dragon2 2]

There's plenty of threads about cutaway ratios, but it seems on average there is a cutaway every 700-800 (sport)jumps or so.

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[jsaxton 0]

There are two kinds of skydivers. Ones that have had a reserve ride and ones that will.

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Tell me something -- would it be fair to say that everyone has cut their main at least once? I'm just curious as to the stats around how often the reserve gets utilized?

[freeflyer58D 1]

this was jump 240ish and i've been jumping for 1.5 years. and that was the only time i needed it. and like i said before, knowing what i know now it could have been avoided. so, it can happen on jump 1, jump 100, or jump 1000. just stay sharp, pull at your proper altitude and observe your harddeck and that will set you up for sucess. i had my reserve open at 1900 feet and gave a 2 second delay from cutaway to reserve. it gave me plenty of altitude to deal with a problem.

[Master_Yoda 0]

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For those who have jumped at least a good few times (e.g. upward of 50+ jumps, I suppose), how many times have you needed your reserve?

Twice in less than 150 jumps. None since.

[ZigZagMarquis 9]

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Tell me something -- would it be fair to say that everyone has cut their main at least once? I'm just curious as to the stats around how often the reserve gets utilized?

For those who have jumped at least a good few times (e.g. upward of 50+ jumps, I suppose), how many times have you needed your reserve?

I know folks with thousands of jumps that have never had a reserve ride.

I know folks with just a few hundred jumps that have had a half dozen or more.

I had my first reserve ride on my 20th jump. Since then, one every 1000-1500 jumps. To date, 3 so far.


It all "depends"

[timmyfitz 0]

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There are two kinds of skydivers. Ones that have had a reserve ride and ones that will.

3) those that have jumped a few years, never had a malfunction/reserve ride and have left the sport.

[popsjumper 2]

Sorry about the thread drift. Hayden is new and hasn't learned about netiquette. No excuse for the others, I guess.

YMMV.
If that's a Tri, it's not a slider that I've ever seen on one. But then again, I'm no expert. My vote is to take the advice given above and replace it with a current one from the canopy manufacturer.

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239

[customguy79 0]

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Tell me something -- would it be fair to say that everyone has cut their main at least once? I'm just curious as to the stats around how often the reserve gets utilized?

For those who have jumped at least a good few times (e.g. upward of 50+ jumps, I suppose), how many times have you needed your reserve?

Glad you made it back on the ground safe, FF

one time

[skykank 0]

I remember those were used in the old Blue Tracks from PDF .

Blue skies

[jdfreefly 1]

Good catch, I miss-read the OP and thought it was a Sabre.

That said, calling the manufacturer (In this case Aerodyne) and getting a slider from them would be a good idea.

Methane Freefly - got stink?

[ChrisL 2]

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Tell me something -- would it be fair to say that everyone has cut their main at least once?

No.

I've never had a cutaway, and I know people with a LOT more jumps than me that have never had a cutaway.

__

My mighty steed

[jurgencamps 0]

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Tell me something -- would it be fair to say that everyone has cut their main at least once?

No.

I've never had a cutaway, and I know people with a LOT more jumps than me that have never had a cutaway.

Only a few people with more than 5000 jumps never had a malfunction. They exist, but ... It is safer to bet your money on the fact that in the next 1000 jumps you will have a malfunction. And do everything to prevent this waiting malfunction (packingtechnique, maintenance ...)
Nevertheless, treat every canopy-opening as a possible malfunction.

BTW, with 319 jumps you only have only 50 % of the usual malfunctionrate (1/600 à 1/700 jumps).