Beating Sky Diving Accidents

Sky diving certainly has one sharp edge. Free falling at the height of 4,000 ft is no cheap thrill. Dropping at the speed of about 320 mph is more than a daunting experience; so much that there would be some that avoid the sport over its too comprehensible extreme activity.

But sky diving is only extreme on pen and paper, its actual experience is really somewhat mild. In fact, sky diving accidents are rare. When they do happen, it is mostly under a fully functioning canopy over better circumstances: good weather, ample visibility, the absence of renegade drafts. Malfunctioning equipment is almost nonexistent. Mostly, it accounts for human error, and this is where most sky diving accidents happen.

Take for instance, the recent ill fated sky diving accident of Paul Moran, a member of the Flying Elvi Skydiving Troupe in Las Vegas. After landing hard on a cemented parking around 50 mph, he suffered a broken pelvis and several internal injuries which he later would succumb. Perfect conditions and perfect equipment, but Paul Moran misjudged his landing timing, descending too fast over a too hard surface. Paul Moran loved sky diving and his friends had confided that he knew (and enjoyed) what he was doing. He was 52 and been doing sky diving for the Flying Elvi Troupe for over 13 years.

All this to say that sky diving still offers the best experience of all extreme sports. It is never a death defying sport, if truth be told it is way safer than most other types of extreme sport. Sky diving equipment rarely ever goes wrong and weather conditions seldom are the cause of sky diving accidents. Its only real enemy is human error. That’s why it’s often an irony to think that most sky diving accidents happen to experienced jumpers, like Paul Moran.

Don’t deny yourself this treat but don’t be a victim of miscalculation. For a cue, Don Kellner has made a world record of 36,000 sky dives. There are several ways on beating sky diving accidents, and remember it well enough for you to be able to enumerate them whenever you’re freefalling at 4,000 ft. That is too:

1 Pull, 2 Pull at the proper altitude, 3 and pull in one firm motion

Beginner jumpers should jump on tandem with instructors, for several reasons: to gain familiarity with the experience, to know exactly what cord to pull, when to pull and just a rundown of the experience. After which the beginner might opt for a more tandem or decide to jump on his own. Remember, the second chute is designed to activate in case the jumper failed to activate the main chute.