Finish Gate Accident no. 2

Uvalde, Texas, August 4, 1086 (15 meter National Championships)

ASW-20 crossed the finish line at 50 feet and 85 knots, then started a
climbing turn to position himself on down-wind. Pilot sees another ship
in the pattern and turns away to avoid a
conflict.....................Let's stop the action for a moment and
discuss some things. This pilot may have been suffering from the
affects of dehydration, but his senses were working well enough to find
the airport (per GPS) and make his high speed, low altitude pass
through the finish gate. He responded to the "Good Finish" from the
gate. He should have been able to complete the flight and make a safe
landing. Why didn't he?

Resume action...................Pilot leaves airport boundries and
crashes in a housing area about 2 blocks north of the airport. He
struck power lines and then hit a pick up truck squarely in the drivers
door. The door collapsed inward absorbing a lot of energy. The whole
truck then moved sideways until the wheels hit the curb, breaking both
axles. The pilot received serious injuries to his feet and legs, but
made a full recovery. I believe he owes his life to the great big shock
absorber he ran into (truck).

Let's discuss dehydration a bit. I know a pilot that crashed, severly
dehydrated, at 4PM and he doesn't remember anything after breakfast.
What does that mean? It means he functioned all day long, right up to
the accident. He took off, towed, thermaled and flew some 60 miles
cross country to make his rendezvous with destiny. What does all this
have to do with anything? Just this; A dehydrated mind is still
functioning and can perform simple, well rehearsed, tasks. It's the
unexpected that gets you, like a conflict in the pattern.

Had the GPS Finish Cylinder been available, would the outcome of this
accident been any different? The pilot was functioning well enough to
find the airport and he had a plan. It was to finish and pull-up. Had
the finish cylinder been in use, his plan would have been to finish (1
mile) and land. Doc Cannon (NT) will tell you the simple act of pulling
up is enough to shut down a dehydrated mind. I know, some still make a
hard pull-up at the 1 mile mark. I don't, because it is no longer
necessary. I am most likely to make a gentle pull-up and then just
allow any excess speed to bleed off as I fly the remaining mile to the
airport.

JJ Sinclair
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