how long do you wait after pulling?

[andy2 0]

I am pounding into my head these emergency procedures my instructor is feeding me, but this question just popped into my head and rather wait and ask my instructor and likely forget, I'll ask here. How long do you usually wait when you pull to check if something is wrong? Do you look over your shoulder and try to see if PC is trailing, still in bag, etc? Or is it kind of a blind thing, i.e. if youre not getting that "under the canopy" feel and youre still at terminal you obviously know nothing is out and then go to emergency procedure? Are there any types of mals that delay say 2-3 seconds then deploy perfectly? This is what I'm afraid of, having a mal like this and just impulsively cutting away and pulling reserve. Also with line twists, I'm afraid my first BIG line twist that I could probably save I will freak out on adrenaline and cut and pull reserve. Is there any good way to train yourself on how to recognize mals? (I know what to do obviously, I'm just unsure on my skills at recognizing a deadly mal vs a salvagable canopy i.e. moderate line twists, pc hesitation, etc).

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[voodew1 0]

Jumping student gear you should have been told PULL count 1..2..3.. look over your shoulder and make sure pilot chute is not in your burble. You should be fully or almost fully standing up by the count of three under an inflating canopy. Look up and check canopy---look for other canopies, controllability check followed by locating the DZ and landing. I wouldn't look up or over your shoulder til at least the count of three as the opening shock can hurt your neck!

The pimp hand is powdered up ... say something stupid

[RichM 0]

Your profile says you have 2 jumps - at this stage you wait the instructed amount of time (our students count off 5 seconds) and if after this time you don't have a good parachute above your head, then you have a malfunctioning parachute and you execute your emergency procedures.

After several hundred jumps and possibly some real reserve rides you may feel that you have the skills and experience to assess a high stress malfunction situation in more detail. But not at this stage in your skydiving career. It's way too easy to spend 10 seconds wondering if thats a pilot-chute hesitation or whatever - by which time it's may be too late for the reserve to open and save your ass.

Rich M

[skymick 0]

Yeah it is possible to have a 2-3 seconds delay then have the canopy deploy normally...On my first canopy I bought I did a hop n Pop but didnt realise that the kill line attached to the PC had shrunk over time...still ok for terminal deployments though. Anyway on that jump nothing happened for about 5 seconds (the PC was partially collapsed) before I felt the canopy begin to open (in hindsight technically I should of cutaway and gone for the reserve...I waited way too long )

[mustard 0]

Quote

Are there any types of mals that delay say 2-3 seconds then deploy perfectly? This is what I'm afraid of, having a mal like this and just impulsively cutting away and pulling reserve.

Absolutely. Once you get a lot of jumps under your belt, you get kind of used to the feeling of the bag coming off your back, and then sitting up, and then looking at what you've got overhead. But once in a while a lazy throw will result in *nothing happening* because you threw it into your burble. A couple of times this has happened to me, and I throw, then... nothing. Usually I think OMG and put my hands on my handles, which is enough to get me head down and my main deploys. This happens once you've got enough jumps to forget how important it is to throw that pilot chute like it's a live snake.

But then it deploys just like always. I find my adrenaline level to be high enough to have me almost unable to stand up because my knees are shaking when this happens, but then you don't do it again for hundreds or thousands of jumps...

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DJan

[Luna 0]

As they have been saying, you should definitely wait for the time you were given, and if nothing is above your head at that point (and you've looked back to make sure your burble is clear), then go to emergency procedures.

As far as being able to recognize a mal that is not salvageable vs. moderate line twists, trust yourself and your training. Basically, I know it sounds a little patronizing, but really, you will know the difference. I had a spinning mal on my 3rd AFF jump, and believe me, you will know that it's not salvageable.

As for line twists, you should have been given a hard deck (2500 feet) by which you should be clear of those twists (and of any other problem). If they are not out by then, you must cut it away. Your hard deck will lower as you get more experience, but for now that is a safe altitude by which all problems should be worked out and you should have a controllable canopy above you.

Good luck to you, and have fun!

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[stilettodude 0]

I believe Rich hit the " Nail on the Head". With you having 2 jumps you should wait the 3 or 5 sec that you have been instructed, and if no canopy then do your "E" procedures. With time you will learn how your canopy opens and what to expect from it. I always look over my shoulder and watch the deployment but i'm not sure how others handle this.
PHILIP GUY D-21881

"HOW LOW CAN YOU GO?"

[b1jercat 0]

Hi andy, I had a two to three second delay one time jumping a spring loaded main PC student rig while away from my home DZ. also had a buttload of line twists, I know I was stable and flat when I pulled, the PC lurked in my burble a little while and when I turned to look over my shoulder out it came, spanked me good. This was the first and last time I'll ever jump one of those rigs. blue skies
jerry





But I was going to tashe station to pick up some power converters

[beemertec 0]

Just my humble newbie opinion here, but Just listen to your instructors. I think I would rather cutaway and go to reserve if in doubt. Seems safer than possibly delaying too long trying to figure out what is going on. I was taught deploy, count 3 seconds, and look up. I generally look up when I feel my body swinging to vertical, because I was told I could induce a spin trying to look over my shoulder when I deployed. As for a long delay on opening, I had one last fall. Deployed at 4500 (new canopy to me and I wanted to play around). I counted to three and was still dropping fast but I was sitting in the harness so I thought that was what people meant when they said they packed for a long snivel. 3 more seconds go by and I looked up and saw a ball of crap. I reached for my handles and looked up so I could watch the cutaway (might not be a good idea, but I wanted to see it), and the canopy opened. I had line twists, but the canopy was flying straight. I had 6 or 7 full line twists, but I still had altitude so I kicked out of them. I had teh canopy landable by 2000 feet, and the landing was uneventful. When I got to the ground I asked everyone what they thought the problem may have been. They all said sometimes stuff happens. I thought I should have been scared, but it was actually invigorating. It felt good to know that I would not panic when a problem occurs. With my limited experience maybe I should have gone for the handles, but I wanted to fix the problem. The most important thing was I never lost altitude awareness, and had I not been able to land that canopy when I hit 2000 feet it would have been gone. Oh, and this is just a plug for not downsizing too fast. I was under a big and slow enough canopy for my skill level that I had time to correct the problem. Had I been under a smaller faster canopy I probably would have had to cutaway. That's not related to this thread but I think it is stiil important to note.
Damn, I'm long winded today.

Blue Skies
Steve
Ok, so it's pink, but I'm secure in my manhood, and I still look cool coming in under it!