AOPA Pilot Magazine - November 2023 - 46

DAVID TULIS
BRIEFING
PRODUCTS /
No-knot SlideDown tiedown
Secure, easy-to-use, customizable
BY DAVID TULIS
DURING AN INFORMAL knot-tying tiedown competition held at AOPA headquarters
last fall, only one out of five pilots securely and correctly tied down a Cessna 172
using the appropriate technique at each end of a typical tiedown rope. It was
an eye-opening exercise, especially for student pilots who frequently have a CFI
nearby to lend a hand (or two).
Enter SlideDown innovator and pilot Sal Corio, who has come to the
rescue with a product that will make aircraft tiedown experts out of the other
80 percent of us.
About 10 years ago
Corio took a camping
trip idea that involved
a rope, a tent, and a
wooden block and
morphed it into an aircraft
security system
that works as a knotless
airplane tiedown.
After watching several
pilot friends struggle
with their knot-tying
skills, the Piper Archer
owner says he knew he
could " find a solution
that anybody could use. "
His goal was to take that
basic camping idea and
" make it easier, safer, and
stronger. "
The patented device
substitutes a machined
aluminum cylinder for
the wooden block, adds
vinyl-coated eyelets at
each end, and mates your airplane to the ground using a very strong, kernmantle
braided rope to shore it up. A hook goes into the airplane's tiedown ring, the
other end fastens to the ground anchor, and sliding down the machined cylinder
tightens the rope.
Shortly after designing the device in 2013, Corio arrived at his first EAA
AirVenture as a vendor armed with a small booth-it was just a table and a sign-a
big idea, and a crate of SlideDown ropes. Corio says he invited aviation writers and
editors to come by the booth but was disappointed when he didn't get any takers.
He eventually hunted down former AOPA Pilot magazine editor Tom Horne
who was on deadline writing one of dozens of AirVenture-related stories. " Horne
was typing away on his laptop and looked up long enough to say, 'OK, you have
46
AOPA PILOT / November 2023
All in one
The original SlideDown kit
includes two preassembled
8-foot-long wing ropes, one
5-foot-long tail rope, three
powder-coated aluminum slides,
and a carry bag-all in basic
black-for $74.95.
slidedown.com
60 seconds' " to demonstrate the new device.
" So now I'm all nervous and fumbling around
figuring out how to anchor the SlideDown to
the smooth floor. Finally, I just stepped on the
lower hook, held the other hook above my
head, and slid down the cylinder until the rope
was tight. "
Horne stopped typing, looked up, and said,
" Hey, let me see that again! " That's when Corio
knew he'd hit on something good.
SlideDown tiedowns have since been
installed on numerous aircraft displayed at
AOPA campuses during EAA AirVenture, the
Sun 'n Fun Aerospace Expo, and at scores
of AOPA events. And they're all made in the
United States near Corio's New England
stomping grounds.
Rope colors can be substituted to match
or contrast with your aircraft's paint scheme
for no extra charge. Custom engraving on the
slide to match your airplane's registration
number, your name, or another phrase is an
additional $20.
New for 2023 and to help celebrate 10
years in business is a smaller, more compact
SlideDown LT version that can secure outdoors
equipment to vehicles or other anchors, priced
from $38.95 and up. david.tulis@aopa.org
http://www.slidedown.com
AOPA Pilot Magazine - November 2023

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