~ wrote:Well if the chute don't open you may be together longer than you expected...
That is kind of weird that you should mention that. Just two weekends ago, I had my first "scare the hell out of you" experience (at least since I've been jumping solo.) I had my first "hard pull."
Don't know if you've ever jumped, but a sport parachute has a pilot chute that you throw out which catches the air and pulls the main chute. Typically, we exit the aircraft around 10,000 and pull around 3000' and under canopy about 2200' - 2500'. On my last jump of the day, my pilot chute felt like it was sewn to my container
. I had to pull like a mo'fo' to get that damn thing out. Imagine....about 120 mph, headed for the earth, you're already about 1000' PAST when your chute should have been deployed. I'm still very much a noob at jumping (only 117 jumps) so I'm REALLY puckering and starting to panic. Just a couple seconds away from pulling the reserve when the pilot finally popped out.
The main opened at about 1000' (talk about $hitting ones pants!) I ended up landing off the dropzone in this farmers front yard about 25' away from the guys new truck. He's out there, sees me coming out of the sky (obviously a bit out of control,) and waves at me just before I yard dart myself in his front lawn. He comes over to help me, laughing, and tells me he's just glad I didn't hit his roof, like a guy did last year, and gives me a ride back to the DZ. Pretty nice guy. We have a couple Farmer McNasty's around here that just cause us grief all the time.
I have had a couple of hard landings that have beaten me up a bit, but never that low of an opening (under stress.) Talkin' about a grown man about to cry! I do jump with a reserve, of course, but have never had to use it.
I want him to jump, but at the same time, he is an only child. You have to live life, but where do you draw the line for the kids (when it comes to life's adventures?)