[jmessner]

Excellent post. I can appreciate the amount of work you have researched. However these authors are merely stating observation, not science. They fail to explain why, or state anything other than conjecture.

There is one more Author to consider.

See 6-C-0 #2. There is a reason for that parachute.
6-C-2-A. If the Pressure Point pressure that produced the initial Clubshaft flex is maintained it will maintain the flex also.

The authors I mentioned used high speed video, stroboscopic photographs, and strain gauge measurements to support their reasoning. I'm not sure that HK had those available to him, and, if not, made a perfectly reasonable assumption based on the facts he had at the time. If he did, I'm sure many would be interested in that data.