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waltappel
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Priorities: Gear vs. Bodily Injury
From another thread:

460 wrote:
waltappel wrote:
samadhi wrote:
is that a non-rated skydiving helmet or an actual helmet???

edit - nm found that it is...looks like a bike helmet that it is supposed to crack on impact. good idea to wear it!

i want to hear the story too heh

BTW, my choice was a multi-impact helmet. The choice was based on the assumption that I would have to buy a new helmet after a single impact incident. Fortunately I have not had any impacts to the type of helmet has been a moot point.
Walt

That's about as dumb as saying that despite your broken leg, you didn't get your canopy wet. If you get a concussion with a helmet that would have performed better if it had cracked would require me to take the helmet off your unconscious ass and destroy your helmet.

460 is referring to an incident at Bridge Day when I landed hard on the rocks and banged myself up pretty good. No serious injury, but I was walking with a cane for a while afterward.

460 and I had known each other for a few years and had jumped together. He asked me what happened and part of my answer was something to the tune of, "At least I didn't get my gear wet". I said it jokingly but the reality was (and still is) that I'm a gear junkie. Gear saves my life and I get attached to it.

His response was immediate and to the point: "Next time you do something stupid like that I'm going to take your gear and throw it in the water."

He wasn't joking.

His point was that gear, no matter how expensive or pristine, is expendable.

To expound on that a little:

* If you are doing a jump with a possible water landing, use gear that you are willing to get wet.

* If you are doing an illegal jump, use gear you are willing to get confiscated.

* If you are jumping with 460 and you get hurt because you were unwilling to sacrifice your gear, don't expect any sympathy at all.

I thought 460 was being a bit of a dick at the time, but later realized he was doing the right thing.

Regarding my helmet choice, I did not get it for BASE jumping and would not use it for BASE.

460's lesson is one worth learning and passing on to others.

BTW, 460, I probably should have been a bit of a dick and dragged you out to the DZ to work on some canopy skills. Might have saved you some agony. Never occurred to me until after you got hurt, though.

Walt
460
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Re: [waltappel] Priorities: Gear vs. Bodily Injury
waltappel wrote:
From another thread:

460 wrote:
waltappel wrote:
samadhi wrote:
is that a non-rated skydiving helmet or an actual helmet???

edit - nm found that it is...looks like a bike helmet that it is supposed to crack on impact. good idea to wear it!

i want to hear the story too heh

BTW, my choice was a multi-impact helmet. The choice was based on the assumption that I would have to buy a new helmet after a single impact incident. Fortunately I have not had any impacts to the type of helmet has been a moot point.
Walt

That's about as dumb as saying that despite your broken leg, you didn't get your canopy wet. If you get a concussion with a helmet that would have performed better if it had cracked would require me to take the helmet off your unconscious ass and destroy your helmet.

460 is referring to an incident at Bridge Day when I landed hard on the rocks and banged myself up pretty good. No serious injury, but I was walking with a cane for a while afterward.

460 and I had known each other for a few years and had jumped together. He asked me what happened and part of my answer was something to the tune of, "At least I didn't get my gear wet". I said it jokingly but the reality was (and still is) that I'm a gear junkie. Gear saves my life and I get attached to it.

His response was immediate and to the point: "Next time you do something stupid like that I'm going to take your gear and throw it in the water."

He wasn't joking.

His point was that gear, no matter how expensive or
BTW, 460, I probably should have been a bit of a dick and dragged you out to the DZ to work on some canopy skills. Might have saved you some agony. Never occurred to me until after you got hurt, though.

Walt

Yeah, I agree. Tell me if I don't do it that you are going to help when I get out of the hospital by putting my pain medication out of my reach.
yuri_base
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Re: [waltappel] Priorities: Gear vs. Bodily Injury
I got a bit different understanding of what 460 is saying and especially these his words: "If you get a concussion with a helmet that would have performed better if it had cracked would require me to take the helmet off your unconscious ass and destroy your helmet."

I think he's saying, "Always use your best equipment you got, on every jump. If you get injured jumping a so-so gear, while jumping the "supreme" gear would have made a difference, would require me to destroy your so-so gear so you don't jump it again."

Take Yosemite protest fatality, for example. She was willing to have gear confiscated, and that gear killed her. Should she have used the supreme gear, she'd be alive, the lost gear would be replaced with new, even better one, and maybe even NPS vs BASE history would be quite different now.

Or take some ordinary Bridge Day jump. Jump something worn out that you don't mind getting wet. Crap! several frayed lines broke on opening, sending the jumper into uncontrollable spin, hitting a big rock below at high speed and dying. Should he have jumped the new rig he set aside for that dream trip to Europe, he'd be alive and make his dreams come true. Hypothetically speaking.

So, here's an alternative interpretation of 460's destructive appetite for improper gear:

* If you are doing a jump with a possible water landing, use your best gear.

* If you are doing an illegal jump, use your best gear.

* If you are jumping with 460 and you get hurt because you were unwilling to sacrifice your best gear, don't expect any sympathy at all.

Just brainstorming here. Wink
GreenMachine
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Gear Over Safety
Bridge Day 2011

Hate to admit this... but on my 3rd and final jump
of the day I decided to land dry because I forgot
to put the waterproof back on 1 of my 2 GoPro's Unsure
460
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Re: [yuri_base] Priorities: Gear vs. Bodily Injury
yuri_base wrote:
I got a bit different understanding of what 460 is saying and especially these his words: "If you get a concussion with a helmet that would have performed better if it had cracked would require me to take the helmet off your unconscious ass and destroy your helmet."

I think he's saying, "Always use your best equipment you got, on every jump. If you get injured jumping a so-so gear, while jumping the "supreme" gear would have made a difference, would require me to destroy your so-so gear so you don't jump it again."

Take Yosemite protest fatality, for example. She was willing to have gear confiscated, and that gear killed her. Should she have used the supreme gear, she'd be alive, the lost gear would be replaced with new, even better one, and maybe even NPS vs BASE history would be quite different now.

Or take some ordinary Bridge Day jump. Jump something worn out that you don't mind getting wet. Crap! several frayed lines broke on opening, sending the jumper into uncontrollable spin, hitting a big rock below at high speed and dying. Should he have jumped the new rig he set aside for that dream trip to Europe, he'd be alive and make his dreams come true. Hypothetically speaking.

So, here's an alternative interpretation of 460's destructive appetite for improper gear:

* If you are doing a jump with a possible water landing, use your best gear.

* If you are doing an illegal jump, use your best gear.

* If you are jumping with 460 and you get hurt because you were unwilling to sacrifice your best gear, don't expect any sympathy at all.

Just brainstorming here. Wink

You understand.

Gear is expendable. If your are going to BASE jump, realize this. There was a neat movie called Brazil and at the end they were torturing the main character of the film and they said "Confess or otherwise you will jeopardize your credit rating." Man, I'd rather be a healthy homeless man than a rich paralyzed man.
pocbase
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Re: [GreenMachine] Gear Over Safety
In reply to:
Hate to admit this... but on my 3rd and final jump
of the day I decided to land dry because I forgot
to put the waterproof back on 1 of my 2 GoPro's

Hey I opted not to jump in pristine conditions after having had an argument with my wife, left my cell phone in the car and having had a snake have a go at me on the walk up. Which one of us 2 is worse Wink

On the serious side, Yuri has some very good points.
... Although I still find the fashion first safety third philosophy seducing...
dride
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Re: [yuri_base] Priorities: Gear vs. Bodily Injury
+1 EXCELLENT post, could not agree more!!

Alway remember that a parachute drys much, much faster than a femer with a titanium rod in it heals.