Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
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Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
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Re: Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
#2"To slow your descent, emulate a sky diver. Spread your arms and legs, present your chest to the ground, and arch your back and head upward."
You will fall slightly (5MPH-ish) slower if you instead arch your back and arms in the opposite way, as if attempting to hug a large beachball. This position is slightly less stable though, so you risk flailing around and increasing your speed.
What the article did not discuss was any attempt at horizontal movement as a way of plummeting into something safer than a parking lot.
Re: Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
#3While very nicely written and a good read, I too was taken aback by "Lower body weight reduces terminal velocity" - Physics 101 anybody?
Re: Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
#4"To slow your descent, emulate a sky diver. Spread your arms and legs, present your chest to the ground, and arch your back and head upward." You will fall slightly (5MPH-ish) slower if you instead arch your back and arms in the opposite way, as if attempting to hug a large beachball. This position is slightly less stable though, so you risk flailing around and increasing your speed. What the article did not discuss…
something safer than a parking lot
One of those pools of colored balls at a McDonald's Kids Playland?
Re: Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
#5"To slow your descent, emulate a sky diver. Spread your arms and legs, present your chest to the ground, and arch your back and head upward." You will fall slightly (5MPH-ish) slower if you instead arch your back and arms in the opposite way, as if attempting to hug a large beachball. This position is slightly less stable though, so you risk flailing around and increasing your speed. What the article did not discuss…
something safer than a parking lot One of those pools of colored balls at a McDonald's Kids Playland?
That's the thing...unless you're a very experienced skydiver, you could not land under with a parachute inside something that small much less by flying your body at 120MPH. So, I think you'd be best off aiming for something big and kinda good -- like a bunch of scrub brush or a marsh.
Re: Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
#6While very nicely written and a good read, I too was taken aback by "Lower body weight reduces terminal velocity" - Physics 101 anybody?
A lower ratio of body weight to drag force reduces terminal velocity. How's that?
Re: Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
#7While very nicely written and a good read, I too was taken aback by "Lower body weight reduces terminal velocity" - Physics 101 anybody?
If your surface area to weight ratio is higher, then yes. Small women end up strapping on 10+ pounds of lead weight if they want to fly with the boys.
Re: Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
#8While very nicely written and a good read, I too was taken aback by "Lower body weight reduces terminal velocity" - Physics 101 anybody?
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Re: Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
#9The mantra I've heard among BASE jumpers is "if the chute fails, go in head first" -- e.g., if the shit's going to go down, finish it quick instead of ending up a mangled vegetable.
Re: Just in case you fall out of a plane without your 'chute
#10"To slow your descent, emulate a sky diver. Spread your arms and legs, present your chest to the ground, and arch your back and head upward." You will fall slightly (5MPH-ish) slower if you instead arch your back and arms in the opposite way, as if attempting to hug a large beachball. This position is slightly less stable though, so you risk flailing around and increasing your speed. What the article did not discuss…
I've read previously that you can move up to 12 miles in any direction while falling if you aim for it. Over most of America this gives you ample opportunity to find a tree.
I've also read that you should come down in a sitting position on top of a tree. Haystacks seem like they would be too hard to spot until it's too late. A grain silo might be recognizable and have a thin enough roof to be helpful.
I suppose you could aim for the suburbs and hope someone has one of those obnoxiously large trampolines.