Sat Where evrything could of gone wrong.....

Please tell what happened and how it might have been avoided. Names should be ommitted. This forum should help others learn from mistakes that caused or nearly caused a mishap.
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Fast Eddy
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Jun 30, 2011 7:59 am

Sat Where evrything could of gone wrong.....

Post by Fast Eddy »

1 it was a great day to be flying and due to several MISTAKES on my BEHALF, it could of been a disasterious day!~!

1 glider set up improperly
2 harness not put on right.
Hang chekc went right and all seemed right when I reached down to touch my leg loops buckles. They were there.
3 switchy at launch, always remember to run to the end of it. I did and my feet took 2 extra steps at the bottom of the ramp stepping on the boards as I left the ground a second time. [b]Any newer people remember that!~![/b]
4 I am a experienced pilot who should of [b]not made these errors[/b] in the first place. Let alone what was to come. I had planed on racing around with dave teal and seeing if I can get him up to speed for XC.... He had problems and as we talked durning his set up I told him to STOP EVERYTHING. and to start over on his set up and relax.

I twist up the strings on the glider I was flying to tighten the sail a bit more. I DID not notice one was not right. Hooked to batten but not right..The glider had a substantial left turn in it. Nothing I could not manage while flying prone. Or on the down tubes Up behind the bridge. WHERE I had come simi out of the harness and got on the tubes [b]to KNOW MY OPTIONs [/b]
I have one of the original Moyes Contour harness I am flying. I never properly got the leg loops out and connected to my harness. I set my launch postion in a head down and forward postion so It is where I want to be untill I am fully in the harness and can activate the pitch system etc...
Once out and flying I was not able to zip up I had fallen so far down into the harness. Clue 1 toes were packed into the bottom corner of harness.
Clue 2 If I am not in the harness right I can not zip up past my knees dou to the tightness.
Waiting for someone to land out ahead of me I am thinking of my list of landing option. I came up with a LONG LIST.
Normal approach one leg out land. drop glider to ground...
Normal approach land with both legs in the harness,.
Normal approach and land on the down tubes LOW to the ground with a heal in the zipper. (Break ZAIPPER not body) Other leg out. Hop once and then get other foot out and I am down running with glider...
This list has more but the last one was Just Make it on the grass no matter what and [b]Break the GLIDER.... NOT ME!~! [/b]
Flew over Fred in the L Z yelled down the issues in a lot of sink. My list was shrinking fast as I made the turn into the wash Low. Had and maintained GOOD SPEED still prone. Sink alarm in my vario is 600 ft and it was going off all the way till Almost impact.
Last minute turn left just past the streamer to level the gilder off. ALL f list gone. Fly at the bank bar in I pushed out climbed over the bank and up into/onto the grass. Glider turns left and is almost into the wind and
IMPACT!~! Not much flare from the base tube prone. Since I was not laying not that head up.
Both down tubes did a compression failure. Glider did not nose over. Joe greblo was there with helpers in seconds. THANK YOU one and all for your Help on my series of STUPIDITY and BAD judments and plan of attack...
New D T's and glider inspection in L Z... I am doing very well this morning with a tiny bit of soreness in my neck. :oops:
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gregangsten
Posts: 502
Joined: Thu Jun 02, 2005 11:22 am
Location: Westchester

Missing leg loops

Post by gregangsten »

To join you in the confessional and add some additional food for thought, I will add my experiences. I have managed to fly without my leg loops buckled on two different occasions at two different sites. Learning to fly with Betty Pfeiffer's idiot-proof leg loops makes an idiot vulnerable when he switches to a new harness. Both times it was immediately clear once the glider lifted at launch but it was too late to stop. I was hanging very low but not in immediate danger of slipping out of the harness. I managed to get my feet into the harness and push myself up into a more reasonable position to fly. I kept my feet in there until I was on final and had rounded out over the ground. Both times I was able to run out the landing without damage.
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Ken Andrews
Site Admin
Posts: 215
Joined: Mon Jun 06, 2005 8:22 pm
Location: Pasadena

Wheels are good!

Post by Ken Andrews »

May I humbly suggest flying with wheels? They often provide good solutions to bad situations. Wheels are also cheaper than downtubes.
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dhmartens
Posts: 938
Joined: Sun Dec 03, 2006 11:36 am
Location: Reseda

Post by dhmartens »

My harness uses sheepskin coated leg loops. Getting in your harness is a memorable experience each time.

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