{"id":17968,"date":"2018-03-06T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2018-03-06T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/skydivemag.com\/new\/?p=17968"},"modified":"2021-01-29T18:20:22","modified_gmt":"2021-01-29T18:20:22","slug":"2018-03-06-rsl-skyhook-or-faith","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.skydivemag.com\/new\/2018-03-06-rsl-skyhook-or-faith\/","title":{"rendered":"RSL, Skyhook or Faith?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

There has been a lot of discussion about whether experienced jumpers should use RSLs. This discussion has actually been going on for years… <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Dan BC, image by Gary Wainwright<\/span><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Throughout many years of my skydiving career I chose not to use an RSL. The logic for this being that if I had to cutaway and only had one parachute left I wanted to be as flat and stable as possible before deploying my reserve. For some 25+ cutaways I did just that and it worked fine. I was always under my reserve plenty high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lost a Friend<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Some years ago I saw a good friend, and very competent skydiver with over 2,000 jumps, ride a gently spinning malfunction down to about 500 feet and then cutaway. She never got the reserve out. I thought long and hard about this. It occurred to me that there had been several times over the years that I ended up in freefall lower than I had intended. Fortunately those weren\u2019t the times I had malfunctions but they just as easily could have been.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Series of Events<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s the combinations of problems that get you in trouble. You know, those times when you break off and deploy a little lower than you planned. But you have a hard pull, then a pilot hesitation, then a snivel, then a malfunction, then it takes an extra second to get your hand on the cutaway handle, now you are down at 1,000 or lower and cutting away, then you tumble for a few seconds before getting stable and pulling your reserve.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I came to the conclusion that getting a parachute over your head as quickly as possible was the most important thing to do”<\/p>Dan BC<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Risk Management<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

I decided that this type of scenario was more likely, and risky, than using an RSL and cutting away from a spinning malfunction which could then possibly hinder my reserve opening. The RSL deploys the reserve so quickly that this shouldn\u2019t be a problem. And with a SkyHook, which is even better than an RSL, you don\u2019t even have time to get unstable before your reserve is out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve had three cutaways now with a Skyhook and it is more like a canopy transfer. I didn\u2019t for even a second have that feeling of going back into freefall. After looking at all the different scenarios I came to the conclusion that getting a parachute over your head as quickly as possible was the most important thing to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Personal Choice<\/h1>\n\n\n\n

Everyone needs to make this decision for themselves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But as far as whether an experienced jumper should use a Skyhook and\/or an RSL, I absolutely think the benefits far outweigh the risks.<\/strong> <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Both my Javelins have Skyhooks and RSLs in them. And I\u2019m a fairly experienced skydiver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I\u2019ve had three cutaways now with a Skyhook and it is more like a canopy transfer”<\/p>Dan BC<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Skyhook Cutaway Sequence<\/em><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A cutaway and reserve deployment with a Skyhook are shown below<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For an explanation of RSL, MARD and Skyhook click here<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Skyhook cutaway<\/em> 1 \u2013 cutaway handle pulled<\/em>
Image by Niklas Daniel<\/em><\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Skyhook cutaway 2 \u2013 reserve starting to open \u2013 it’s fast!<\/em><\/a>
Image by Niklas Daniel<\/em><\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Related article: MARDginal Analysis<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Skyhook cutaway<\/em>
Image by Niklas Daniel<\/em><\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Riley Marshall explains RSLs and MARDS, with details on the Skyhook and other MARDs: MARDginal Analysis<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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