Re: [GreenMachine] Ever trip on exit?
when I visited POC, a friend had found an antenna at a major construction site. the place was littered with cranes, and security.
as POC missed the first night, the 3 of us did a total of 5 jumps there. in those 5 jumps, 2 times someone got stupid and fortunately avoided serious injury, and 1 time someone got nabbed by security.
so on the fist night, the friend and I hid in the shadows, trenches, etc. it felt like we were playing war, using hand signals and such, moving only when security patrols permitted.
the target crane sat there beautiful. the winds were calm and the arm of the crane extended right toward the golf course on the other side of the construction fence. everything looked spot on.
the weight side of the crane had a nice broad decking. it was a great place to simply hang out and look at the city. just a gorgeous evening. I had heard of cranes being greasy, nasty affairs, but this one was clean. we felt like kings surveying our domain and in no hurry to jump.
eventually, we started gearing up. that's when our friend looked up at me and said, "do you feel that?" the wind had kicked up a bit. not much really, but enough to pivot the crane. now the boom arm ran parallel to the fence, not toward it.
we became concerned that the landing area under the boom arm was rough, poorly lit, and inside the fence. (no one had yet jumped this crane either. everything decision was based on a "best guess" rather than experience with the site.) we also felt a need to jump before something else turned sour.
somehow, we convinced ourselves that the best option would be to continue climbing the mast up until the real tiny crows nest on the top. a good shove would clear the cab no problem. the extra height would help us clear the fence.
on the climb, we noticed a real nasty thing jutting out, below the crows nest. if we cleared that in the launch, everything would be golden.
the friend was willing to freefall, so I happily accepted a PCA. the space in the crows nest was the sort of "2 man" that gets advertised regarding tents. 2 people really must enjoy each other's company. it made getting him prepared to PCA and me climbing out a serious challenge.
needless to say, I slipped while climbing out. visions of that projection just below seriously motivated me to maintain a solid grip on the rail. the fat, lazy american swung dangling above a certain hospital visit in a developing country. good times!
of course, my friend was next to useless. he realized he needed to maintain the PCA, just in case (thankfully). I found a way to climb back up, grabbing the top rail with one hand, and the opposite top rail with the other. (the basket was very narrow.)
I stood there in one of the most uncomfortable, awkward stances imaginable. I sensed attempting to climb back in would get ugly, and remaining there just would provoke fatigue. jumping clearly seemed the best, and safest option. all I had to do was get a clean launch passed the obstruction, when I was twisted like a pretzel.
I asked my friend if he was ready. he had that "your crazy" look in his eye as he nodded. I quickly launched out, knowing nothing good would come from the meekest hesitation. I had a beautiful opening and easily glided to the golf course.
my friend later commented on the gorgeous launch into perfect form (his words, not mine). I shrugged and told him that I had to, and having hung off airplanes to shoot videos probably helped.
and then we realized where we SHOULD have exited...
tripped? not yet.
slipped? you bet.
