Kite Strings

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=37348
Lawyer gone wild

Brad Gryder - 2014/05/06 01:45:21 UTC

Be careful.

If you're getting your airtime at a flight park then there's a good chance that your tow fees are lower because of the tandems. The revenue generating tandem flights help subsidize the solo pilots' cost to the operators, allowing solo pilots to fly at the park at a reduced rate. When everything runs smooth, there's often a symbiotic relationship between the good solo pilot and the park operator.

And if, because the park operator refuses to comply with safety regulations and the solo pilot wants to be towed safely, there isn't then the latter can go fuck himself.

Solo pilots flying and behaving properly help draw in customers, and sometimes they help convert tourists into students and pilots. Some solo pilots eventually do become a 'liability' to the park...

REALLY? I'da thunk that the newest solo pilots, the ones with the least understanding of aerotowing and the lowest skill levels would be the greatest "liabilities" to the parks - the ones who:
- use
-- cheap, crappy, bent pin towing gear
-- dangerously and illegally light weak links that blow every other tow
- can't stay in position behind the tug
- crash in ponds on the peripheries of landing fields
- fly into taxiway signs on final and break their arms
- fuck up maneuvers and hafta come down under silk
- crash in nearby wheat fields and do major brain damage

I'da thunk that as they became more experienced, skilled, knowledgeable and better equipped they'd be more of ASSETS to the park. Or...

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=12403
weak link table

ian9toes - 2009/06/14 15:18:37 UTC
Gold Coast, Queensland

I strongly disagree with banning the one guy who has the most knowledge about safety issues involving what I believe is the most dangerous part of our sport. I hear someone dies every year from towing. I hope SG bites his tongue in the interest of public safety.

...does it not work quite that way?

...and are encouraged to move along...

How? By nonstop harassment?

...or worse - sometimes they're banned from the park.

Which times? Other than T** at K*** S******, of course, I don't believe I've ever heard of such a thing.

Can you tell us what they did to merit that treatment? Were they flying or behaving in unsafe and/or illegal manners. If so how come the issues weren't made public and their USHGA ratings weren't affected?

Did these individual have any rights to call for declaration and documentation of causes or present any defenses of any kind?

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=30971
Zach Marzec

Jim Rooney - 2013/03/07 18:24:58 UTC

Go back to Tad's hole in the ground.
While you're there, ask him why he was banned from every east coast flying site.

I'd really like somebody to tell me. The only thing that I can come up with is...

http://www.ushawks.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=463
Davis Straub's "Oz Report" Conflict of Interest

Bob Kuczewski - 2011/02/12 06:56:36 UTC

Without naming names (I'm curious to see if they'll own up to it first), on May 10, 2009, one Director wrote:

We need to consider getting an injunction against this guy communicating with the FAA on this subject.

That same day, another Director responded:

I forwarded the letter to Tim Herr yesterday asking about this.

For those who don't know, Tim Herr is ... USHPA's lawyer!!

A third Director (who I'll call "Mr. X") chimed in that same day with this:

Perhaps a strongly worded letter from Tim will do the trick. We can't force Tad to work within the USHPA framework but we can make it unpleasant and expensive for him if he chooses to makes derogatory and false statements about USHPA to the FAA he can't back up.

If I understand the previous comments, his sending USHPA a draft letter is an indication of willingness to engage in some dialogue before going to the FAA.

Good luck with this guy!

That's an example of USHPA's typical tactics: Call up the lawyer, then Attack, Attack, Attack.

Be kind to your local flight park operators, tug pilots, and tandem customers.

Oh, fer sure. And they, of course, will repay that kindness because people who control flight operations are such inherently...

Matt Taber - 2009/07/12

GT Manufacturing Inc. (GT) and Lookout Mountain Flight Park Inc. (LMFP) make no claim of serviceability of this tow equipment. There is no product liability insurance covering this gear and we do not warrant this gear as suitable for towing anything.

http://www.wallaby.com/aerotow_primer.php
Aerotow Primer for Experienced Pilots

Wallaby Ranch - 2014/05/06

If you fail to maintain the correct tow position (centered, with the wheels of the tug on the horizon), the weak link will break before you can get into too much trouble.

...DECENT individuals.

Fly nice. There are some lawyers out there ready to cash in and laugh all the way to the bank while the park closes its gates for the last time.

I SO hope so.

They care not whether you have a place to fly or not.

And that would make them worse than any of the flight parks I can name HOW?

Fuck their goddam tourist ride operations. When you make the trip on a booming day and sit in line all afternoon while all the tandems and Rooney Linker relights keep cycling in line in front of you till the soaring window has just about or totally evaporated it DOES NOT work out to fewer bucks per hour of airtime - it does the PRECISE OPPOSITE.

Davis Straub - 2014/05/06 03:28:58 UTC

Most pilots do not seem to realize what it takes to run a flight park.

Spools and spools of...

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

Jim Rooney - 2011/08/26 08:24:31 UTC

Thought I already answered that one... instead of quoting myself (have a look back if you don't believe me), I'll just reiterate it.

I don't advocate anything.
I use what we use at the flight parks. It's time tested and proven... and works a hell of a lot better than all the other bullshit I've seen out there.

130lb greenspot (greenspun?) cortland fishing line.
In stock at Quest, Highland, Eastern Shore, Kitty Hawk Kites, Florida Ridge, and I'm pretty sure Wallaby, Lookout and Morningside.
Not sure what Tracy up at Cloud Nine uses, but I'll put bets on the same.

...130 pound test fishing line. Also...

http://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2907/14605946141_8443210741_o.png

http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5154/14422541620_a48c55b758_o.png

http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5529/14422573378_5385a9a99a_o.png

http://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3885/14422571978_d47ec5c921_o.png

08-2323
http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5553/14097605903_0e4c69be73_o.png

22-2907
http://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7345/14077539605_d356a1f6fd_o.png


...lotsa time, gas, spare downtubes, and...

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-bRrpHNa68iY/UQ6Pv9gRZyI/AAAAAAAAjTg/Hc22bx5122Q/s2048/20943781_BG1.jpg


...LUCK.

They just show up (take a week off from their job) and fly without ever seeing what goes on behind the scenes.

Really deep discussions...

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

Jim Rooney - 2011/08/26 07:51:12 UTC

This is what I'm talking about when I politely inform people that they're not going to be informing me about towing.
It's not that I think I'm "all that"... it's that I've spent more time discussing this shit with people that know what the hell they're talking about then you have time discussing anything about hang gliding at all.

...about why 130 pound Greenspot is so ideally suited as a one-sized-fits-all standard aerotow weak link and...

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=31052
Poll on weaklinks

Brad Gryder - 2013/02/21 23:25:31 UTC

There's also a way to swing your body way outside the control frame so it stays up there while you reach out with one hand and release. Come on - do some pushups this winter. See if you can advance up to some one-arm pushups.

...how to swing your body way outside the control frame so it stays up there while you reach out with one hand and release.

Since I live at a flight park (Quest Air) for three months a year I have some idea of what it takes.

As well as a totally obscene...

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=21377
AT several Questions

Davis Straub - 2011/04/05 14:00:25 UTC

The flight park procedures here at Quest Air are the result of years of evolutionary pressures and experience that provide the focus on safety.

...incestuous relationship with them. I'm guessing they don't raise the price of their lift tickets and rent when you brown nose them like that.

It is a huge amount of uncompensated work. This is not a golf club (with the commensurate fees).

I'll bet when somebody gets killed at a golf course...

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=30971
Zach Marzec

Paul Tjaden - 2013/02/07

Beyond these facts anything else would be pure speculation. I have personally had numerous weak link breaks on tow, both low and high, after hitting turbulence and have never felt in danger of a tumble. I have witnessed countless others have weak link breaks with no serious problems. We train aero tow pilots how to handle this situation and I am certain that Zach had also encountered this situation many times before and knew how to react properly. Apparently, Zach simply hit strong low level turbulence, probably a dust devil that could not be seen due to the lack of dust in Florida, the nose went too high and he tumbled at a very low altitude.

Strong dust devils in Florida definitely do exist even though they are rare. My wife had a near miss when she encountered a severe dusty a couple years ago and I almost lost a brand new $18,000 ATOS VX when it was torn from its tie down and thrown upside down.

I wish I could shed more light on this accident but I am afraid this is all we know and probably will know. Zach was a great guy with an incredible outlook and zest for life. He will be sorely missed.

Jim Rooney - 2013/03/07 18:24:58 UTC

You're the one speculating on Zack's death... not me.
Hell, you've even already come to your conclusions... you've made up your mind and you "know" what happened and what to do about.
It's disgusting and you need to stop.
You weren't there. You don't know.
All you have is the tug pilot report, who himself says he doesn't know... and HE WAS THERE... and he doesn't know.

...there's no big fuckin' mystery as to why.

Think about this the next time you just take it for granted that there is a nice flight park ready for you when you are ready to fly.

I'll make sure I do that. And maybe you can come up with a suggestion for a flight park where the operators have a fuckin' clue what they're doing and can assure me that I won't end up like Zack Marzec in similar circumstances.

Brian McMahon - 2014/05/06 14:18:42 UTC

You guys have me at a disadvantage, I've never flown at a flight park of any kind.

You're not at a disadvantage. It's not a good feeling to have your life in the hands of incompetent corrupt law-breaking morons who make you eat shit and tell you it's good for you every time you manage to get to the front of the launch line.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=37348
Lawyer gone wild

Brad Gryder - 2014/05/06 14:21:34 UTC

. . . but you've done a lot of tandems, right?

Brian McMahon - 2014/05/06 14:50:51 UTC

My point was more about slowing the process down a bit and making sure that the H-0 and P-0 pilots actually have some understanding of the safety procedures and basic operations.

We're talking about an unhooked launch death here. What do they really need to know to get through the flight in one healthy piece? Hook-in check, run, don't fight your driver for control of the plane when you're airborne. That priority and chronology. Anybody wants to add anything legitimate then knock yourself out. But stick with those priorities.

I'm sure there are several Tandem instructors that do give plenty of instruction prior to flying, but the requirements from the USHPA are pretty thin.

And getting thinner with each passing year as people get killed because SOPs on the books were never implemented or enforced.

In the report from HPAC of the incident it states:

Mr. Orders, as Pilot In Command, was solely responsible for the safety of his passenger.

Oh. That was the "detailed report" I thought was never made public. Ten very short paragraphs with nothing of any substance. And that took him most of the summer of 2012 to produce.

In the US, something like this would not have been written into the report, right?

Yeah? Watch this from when Bo Hagewood killed one of his tandem charges:

Michael Elliot - 27 - Pacific Airwave Double Vision - 1991/12/15 - Lookout Mountain Flight Park

Novice pilot went tandem with experienced tandem pilot in preparation for first solo altitude flight. On the base leg of the landing approach, flying crosswind over tree line, the attempt to turn onto final was unsuccessful. The inability to turn onto final may have been caused by thermal activity, the passenger interfering with glider control, or both. The glider continued straight, hit a tree, and side slipped sixty feet. The novice passenger died, the tandem pilot was seriously injured.

Starts off as a novice PILOT about to solo on the next flight then immediately morphs into a novice PASSENGER who probably interfered with control of the glider and caused his own death and the severe brain damage to Bo from which he never recovered very well - just barely enough to break a borrowed competition glider doing aerobatics over Currituck and throw a chute that wasn't connected to anything then - after another long hospitalization, fly a Dragonfly at Quest. Really sad.

The Industry uses student and passenger interchangeably as it best suits it.

And then you've got this despicable little parasite telling the people whose lives are really on the line and doing the most dangerous flavor of flying hang gliding regularly and necessarily engages in that...

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

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

Well, I'm assuming there was some guff about the tug pilot's right of refusal?
Gee, didn't think we'd have to delve into "pilot in command"... I figured that one's pretty well understood in a flying community.

It's quite simple.
The tug is a certified aircraft... the glider is an unpowered ultralight vehicle. The tug pilot is the pilot in command. You are a passenger. You have the same rights and responsibilities as a skydiver.
It's a bitter pill I'm sure, but there you have it.

...THEY'RE *PASSENGERS* - Hang Fours and Fives flying competition bladewings on aerotow don't rank as high as some goddam one afternoon bucket lister. And you assholes let him GET AWAY WITH IT. In any CIVILIZED aviation community he'd have had his intestines pulled out and fed to foxes while he watched a decade ago.

The Tandem instructor is not carrying a passenger that he is "solely responsible" for. Rather, there are two pilots flying the unpowered ultralight vehicle for the purposes of instruction; or am I mis-interpreting the FAA exemption?

Nah, you're doing fine. And don't worry about the FAA - those useless goddam pieces of crap don't really give a rat's ass about the regulations USHGA violates and the people it kills. They're all too busy going ape shit over stuff like:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-G5xV_N8N1U

http://towforce.blogspot.com.au/2014/04/an-open-letter-to-tandem-hang-glider.html
Towforce: An Open Letter to the Tandem Hang Glider and Paraglider Pilot Community.

Davis Straub - 2014/04/30 00:52

Here at Quest Air, the harnesses are never unhooked. You can not launch without being hooked in.

And there at Quest nobody ever blows a launch because he doesn't run fast and/or long enough and jumps into the harness before he has sufficient airspeed. But that doesn't have the slightest bit of relevance to the operations at a place like Woodside EITHER - does it, Davis?

Personally, I would like to see the equipment changed often.

If only people would change their equipment often we'd have WAY fewer unhooked launches.

New sails often.

Yeah Davis. That should DEFINITELY put a major dent in the problem.

One of Bobby's spinnaker shackles just snagged Robin's weak link...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/aerotowrelease/8318769461/


...and killed him. So let's ban that type of release mechanism (at least for a short while) from the Worlds at Hay and make everyone use lighter weak links which break real easily. And let's also use polypro towlines to try to keep the lighter weak links from breaking so easily.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=924
Tragedy at Team Challenge

Davis Straub - 2005/10/01 23:12:07 UTC

Well, very simply we could make a new rule for competition. If you are seen in your harness but not hooked into your glider you are automatically disqualified.

So what happened with that, Davis? Did anyone ever make a new rule for competition - or anything else - that if you were seen in your harness but not hooked into your glider you were automatically disqualified or got your rating suspended or tandem certification revoked?

http://www.hanggliding.org/viewtopic.php?t=13359
Today was a bad day!

Mike Bomstad - 2009/08/26 04:21:15 UTC

The harness is part of the aircraft... end of story.
(Just because it's easy to remove, does not mean it should be. Dont choose the path of least resistance)

Attach it to the wing, completing the aircraft.... then preflight the completed aircraft.
Buckle yourself into the cockpit and then your ready.

02-A01522
http://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8835/28852423432_4b2a38fb3c_o.png

11-A12819
http://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8339/28924980016_2ba1d20ef7_o.png

13-A14319
http://c1.staticflickr.com/9/8253/28924975726_0d24a615c2_o.png


How'd we go from there to preventing unhooked launches by changing sails often? How come after Martin spent most of the summer investigating the fatality and preparing the report and has now published this Open Letter with his recommendation we're not hearing ONE SINGLE SYLLABLE about the fuckin' Aussie Method?

And consider this...

- Mention of the hook-in check - which, much as they wish and try to pretend otherwise, IS USHGA's official strategy for preventing unhooked launches - is ONE HUNDRED PERCENT *ABSENT* from the mainstream media. Largest national hang gliding organization on the planet (right?), it's on our books, and nobody's ever heard of it.

- Aussie Methodists undoubtedly outnumber hook-in checkers by a factor of something in the neighborhood of five hundred to one - due, of course, to the appeal the strategy has for the low double digit IQ types who dominate this sport and its widespread imposition by mob rule in Australia despite the fact that it's on the books of neither HPAC nor any other national or international organization anywhere.

- Mention of the Aussie Method is just as absent - one hundred percent - from the mainstream media as mention of the hook-in check. I seriously suspect that mention of either of these strategies is nonexistent anywhere outside of dedicated hang gliding forums.

This shit ain't happening by accident.

http://www.shga.com/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=3638
FTHI

Mike Blankenhorn - 2012/10/26 02:39:07 UTC

Wow, I never saw it put quite like that before. Great write up!

http://www.shga.com/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=3840
[TIL] About Tad Eareckson

Mike Blankenhorn - 2013/03/12 16:07:44 UTC

We should bury this thread and not give Tad the satisfaction that we are actually wasting our time acknowledging his existence. Yes, this needed to be brought into the light but now we should bury this asshole with some nice cold dirt (metaphorically) and never speak of him again.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=37348
Lawyer gone wild

Phatburner - 2014/05/08 16:58:40 UTC

Brad Gryder - 2014/05/06 01:45:21 UTC

Be careful.

If you're getting your airtime at a flight park then there's a good chance that your tow fees are lower because of the tandems.

So your point here I assume is that our primary concern should be how much we have to pay for a tow right?

Yes.

Am I getting this right?

Yes.

Oh never mind, I thought we were talking about safety.

Yeah, mostly unbuckled helmets, missed backup loops, unlocked carabiners, twisted suspension elements, incorrect basetube clearance.

Tbird - 2014/05/08 20:56:38

In the report from HPAC of the incident it states:

Mr. Orders, as Pilot In Command, was solely responsible for the safety of his passenger.

In the US, something like this would not have been written into the report, right? The Tandem instructor is not carrying a passenger that he is "solely responsible" for. Rather, there are two pilots flying the unpowered ultralight vehicle for the purposes of instruction; or am I mis-interpreting the FAA exemption?[/ quote]

Good question. I agree with you but the plaintiff's attorney may have another opinion. If something happens, you can get sued regardless of how thin the merits of the case are. I'm not an attorney, just the poor sap that got sued.

1. Look at your post. If you conduct flight operations with the same level of care and competence with which you write you probably SHOULD be getting sued - and shouldn't be flying.

2. Who the hell are you anyway? Shaun Wallace maybe? On this one there is no "THE poor sap that got sued". There's a whole shitload of assholes getting sued.

Jump to next post:
http://www.kitestrings.org/post6100.html#p6100

Un-Hooked Aerotow Hang Glider
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u51qpPLz5U0

David Glover - 2008/05/16

Hang glider launching un-hooked while aerotowing. Pilot got a concussion.

That's not all the "pilot" got, Dave.

01-0522
- 01 - chronological order
- 00 - seconds
- 00 - frame (30 fps)

01-0522


Paved runway and no cart, wheels, upper bridle attachment, release that doesn't stink on ice, hook-in check, competent launch assistant, tradition of doing, requiring, looking for hook-in checks... Well, he's got a Davis Link that limits the thrust to 260 pounds...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/meaneyman/35642942/


http://www.flickr.com/photos/meaneyman/35642828/

...and he's on flat ground... What's the worst that could happen?

You can see the...

02-0609


...carabiner - or what Davis refers to as a "carabineer" - on this one. Good steel locking job no doubt. No possibility of it failing or becoming detached.

Keep that nose down...

03-0628


...and get a good hard run.

Glider floating up a little higher...

04-0802


... than usual? Shouldn't you have been feeling some resistance through the harness suspension at this point?

There ya go...

05-0805


Good hook-in check! That's exactly what Eric Hinrichs...

13-03110
http://c2.staticflickr.com/4/3697/13700915564_87a2a336b0_o.png


http://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2912/13700562685_86575e9220_o.png
14-03129

...does just before HE plans on leaving the ground. Of course he does it just BEFORE he starts running but he's usually running off a slope where it's tougher to abort, things could get ugly pretty fast, and there's no Davis Link to increase the safety of the launch operation. And, of course, you've gotta be careful with hook-in checks because they'll give you a false sense of security - so it's probably best to delay them as long as possible.

So how come you don't just release....

06-0818


...at this point? Pretty fucking obvious you're not hooked in now and you've got a release within easy reach - just like it says in the SOPs. Not real confident in your equipment? Have you thought about putting a cored out golf ball over the barrel so's you can get a better grip...







...the way Ollie does here?

Or your tug pilot could fix whatever's going on back there...

07-0913


...by giving you the rope. But maybe he's not real worried at this point because he knows you've got a Davis Link which, if you fail to maintain the correct tow position (centered, with the wheels of the tug on the horizon), will break before you can get into too much trouble.

Well, I wouldn't worry too much... The tow tension is split fifty/fifty between you and the glider so it'll keep getting pulled forward as long as you're being pulled forward...

08-0924


It's not like it's gonna decelerate to zero almost instantly and powerwhack when the basetube touches down while...

09-0929


...you're still feeling the full 260 pounds of thrust like the pro toads do. Oh, right... I forgot. You ARE flying pro toad...

10-1003


Ouch. Oh well, the Davis Link did what it was supposed to and kept you from getting dragged. Could've been really ugly if it hadn't.

OK, try to move yourself and your wreckage off the runway as soon as possible. The tug's gotta...

11-1118


...do a go-around and pick up the next glider. There's a competition to run ya know.

No rush...

12-1427


He had a Davis Link. How bad could it possibly be?

13-1702


Uh-oh.

14-1728


Didn't take ya very long for the field diagnosis - did it? So was there anything you fuckin' dickheads could've/should've diagnosed BEFORE he gave the nod? Were you the asshole who got the nod and signaled the tug that the glider...

With each flight, demonstrates a method of establishing that the pilot is hooked in just prior to launch.

...was good to go?

15-1900


Still not moving, huh?

Wayne Ripley - 2 years ago

Turns out he wasn't OK, he flew very little after this. He went from being one of the better comp pilots in the country to having so much pain he couldn't fly.

Oh. So he WAS able to fly a little after this but he WASN'T able to publicize a report on this career ending incident and/or participate in any discussions about unhooked launches - like the ones after Kunio Yoshimura...



...ran off Mingus without his glider less than four months later.

I notice you - along with all the other assholes who commented on this one - made no comment whatsoever about hook-in checks and the 33 year old USHGA regulations which mandate them.

Wayne Ripley - 19550 - H5 - 1993/03/26 - Randy Adams - AT PA VA AWCL CL FSL RLF TUR XC - Mentor Observer

Have you ever once - in the course of your entire useless existence - done, required, suggested, looked for one?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u51qpPLz5U0


Just kidding.

Jump to top:
http://www.kitestrings.org/post5992.html#p5992

For other people irritated by the fuzzed out face in the mainstream media versions, a few stills from Mount Woodside A YEAR AND HALF PRIOR TO the last drive of this tandem driver who was never able to grasp the concept that checks of connection status routinely made a minute or two or three or five ago are way more dangerous than checks made a year and a half ago...

1-5005

2-5211

3-5225

4-5317


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loE3grsAJMk


Too bad, Jon. Bet it's just about impossible now to remember what it was like when both of you had lives.
---
P.S. See note at the bottom of:
http://www.kitestrings.org/post6101.html#p6101

ALWAYS assume you're hooked-in, then do a hang check just to make sure. After that you are good to go go go.

http://vimeo.com/98896093
http://vimeo.com/98896093

Couple days shy of eleven months ago Robert Burgis shuffled over one of Dan DeWeese's award winning safety contributions...

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5492/14666057035_1786a4e18c_o.jpg


...and, with the usual total confidence that he'd carefully adhered to all of his preflight procedures, proceeded to propel himself and (for the last time) his glider off the Kagel ramp. Former ended up in a crumpled but not seriously damaged heap, latter as a spare parts collection.

http://www.shga.com/forum/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?t=4127
Failure to hook in

Not a single:
- call for implementation of anything a non total moron would consider a hook-in check protocol
- comment by internationally recognized unhooked launch prevention guru Joe Greblo
as usual.

Newest member NMERider / Jonathan / Satan with a Glider and a YouTube Account caught a bit of the event on camera and posted it and I linked to it at:
http://www.kitestrings.org/post4979.html#p4979
but sometime back noticed the link was dead. No problem, says I, I'll put my archived copy up. But... I had neglected to archive a copy.

Couple nights ago I wrote Jonathan to see if he could help me out. Got the new improved and version:

http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5566/14704620965_ce30a874b7_o.png


this morning. Not quite:

2-112
http://c2.staticflickr.com/8/7600/28811055456_925c8abb66_o.png


but it's the best we're ever gonna get of a very serious incident and I'm delighted to have it - no doubt exclusively at this point. Thanks real bigtime, Jonathan.

Notes:
- There's a little pink circle adjacent to the big blowup circle. Ignore it unless/until instructed otherwise.
- You can get full resolution using the URL above the image (as always).

P.S. We're about due for another fatal. I don't think we've ever had a streak over of over four years.
---
Edit - 2014/07/21 02:25:00 UTC

The little pink circle was indeed present in error. Got the original frame from Jonathan and plastered over it to make it much easier to ignore.

You safely strap the baby into the car seat in the morning and head out with the intent of dropping him off at daycare and continuing on to work. But today there's a disruption to the routine. A departure from the normal route for an errand or two, a road closed, a phone call over something that stresses you out a bit and you arrive at the parking lot and make a bit of a dash into the office with the kid mentally logged as dropped off as usual. At 17:10 you're back in the parking lot about to head "back" to daycare as usual and you find that your kid had roasted to death six hours ago.

Sound familiar?

Heard a segment on this on one of the local public radio programs a couple days shy of a year ago, thought "I know how to fix this!" but also thought I'd get the same kind of reception and response that I have in this game.

http://www.kidsandcars.org/userfiles/dangers/heat-stroke-safety-tips.pdf
Safety Tips from KidsAndCars.org

Never leave children alone in or around cars; not even for a minute.

Is that how you're roasting kids? They get left in or around a car for a minute or two?

Put something you'll need like your cell phone, handbag, employee ID or brief case, etc., on the floor board in the back seat.

Got my cell phone, handbag, employee ID or brief case, etc... Kid's obviously safe at daycare.

Get in the habit of always opening the back door of your vehicle every time you reach your destination to make sure no child has been left behind. This will soon become a habit. We call this the "Look Before You Lock" campaign.

In hang gliding we call this the "Hang Check" campaign. Instead of teaching people just to do a minimal check like THIS:

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http://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2912/13700562685_86575e9220_o.png
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we teach them a similar stupid pain in the ass procedure that people are highly incentivized to skip. After they've opened the fuckin' door a few hundred times and - big surprise - haven't found any kids in the back seat, they're gonna stop opening the fuckin' door - big surprise.

THEY DON'T NEED TO OPEN THE FUCKIN' BACK DOOR. THEY JUST NEED TO *LOOK* BEFORE CLOSING THE FUCKIN' *FRONT* DOOR. IF THEY'RE *LOOKING* THEY'RE *THINKING* AND *AFRAID*. THAT'LL DO IT. THE MORE STUPID CRAP YOU PILE ONTO PROCEDURES THE MORE KIDS YOU'RE GONNA ROAST.

Keep a large stuffed animal in the child's car seat when it's not occupied. When the child is placed in the seat, put the stuffed animal in the front passenger seat. It's a visual reminder that anytime the stuffed animal is up front you know the child is in the back seat in a child safety seat.

No stuffed animal in the front passenger seat. No fuckin' way I didn't drop the kid off at daycare!

Make arrangements with your child's day care center or babysitter that you will always call if your child will not be there on a particular day as scheduled.

Three hours now and call from daycare so far. No fuckin' way I didn't drop the kid off at daycare!

Keep vehicles locked at all times; even in the garage or driveway and always set your parking brake.

Yeah, that'll sure help with the problem of... Damn! What was it we were just talking about. Oh yeah, making sure you're helmet's buckled.

Keys and/or remote openers should never be left within reach of children.

Yeah that sure help with the problem of... Damn! What was it we were just talking about. Oh yeah, making sure you're helmet's buckled.

Make sure all child passengers have left the vehicle after it is parked.

DAMN! That's a really good idea! I wish I'd thought of doing that! Now that you've told me that...

http://www.chgpa.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=1166
Thoughts on responsibility...

Scott Wilkinson - 2005/10/05 14:10:56 UTC

We visited Steve Wendt yesterday, who was visibly choked up over Bill's death. For Steve, it all comes down to one thing: you've got to hook in. Period.

...I'll make extra sure I do that!

When a child is missing, check vehicles and car trunks immediately.

Yet another really great idea. Doesn't have shit to do with the problem we're trying to address but it's sure another really great idea. Probably wouldn't be a bad idea to check the bottom of the swimming pool as well if the vehicles and their trunks don't work out.

If you see a child alone in a vehicle, get involved. If they are hot or seem sick, get them out as quickly as possible. Call 911 or your local emergency number immediately.

Yep. Hard to go wrong with that one. And lotsa folk wouldn't think to do anything if they encountered situations like that.

Be especially careful about keeping children safe in and around cars during busy times, schedule changes, and periods of crisis or holidays.

Yeah. When you're most likely to be distracted make sure you don't get distracted. Glad we got that issue settled. NEXT.

Use drive‐thru services when available. (restaurants, banks, pharmacies, dry cleaners, etc.)

Yeah, we don't have enough 300 horsepower Hummers idling in line, spewing out carbon dioxide, roasting the planet, melting icecaps, raising sea levels, generating Typhoon Haiyans, flattening the Philippines, wiping out other people's kids. Fuck you guys.

Use your debit or credit card to pay for gas at the pump.

Otherwise you might hafta walk into the gas station, wait in line to pay, walk out, forget that your Hummer with your kid in the back is still parked at the pump, walk home, not realize that you left your Hummer with your kid in the back parked at the pump until the next morning as you're leaving for work.

Treat the fuckin' gun like it's loaded no matter WHAT you've done or think you've done to make sure it ISN'T. Treat the fuckin' car like the fuckin' kid - or the fuckin' dog - is in it EVERY TIME you're about to shut the fuckin' door.

http://ozreport.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=25550
Failure to hook in.

Christian Williams - 2011/10/25 03:59:58 UTC

I agree with that statement.

What's more, I believe that all hooked-in checks prior to the last one before takeoff are a waste of time, not to say dangerous, because they build a sense of security which should not be built more than one instant before commitment to flight.

Understand that every time you shut the door and walk away from the car you're in a position in which you can kill your goddam kid. And the 999 times in a row that your memory of dropping him off at daycare is accurate aren't the ones that are gonna matter in the long run.

Don't cloud this issue with tons of irrelevant trivial bullshit.

http://www.kidsandcars.org/userfiles/store/look-before-you-lock-en-sp.pdf

LOOK BEFORE YOU LOCK

BULL'S-EYE. Now STOP. Don't water that message/mindset down with a load of extraneous irrelevant counterproductive CRAP.

Think it can't happen to you ... Think again!

The fact that this person has your idiot card is pretty good evidence that he thinks it CAN happen to him, that he doesn't NEED to think again, that he's AWARE of the problem and AFRAID he's gonna screw that pooch. And just that much is probably already more than enough to knock his likelihood of actually screwing that pooch down to about 0.001 percent of what you're gonna see from some total fucking moron who really has his shit together - someone who'd NEVER do anything that stupid and irresponsible.

You're preaching to the choir. The person who has your card is the person least likely to benefit from anything on it.

Mika was only 6-months-old when she died from heat stroke after being left in a vehicle. Mika's father dropped off her sister, but Mika fell asleep in her rear-facing car seat while her dad was distracted by a phone call with news of a possible job after having been laid off weeks before. The road he normally took was blocked so he took a detour. He stopped at the post office where he ran into a friend he'd been helping with a project at the church. He then drove to the church, not realizing until later that day, he never dropped Mika off at day care. When Mika was found, it was too late.

1. Wow! I didn't even read that one before concocting my scenario in the last post! Am I good or what!

2. Thanks bigtime, God. Gotta constantly reinforce the message that no good deed ever goes unpunished - 'specially when it's on Your behalf.

3. Don't worry, Mika's father, mother, sister, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins. This is obviously all part of God's Plan. All he had to do was jog Mika's father's memory for a quarter of a second at some point in the church while Mika was strapped into her safety seat roasting to death. But that wasn't in the card's he wanted - or maybe he was all wrapped up in the World Cup finals at the time. Whatever... She's in a better place now. Just ask your friendly neighborhood priest or pastor.

time management - lack of sleep - worry - work - changes in normal routine - expectations - stress - family - breast feeding - hormonal changes - bills - laundry - time management - time management - lack of sleep - worry - work - changes in normal routine - expectations - stress - family - breast feeding - hormonal changes - bills - laundry - time management - lack of sleep - worry - work - changes in normal routine - expectations - stress - family - breast feeding - hormonal changes - bills - laundry

All of the above, some of the above, none of the above, humans are humans, humans have been known to make mistakes, forget stuff that happened, remember stuff that didn't happen, nobody's memory is perfect, big fuckin' surprise...

SAFETY CHECKLIST

Oh good. A CHECKLIST. Yep, we've sure had outstanding success with THOSE in addressing our analogous issue. Six items on it that you need to memorize to keep from roasting your kid in the car. One more than Joe Greblo's Five Cs. Should be twenty percent more effective.

Planning can help you keep your child from being hurt.

Yeah. So make sure you plan not to:
- just toss the kid on the back seat with the other stuff your hauling
- drive into oncoming traffic while your texting
- walk away from your little solar furnace while your kid is locked in it

FEAR can - AND WILL - help you keep your child from being ROASTED TO DEATH. Talking about keeping your child from being "hurt" really doesn't convey the message we need to.

B - Back seat:
- Put something in the back seat of your vehicle that requires you to open the back door every time you park - cell phone, employee badge, handbag, etc.

How 'bout your BABY? You're gonna put your baby in the back seat and you WON'T remember to take HIM out but you WILL remember your cell phone?

Yeah. Any of those COULD work. BUT your:
- cell phone is gonna be useless unless you need it to make a call within two hours
- employee badge will be worth shit on Saturday and Sunday
- handbag ain't gonna do no good if the friend you're meeting is springing for the matinée movie tickets
- etc. - how could you POSSIBLY go wrong with your etc.

None of these strategies is anything close to bulletproof. But if you're working on following them they're gonna reduce your fear level. And guess what...

Steve Kinsley - 1998/05/01 01:16

Re: Screwed the pooch

So Marc thinks the Australian method will forever ban human error and stupidity. I suspect that 80% of the flying community would have unhooked to fix the radio problem instead of getting out of the harness entirely. It is easier. And there you are back in the soup.

"With EACH flight, demonstrates method of establishing that pilot is hooked in JUST PRIOR to launch." Emphasis in original.- USHGA Novice through Advanced requirement.

I know of only three people who actually do this. I am one of them. I am sure there are more but not a lot more. Instead we appear to favor ever more complex (and irrelevant) hang checks or schemes like Marc advocates that possibly increase rather than decrease the risk of hook in failure.

E - Every child:
- Every child should be correctly restrained in the back seat.

1. EVERY child? Isn't that being just a bit anal? Just do the ones you like the best.

2. THE ISSUE here is NOT having a child correctly restrained in the back seat roasting to death. But I guess you needed to concoct some stupid E to shoehorn into your stupid checklist. Go for it. You'll probably get through to some of those parents who don't realize that correctly restraining children in the back seat is a good idea and/or live in one of those states in which you're not escorted from your vehicle in handcuffs for failing to correctly restraining a child in the back seat.

S - Stuffed animal:
- Keep a stuffed animal in your child's car seat. Place it on the front seat as a reminder when your baby is in the back seat.

Fuck the teddy bear.

- AT BEST you're gonna use him as a crutch so's you don't hafta check on the actual baby.

- Unless you seatbelt him into the front seat he's gonna be on the floor the first time you hafta stop for a light. And you're not gonna seatbelt him in because that's gonna be a royal pain. And then you're gonna rear-end somebody while you're scooping him up off the floor because your baby's life is totally dependent upon that teddy bar being in place on the front seat at all times the baby's in the back seat.

- Where's the teddy bear go when Mika's sister is in the passenger's seat? What does Mika's sister's presence in the passenger's seat signify about the location status of the baby?

- I one hundred percent guarantee you that goddam teddy bear, even if you're able to use him according to the game plan, is gonna become one hundred percent invisible after about a minute and a half of driving - MAX. He's gonna be part of the scenery and of no significance whatsoever.

Here's what we have as a teddy bear:

http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5492/14666057035_1786a4e18c_o.jpg


Here's the aftermath of a demonstration of what a totally useless piece of shit it is:

http://c2.staticflickr.com/6/5566/14704620965_ce30a874b7_o.png


If the fact that you're about to run off a couple thousand feet of drop-off doesn't get you thinking about your connection status that stupid brick sure won't do anything. And if the fact that in hot weather you're one memory lapse and door slam away from roasting your baby to death don't expect a the presence of a teddy bear on the passenger's seat the get your brain to kick in.

The fuckin' teddy bear is just one more major pain in the ass distraction you'll have available to knock your IQ down a few more points.

A - Ask your babysitter:
- Ask you babysitter or child care provider to call if your child hasn't arrived on time.

See above. And if I'm your daycare provider I'm gonna try to get you on the horn if li'l Billy isn't checked in when he's supposed to be. But I'm not gonna AGREE to alert you 'cause I don't want to have my ass sued off or thrown in jail as a party to your negligence.

F - Focus on driving:
- Avoid cell phone calls and texting while driving.

Yeah, FOCUS on driving. I one hundred percent guarantee you that's exactly what Mika's father was doing when he was navigating the detour and continuing on to the church. I'll bet he now lies awake nights wishing he'd smacked into a parked car while responding to a text message - or been pulled over for DWI with Mika totally unrestrained on the front seat and picked up a good handful of felony charges.

E - Every time you park:
- Make it a routine to open the back door of your car every time you park to check that no one has been left behind.

Yeah. Make it a ROUTINE. The ROUTINE you have to drop your kid off at daycare on the way to work but THIS ONE *WILL*.

Lemme tell ya' sumpin', motherfucker...

I don't do THIS:

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http://c1.staticflickr.com/3/2912/13700562685_86575e9220_o.png
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within a second or two of my foot moving forward 'cause that's my ROUTINE. I do it 'cause I'm scared totally shitless that I'm not connected to my glider - EVERY TIME. It's not any more a ROUTINE than making sure my wings are level, my nose is down, and the wind's not tailing. I'm not gonna open the fuckin' back door because that's my ROUTINE and I might discover my kid back there someday as a side effect of my routine. I'm gonna look in the back seat before I slam the front door 'cause I'm scared shitless of roasting my kid. I've got that FEAR. ANYBODY who at that moment is afraid of roasting his kid WILL NOT ROAST HIS KID.

I can't say that the lift and tug procedure of which I'm the primary proponent prevents unhooked launches. But that's only 'cause people who practice lift and tug are scared shitless of launching unhooked at the only time it counts. And I CAN say lift and tuggers and reasonable facsimiles are the only classes of foot launchers who never launch unhooked. ALL others use bullshit checklists, procedures, routines, "BE SAFE" equivalents and drop like freakin' flies.

The ratio of people driving cookable age kids around in cars to people foot launching hang gliders has gotta be something in the ballpark of half a billion to one. I individually/personally have gotten people to change their mindsets, procedures, routines and I've stopped one person on the other side of the planet from running off a mountain with a missed leg loop. I looked all over your website and you don't present one scrap of evidence that anything you're proposing and advocating has spared one single kid one single minute of being forgotten in a hot, cold, or comfortable car. I don't even see one scrap of evidence that one single person is actually doing your stupid back door trick.

The ONLY strategy that's gonna reduce the number of roasted babies... Sixteen year old driver's ed students need to be made to understand that EVERYBODY has the potential to screw this pooch and one's best ticket to not screwing it is to be scared shitless he will. And that fear needs to be maxed out in the two second window before that driver's door is slammed.

LOOK BEFORE YOU LOCK

Lose the other CRAP.