Not your day to die, evidently
Morten Pedersen, a local DeLand videographer had a bit of a shitty day at work recently. Or a really good day, depending on how you look at it. After an uneventful tandem video, he deploys his Velocity 103 main and encounters a brake fire. The canopy spins up and Morten cuts away. The main canopy takes off with the SkyHook and as you can see in the video the freebag/reserve pilot chute are thrown around wildly. The red SkyHook lanyard breaks and once the reserve canopy is clear, Morten works hard to get an inflated reserve over his head.
Mission accomplished about 150 ft off the ground – aims for the nearest available clear area and flare…. In this case a little extra altitude at the top definitely saved the day and the big sigh at the end of the video says it all. Well done Morten – a good reminder to all of us to never stop fighting.
This incident has promoted some discussion about the use of a SkyHook with high performance main canopies such as the Velocity. Morten has shared his footage with the manufacturers and they will review it closely to see what can be learned from this incident. For a bit of background, Morten has been in the sport for more years than we care to count and has extensive experience behind him in almost every facet of jumping. He was jumping a SkyHook equipped Sun Path Javelin, a Velocity 103 and an Optimum 126.
We would love to hear your thoughts on the topic in the comments or on Facebook, especially if you are one of those high performance pilots.
Photo by Yell Saccani
Fatality in Ft. Morgan, CO – Brady Kane
27 year old Brady Kane died May 7th Fort Morgan Skydiving, CO, after impacting the ground hard following a low turn. This was Brady’s 4th jump of the day and equipment is not believed to be a factor.
Brady was an experienced canopy pilot with over 5000 jumps and well known on the swooping scene. He was a Colorado native and thus very familiar with the challenges of jumping and swooping at altitude.
Swooping is an unforgiving sport with a small margin for error. Even a small mistake may have serious consequences. Those planning to swoop would be well advised to find themselves a qualified coach and take small steps in their progression – be safe out there, kids.
Blue Skies Brady – and our deepest condolences to Brady’s friends and family.
Memorial service is scheduled for Thursday May 12th, at the Boulder Theater in Boulder, CO. Reception will be held directly following the memorial at Mile Hi Skydiving Center, Longmont, CO.
Fatality at Skydive Palatka
Just after noon on Saturday April 28th, Frank Keen, a veteran skydiver with about 2000 died following an accident at Skydive Palatka, operating at Kay Larking Airport in Palatka, FL. Several news reports claim that Frank’s canopy did not open. As customary, investigation is undergoing to determine what may have been the cause of the accident.
Frank was 67 years old and a long time jumper at Palatka. This weekend several of the old school jumpers had gathered at Palatka for a few jumps and reminiscing about days gone by – true to the motto of “the older you are, the better you were”.
The Palatka family is a tight knit one and we send our sincerest condolences to all of Franks family and friends.
Update: Memorial Service is planned for Tuesday May 3rd, 2011 at the Peniel Baptist Church, Silver Lake Drive, Palatka, FL. All who would like to remember Frank are welcome to attend.
Fatality at a Perris Big-Way
On February 27 a jumper participating in a 40-way sequentials at Perris Valley, CA died impacting the ground following a low cutaway from a malfunctioning main canopy. Nicole Hannan, native of Australia, was an experienced skydiver with considerable big-way experience. She was observed falling in a stable belly-to-earth position after the cutaway, turning slightly. It is not known why Nicole cut away so low (witnesses on the ground estimated the cutaway at 400-500 ft) or did not deploy her reserve.
Our condolences to all of Nicole’s friends and family.
Swoopette Dies at Mile-Hi, CO
This past weekend Emily Berkeley passed away in a Denver hospital from extensive injuries sustained during a swoop landing after a hop & pop at Mile-Hi Skydiving in Longmont, CO.
This was Emily’s third jump of the day and she is reported to have been working on her swooping with an instructor. On her final jump, the turn was simply too low to allow for recovery.
Emily was a current jumper that held several certifications, including both AFF and PRO ratings and was a local jumper at Mile-Hi.
A memorial service is scheduled at Mile-Hi on December 23rd, 3:00-6:00 PM.
Our condolences to all of Emily’s friends and family.
Help Needed for Steve Helffrich
From our friend Duane Palmer in Tennessee,
“Please meet Jennifer & Steve Helffrich…
 Jennifer & Steve Helffrich |
 Jennifer, Steve & Friends |
 Steve as Tandem Master |
On Saturday, April 10, 2010, during a normal skydive, Steve experienced a double malfunction (failure of both the main and reserve parachutes to fully deploy and/or inflate) and was flown via Life Flight to the only trauma center within 150 miles, Regional Medical Center (also known as ‘The Med’) in Memphis, Tennessee.
Steve sustained multiple life threatening injuries including damage to his aorta (the most serious of his injuries), punctured/deflated left lung, dislocated/broken right hip, and broken ribs on the right side (#5 thru #9).
Since being admitted into the trauma ICU, Steve has undergone several surgeries including vascular surgery to repair his aorta, the insertion of 6 chest tubes total, as well as surgery last week to remove excess fluid and infection surrounding his left lung.
Known by many as the “Mom and Dad” of the drop zone, Jen & Steve are always doing kind things for others while expecting nothing in return. Most of us that skydive with them spend every weekend sharing our passion for the sport and the amazing friendships that have been established. To a majority of us, they are our extended family. Jen & Steve are both amazing skydivers, coaches, and most of all, friends – sharing this zest for life with anyone and everyone that will listen to them speak about the sport.
In this time of need, those of us that are friends, family, acquaintances, and those that will never “jump out of a perfectly good airplane,” have the opportunity to show them our support – whether it be through well wishes, cards, private prayer/church prayer lists, and/or donations.
Thankfully, Jen & Steve have insurance but with an accident of this severity, there are numerous additional incurred bills/daily hardships. In order to show support, the Helffrich Benefit Fund has been established through First Tennessee Bank.
There are 3 options of how you can donate to this Fund:
#1: Visit ANY First Tennessee Bank branch with the following account information:
Helffrich Benefit Fund (Account #182355531)
** NOTE: To find the closest First Tennessee Bank location to you, CLICK HERE **
#2: Visit https://public.serviceu.com/payment/default.asp?OrgID=12725&PaymentID=7920
Enter contact information & banking information
(Check #/Checking Account Number/Routing Number)
** NOTE: This payment option is through David P. Smith’s Company, ServiceU Corporation, whose business is processing secure online transactions. **
#3: If you are unable to visit a First Tennessee Bank location, do not have a branch in your area and/or do not wish to donate online, a check made out to Helffrich Benefit Fund can be sent to:
David P. Smith
1154 Talamore Cove
Collierville, TN 38017
Should you wish to send a card to Jen & Steve, please address them to:
David P. Smith
Attn: Helffrich Family
1154 Talamore Cove
Collierville, TN 38017″
Current Update: He finally made it home last week. As it turned out he was really, really lucky!! It was really touch and go for a while there. He is now up and able to move around to a degree with a walker. And is very positive about life!!
But the running tally was 3 surgeries, 9 chest tubes (at different times), 31 days in ICU, 1 night in a regular room, 2 nights in Trauma Step Down ICU, countless x-rays and CT’s, a stent in the aorta, a trach, several broken bones all healing and about 35 lbs dropped. Plus 2 weeks in an rehab center.
The family could still use the financial help until he is able to get back up and to work. Any help would be great!!
He actually was able to get up and made it out to the DZ last weekend (didn’t jump naturally, but his wife got in a couple). The incident didn’t scare him away from the sport in the least. I think that he will be more involved now than ever. In training, coaching and teaching safety!! I can’t wait until he is able to be back in the air with us…
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