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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (May 5, 1978)
THE BATTALION FRIDAY, MAY 5, 1978 Page 3 Low injury rate arachutists learn to jump safely 1 It takes about two and a half min utes to reach the ground when a [parachutist jumps from an aircraft at 2,500 feet, falling at a rate of approx- limately 13 to 15 feet per second, ■his is the dangerous aspect of ■arachuting because the jumper has little time to think before landing. K The American Parachute Center tin Gatesville makes it possible for Texas A&M University students to llearn the art of parachuting. ■ The center, 120 miles from Col- llege Station, holds classes for be- Iginners as well as advanced stu- Bents, and is the jumping site of the A&M Sport Parachute Club. I The 25-member A&M club, which is affiliated with the U.S. Parachute Association, has been es- examples of emergency maneuvers. Anderson, of the A&M parachute club, felt that this was very helpful because it gave him a preview of what the jump would be like. Students are taught to recognize two types of malfunctions, the high speed and low speed. At either of these speeds, a total malfunction may occur. This means the parachute does not come out of its pack closure. The partial malfunction causes the parachute not to open com pletely. The horseshoe is a partial malfunction in which the parachute does not unfold completely because the jumper’s hand or foot becomes tangled in some part of it. The total serious injury rate was about 3 percent. Half of these were experienced jumpers that exceeded parachuting. The five hour class is set up to make sure that everyone gets the same routine and sufficient “Our accident rate is probably lower here than anywhere else” said David Regenthal, jumpmaster and part owner of the Gatesville school Some CIA working areas have‘hazardous conditions’ United Press International WASHINGTON — Spy work can be dangerous, but not in tbe way you might think. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, in a re port released Wednesday, has chided the CIA for allowing “un safe and unhealthful conditions’ in its working areas. The report said CIA safety personnel are being trained in such things as bomb disposal and opening letter bombs rather than in making sure employees do not trip over things or are not ex posed to hazardous fumes. OSHA inspectors visited CIA headquarters in Langley, Va., as well as secret locations, and found hazardous conditions such as improper storage of flammable liquids, excessive noise, lack of exit signs and use of carbon tet rachloride, a known cancer- causing agent, without regard to employee exposure levels. “You ask yourself why you have de cided to jump out of an airplane with only a parachute on your back,” said David Anderson, a member of the A<LrM Sport Parachute Club. tablished for two years. Beginning parachutists often feel uneasy before taking the first jump. As he time draws near, a quiet nervousness comes over you. You ask yourself why you have decided to jump out of an airplane with only a parachute on your back, said David Anderson, a member of the A&M Sport Parachute Club. I “But once you jump, the adrena lin takes over and you lose the fright. Landing is an indescribable feeling because you realize that you ■ave actually accomplished parachuting,” said Anderson. E The American Parachute Center’s classes consist of four major di visions. The first, canopy control, Bmiliarizes students with the actual flarachute rigging. B The second division includes air- Rraft procedures. Students are taught to exit from the aircraft and to spot, which means dropping at a (tortain time and landing on target. By the U.S. Parachute Associa- 10n s doctrine, parachuting should not be done in winds exceeding 10 mph,” said John Moyer, jumpmas ter at the Gatesville school. “The students are taught to check their | canopy, orientate themselves with the surroundings, and make sure phat the target is in front of them nnce optside the aircraft.” I Thede are three types of maneu- Ivers which the beginning parachutist must learn. In the hold ing maneuver, the jumper turns into the wind to decrease his for ward movement. The running ma- leuver teaches the jumper to face Bhe target and “run with the wind. “Crabbing” refers to a maneuver combining both running and hold ing which causes the jumper to Imove back and forth across the iwindline. I A third section of the class deals Iwith malfunctions and reserve ac tivations. A malfunction means that something is wrong with the parachute, making it unsafe for the jumper to descend. In the classroom ach student is suspended in the air n an actual harness. This method lllows the instructor to explain the bnctions of the harness and to give Some types of low speed malfunc tions are the line over, in which the line attached to the parachute be comes caught over the top of the canopy. Another such malfunction is the blown panel, in which the mate rial in the parachute is faulty and the pressure causes it to fall apart. Mal functions should be determined by the time the jumper reaches 1800 feet so that emergency procedures can be taken immediately. The Gatesville Center instructors have begun using radios which are attached to the beginner’s gear to instruct him in emergency and ap proach procedures. Another alter native is the ground arrow, which tells the jumper which direction to point his canopy. The last division of the class deals with landing falls and emergency procedures, one of the most impor tant aspects. “Our accident rate is probably lower here than anywhere else, said David Regenthal, jumpmaster and part owner of the Gatesville school. In the past two years only eight jumps have re sulted in injuries. Last year out of 125 students jumping for the first time, there were only four injuries. their personal limitations. Regenthal said he believed that if these persons had followed instruc tions more carefully, there would have been no problem. “Most new comers want to learn and since they are apprehensive about jumping tend to be more careful,” said Re genthal. Students are taught to turn the parachute into the wind at 200 feet and hold that position until landing. An exception to this rule is when the jumper is in danger of striking an obstacle, in which case the canopy should be turned in a 90 degree angle away from the danger area. “Students are taught to avoid these situations ahead of time by maneuvering tbe canopy away from any danger areas,” said Moyer. For example, the jumper should keep his feet and knees together with legs bent and his hands folded under his arms to pass through obstacles such as trees. The five points of contact upon landing are the balls of the feet, calves, thigh, buttocks and shoulder, in that order. Once jump school classes are completed, students are required to take a written test over the material. They can then begin working to ward a variety of parachute licenses. There are four types of licenses in parachuting which are given out by the USPA. These are A, B, C, and D, where D is the most qualified and A is the least. To achieve an A license the jumper must go up in the aircraft without a jumpmaster, pack his own parachute, and have at least 25 free falls. For a B license the requirement is 50 free falls. The C license requires 100 and the D license requires 200. A jumpmaster must have at least a C license and have passed a jumpmaster course. “I feel that we are one of the safest operations going,” said Re genthal. “We have taken steps to make people aware of the dangers of HAVE LUNCH ON US ... FREE! A&M Apt. Placement is giving everyone who leases through us a FREE LUNCH at T.J.’s . . . Our way of saying “Thanks Ags.” And don’t forget, our ser vice is FREE. We handle apartments, duplexes, houses ... all types of housing. NOW LEASING FOR FALL Check this out: New 2 bedroom, 1 bath fenced duplex for Fall. Totally energy-efficient: gas heat, HaO heater, range & oven. Lawn kept. 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The philosophy of the Gatesville school is to give more time to actual procedure than to packing rigs. This gives the newcomer less additional worry of packing the parachute him self. When the instructors see that a student has a problem, they give him increased attention and retrain those that are weak in certain areas. When bad weather occurs, the stu dents are given a refresher course over previous lessons before going on to others. The A&M Sport Parachute Club, which eventually hopes to put to gether a team for competition, holds it meetings every other Thursday in the MSC. Membership fees for the club are $10 for 12 months. Tupfnamba Eddie Dominguez 66 Let’s promote JUDGE BILL VANCE District 85th Judicial District Brazo M M B V.™.. SggS/Biva 1 '- ,7iU " lillijil If you want the real thing, not frozen or canned . . . We call It "Mexican Food Supreme." 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Sandy Dennis steals the show.” — Judith (Crist Saturday Review . high wit and inspired [silliness, Nasty Habits suggests a Midsummer [Night’s Dream of Watergate Sandy Dennis is John Dean crossed with Amy ICarter. Even those who |voted for Nixon may be able jto laugh at Nasty Habits.” — Pauline Kael New Yorker I May 5 & 6 8 p.m. Friday - Theater Saturday - Auditorium^ FREE MOVIE ssia mmj. mm : ■ Thee outrageous comedy! iH* iiiSitiiligi . : - t I mi i. -, - > iif KlllSli ■ . : Glenda Jackson • Geraldine Page • Sandy Dennis Anne Jackson