Squancher had been attempting to do 365 BASE jumps this year. He had gotten behind and was trying to catch up, often doing multiple jumps, sometimes 4 or more, in a day. He had done 80 jumps since January 1st, most of which had been done on this cliff.
Anyone who has spent any time around Chuckles knows he’s a stubborn little bastard. Telling him what to do has significant potential to make him want to do the opposite. Chuck also regularly spoke about his belief that flying larger canopies does not have a major effect on object avoidance if you’re a good pilot and that winds have little effect on heading performance. These two topics were both things he joked about and in my opinion, did not fully believe, but that he would also use to justify his jumps. He often jumped solo in these conditions.
We had done a successful jump earlier in the day and had decided to go to another local exit for a second jump. Conditions on the ground were calm. Up top, there was a 2-5 knot right to left crosswind that was cycling every few minutes. bitzkrieg seemed a little rushed while he prepared his TARD and walked over to the “poised” exit. The exit is slightly uphill, the cliff is not a very friendly one for TARDs, and Smelliot had not done one from this cliff before. He looked nervous on exit and left quietly and without a count. Mr. Peters had an immediate 180 and struck the cliff within 2 seconds or so of exiting. No inputs were appreciable, and he struck the wall several more times, got hung up for a moment, released, and streamered to the talus, rolling down to his final resting point at the very bottom of the talus.
Over the last 12 or so years I have spent with Sir Barstow, these last two have been the happiest, driven, and just generally stoked I have ever seen him. Legend he already was and will continue to be.
Many lessons can be gleaned from this incident almost all of them obvious. If there’s one that I learned long ago it’s this: BASE jumping is delicious poison. Its cost is only recognizable through loss, it's worth is personal, and its point is pointless. The great Chuck Peters knew that through and through. May he haunt the souls of FAA regulators and financial establishments for the rest of time!
Crutches of Hoodie and Crutches
Hadler
V
Piss Missile
Great way to remember him
https://vimeo.com/125218080
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QjiHUB7FZd4
Can you help us with incident interpretation? We are interested in any details regarding personal experience, gear, weather conditions and any other circumstances related to the incident.
