Low S-turns Hurt

[Remster 30]

Sigh...

I teach my AFF student to fly the pattern. Its the same pattern I fly: downwind, base, and final. No S turns. Its not something only people with 1000's of jumps can do.

Remster

[phoenixlpr 0]

I know that accuracy does not always come along with standard pattern.

[mjosparky 4]

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I know that accuracy does not always come along with standard pattern.

For some people, unfortunately, accuracy does not come with any type of pattern or canopy.

Sparky

My idea of a fair fight is clubbing baby seals

[mnealtx 0]

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I know that accuracy does not always come along with standard pattern.

There's also no requirement to hit the peas, that I know of....

Mike
I love you, Shannon and Jim.
POPS 9708 , SCR 14706

[lug 4]

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There's also no requirement to hit the peas, that I know of....

Right there isn't, any identifiable spot on the ground will do just fine.

Memento Mori

[JohnMitchell 16]

Back in the dinosaur days, eveyone jumped an F-111 5 or 7 cell canopy, and learned how to "shoot accuracy." That involved flying a pattern, making flat turns in brakes, and making steady, controlled final approaches onto the target in the middle of the peas. Then you got out of the way for the next person, landing right there.

When we progressed to newer canopies, these skills followed us. But now everyone is so swoop happy these basic skills are just considered boring. Sorry you got so busted up. The accident was avoidable with better training.

[phoenixlpr 0]

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But now everyone is so swoop happy these basic skills are just considered boring.

How can anyone swoop without landing accuracy?

[JohnMitchell 16]

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How can anyone swoop without landing accuracy?

To swoop well, you need these skills. The best swoopers I know personally can also land dead center anywhere they want. They are not the ones getting hurt.

The people I see getting hurt don't have accuracy skills, or enough other canopy skills either.

[encinoadam 0]

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What made you hang it up? Not that jump i hope?

It was just time to stop. Had a great time with it. Miss it horribly. But it wasn't that jump. I jumped an additional hundred times after that crash without incident.

Anyway, I was jumping without insurance... and my mom wouldn't leave me alone about it....



I know. No insurance. I'm ashamed. Fire at will.

-ac

[encinoadam 0]

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When we progressed to newer canopies, these skills followed us. But now everyone is so swoop happy these basic skills are just considered boring. Sorry you got so busted up. The accident was avoidable with better training.

The thing is, my accuracy was generally pretty good and performed without s-turns throughout my jump life. I wasn't swoop happy, and this is really the point I was trying to drive home... I made a last minute (well, last second) mistake in judgment and I hit hard. I take full blame for that... not my training. You can only teach so much.

Dick Cheney shot a guy yesterday. I don't blame the guy that taught him to shoot... I blame him. I probably could have educated myself a little better. I appreciate your sentiment, though. Hitting the ground sucks.

At least I've got the video....

-ac

[JohnMitchell 16]

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The thing is, my accuracy was generally pretty good and performed without s-turns throughout my jump life. I wasn't swoop happy, and this is really the point I was trying to drive home... I made a last minute (well, last second) mistake in judgment and I hit hard. I take full blame for that... not my training. You can only teach so much.

Point well taken. Even in the dinosaur days low turns caused injuries and an occasional death. The higher wingloadings have exacerbated that problem, both in the number and the severity of these incidents. What used to be just an embarrassing landing becomes a trip to the hospital. It's been debated to death in these forums.

BTW, I've jumped with no insurance. There's a lot of folks in the U.S. that don't have access to regular medical treatment. Doesn't seem like a good situation.

[Andy9o8 2]

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What made you hang it up? Not that jump i hope?

It was just time to stop. Had a great time with it. Miss it horribly. But it wasn't that jump. I jumped an additional hundred times after that crash without incident.

FWIW, and I realize you already know this, stopping for now doesn't necessarily mean forever. Often, it's a stage-of-life kind of thing. It was for me; I spent over 15 years away from the sport due to marriage, raising a family, career, obligations, etc. I, too, missed it horribly. Pretty much all the time. And I eventually came back. (I'm far from alone in this experience.) If it's right for you, I hope you do, too, someday. We'll have a cold one waiting for you.

[RedassSkychic 0]

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Sure it bleeds some alt but so does sinking the canopy with better results. People learn and teach sinking a canopies effective, it is a life saving skill. S-tunes won’t help you if forced to land in a tight spot.

I was under the impression that "sinking" a canopy was something done on old F-111 accuracy canopies. Do you mean going into brakes? This will shorten your final approach, but only if there is enough wind. Or stalling your canopy? not a good idea close to the ground.

Am I missing something here? Can modern canopies "sink"?

[phoenixlpr 0]

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I was under the impression that "sinking" a canopy was something done on old F-111 accuracy canopies. Do you mean going into brakes? This will shorten your final approach, but only if there is enough wind. Or stalling your canopy? not a good idea close to the ground.

There is 2 end of the control range of a canopy: full-flight and deepest brake. Max glide is between them. If you pass that point your canopy is going to fly slower, but start sinking too......

[lug 4]

Yep.

Sinking a canopy is the same as breaking approach. They are terms that basically mean controlling speed and descent in a stable state of flight, sacrificing some forward glide across the ground to increase vertical decent.

Memento Mori