Did he really say this? Skydiver in tree

[labrys 0]

http://www.robesonian.com/articles/2004/02/10/news/news/story01.txt

Quote

Skydiver misses mark, sticks in tree

By Matt Elofson - Staff writer
PARKTON - Despite spending part of his Sunday afternoon dangling 80 feet in the air after his parachute snagged in a tree near Parkton, Ross Davenport wasn't scared.

Instead, he was thinking about what plans he might have that night.

"But I wanted to get out of that tree first," he said.

Davenport, 23, of Raleigh, jumped from a DeHavilland Twin Otter airplane from 14,000 feet at about 4 p.m. and missed his landing spot. He was diving with a group from The Skydiving Place, a skydiving school in Parkton.

Jerry Hall, a volunteer firefighter in Fayetteville and owner of a tree removal service, climbed the tree and set up a rope and pulley system to lower Davenport to the ground, said Roger Taylor, the commander of the Lumberton Rescue Squad.

The Parkton Volunteer Fire Depart-ment, St. Pauls First Responder Unit and the Lumberton Rescue Squad helped with the rescue.

After he was safely on the ground, Davenport took the blame for landing in the tree. He said it's the first time in the five years he's been skydiving that he's landed in a tree.

"It was actually funny, because I spent two hours in a tree with my friends all watching me and laughing," he said.

John Hayes, the owner of the skydiving school, said students are trained to avoid all obstacles. He said it's the first time someone has landed in a tree in the diving school's two-year existence.

"He just flew over the trees too long and didn't have enough time to get away," Hayes said. "Once you hit about 1,000 feet, you're not supposed to be over anything you don't want to land on."

Although he's been jumping for a few years, Sunday was Davenport's first jump in about a year, Hayes said.

"He probably could have climbed down, but I told him to wait and not risk falling," Hayes said.

Davenport, who makes a living as a scuba diver, says he's ready to jump again Thursday or Friday. He said he missed the open field drop zone by about 100 yards after he lost his sense of direction when the winds shifted. Davenport said he was skydiving with about eight other people, but he jumped by himself. He said he didn't have anybody to talk him down to the ground because the radio connected to the parachute rig didn't work.

"I could've probably hurt myself, but I followed the safety procedures - I saw the tree and used the brakes on my parachute," Davenport said. "Most people don't realize it's more dangerous to drive to the drop zone than it is to jump out of a plane.

"Every time you're back on the ground with a smile on your face, it's a successful jump."

Now please... I know I have jack sh%t experience... but the first thing I thought when I read this was that I hope that he didn't really say "Most people don't realize it's more dangerous to drive to the drop zone than it is to jump out of a plane."

Edited because I always edit:

I don't mean to disrespect this guy... I hope the press made this up.

Owned by Remi #?

[billvon 2,989]

>I really hope that he didn't really say "Most people don't realize it's
> more dangerous to drive to the drop zone than it is to jump out of a plane."


There are plenty of people right here on DZ.com who think that.

[elfanie 0]

Quote

>I really hope that he didn't really say "Most people don't realize it's
> more dangerous to drive to the drop zone than it is to jump out of a plane."


There are plenty of people right here on DZ.com who think that.

There are plenty of dropzone websites that say that very same thing, too.

--------------------------------------------
Elfanie
My Skydiving Page
Fly Safe - Soft Landings

[labrys 0]

Quote

There are plenty of dropzone websites that say that very same thing, too.

Links?

Owned by Remi #?

[billvon 2,989]

>Links?

http://www.timesrepublican.com/News_Archive/2001/July/31/31.html#4

http://www.svcn.com/archives/saratoganews/10.06.99/cover-9940.html

[labrys 0]

These aren't DZ websites..... and it still feels wrong. Just wrong.

Edited just because I can. Billvon - I'm not trying to argue. I just fail to understand the logic behing that statement.

Owned by Remi #?

[Nightingale 0]

here ya go!

http://www.inform.umd.edu/Student/Campus_Activities/StudentOrg/cpsc/FAQ.html

http://www.skydivenewport.com/faq.htm#safe

http://www.skydivemadera.com/faq.htm

http://playadelcarmeninfo.com/playa-del-carmen-info-skydiving.html

[labrys 0]

Ok, thanks. Umm.... I didn't think there would be actual DZ websites that said that driving was more dangerous. I'm still not sure I believe it, though. I'll shut up now.

Owned by Remi #?

[billvon 2,989]

>These aren't DZ websites..... and it still feels wrong. Just wrong.

Oh, sorry. Misread your post. Nevertheless, a lot of people believe that. Check out this thread: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/forum/gforum.cgi?do=post_view_flat;post=88764;page=1;mh=-1;;sb=post_latest_reply;so=ASC

Rhino: "The most dangerous part of skydiving is driving to the dropzone."

Cruzit: "Remember, statistically speaking, you have a much better chance of being injured or killed in a car accident on the way to the DZ."

Dutchboy: "Show them the statistics on skydiving. It really is safer than driving a car."

[labrys 0]

Ok, I lied, I won't shut up now. Isn't this the same as saying that you have a pretty good chance of getting killed every time you get in your car? I drive about 50,000 miles a year for work and I've never felt the instinctual fear I feel when skydiving. Am I just not getting it? Is instinct just tricking me?

Owned by Remi #?

[flyinghuntster 0]

What part of the DZ was the tree? I was heading south on I-95 when there was a lone jumper on the east side of the field. I'll have to stop by and say hi on one of my trips to Norfolk,Va.

[base698 14]

Yes he said that... Would you rather see: Death seeking crazy person hits tree. "Quote skydiving is super dangerous and I almost died due to canopy collapsing, hell it was lucky the parachute even opened".

[velo90 0]

Just because he said it, it does not mean he believes it.
Sadly though, there are a number of skydivers that think driving is more dangerous than skydiving.

[Spike 0]

I wouldn't claim that driving is more dangerous than skydiving, but as I type I have a jumping friend in hospital who crashed her car driving to the DZ Friday 6th. Broken ribs, pelvis, hand, and multiple suspected fractures.

I'm more open minded about the risks involved with motorcycling.

And I'd definitely say that to achieve the same level of buzz from driving/motorcycling as I do from skydiving, then for me the risks become comparatively similar. By that I mean that I have to drive like a lunatic (and hence increase the chance of crashing), to get the same level of excitement.

I stopped riding my motorcycle when I started skydiving. Skydiving is a less antisocial way to get an even higher buzz.

But back to the point, I do have a friend in hospital from driving to the DZ right now.

[base698 14]

He's new and I advised him to be extrodinarily careful about what to say.

[mwabd1 0]

If you live in florida, land of the BLUE HAIR, it is more dangerous to drive to the d.z. than it is to jump!!!

[pullhigh 0]

You must not spend much time on I-95... It feels pretty dangerous to me. As far as what is more dangerous, I am of the opinion that I am much safer skydiving than driving to the DZ, and/or riding in the airplane. There are a lot of different factors that play into my thoughts, but when I'm in freefall, it is my world, and I control most of it.

Ganja "Sure to catch slack for this" Rodriguez

[councilman24 37]

Quote

....I've never felt the instinctual fear I feel when skydiving. Am I just not getting it? Is instinct just tricking me?

Yes!

Falling is an instinctive fear. Fear of heights is fear of falling. That's why many skydivers say they are afraid of ladders, etc but not skydiving. Skydiving you intend on falling. Or course it's all really a fear of the sudden stop.

You have no instinctive fear of having several vehilces weighing 1000's to 10's of 1000's of pounds traveling next to you at 70 miles an hour, or even better have a closing speed of 140 miles an hour and missing by 4 or 5 feet (two lane highway). A minor mistake by any of these strangers may ruin your day. I'm often amazed that more people aren't afraid to drive. Many (most?) nights you hear of someone killed in a car accident on the local news. You don't hear about the injuries. Every Monday there are reports from the weekend of the teenagers, or grandparents, or families killed on the roads. We've become inured to these report.

Imagine skydiving with 100 stangers doing beginning freeflying within 20 feet of each other. That's kind of what driving down the highway is like to most of us. Lack of control and knowledge of what the other idiot is going to do.

I'm old for my age.
Terry Urban
D-8631
FAA DPRE

[BlindBrick 0]

Quote

>I really hope that he didn't really say "Most people don't realize it's
> more dangerous to drive to the drop zone than it is to jump out of a plane."


There are plenty of people right here on DZ.com who think that.

When I started jumping, my vision was like 20:100 ish in my left eye and 20:80 ish in my right eye and the state was trying to take my liscense, so arguably the drive was the most dangeorus part for me.
-Blind

"If you end up in an alligator's jaws, naked, you probably did something to deserve it."

[billvon 2,989]

>You must not spend much time on I-95... It feels pretty dangerous to me.

Have you ever been injured by driving on I-95?

> As far as what is more dangerous, I am of the opinion that I am
> much safer skydiving than driving to the DZ, and/or riding in the
> airplane.

Do you have more injured/dead friends as a result of skydiving, or as a result of driving? For me it's about 20:1. In Thailand, we spent a lot of time racing through traffic in tuk-tuks, probably the most dangerous passenger vehicles in the world. No injuries from that. Skydiving injuries ranged from broken pelvis/face/coma to broken legs to dislocated shoulders to broken ribs. No fatalities, fortunately.

[The111 1]

He also said he's been jumping for 5 years but still had a radio on his rig?

And the DZO said don't fly over anything you wouldn't land on under 1000 ft?

www.WingsuitPhotos.com

[pullhigh 0]

I have never been injured driving or skydiving. As far as friends being injured, it's not really a fair comparison. Most skydiving injuries are self induced, ie. hook turns. Most of my friends don;t drive down I-95 at 80 miles an hour and yank the wheel to see if they can look really cool as they spin thier car around on the interstate.

Skydiving has inherent rsks, yes. But I do believe that just like anything else, it is as dangerous as you make it. No, it is not perfectly safe, nothing is.

Ganja "Hoping to remain injury free" Rodriguez

[pullhigh 0]

Quote

He also said he's been jumping for 5 years but still had a radio on his rig?

Not so uncommon, he hadn;t jumped in over year, it was, or should have been a re0currency jump I'm sure...

Quote

And the DZO said don't fly over anything you wouldn't land on under 1000 ft?

I tink that was taken a little out of context. I fly right over a dithc at 10 feet all te time, I wouldn;t want to land in it though. Although, it is funny to watch other's splash downs in it....

Ganja

[billvon 2,989]

>Most skydiving injuries are self induced, ie. hook turns.

Not really. I have several friends who were injured doing "hook turns" and most of them simply turned too low; they weren't trying to do high performance landings. They just couldn't fly the parachute well enough to avoid injury. Akin to a driver who gets into a skid on an icy road and can't recover.

>Most of my friends don;t drive down I-95 at 80 miles an hour . . .

You never speed?

>and yank the wheel to see if they can look really cool as they spin
> thier car around on the interstate.

Well, no one I know intentionally hooks at an altitude they know is too low to recover, either. They think they are going to be OK, and are until they hit the slightest bit of turbulence or have to avoid someone else. The equivalent would be a driver who swerves on a rainy road doing 50mph to avoid someone and does not know how to recover from the resulting skid.

(BTW if you've never intentionally done a skid I highly recommend doing one in a deserted parking lot.)

[bmcd308 0]

>In Thailand, we spent a lot of time racing through traffic in tuk-tuks, probably the most dangerous passenger vehicles in the world. <

I have done the same, and a friend of mine from Asia who lives in the US now said that most Asian countries, despite their "no wasted space in the yin-yang" appraoch to traffic, have motor vehicle fatality rates quite similar to those in the US. In the US, he said, we drive slower and inside the lines, but we make up for it by not paying attention to WTF we are doing.

Brent

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