Dec 1, 2010, 8:15 PM
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bachelor part in the tunnel?
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Looking for input on two aspects. The following is background.
Best friend getting married in December. He wants to skydive and I thought it was a good idea for the bachelor party, but his fiancee said not before the wedding. So, in lieu of that, I thought that because we'll be in Orlando, might as well go for some tunnel time. We both have zero experience in tunnels. I have one tandem jump (so, essentially no experience) and only the knowledge I have acquired from reading in the past few weeks.
Is it something that would be fun for someone who likes physical activities (e.g. hiking, camping, climbing) and how much time would you recommend I get? The sessions are one minute long, and I remember my jump feeling like it was over in seconds. But I also realize that it's probably a bit tiring. I've also got about a 4-5 hour window, so I need to account for the classroom time and orientation. I'm just worried that 3 -1 minute runs will be a bit too short to make it all worthwhile/fun for someone who's not going for practice.
Dec 1, 2010, 11:55 PM
Post #2 of 27
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Re: [thomas.n.thomas] bachelor part in the tunnel?
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but his fiancee said not before the wedding.
Oh boy, this isn't starting out good. Tell your friend to run (not walk) away if he wants to get into skydiving.
As for how much time, I did my first tunnel time after several hundred skydives. I had been out of the sport for a few years and was not in the best physical condition. I think my wife and I shared 15 or 20 minutes our first time out and it was physically taxing and our core muscles were feeling it the next day.
Dec 2, 2010, 3:10 AM
Post #6 of 27
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Re: [shropshire] bachelor part in the tunnel?
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Hahahah, well it's just for prior to the wedding. She's really concerned about the sprained ankle type injury resulting in crutches on the big day. Given that 1) it is an actual risk and 2) she has no experience to know how big/small of a risk it is, I can't really fault her for the concern. He is not pushing the issue because it isn't worth adding to her stress level to do something immediately versus after the wedding.
Anyways, sounds like 5-10 minutes each is a decent amount? I was thinking to buy a big group package and just take 4 of us.
Dec 2, 2010, 6:41 AM
Post #8 of 27
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Re: [thomas.n.thomas] bachelor part in the tunnel?
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I've flown in the Orlando tunnel a couple of times (and it's only big enough for about two strippers in there at a time with you, otherwise their dance space will be cramped)
When you buy a block of time, you can split it up however you like. The times I've been, we split the time into two minute blocks and just rotated through until our block time was up. 5-7 minutes total for each of you would probably be plenty for your first time.
You should also consider what your goal is with the tunnel time. The tunnel can either be an amusement ride where the coach moves you up and down and all around, or it can be a learning experience. If you want to use the tunnel to improve your skydiving skills, be sure to make that clear to the person you speak with at the front desk when you make your reservations. Consider paying the extra money for a coach to work with you on intensive training customized to your skills and abilities.
Just buy a 30 min block and split it up 4 ways and you are good to go.
block is the way to go - tell the tunnel what you are doing (BParty) and they'll mix it up between tossing your around and teaching - great idea for a BP activity
strippers - nakedness at 100+mph winds - it might sound good, ........ but it's not
Dec 2, 2010, 6:38 PM
Post #18 of 27
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Re: [billvon] bachelor part in the tunnel?
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Hahahaha, thanks for the replies. I will call up and snag 30 min of tunnel time tomorrow morning. I found out that the two other groomsmen might not get there in time on account of them being lazy bums and not getting their plane tickets yet. So if that happens it looks like 15 min each...more power to us.
I think we probably couldn't do the whole stripper thing unless they were the instructors. Then it's a safety requirement and we really have no say in the matter...
Neither of us drink either, so before anyone gets ideas of hungover barf-fest in the tunnel, we'll quash that one right now.
I think I'll get an instructor(s) to make sure the groom has fun getting pushed around and I'll try to focus mostly on training. Two birds with one stone.
Dec 3, 2010, 6:34 AM
Post #21 of 27
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Re: [thomas.n.thomas] bachelor part in the tunnel?
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So if that happens it looks like 15 min each...more power to us.
15 min is a lot of time for one person. Even 5 to 7 minutes will end up being a good work out for muscles you don't normally use, and will result in some soreness the following day. 15 might be enough to make all the standing around and socializing the next day a little uncomfortable.
For just the two of you, I think you can do the 'intro' package, which gives you 2 min each, and then add some 'extra' time on top of that for an additional fee. Buying 30 min all at once is going to be pretty expensive, so you could probably add a few minutes to each intro package and still be well under the bulk rate you get buying 30 min at a time.
Dec 3, 2010, 8:35 AM
Post #22 of 27
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Re: [davelepka] bachelor part in the tunnel?
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I would agree about 15min being a lot for one person. My first time in the tunnel, I did 9 minutes in there and was sore as fuck for the next couple of days after.
billvon (D 16479)
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Dec 3, 2010, 10:03 AM
Post #23 of 27
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Re: [piisfish] bachelor part in the tunnel?
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Dec 3, 2010, 3:43 PM
Post #24 of 27
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Re: [thomas.n.thomas] bachelor part in the tunnel?
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At my local tunnel, if you buy a hour they discount the time a bit. Either $10/min or $500/hour, so if you can get like 5 or 6 of you to all go, you'll each get 10 min or so and you can split the cost. Just a thought.
Dec 28, 2010, 3:01 PM
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Re: [millertime24] bachelor part in the tunnel?
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Well, I'm back from the wedding, and sad to say, there was no wind tunnel bachelor party (long story). Those curious about strippers in 120 mph gusts will have to find their answers elsewhere. If I ever do manage it, I promise to post video.
Despite that, I did sneak in my own tunnel time afterwards and think I did fairly well for my 8 minutes of possibly the most fun I have ever had. After watching two guys before me I was convinced I wouldn't even be stable belly flying, but I ended up being able to control altitude, turn left and right, and sometimes could track back and forth, but was pretty inconsistent. I need some serious work tracking and maintaining altitude - when I was heading for the door on my own, I kept generating to much lift and flying above it. I even got a vid of the whole thing for $5. All in all a great experience.
Thanks to everyone who convinced me this was something that needed to be done, party or not.
Now...for my newest question - are there any jumpers in the VA area that frequent tunnels? The closest ones I can find are in NC and that's quite a hike. I want to go maybe 5-6 times a year, but 20 hours of driving for 30 minutes or so seems pretty rough.
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