School of Human Flight

If you are interested in a tandem, this is an ok place. Well other than the fact all they supply is shade. You must go to the pilot’s area for a drink of simple water, or use the restroom. It’s a good little walk away. If you’re a licensed jumper it’s a good place, if the plane goes up. (if there isn’t a tandem it most likely won’t go up)

But if you are looking for a place to learn AFF, stay as far away from this place as possible, I mean run. I was told 6 to 8 weeks for the course. 6 months later I was still trying to get my A license. I paid for my course completely up front. But I guess tandem jumper’s money is better than my $$ and I paid a whole lot more than they did. Drive almost 2 hours one way to get in ONE jump while spending all day there. Sometimes I couldn’t get a single jump because there is only one instructor at the time and that person was tied up all day with tandems. The AFF course was just enough to get someone hurt very bad. The AFF course was a joke.

The pilot doesn't seem to know what deoderant is or can bath and change cloths on a regular basis. We and I say would spend the whole ride up with our noses pinched

I had a friend in a wheel chair want to come and watch. I called the night before to make sure it was ok When we got there the owner was rude and disgusting to my friend. I was informed on the way home that when tandem showed up, the owner pointed right at her, her in a wheelchair, a rudely informed them by pointing at my friend “that didn’t happen here”. I was very upset and wanted to turn around and go back and confront her. MY friend said, “please don’t say anything, they can make things hard on you and I don’t trust them”

Before spending my money, I asked several times up front if there was a closer place to me. This lady flat out bold face lied to me. After spending months of one or two jumps a weekend, I got fed up and started looking around. I found one much closer and made a jump there, the people there made me feel right at home and part of a family on the first day.
When the owner of “School of human flight” found out I jumped at the other place, things got real ugly. They did nothing but bad mouth the other place. Three of us were taken aside and were instructed that “if we ever jump there is was a kick in his balls”.

The AFF course consisted of some ancient old torn up and wrinkle pics and a few verbal questions. During the course one student jumped with very questionable equipment. Even as a student at the time, I questioned it. On my seventh jump a storm blew up and I couldn’t see the DZ. I told the instructor in the plane, “dude I don’t see the DZ”. But since he had a tandem with him, he instructed me to jump. He had (according to him) 10,000 jumps so he knew exactly where to go. Me not wanting to fly through a large cloud with another jumper in the sky, ended up landing about 3 miles away, in someone’s driveway

I was a breath away from giving up on skydiving because of this lady and her instructor. I know of several others that were taking the course there at the same time I was, they are all looking for other places to go. This is not a place to learn AFF!!! I really wish someone with authority would go there undercover and go through the course. This place is the worst place and has left a lasting taste in my mouth and I will never jump there again. I will advise anyone who asks me about taking AFF to go ANYWHERE else. This place is doing more to harm the sport than anyone else I have met, in my opion.

PRO’s fair place to do a tandem or for a licensed jumper
CON’s you must walk to get a drink, use a restroom, you will be lied to, pay for something you aren’t getting. AFF course is going is a joke. So many more cons I just can’t keep going

I have called SOHF home now for around 4 years. I enjoyed my first tandem from there back in 2007 and began my AFF course shortly after. Life got the best of me but I returned to the sky again in 2011 and am now a Licensed jumper. Cindy Pirkkala (DZO) has always been such a pleasure to talk to and speaks to everyone from tandems to students to the pro's (there are a few) like they are next of kin. The regulars are like family, show sincere concern for EVERYONE's safety and work hard to introduce themselves to new people and to make sure everyone feels like they have been here for years. If you want to jump where you can relax, hang out and enjoy good conversation without skygods, this is your place. The weather is nice year round and safety is first priority. The tandem master's are sure to provide you with the best experience around and are more than happy to share your first experience with you like it was their first!
P.S....this place is serious about the "beer rule"....I currently owe more than I can fit in my car!

Blue Skies!

One monday I decided I wanted to go through AFF, and after a phone call I started that friday and got both of my tandems knocked out. That saturday the winds were too high for me to start jumping solo (I tried to talk them into it, but they wouldnt have it, haha.), but that sunday I got two more jumps knocked out. I live about two hours away, and the DZO did everything she could to get me trained up and help me become a good jumper. Everyone including one of the riggers was even gonna let me crash on his couch so I didn't have to drive two hours away.

When I called and talked to the owner she explained how she takes pride in her gear, and when she showed me the rig I was going to be jumping, it was in awesome shape.

I have been there about 6 times, and each time I have a great time. Everyone there is fun and no one has a big head even though they have ridiculous amounts of experience. I am pretty sure I have had fun joking with everyone there from the DZO, to the pilos, and everyone else stopping in!

The only thing that some people would find to be a problem is the aircraft. You can only fit 4 at a time, and you are a lil cramped until the door opens up, but that is only a problem if there are a lot of tandems with videos and you are in a big rush. I am usually chillin, so I can wait until a couple of lifts later to hop on. Oh yeah, and one day the refrigerator broke, so the water was warm, haha, but someone brought a cooler and ice. Problem solved!

If you want to learn AFF from a professional crew and also make some friends out of it, go to Quincy and learn from these guys. If you just want to do a tandem with an experienced bunch, check out these guys!

The staff is professional and very helpful. They will answer any questions or concerns you have. They have belly and free flyers. Both groups are more than happy to add a new flyer to the group. I belly fly and have no trouble finding someone to jump with me. I also have no problem with someone asking to jump with me. It is all about being safe and having fun. The regulars are a nice bunch of skydivers to hang out with.

This place is worth the visit. Lots of landing space and if you opt to land out there will be a golf cart in route to pick you up. The people are VERY friendly. I figured on a couple of solo jumps but was free funneling a track dive on my second jump with two other folks. Lots of people who are easy to talk to and a great mix of experienced and low timers. The dzo was both professional and friendly. I'll be back next time I'm around for sure. A perfect dropzone for anyone!

Bill "M.F." Jackson

The first time I visited this DZ, I had miscalculated and arrived with an outdated reserve. Although I was feeling...and probably acting... rather grumpy and whiny because of this, I was still made to feel very welcome. I knew almost no one there, but everyone came up to say hello and talk while I waited. Although I arrived after noon (in winter), I was able to get repacked, and still made a couple loads that first day. I know this was difficult, as they were quite busy, but they managed! The DZO has treated me like an old friend from day one.
I have visited most of the DZ's within a 3-hour circle from my home, and though some are closer than Quincy, I still prefer to drive the extra miles because the atmosphere is great, relaxed yet positive, the staff are professional without being officious, and there is a high emphasis on safety. There are skydivers there who have super skills, but I have yet to meet one with an attitude about it. I have been proud to call this my home DZ for almost a year now, and would recommend it to jumpers of any level.

School of Human Flight is an awesome DZ, with great staff & the nicest bunch of folks you'd ever want to jump with! It is located near a major university, which also, attracts tons of tandems. Tandem staff is awesome! Many of the tandems come back to do AFF & continue in the sport. While there may not be the quantity of AFF instructor’s @SOHF, they are quality! Make an appointment for instruction & you should not have a problem!Rigging is suburb! I leave my rig for reserve repacks after jumping on the weekends & have ALWAYS been able to get it back the following or if I have needed it sooner, have been able to pick it up during the week. This DZ has produced some of the leaders in our sport,swoopers,several world record holders, & folks that have gone on to work in our industry at all levels. This DZ is big enough to serve but, small enough to give you that "family" feeling like all of us "old" jumpers grew up with! Ya'll come ;0)
PS DZO throws great parties, too!

I drive +1 hr so I guess I'm not that far. I have jumped here for over 10 years. The dzo has always gone out of her way to help me in any way possible. Many jumpers have been jumping here longer than me. I have traveled to EVERY major dz in Fla and while you can easily find more planes, you just can't beat the atmosphere here.
We have world class HP pilots who will jump with you, rw and ff. If you aren't a total nerd you'll find plenty of people to jump with you. For me the perfect balance between big enough to have what I want but small enough to be personnel

As a weekly jumper I have to be fair in beginning this review by saying I jump here several weekends a month. To explain further, I do like living near this DZ; however of the 5 I have been to in Florida this is THE worst. Besides the few pros I mentioned, it would take a lot of thinking to come up with more. Ironically though, on any given weekend I can add to the cons list. Such as: this is the worst DZ for learning to skydive due to the understaffed conditions. While almost every DZ offers AFF with two instructors, this one only has 1 AFF instructor and between waiting on her and the plane, you are better off traveling to learn how to skydive. Once you get trained up and solo, the DZ is okay "IF" there are a lot people (usually only saturdays) AND you need absolutely no services. I come out on saturdays and as long as I keep to myself and do nothing but jump, i generally leave in a good mood. To wrap things up; this DZ just meets the requirements for "okay" if you live relatively close by; but if not, don't waste your time driving 2+ hours like some of the junkies at this DZ do. Oh yeah, lately the manifest guy has been doing a pretty good job of organizing loads so you don't have to be solo; however, this hardly makes up for all the lack of other services...

p.s. there is no on-site rigging services offered, you must leave your gear with the owner to attend to at her own leisure!

For starters, this is a great place to learn to skydive. I had been a paratrooper for several years and made my first tandem jump back in 2002 in Nevada. I was introduced to SOHF by another regular there and when I got back from my last deployment to Iraq in 2005, I began my training. My AFF instructors were two U.S. Army Golden Knights with around 15,000 combined jumps. I made 9 jumps my first weekend and breezed through the rest of my A license.

This DZ is in a great location, giving it the relaxed, small town atmosphere, while being right outside Tallahasse. The landing area is plentiful, with very few obstacles and an awesome swoop lane which I hope to fly through one day. The staff here is incredible. The packers are first-rate and will ensure a quick turn around so you can make every load. The instructors, camera flyers and tandem masters are all extremely professional and knowledgeable. Manifest runs smoothly and efficiently as to allow the most loads possible. While many people like jumping the Otter, the King Air they operate is cool and they also have the Cessna 182 for those slow days or for hop and pops.

By far the best thing about this DZ is the people. Cindy (DZO), is a great friend and mentor. She has great advice and will help you in whatever you need. She helped me custom make, order and deliver my new rig at a great price! I have been to a few DZ's and heard stories about scores of others, and this is by far the most friendly and helpful around. I was at a DZ in NY once, and I messed up my landing and came in to close and got chewed out like I was in High School. I've screwed up and seen other people (new and old) screw up at SOHF and you won't get scolded. What you will get are staff members, or experienced regulars who will take you aside and discuss what went wrong, how you could do it better and will even work with you or jump with you to ensure you get better. That is not to say that if you do something stupid you will get off easy. Safety is paramount and they will not tolerate someone who is only going to endanger themselves or someone else.

In addition to being a great place to learn to skydive, it's a great tandem experience as well. I have brough about 5 people here including my girlfriend to jump because I am that confident in their abilities. And many of their tandems experience all of the above attributes and sign up for AFF. Working hard during the day also means playing hard at night. The DZ parties which are frequent, are such a blast. Be prepared to consume large amounts of beer and jello shots! There's the hot tub, but my favorite is the bonfire pit. Music, fun, good people, great stories and always a place to crash whether in the hanger, or at a staff members house. Bottom line, the School of Human Flight is a great place for tandems, AFF, experienced skydivers, friends and families, because once your there, you are family. As far as I'm concerned it's one of the best DZ's in the region and THE best that I've been to. Go there and I promise you, you will make SOHF your new home.

-Mike

SOHF in Quincy is a great "club type vibe" DZ. There's always a good mix of free flyers, and belly flyers who are always down to jump with new people. Knowleagable staff with lots of experience, ample opportunities to get someone to video your jump too with LOTS of camera flyers. Beer rules DEFINETLY apply, so if you admit "This is the first time I've jumped at SOHF", get in the car and cruise to the quickie mart down the street! HAHA, great little camping area, Fast food joints are only 5 minutes away, and Great Night life in Tallahassee is only about 25 minutes away. Come on Saturday morning, jump your ass off, party in Tally Saturday night, and finish off the weekend with 2 or 3 jumps on Sunday. I've gotten 10 jumps in every weekend for the last 4 weeks. Try it, you'll like it!

The staff is friendly and well-tatooed. Although most of the skydivers are men, there are enough women around to make a female newcomer feel welcome. Both staff and member skydivers are excited about sharing their experiences with potential skydivers, students, and each other.

It isn't hard to find a beer after hours, just don't put yours down once you've got it.

Come ready to jump until you're broke. We do :-)

In all fairness, this is the only DZ I've been too, so I don't have a basis for comparison BUT....

Cindy, the owner has taken my wife and I both under her wing as new jumpers and she is great. Tom, our AFF instructor, super professional and Eric, one of the Tandem instructors is great.

The DZ runs smoothly as far as I can tell. From manifest, to packers on site and always ready to pack for you, or teach us newbies and, extremely helpful and understanding experienced jumpers who don't hesitate to stop and answer questions or help anytime we ask.

I would HIGHLY reccomend this DZ to anyone who wanted to get started in this sport or just wanted a one-time tandem (although I couldn't imagine just doing this once).

Scott Kremmkau
Havana Florida

A smaller Jump zone with a twin engine turboprop best of all worlds.Adequate facilities, quick turnarounds friendly airport to jumpers.Great place to learn.Rural setting lends to the zone...

For the "first" time jumping away from our home dz (Skydive New England), we couldn't have asked for a better atmosphere. Everyone we met at SOHF was helpful and welcoming; their attention to safety was thorough and comforting. We felt at home right away and waited it out 'til we got a chance to squeeze (almost) 3 loads in on that rainy Friday afternoon (before getting rained out). Okay, so we owed more beer after revealing that neither of us had jumped in an unexpected rainfall before--OUCH--but we have no problem paying off our beer debts!
Despite the rain rash at the end of the day, we were both elated and had an excellent time hanging out in the hot tub in the evening. We can't stop talking about how wonderful our experience at SOHF was (thanks to Cindy, Chris, Tom, Doug, John the Pilot, Brian, and "The Brit"--dude, lighten up on those grapes!) We look forward to meeting up with everyone from SOHF again soon, and will definitely visit this excellent dz again!
Thanks again and BLUE SKIES...
-Matt & Molly :)

All I can say is that this is one great place to skydive. Nice large landing area and a staff full of wonderful folks long on encouragement and ready and eager to answer questions, help or just to shoot the breeze with. (Just be careful about mentioning a "first" as they're pretty strict about the beer rules!!!) I just can't wait to go back there! Many thanks to Cindy, Chris, Charlie, Lee, Tom, Marcus and all the other super folks who made my visit something to remember. School of Human Flight ROCKS!!!

I had only one tandem jump when I first
visited the School of Human Flight. I
now have an A license, 62 jumps, and my
own gear.

Cindy (the DZO), Super Dave (a great instructor), and all of the coaches at
the S.O.H.F. have great attitudes and
are always willing to help.

After visiting some larger dropzones I can really appreciate the friendly atmosphere -- where jumping, fun, and safety are most important.

~Tom

Green Machine

I've been jumping for about two years now. I haven't been to a lot of DZ's, but I have been to a few. The school of human flight in Tallahassee is not the best, but is far from the worst. Keep in mind that when I was there it was freezing, so take this with a great assault. Other than it being so cold the only other thing I didn't like was the air craft. My home DZ has a Super Otter and I guess I've been a little spoiled, but a king air to me is only a small step up from a 182. Well maybe 2 or 3 steps up, but it's still no otter. I was however happy to hear that they were talking about getting an Otter or Caravan. Either will be an improvement. In a whole, this DZ is great. Starting with the Employee's, jumpers old and young, the DZ itself. The School Of Human Flight, gets two thumbs up.

I had only jumped at one other dz before jumping here, so I'm really not qualified to review. But, here is how my visit went.... I only had like 23 jumps when I went to this dz. They were very welcoming and helpful with the pre-jump talk. The landing area is nice and big and easy to find. I'm still using rental gear and even though the gear I got was nice, it was huge! They said that it was the smallest they had. I also had a very hard opening the first jump, must have been something with the packing. Overall, this DZ is pretty good but nowhere near as good as my home DZ, but I guess nothing compares to home!

I went through Tandem-IAF progression with the greatest instructor ever - 'Super Dave' Garrett. The instructors, DZO and other skydivers were always looking out for me when I started to solo jump. Several instructors and the DZO made coaching jumps with me for my A-License. You can get on practically any load you want with the 14 passenger King Air. The DZ has several new coaches and is even offering Basic RW skills camp for just the cost of the jumps. One word of warning..lose the word 'first' from your vocabulary. Of course, I'm so new I just consider a case of beer every weekend part of the cost of skydiving. And if you want to party when the beer light goes on....just stick around.

I couldn't ask for a better family of skydivers to be associated with.

good place to jump and spend some time. Nice fast-climbing KingAir.

Hope guys from DZ remebrer "their russian" :)

After three months of being gone on a business trip, I gota say that I really miss my home dropzone(Skydivetallahassee). See you soon guys really miss you all.

Mckill

I can't say enough great things about this dropzone! When I first came there, I had just finsihed my AFF Level 3 out west, and wanted to keep going in Florida/Alabama without sitting on the ground waiting for a plane or instructor. Between the sweet King Air, and the incredible instructors, I was able to go through my AFF program, Class A license, and work towards my Class B, as quickly as I wanted. I was afraid that when I was a 20-jump class-A skydiver, I would have problems finding experienced people to jump with, but it was just the opposite. I had high-number, experienced jumpers that gave me high-fives, and asked me when I wanted to do some RW with them, and that they would get me into bigger-ways to get experience. Simply, this is the dropzone that I was looking for, and the best kept secret in dropzones. It is just big enough to have a King Air and also a Cessna, but small enough that everyone is your friend, always there to help. There are plenty of tandem rigs, and it is possible to get three tandems in a King Air load without problem. You won't be disappointed, check out the website, and give it a try...

...it must be an awesome DZ! What can I say, I attended the AFF Course here about 10 months ago and now have 107 wonderful skydives. I'm proud to call this place my Home Dropzone! It's a smaller DZ, but that's what helps make it a friendlier and more personable DZ. They have good gear and great instructors, and you can always find someone to jump with...no skygods here.
Black & Blue
~AirMan~