🚀 go-pugleaf

>: : I was talking to a guy at the DZ last week about who's at fault in an
>: : canopy/jumper collision at pull time.  His position was, "the low man
>: : has the right of way, so it's the high guy's fault".  I say, "O.K.,
>: : but why did the low guy pull into the high guy's face?"
>: 
>: I'd say that the low person has the right of way since they have less 
>: visibility and less altitude in which to maneuver than the high person.
>: The question of fault may not involve the right-of-way in some
>: circumstances.
>
>I'd like to add, that although fundamentally, the low person has the
>right of way, he/she also has responsibilities.  For instance, pulling
>at 5k after your dive plan called for a 2k opening is bad whether you
>are low-man or not.
>

Yes, death doesn't care whose fault it is!  I was on a four way once,
and we (as a group) decided on a 4k breakoff. Two of the members
thought this was "too high", but agreed to it. At breakoff, one of them
decided it was "play-time" and started into his own little freestyle
routine. The rest of us turned 180 and tracked. He sunk about 100 ft
below us, apparerantly became disoriented, and tracked right under
me. I was trying to fly out of his airspace, when I saw nylon coming 
my way.  You feel like you're being sucked into the burble of the 
opening canopy! The air over an opening canopy feels real funny,
and I don't care to ever feel it again!  I didn't want to deploy,
because then I'm totally
out of control, and I could easily snivel that extra 100 ft into him.
I ended up screaming by his canopy about 50 or 100 ft to his side. 

Now he was the low jumper, but he was TOTALLY at fault. Breakoff is
NOT play time. You get 6-9000 feet for fun, and 4000 to be serious so
you can live and do it again. Same thing under canopy- stay the hell away
from me when we're under canopy-  if you wanna do CRW w/ me, lets do
it starting at 10000, and PLAN it!!!!

"Hey now, let's be careful out there"  (anybody remember who said this?:^)

-Eric