"
Before I die, this is REALLY going to hurt!
"
January 1996
George Galloway
Precision Aerodynamics, Inc.
Dear George,
I was on jet load number one at the
World Freefall Convention in Quincy
last August doing a three way. The spot was
terribly long, so I decided to pull at 3000
feet. I reached for my pilot chute on my leg
strap and I threw it out. I waited for a few
seconds but when I realized nothing was happening,
I looked back and I saw the bridle flapping
in the wind. I reached again for my pilot
chute, but it was definately already out there.
I
assumed I had either a bag lock or a container
lock, so I pulled my RSL cutaway handle. (I
was trained on an SOS system which deployed
my reserve when I pulled the cutaway handle)
Of course, there was nothing out there to
cut away, but in my confused state I thought
I was experiencing a double malfunction!
In desperation I turned on my side and started
pulling at the bridle in an effort to get
something over my head. I was still plenty
high and I was going to have a long time to
ponder my predicament.
I
knew I was going to bounce, and I had resigned
myself to death, but strangely enough at this
time all I could think of was "before
I die, this is really going to hurt!"
All of these things were racing through my
mind when all of a sudden my long forgotten
Cypres fired and I instantly had the most
beautiful Raven 2 over my head.
I
was going downwind very fast, but I grabbed
the toggles and turned back into the wind
just as I landed.
At
my feet was my main canopy, still in the bag
with the lines deployed to the second stow.
My Cypres and my Raven
2 had intervened to give me the chance
to live and jump again.
Thank
You!
Robert
A. Waspe
Alexandria, VA
