instructors and other qualified pilot fiends

[Steve Davy]

Jim Gaar - 2012/06/27 04:09:02 UTC
Specific to U2

OK, so on the Center of Mass "V" bridle 3 point release, where is everyone attaching the "top" connection to your WillsWing U2.
Carabiner?

Six inches aft of the nose plate, if that doesn't work out move it forward.

[Tad Eareckson]

Anybody wanna chip in to get him something with a bowsprit?

[MikeLake]

Anybody wanna chip in to get him something with a bowsprit?

I wonder how many would get that one? :)

[Tad Eareckson]

Everyone here, hopefully. But out in the real Quest/Ridgely world...

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3034
Weak Links and Tow Bridles

JD Guillemette - 2008/02/10 18:26:50 UTC

I had posted this in another thread. It was buried in that thread and many peolpe may have lost interest in that particular thread. Mark Cavanaugh thought it was worth a new topic because it has a cautionary tale and may prevent other pilots from doing something dangerous if they are having weak link cuts.

I remember once at Quest Air Jim Rooney were going over the release procedure with a first time tandem instruction. I was just watching and I learned something that was missed in my Aerotow "training".

Jim showed the student the Primary release on the keel and pointed out the weak link on the bridle at that location. Jim described the function of the weak link. He demonstrated a normal release, then repeated the release procedure, but this time he simulated the bridle knotting it's self to the tow line. "No problem" he said, "now we are towing off the shoulders, either the second weak link on the shoulders will break" and he pointed to it "or we will release with the secondary release", a Bailey on the shoulder and he demonstrated.

At that moment, after towing for nearly 4 years I learned why we do things in a specific order and why the weak links are located where they are.

Now I'm going to tell a story of what happened at Fly In I went to in 2006. No one was hurt but I shutter to think of the "what if's". This is an example of how people trying to "improve" on a design can undo redundancy and safety.

A student was having trouble with his weak link breaking at his primary release at the keel. The release was made by the instructor and sold to the student. It looked just like the "Quest Air" style release with the spinnaker release except he had used the swivel loop on the back of the release to anchor the release to the keel. So the hinge on the spinnaker release was cutting the weak link. The "Quest Air" release, as you are aware solves this problem by off setting the anchor point so the weak link is rubbing against the smooth part of the gate.

The next thing that happened stunned me. The instructor reversed the ends of the "V"-bridle so now the shoulder line went through the weak link on the "V" bridle and the loop on the other end was in the Primary release with no weak link.

At this point I had to chime in, "that's a bad Idea" I said "the weak link is in the wrong place" The instructor snapped back "what's the difference ... there is still a weak link and up there it only gets cut by the release". Maybe I should not have challenged the instructor in front of the student, so I pulled the instructor a side and explained the virtues of the "Quest Air" release. I had mine in the car and said the student could borrow it for the Fly In. I rigged the student's glider with it and pointed out the offset anchor point. The instructor agreed it was a better design.

The instructor then went off to do more tandem tows.

I tensioned the bridle system to simulate tow forces and said "OK the tow tug pilot just gave you the signal ... Release". He pulled the Bailey style release on his shoulder. I told him I was expecting him to release the primary ... he said he did. His instructor said it was better to release from the shoulders first so that the long "V"-bridle would just trail behind the glider from the keel and you would not have to stow the "V"-bridle.

So think about this for a minute ... had the instructor reversed the "V"-bridle with no weak link in the release at the keel ... the student releases with the release on the shoulders and the "V"-bridle knots it's self on the tow line. Now he is towing off the keel with no weak link. The nose of the glider would pitch down so fast and violent the student may never get a chance to hit the release on the keel or loose grip of the base tube all together. And with none of the tow forces directed through the pilots harness he would have little control over the glider.

I then ran through the release procedure with the student just as Jim Rooney did at Quest Air.

At the end of the weekend the student returned my release and thanked me. He said he thought about what I had said and he agreed that stowing the "V" bridle was no big deal.

That instructor has since retired ... shortly after one of his students died after a training accident last year.

JD

Jim Rooney adds:

Jim Prahl took that idea to task one day too... he wanted to know what would happen if you took out the top weak link and the lines snagged. So he had someone tow him up to intentionally try it... he rigged things so they would snag and released from the shoulders first. What happened next is a bit scary (esp with your story in mind). A glider towing off the keel only goes negative instantly... you flap around in the wind with zero control.

Brian Vant-Hull - 2008/02/10 19:09:32 UTC

Good Lord... Prahl did this intentionally?! I guess he was on a strong glider with the tug pilot hair-triggered to give him the rope. Just thinking about the gutsiness of it makes me queasy.

JD Guillemette - 2008/02/10 19:20:13 UTC

Without "Test" pilots trying these what if's under controlled conditions we may never know just how bad a mistake like misplacing the weak link could get.

I'm sure the Keel release was operational and he may have had some way to cut the tow line like a link knife for back up. If all else fails he gets the rope.

I wasn't there, but your right, Jim has some guts.

Jim Rooney - 2008/02/10 23:03:31 UTC

It's not like he did it at 5 feet

It did take some cahonez though. I remember him saying that he didn't expect it to be as bad as it was. I'm sure too that it's not as violent as it sounds (but perhaps it was)... what I remember most clearly was "you have no control" and "if I hadn't been able to release, it would have folded the glider". He had -and used- the top release, he just used it second. Yup, there's the tug pilot release and the tug's weaklink too. Jim's not stupid.

If you ever wonder why Quest has a very strict weaklink policy, here's one of the reasons.

Paul Tjaden - 2008/02/11 00:21:07 UTC

I also remember talking to Jim Prahl about his "experiment" with tow releases. I recall he said everything went to #### REALLY fast. The reason that this subject came up is that a pilot from Wallaby named Mick flew up one day, landed at Quest and then decided to tow back up and fly home. His "normal" tow bridle was a very thin spectra line running from his keel (or carabiner, can't remember which) to a line on his harness at his chest where his primary release was a barrel on his chest line. Initially, I thought it looked like a pretty good way to use a V system without the need to install a tow release on the down tube but then Jim pointed out the flaw and told me of his experience. I talked to Mick about it later but he was undetered and said " Well, never had any problems with it yet." In fairness to Mick, he DID have a weak link at his keel but I'm not certain I'd want to trust that.

Tad Eareckson - 2008/02/11 11:47:50 UTC

Having won their confidence, tomorrow I shall test the humor of these giant but gentle primates with a simple joy-buzzer handshake.

Hey Bob. Think there are any bears in this old cave? ... I dunno, Jim. Let's take a look.

Whoa! You mean to say that when one, in effect, moves the hang point a foot forward the glider will pass a cinder block on the way down? Who'da thunk.

Mark Cavanaugh - 2008/02/20 04:15:04 UTC

Hi Tad,

Your Feb 11 reply within the thread that JD recently started regarding a poor tow-bridle choice on the part of an instructor raises major red flags with me.

You already have a very lengthy and active topic regarding releases and 'biners and weaklinks. I have come _this_ close to locking that thread down on many occasions, because of the veiled and not-so-veiled insults that have been traded back and forth among all the discussants. But I have held off on doing so, for two reasons: a) I'm not a fan of regulating conversation; and b) there are occasional polite exchanges with real content, interspersed among all the sniping.

BUT!

Your post contributes nothing to this new topic. It merely extends the pattern of sniping which has developed among those participating in the endless "speed link" posts. And I will not tolerate that : if you have something to contribute other than a put-down, then by all means, post away. If not, then I ask that you refrain from posting. I do not want the tone & attitude evident in "speed link" becoming commonplace in our forums.

I don't mean to be harsh, and I'm not singling you out. In fact, if you find that some forum user responds to a new topic of yours in a similar way, then I'd would want to know about it, absolutely.

Mark

(Really makes you wonder how good an idea the Declaration of Independence was.)

[Tad Eareckson]

http://lakechelanmirror.com/main.asp?SectionID=12&SubSectionID=12&ArticleID=6278

Lake Chelan Mirror - 2012/07/04 17:12:00

2012/07/08

Hang glider pilot airlifted after crash

Michelle Lovato
Assistant Editor
-
Mirror photo by Vince Lovato:
- Rescuers prepare to load the victim into the belly of the helicopter at the summit of Chelan Butte.

Mirror photo by Vince Lovato:
- A Medstar helicopter from the Spokane area lifted off the Butte and flew west with the victim aboard.
-
CHELAN -- A rescue helicopter crew airlifted a hang glider pilot who said he felt paralyzed after he crashed during launch from Chelan Butte at about 1 p.m. today.

Witnesses said experienced competition pilot from "the west side of the state"...

Kalama

...simply misjudged the wing-lifting wind and crashed about 75-feet below the nearly vertical ledge.

The pilot was entered in the week-long Chelan Cross Country Classic Mixed Wing Hang Gliding and Parasailing competition, said event organizer Brian Scott.

Officials have not released the name of the victim.

Eric Thorstenson

An out-of-area emergency room doctor, who was not part of the event, happened to be on the butte when the crash occurred.

The doctor, who would not give his name, ran down to the victim and administered first aid until Chelan County Fire and EMS personnel arrived on scene.

Event Launch Director Darren Fox said the victim could not get enough air speed to keep his craft afloat, so after he ran off the side of the hill, he was unable to stay in the air.

I thought he ran off a nearly vertical ledge.

"It's very tricky with these dust devils," Fox said.

So there was a dust devil close enough to affect the launch? How big?

Wind conditions can change in a moment's time, he said.

- So did the wind conditions can change in a moment's time?
- What's a moment?

Hang glider pilots must make a judgement call on how the wind will behave before they act...

- So he used poor judgment on the wind call.

- So the other competition pilots present at launch watched him make the bad call in these marginal conditions but didn't say anything?

- And you, Event Launch Director Darren Fox, were directing the event launches and watching Eric making this poor judgment call in these marginal conditions but not saying anything?

- Or were you back behind launch taking a piss next to the dust devil?

...then use their knowledge of wind patterns to keep themselves aloft and alive, Fox said.

- So if the wind stops the hand glider plummets from the sky and dies?

- So that's what happened here - the wind patterns changed and he plummeted from the sky but, fortunately, was only paralyzed from the chest down.

- Is this how the report's gonna read in the 2013/09 edition of Hang Gliding magazine?

"These were challenging conditions for hang gliders," Fox said.

Then, Event Launch Director Darren Fox, shouldn't you have suspended launch operations?

The doctor at the scene said area rescuers did a wonderful job recovering the victim then preparing him for transport to Central Washington Hospital in Wenatchee.

Great!

Scott said the Chelan Cross Country Classic Mixed Wing Hang Gliding and Parasailing competition is in its 33rd year.

So, Event Organizer Brian Scott, what entertainment are you planning for the competition's 44th year?

The competition runs from July 1 to July 7.

So after you suspended competition after about 13:00 on the Fourth upon discovering just how unpredictable and dangerous the conditions really were, you resumed competition because the conditions the following three days were MUCH safer, right?

Thirty pilots are participating in the event representing the United States, Brazil and New Zealand.

Are or were?

Check back for more information.

Will we get to hear some:

- more about how hand glider flying safety is pretty much a dice roll?

- bitching about how the general public just doesn't understand hang gliding, perceives us all as a bunch of irresponsible, thrill seeking, nut jobs who jump off cliffs with aircraft over which we have no real control, and is really too stupid to be educated about what we really do anyway?

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=26586
Hang glider injured on Chelan Butte, WA

Dan Harding - 2012/07/08 13:42:15 UTC
Burlington, Washington

I have only heard third person stories so far, and will not spread rumors here.

- Can you tell us where you WILL spread rumors?

- So how come it's OK for YOU to hear third person "stories" but not the rest of us?

- Nobody's asking you to "spread rumors".

- What's the problem with accurately reporting what you've heard, identifying your sources, and letting US evaluate the quality of the information?

- How do the third person "stories" you've heard so far stack up against that crap we've read in the newspaper?

When I get accurate info I will post it.

- You mean after everyone consults with Tim Herr and gets on the right page with what they're gonna say?

- Barring video evidence, how the hell are you gonna know whether or not the "accurate info" you get is more accurate than the third person "stories" you've heard so far?

- How many memory cards do you think needed to be swallowed this time?

- The fucking eyewitnesses have had three and a half days to get accurate info out and I'm just hearing about this now. Why the delay? Everybody waiting for their recollections to get better?

However it happened...

Simple misjudgment of the wing-lifting wind, couldn't get enough airspeed to keep his craft afloat, dust devils, challenging wind conditions changing in a moment's time, Coriolis effect...

...he, and his family, will be changed forever and will have a tough road in front of them.

Yes.

My sympathy goes out them.

Really racking them up this year, aren't we?

Anybody wanna make any more comments about the fat, slow, cud chewing wuffos at Chelan who are stupid enough to try to help us keep our gliders from being ripped apart by dust devils?

[Tad Eareckson]

http://ozreport.com/16.134
2012 Chelan Cross Country Classic

Davis Straub - 2012/07/05 20:48:42 UTC

Ben Dunn writes:

Pilot blew a launch yesterday and was airlifted out. We wish him well with his recovery.

Yeah.

http://sites.google.com/site/ericthorstenson123/
Eric Thorstenson

On July 4th Eric had an accident, suffering C6 and C7 vertebral fractures which caused C6-C7 spinal cord injury, resulting in paralysis from armpits down.

Right.

OK, can we get a report on the cumulative point standings now?

[Tad Eareckson]

Chronologically...

Manned Kiting
The Basic Handbook of Tow Launched Hang Gliding
Daniel F. Poynter
1974

"The greatest dangers are a rope break or a premature release." - Richard Johnson

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1079
$15 pacifiers

Steve Kinsley - 2005/09/22 00:26:45 UTC

If I had known Tad was going to make one I would have just waited for his. Although once into it I kinda got hooked on the project. The only real problems in the process were unintended releases but it never really put me in a bad position. I might make an exception for last weekend when I (mis) used Tad's for the first time and ended up dancing on the cart.

Jim Rooney - 2005/09/22 14:05:50 UTC

Ok, as long as we're digging this deeply into it....

It is not merely a matter of inconvenience. I was there, and in my oppinion Steve came rather close to breaking his legs. I was getting ready to dial 911.

Sure, being on tow at the wrong time is an extremely bad thing. But don't tell us that being off tow at the wrong time is all sweet and wonderful. Yes, we prepare for it, but that doesn't make it a safe situation. It makes it a manageable situation. There are times where it's better to be on tow than off tow.

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2467
weak links

Jim Rooney - 2007/07/22 22:30:28 UTC

I've heard it a million times before from comp pilots insisting on towing with even doubled up weaklinks (some want no weaklink). I tell them the same thing I'm telling you... suck it up. You're not the only one on the line. I didn't ask to be a test pilot. I can live with your inconvenience.

Jim Rooney - 2007/08/01 13:47:23 UTC

Whatever's going on back there, I can fix it by giving you the rope.

Jim Rooney - 2007/08/01 19:49:30 UTC

It's more of this crappy argument that being on tow is somehow safer than being off tow.

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3600
Weak link question

Jim Rooney - 2008/11/22 22:31:35 UTC

The simple fact is this. The only reason anyone even gives Tad the time of day is that they want to believe him. Why? Because they don't like to be inconvenienced by a weaklink break. That's it.

Sure, everyone digs around for other reasons to believe, but at the heart of it, it's convenience.
No one is actually scared to fly with a standard weaklink. They may say they are, but deep down inside, they're not.

Tad loves to speak of himself as a scientifically minded person. Yet he ignores a data pool that is at minimum three orders of magnitude higher than his. It is thus that I ignore him.

Jim Rooney - 2008/11/24 05:18:15 UTC

I've personally refused to tow a flight park owner over this very issue. I didn't want to clash, but I wasn't towing him. Yup, he wanted to tow with a doubled up weaklink. He eventually towed (behind me) with a single and sorry to disappoint any drama mongers, we're still friends. And lone gun crazy Rooney? Ten other tow pilots turned him down that day for the same reason.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/hhpa/message/11155
Question

Shane Nestle - 2010/09/17 22:17:50 UTC

So far I've only had negative experiences with weak links. One broke while aerotowing just as I was coming off the cart. Flared immediately and put my feet down only to find the cart still directly below me. My leg went through the two front parallel bars forcing me to let the glider drop onto the control frame in order to prevent my leg from being snapped.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TTTFlymail/message/11545
Cart stuck incidents

Keith Skiles - 2011/06/02 19:50:13 UTC

I witnessed the one at Lookout. It was pretty ugly. Low angle of attack, too much speed and flew off the cart like a rocket until the weak link broke, she stalled and it turned back towards the ground.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24846
Is this a joke ?

Jim Rooney - 2011/08/25 04:55:25 UTC

It always amazes to hear know it all pilots arguing with the professional pilots.

Jim Rooney - 2011/08/26 02:44:10 UTC

The "purpose" of a weaklink is to increase the safety of the towing operation. PERIOD.

Jim Rooney - 2011/08/26 02:44:10 UTC

I find no disagreement in the professional community as to such.

Davis Straub - 2011/08/26 14:04:52 UTC

We had six weaklink breaks in a row at Zapata this year. Russell Brown (tug pilot, tug owner, Quest Air owner) said go ahead and double up (four strands of Cortland Greenspot).

Jim Rooney - 2011/08/28 19:39:17 UTC

The frustration of a weaklink break is just that, frustration.
And it can be very frustrating for sure. Especially on a good day, which they tend to be. It seems to be a Murphy favourite. You'll be in a long tug line on a stellar day just itching to fly. The stars are all lining up when *bam*, out of nowhere your trip to happy XC land goes up in a flash. Now you've got to hike it all the way back to the back of the line and wait as the "perfect" window drifts on by.

I get it.
It can be a pisser.

Entertainingly...

I might make an exception for last weekend when I (mis) used Tad's for the first time and ended up dancing on the cart.

Whatever's going on back there, I can fix it by giving you the rope.

It is not merely a matter of inconvenience. I was there, and in my oppinion Steve came rather close to breaking his legs.

My leg went through the two front parallel bars forcing me to let the glider drop onto the control frame in order to prevent my leg from being snapped.

But don't tell us that being off tow at the wrong time is all sweet and wonderful. Yes, we prepare for it, but that doesn't make it a safe situation. It makes it a manageable situation. There are times where it's better to be on tow than off tow.

It's more of this crappy argument that being on tow is somehow safer than being off tow.

It is not merely a matter of inconvenience. I was there, and in my oppinion Steve came rather close to breaking his legs.

Sure, everyone digs around for other reasons to believe, but at the heart of it, it's convenience.

The stars are all lining up when *bam*, out of nowhere your trip to happy XC land goes up in a flash.

I can live with your inconvenience.

I witnessed the one at Lookout. It was pretty ugly. Low angle of attack, too much speed and flew off the cart like a rocket until the weak link broke, she stalled and it turned back towards the ground.

The "purpose" of a weaklink is to increase the safety of the towing operation. PERIOD.

I find no disagreement in the professional community as to such.

I've personally refused to tow a flight park owner over this very issue.

The greatest dangers are a rope break or a premature release.

No one is actually scared to fly with a standard weaklink. They may say they are, but deep down inside, they're not.

I've heard it a million times before from comp pilots insisting on towing with even doubled up weaklinks (some want no weaklink). I tell them the same thing I'm telling you... suck it up.

We had six weaklink breaks in a row at Zapata this year. Russell Brown (tug pilot, tug owner, Quest Air owner) said go ahead and double up (four strands of Cortland Greenspot).

[Tad Eareckson]

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=25536
Whoops! Snapped another tip wand :-O

NMERider - 2012/03/14 15:17:14 UTC

Jim Rooney threw a big tantrum and stopped posting here.

His one-technique-fits-all attitude espoused on the Oz Report Forum has become tiresome to read. It does not work in the fucked-up world of XC landings and weary pilots.

Christopher LeFay - 2012/03/15 05:57:43 UTC

January's canonization of Rooney as the Patron Saint of Landing was maddening. He offered just what people wanted to hear: there is an ultimate, definitive answer to your landing problems, presented with absolute authority. Judgment problems? His answer is to remove judgment from the process - doggedly stripping out critical differences in gliders, loading, pilot, and conditions. This was just what people wanted - to be told a simple answer. In thanks, they deified him, carving his every utterance in Wiki-stone.

Any chance that that's EXACTLY what's going on every single time that despicable little shit opens his mouth on ANY and EVERY subject?

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1079
$15 pacifiers

Jim Rooney - 2005/09/22 14:05:50 UTC

There are times where it's better to be on tow than off tow.

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2467
weak links

Jim Rooney - 2007/08/01 19:49:30 UTC

It's more of this crappy argument that being on tow is somehow safer than being off tow.

That all he does is say whatever's most convenient to make his case of the moment?
Why would anyone at least partially sane with at least a partially functional brain assume otherwise? Do the math, ferchrisake.

P.S. Do you ever hear Davis or Gerry step in when Rooney or any of these other total morons is spewing shit? Ever wonder why not?

Maybe 'cause they have strong interests in keeping everybody stupid and thus foster, encourage, reward stupidity and undermine anybody who starts threatening it?

[Tad Eareckson]

miguel - 2012/07/12 18:11:41 UTC

Post for Quotes

I was going to post this in quotes. Then I thought it might be perceived as a call to a flame war. Not my intention. You may post and respond if you like. I am not going to follow up much on it.

- Terry Mason thought Sam and Bob were really wonderful people people and I was a malignant threat that needed to be silenced, locked down, deleted, banned.

- He got it precisely backwards.

- Kite Strings ratings SOARED right after he demonstrated just how backwards he got it.

Clickthroughs and active memberships are two separate concepts. Clickthroughs for a message board are next to worthless. Active contributing members are the measure of success for a message board. You pooped on the last active member. I am sure when the clickthroughs saw that, they went chortling back to where ever they came from, destined to remain clickthroughs.

Tad Eareckson - 2012/07/12 18:30:14 UTC

See the mission statement at:
http://www.kitestrings.org/post2.html#p2
That's not anything approaching a gray area or appearing to be an opening salvo in a flame war (not that I have a problem with flame wars).
Post it where you like but I think "instructors and fiends" would be a more appropriate place for it.

miguel - 2012/07/12 19:32:31 UTC

I don't think anyone else needs to see it. If you see the need, you may post it.

Tad Eareckson - 2012/07/12 19:36:33 UTC

OK, will do. I was already working on a response to it.

Clickthroughs and active memberships are two separate concepts.

OK. If you say so.

Clickthroughs for a message board are next to worthless.

- By what measuring system?

- The purpose of this message board is not to benefit the message board. Its purpose is to advance hang gliding and help those of its participants who want help (and make life as miserable as possible for the assholes who get in the way). It's been doing that from the start.

- If a throughclicker reads something which prevents him from trashing a downtube next weekend the message board was worth a hundred bucks. If it prevents him from breaking an arm two years from now it was a long long way from worthless.

Active contributing members are the measure of success for a message board.

- The Jack and Davis Shows have TONS of contributing members. The problem is that they're run by and for stupid scumbags, what the active contributing members contribute is overwhelmingly clueless bullshit, and anybody with enough in the way of brains to make a substantive positive contribution gets pissed all over by the in-crowd...

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=24633
FTHI

Paul Hurless - 2012/01/30 00:52:53 UTC

Tad is a rude know-it-all who freely over-expressed his opinions and called anyone who didn't agree with them stupid or worse.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=25174
Build Your Own Weak-link Tester

Jim Rooney - 2011/09/16 06:22:20 UTC

Hrm.
You walk into our forum (we've been here a lot longer, so yes, we are the community here, not you) and start spouting off like you're some kind of expert.
I'd say "ratdroppings" is rather appropriate, and actually quite tame considering.
I like it.

...and locked down, deleted, banned.

- Name some advances in technology and/or procedure that have come out of mainstream message boards.

- Yep. Always a lot of really priceless information about how to:

-- roll and push out in a lockout to use your standard aerotow weak link as an instant hands free release;

-- select a weak link which will break before you can get into too much trouble but hold when you're flying through turbulence or stalling;

-- grab the downtube while you're trying to actuate your Quallaby Release to keep the lever from spinning out of reach to the far side of the downtube;

-- secure your hook knife to your harness when you're flying a Lookout Release.

-- hold the bar over your head when you punch a flare just as you're gusted;

-- abort a launch when you realize you're not hooked in;

miguel - 2011/06/23 17:00:09 UTC

I have been reading this board for a couple months now. Much good info here.

That good info you were reading for a couple of months before you became an active contributing member was a whole lot easier to find 'cause you didn't hafta wade through a load of crap contributed by active contributing douchebags like Paul Hurless, Jim Gaar, Marc Fink.

And you have may sincerest apologies for the load of crap contributed by Bob Kuczewski - I was a bit slow on that one.

You pooped on the last active member.

If by "last active member" you mean Allen...
I damn near banned him for pulling this:
http://www.kitestrings.org/post2304.html#p2304
bullshit. I was working on a post telling that he WOULD BE banned unless he could make a real good case that he shouldn't be.
But then he posted this:
Flared too early
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4ZlExIFJN0
Sparkozoid - 2012/05/20
dead
and I figured I'd let him slide for a while.

I am sure when the clickthroughs saw that, they went chortling back to where ever they came from...

Which would be the Jack and Davis Shows.

...destined to remain clickthroughs.

Fine. Those sorts make great data generators and get the Texas crowd wondering a little bit if Darwin didn't get one or two things right.

This sport is an asshole magnet and its culture rewards and glorifies stupidity. There's only the tiniest percentage I'm gonna tolerate posting here. Were that not the case the mangle and kill rates would be microscopic, I'd still be flying, and Kite Strings wouldn't exist because there'd be no need for it.

And if it ever becomes a successful message board with a large active contributing membership it will have outlived its usefulness.