14 replies to this topic

[Apparelyzed]

Skydiving Quadriplegic's Death Raises Questions of Safety for Disabled Thrill Seekers

The death of 27-year-old Zack Fogle, a quadriplegic with a passion for skydiving, has sparked a debate over safety standards for disabled thrill seekers.

Fogle, who was partially paralyzed from the neck down, died skydiving at the 44th annual Lost Prairie Boogie in northwest Montana on Saturday after his custom-built parachute failed to open. According to video footage and statements from other skydivers, Fogle was on his back for much of the 1,200-foot free fall, leading investigators to conclude that his disability prevented him from righting his position and manually deploying his chute.

More information: http://abcnews.go.co...ory?id=14213678

[Jeanette]

Very sad but it does raise questions maybe dual jump would be safer

[pinkcloud]

flipping heck, i read this and felt sick with sadness.

Heres a dude with courage and what an un-necessary and tragic sad ending.

me heart goes out to the family and friends

[ajl338]

This is sad, as it is when anyone dies but the paper is totally missing the point about the thrill of extreme sports. The reason we do them is because there is risk involved, without the risk we wouldnt bother. Its up to an informed individual to understand the risks weighed up against the adrenalin rush experienced and decide if it is a risk worth takeing.

There are HSE figures for the number of sky diving deaths, people die despite being abled / disabled, when you are falling legs arent an issue gravity does most the work. I have jumped pre accident and not ww kayak and ski etc I like the idea of being free (free from my chair, free from life, free from everything. It makes me feel alive and like life is worth living, adrenalin and endorphines are so much better than any drugs the doctor gives

ann

[Ratticis]

So he had 125 sucessful jumps prior to this, but now we wanna act like he should never have been aloud to do anything? WTF?
AC·CI·DENT [ak-si-duhnt]noun
An undesirable or unfortunate happening that occurs unintentionally and usually results in harm, injury, damage, or loss; casualty; mishap.
A yes, lets lock all gimps up in a nursing home in case they stub their toe!

[goose]

Yes, accidents do happen...the reason most of us are now in wheelchairs or have a sci. I'm glad he was able to accomplish many jumps in the past but so sorry his last one ended in death. I'm sad for him and his family and friends.

[Ratticis]

Something like that usually only happens once in a lifetime

[snowqueeneh]

Ratticis, on 05 August 2011 - 02:49 AM, said:

Something like that usually only happens once in a lifetime

OMG

I guess I would have to agree?

[snowqueeneh]

On a serious note. When invloved in something so dangerous, casualties are inevitable. It's really sad. Poor kid... so young. I hope they can come up with something to make is safer for future jumpers. My heart goes out to him.

[megatrig]

snowqueeneh, on 06 August 2011 - 07:01 AM, said:

Ratticis, on 05 August 2011 - 02:49 AM, said:

Something like that usually only happens once in a lifetime

OMG

I guess I would have to agree?

Chuckle!!

I have to agree though!

and

ACCIDENT!!!

As has been said. Extreme sports can be dangerous. Thats where you get the "buzz" from!!!

[edlee]

Make it safer????? snowqueeneh???? To what end??? The whole point of skydiving is the threat to your life.

Something that most aren't aware of about skydiving,, is that there is a reserve shoot attached to the front of the diver,,, to be used in case of main shoot failure. It has to be operated manually,, ie,, it isn't automatic. After jumpers become inured with the normal process,,,, they generally start participating in group jumps ( more dangerous),, then to formation jumps ( even more dangerous),, then,, high altitude,, low altitude,,,, and finally,,, to "cut aways" . In this iteration of insanity,, they open their main chute,,,, then ,, disconnect from it,, fall away from it,, and open their reserve chute, , which is smaller and more difficult to deploy.

The point is that making things "safer" only leads to someone finding a more dangerous stunt to perform.

It comes down to an old adage,,, one I learned in my misspent youth,,,, " If you insist on being stupid,,,, you better be tough!!!"
ed

[racepace]

your right, it was just an accident. it could have happened to anyway one skydiving whether they were a quad or not. people are now questioning whether it is save for other with a similar injury to sky dive? yeah what a load of rubbish. i doubt it had anything to do with it him being a quad, it was just one of those unfortunate things that could have happened to anyone. shame to lose such a determined and clearly motivated guy though!

[rollingtrouble]

He went out doing something he really enjoyed, what a blessing I'm sure. I'm thinking he wouldn't want people to be sad, I know I wouldn't. Anything really fun to do is either dangerous or illegal. No pun intended, but he went out on a high note, what a way to go!

[wheeliebear75]

OK I can see "the FACTS"; he was "an experienced skydiver/parachute jumper", I can also see how his SCI may have prevented him from being able to MANUALLY deploy the reserve chute.

HOWEVER.....how many AB jumpers had dozens of "PERFECT JUMPS" under their proverbial belts...only to have something happen on that LAST JUMP? This was just a tragic combination of BAD LUCK being compounded by his pre-existing SCI.

But so long as we/the disabled person is MENTALLY COMPETENT enough to make an informed decision...."It's THEIR CHOICE to do WTF they want!"

[tsh3406]

I think I'd rather my chute didn't deploy rather than be old, broken down, in a home somewhere.... Go out with your boots on....

T