Friday Freakout: Failed Beach Jump, Skydiver's Sketchy Landing On Residential Street

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WHAT HAPPENED

So this newish jumper was SUPER excited to do his first (*beer*) beach jump! However, after he pulled, he saw another jumper cutaway, and — we'll get to chastising him for this later — tried to chase it inland. After, he knew he wouldn't make it back to the beach so he tried to find the best option possible, which he decided was was a tiny sliver of road with power lines running alongside it. He miraculously managed to get there but as he popped out from some trees he let up on his brakes, resulting in a firm slap by the ground and, at a minimum, probably a solid case of road rash... "he messed up and as a result, in his words:

"I still haven't done a beach jump." LOL


WHY DID IT HAPPEN

He Chased a Canopy!

Look — as callous as this sounds — when your buddy chops, that's their problem, not yours. You still have a responsibility to get your own butt to the ground and you still have a responsibility to those around you to fly in a safe and predictable manner. To be blunt, your friend is either going to be okay... or they're not... but NOTHING you do under canopy is going to change that, and by failing to pay attention to your surroundings, you're only increasing the likelihood that you, or another jumper, will wind up in danger as well.


HOW COULD IT BE PREVENTED

Focus on YOUR Jump

On every jump, there is going to be a lot happening around you. First off, if you've only got 150 jumps like this guy, your idiot friends are going to try to kill you. And that's just the start of it! At the end of the day, you need to remember that your first priority is your own safety and that under canopy your primary responsibilities are setting yourself up for a safe landing and flying in a manner which will, therefore, keep those around you safe as well.

(Also, in pursuit of full transparency, this writer is totally guilty of messing this up; if you see me in person ask me about my dirty low pull at Raeford where I failed Altitidue-Awareness-101 because I was jumping with someone I had a huge crush on and was too busy smiling at her!)



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