Daryl Norris

(Comment made by jumper on the load) Daryl had a nice launch and then struggled to put his hand onto the pilot chute.He continued to attempt to grasp it and deploy but went unstable onto his left side every time an attempt was made. After the fifth attempt he dissapeared into the tree shadow and impacted about 1/2 a second later onto rocks. Watched in disbelief as I had witnessed him touch and check the pilot chute a thousand times before exit like we all do. Being a bit rounder than average with big solid shoulders, I think his rig has moved far enough up his back when he went into freefall position from standing to put the boc just far enough up his back to be out of reach. He wasnt the most flexible of blokes either. This was his first stowed jump on that rig after two successful hand helds. The rig was not custom made for his dimensions(ie. his roundness/girth).. I think this was a contributing factor .He had over 6000 skydives,very current, and this was to be his 6th BASE jump. I,m wondering if he had his legstraps fully tightened,as this would cause the rig to move upwards with his shoulders when flying a boxed arch and legs spread more so than when standing. Things to learn from this would be. 1.. If doing stowed jumps,be sure the gear is made for your dimensions. 2.. If coming back to the sport after a long break,treat yourself like a student and wear the rig all night and day and practice laying flat and in a flying position deploying your pilot chute. In fact make sure you can get to your pilot chute in ANY position you may find yourself in,but most importantly in the full arch position when the rig has the most likelihood of moving on your body. 3... If any doubt exists,go hand held. He was an excellent skydiver who jumped small rigs and canopies. He was my good mate. I still bereave his passing. Best thing that can happen now is that lessons are learnt from this and in turn helps make our sport safer.