SEBASTIAN — A seasoned skydiver died Sunday night after a late deployment of his parachute led to his death, according to Sebastian Police Department spokesman Steve Marcinick. A possible malfunction of his rig is also suspected.
Jeff Nebelkopf, 43, of Sebastian, was pronounced dead at Sebastian Medical Center after being involved with a Skydive Sebastian jump.
“Jeff experienced a high speed malfunction on his main, which eventually opened into a hard spin,” Harry Parker said in a post on a facebook memorial page for Nebelkopf. “The Cypress fired. The reserve bridal/pilot chute entangled with the risers and his head/neck at a very low altitude preventing him from potentially correcting the situation.”
A memorial page has been setup at https://www.facebook.com/groups/633033066771423/
Nebelkopf has been involved with a lot of people’s memorable jumps, said Jeff Donohue, on the memorial page. He was also involved in the annual Skydive Invasion.
Nebelkopf is also the unofficial world record holder for the most number of go-pros mounted on a helmet at one time, according to Andrew Mellor’s post.
Nebelkopf was using a wingsuit and has had thousands of jumps, according to Ofc. Marcinick.
“He was a seasoned jumper,” said Marcinick.
The investigation is ongoing and an autopsy is planned to confirm the cause of death, according to authorities.
“I can’t stop remembering your smile when you remove your helmet, your geeky face when we would scary roll, and how you would come up with the most ridiculous nonsense and convince people it was true for (a) minute with a neutral tone of voice,” said Romain Bignon Berberian on the memorial page.
“The sport has lost a true visionary, artist and friend,” said Harry Parker on the page.
