When jumpers take on the responsibility (and that’s precisely what it is) of getting their licenses, they are pledging to conduct themselves safely.

A jumper came to me after his first cutaway, concerned about damage to his reserve system.

Chances are, you know very little about your reserve canopy (after all, it’s packed away out of view most of the time), but you should. It’s an important piece of equipment, and although you hope to never use it, you probably will at some point. (Photo by David Cherry.)

Like just about any innovation or improvement, the hip rings introduced to make a skydiving harness more flexible for freestyle and freeflying have a downside. If the harness is fitted correctly so the two ends of the leg strap at the ring seldom or never make contact, no wear should appear.

You pull one handle and, magically, there is an open parachute over your head. And if that doesn’t work, you just cut away, pull the reserve handle and later buy your rigger their bottle of choice. Voilà! Seems simple enough.