Pulling at the planned altitude

[docdialtone 0]

Yesterday was my step daughters 18th birthday and we took her to do a tandem. I wanted to be in the plane with her but also be on the ground when she landed so we arranged for me to exit first and her to go next. I spoke with her video guy and told him that I was going to pull at 4K but that I would track to make sure I was out of his way. He said that was ok because he usually pulls at 3K, but just make sure that I didn't track up the flight line. Usually when this guy is doing video he is on the ground, has his rig off and has plenty of time to get his camera off of his helmet and video the landing.

Well I exited, tracked and pulled at 4K, I looked and saw the tandem deploy and then the video guy deployed about 10 seconds later my guess is that he was at about 4K. I watched and waited for him to begin his normal spiral of death to get down before everyone else, also hoping to be able to geek her video a little when I landed , but he just hung out and took video of her under canopy. So I started doing some spirals and playing around so I could get down.

There was little wind, about 5mph and when I turned in on final I was a little high at around 500 ft so I did some flat s turns and landed. I looked up and the video guy was coming in right towards me, he landed and walked all over my canopy, got a little tangled in the lines and was kicking to get out of them, it is rented gear. He then gets in my face and tells me that he couldn't get down because I was doing s turns all over the LZ and that I held everyone up. That was only my 26th jump but have been told by all of the instructors and staff that I am good with my canopy control, I had all of my acuracy landings done my first 5 jumps off radio and can usually land within a few feet of the peas. Maybe I was wrong doing the s turns but I don't believe that I held anyone else up above the dz.

He even told my step daughter that it was my fault that he didn't get her landing on video!! But he got some really good stills of it.

How should I handle this?

Thanks!

[skybytch 273]

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How should I handle this?

Don't do S turns on final. They make it very difficult for anybody coming in behind you to figure out where you plan to land, which in turn makes it very difficult for them to then choose where they need to fly/land to avoid you. The only times it's okay to do S turns on final is if you are the only canopy in the air (ie you did a hop and pop on your own pass) or if by not doing one you will hit an obstacle.

You could have avoided the situation entirely by holding in brakes instead of spiraling down. This would have allowed the video guy (who I assume is jumping a smaller, faster canopy than you are) to get beneath you and land first.

[Mark24688m 0]

I only have 25 jumps so im not saying I know much about the situation, but considering nobody was in danger or anything and he still decided to land on your rental canopy and kick it around, the guy sounds like a dick. Just my opinion.

[dragon2 2]

It is hard for smaller canopies when a bigger one is flying inconsistent, ie spiralling down and doing s turns low. When you're spiraling he can not get below you easily then when you let up or worse go to brakes he sinks like hell. Then you end up lower than him and do s turns on final, making it really hard for him to predict exactly where you're going and REALLY hard to stay behind you.
While these are all predictable mistakes with your jump numbers, it's better to start flying a predictable pattern NOW, creating the best and safest landing order and separation is everyone's business and you have to work together to make it happen, you weren't helping here.

That said, he could've handled it better though! I suppose he wanted to do the best video he could for your stepdaughter and was annoyed because it didn't work out, so I'd cut him some slack But for next time, some more planning might be in order or you'd have to land further away, or something. In the meantime, I suggest you learn from this, and go talk to your instructors about how to make your pattern predictable and to avoid coming in too high on final

ciel bleu,
Saskia

[tbrown 26]

The camera guy didn't jump the plan. You had an agreement. It's his fault.

There are things you could've done better, but he went back on a plan you both agreed to. He's wrong, it's that simple.

Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !

[AFFI 0]

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“That was only my 26th jump but have been told by all of the instructors and staff that I am good with my canopy control, I had all of my accuracy landings done my first 5 jumps off radio and can usually land within a few feet of the peas. Maybe I was wrong doing the s turns but I don't believe that I held anyone else up above the dz.”

You probably are doing great for someone with 26 jumps, it certainly sounds like it.

Good accuracy does not need corrective S turns on final.

More later…

Mykel AFF-I10
Skydiving Priorities: 1) Open Canopy. 2) Land Safely. 3) Don’t hurt anyone. 4) Repeat…

[hukturn 0]

"How should I handle this? "
I am not really sure how some people on this thread are gathering that anything was the video guys fault. I mean, there really is no fault in this. Sometimes, he can not get to the ground before the tandem because there may be other canopies in the way. He must insure the safety of himself and others before getting the "perfect" footage. So, how do you handle it? It is a skydive...anything can happen. So, I recommend doing nothing. You could raise a stink about his attitude or for walking on the canopy. But, that would really get you nowhere. He shoots video at the DZ and is probably in "good grace" with the staff and clients. So, fly under the radar on this one.

When possible, avoid S-turns on final. Also, with 25 jumps, you are probably wing loading low. You should be very wary of spiraling down into traffic. I am sure you can read several discussions on the propoed BSR's on seperated HP landings in other forums on this site.

[Squeak 17]

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"How should I handle this? "
I am not really sure how some people on this thread are gathering that anything was the video guys fault. I mean, there really is no fault in this..

Sure there is the Camera guy acted like a jerk, then blamed someone else for him not getting the Tandem landing. if he was landinf so close in time with the Tandem, he most certainly is at fault.

You are not now, nor will you ever be, good enough to not die in this sport (Sparky)
My Life ROCKS!
How's yours doing?

[dorbie 0]

Any asshole can be nice when everything is going smoothly and according to plan. That guy seems to have forgotten you were his customer, right after he forgot the dive plan you agreed on. Shit happens, but saving face at your expense?

What should you do?

It's up to you if you use another vidiot from now on and advise others accordingly.

[DSE 5]

There is something that doesn't ring true about the story as told from one side.
"He didn't get good video but he got some good stills?" How is that possible? He took his still cam off, shifted from wide angle to tele and shot from a distance when the tandem landed far away from the camera flyer and your canopy?
That said, the whole "walked all over my canopy got tangled in the lines..." says something else, and the obvious S turns say yet something else.
It doesn't seem the whole story is here as to why cameraman barely beat the tandem to the ground, nor as to what else occurred. Yet everyone seems to be OK with condemning a cameraman that maybe didn't react well to the situation, but it's also not known what was said on the ground that may or may not have provoked a pissy response.
How much time is "landing in time with the tandem?"
I've been on very bad spots with a tandem and had to pull high, ride rears all the way back, and beat them to the ground by one minute or so.
On the flip side to this story, I can see a landing where the cameraman lands, turns his head skyward to catch the tandem high in the air, walks backwards, trips/walks on someone else' canopy and gets tangled in the lines, gets a smartass comment, and gets pissed about it. Biggest question I have is; If he got great stills of the landing, why didn't he get great video of it too?

[MarkM 0]

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So I started doing some spirals and playing around so I could get down.

If you're at level with someone else and they have the higher WL, don't spiral under them. Let them sink down while you float.

And like everyone says, don't do S turns on final. I can land next to the peas all the time too, but most of the time I'm a good distance from them because I land at the same time the tandems land and my pattern is about giving them space, not dragging my foot through the peas.

[ZigZagMarquis 9]

Like some have said, doing big S-turns on final with folks stacked up behind you isn't very curtious; its just as bad as doing a 180, 270, 360 or 540 hook onto a downwind swoop / HP landing through traffic.

Having said that, don't beat yourself up too badly and lets not beat this person up too badly about it, none of us have never made such a mistake. Its when folks have been told and don't listen that they need "beating."

Anyway, as for said camera man getting up your face, blaming you on not getting landing video, getting all rude with you and such... sounds like they were, at the least, handling things poorly, or at worst, just being a dick. Shine that part on and move on is my 2 cents.