New to the sport need advices!

[vyle 0]

Hi everyone,

I am very new to the sport, and am thinking about doing my AFF very soon, to fix my new unstoppable addiction.

As I am planning on changing job soon, I want to use the vacation opportunity to go to a very good school that would offer some type of one week "camp" program, in the nicest place possible, and with the most reliable/organised team possible for my first baby steps in the skydiving world.

It seems a lot of places are offering training camps, especially in Florida (probably weather related) but not many are mentioning a place to stay (bed and breakfeast, hotels, or rooms included in the package would be even better!). Also, during a snowboard trip I met a very cool guy called Carlos from Puerto Rico who has around 100 jumps. He jumps at delande and told me he started by doing Tunnel training, which apparently was a big plus later on during AFF.
I am living in Dallas Texas right now, where I did my second tandem jump (my first one was in San Marcos).

So my questions are:
- Where should I learn to get the best quality education?
- Is tunnel training really a big plus (despite the high price)?
- Can I stay at your place for a week if you live close to a dropzone? I am clean, quiet, can cook and do not take much space :)
- What is the yearly beer budget for a normal skydiver?

thanks a lot for your help,

David

[skykittykat 0]

Hey David

Come to Eloy and do your AFF. They have the best instructors, planes, weather and the cost is fab. OK, I am biased as I live here, but I have jumped all over the world and I would totally recommend Eloy. Also, the training you get for your A licence is the best in the world - body flying and canopy flying.

The dropzone if very friendly - you have world champions who talk/jump with you and are totally genuine.

Tunnel training is great and I would totally recommend it, however start your
AFF before commencing your tunnel time as your first couple of levels of AFF will be about awareness and survival in the air (something which the tunnel cannot teach).

Beer - depends on how much you drink, although it is cheap here.

A link www.skydivearizona.com

If you have any questions, etc, pm me.

Liz
You can cook - you are my new best friend!!!! I can cook very well, although it does get a bit boring for one.

[skymama 35]

Welcome to the forums!
Yes, I think the tunnel helps out a lot if you go before or during AFF. Search for Malin's posts on here about how quickly she flew through AFF because of her tunnel training.

If you have a tent, that's the most affordable housing you can get! If you settle on a dz, we'll be able to tell you what your other options are. Some have bunk houses and trailers owned by skydivers who rent them out.

The yearly beer budget depends on how many firsts you have and how much of a lush you are!

She is Da Man, and you better not mess with Da Man,
because she will lay some keepdown on you faster than, well, really fast. ~Billvon

[vyle 0]

skykittykat and skymama, thank you very much for the links and advices those are perfect!

I am still not totally decided on where I will go, but both posts were of a tremendous help ! I actually had not considered Eloy and I really liked their website and they seem extremely professional too.
I had not thought at all about the speed of the airplanes but now it sounds totally logical and will affect my choice.
My heart is now balancing between Florida and Arizona, and it will probably depend at what period I will decide to go. Once I chose, I will probably bother you a bit more with my questions :)
I could not find Malin's posts though, any idea of the title or if the user name is exactly Malin?

[JoeyRamone 0]

SkyDive Chicago....Unuff said

Ummm 4 time world champion, Rook Nelson,
the biggest facality around and the nicest, my opinion. You can stay at my house, 20 miles from the DZ....

[skymama 35]

Oh, I'm sorry, I did spell her screen name wrong, it's Mailin. I shouldn't post before my first cup of coffee.

The thread is here. They let go of her on her first jump which is not very common at all. I'm sure if you have more specific questions that she'd answer you in a PM. She's very nice. Tell her I sent ya!

She is Da Man, and you better not mess with Da Man,
because she will lay some keepdown on you faster than, well, really fast. ~Billvon

[vyle 0]

Thanks for the correction and the link skymama! That definitely goes towards the direction I was thinking about tunnel to learn better control.

JoeyRamone>> Thanks a lot for the invite! If my job change happens soon, I might go for a warmer place. If not I will definitely consider chicago. The last tandem jump I did was kinda cold (could not feel my fingers :) ) and it motivated me into looking for warmer spots at least for the AFF.
Thanks a lot for the invite though: it's very impressive to see the good spirit on this forum reading other posts.

[rocketdog 0]

i would definitely recommend getting in the tunnel (possibly before your 1st jump).... it gives you a feel for the force so you aren't like a fish out of water on your 1st jump.

it probably seems expensive, but add up the cost of your first 10 AFF skydives and compare it to the cost of about 10 minutes in the tunnel... PLUS you get video, PLUS you can hop out of the tunnel/have a quick debrief/hop back in (as opposed to waiting for your parachute to be packed, etc.)

hope this helps! blue skies when ya get there!!!!

~hollywood

see the world! http://gorocketdog.blogspot.com

[vyle 0]

Thanks a lot for the tunnel advice, that is exactly what I was wondering.

Since my two first jumps, (like most people I am sure), I have been totally obsessed with trying to understand as many aspects of security as possible of the sport (since there are so many to discover). And after viewing pretty much every video on skydivingmovies.com :) and especially the AFF student posts and malfunctions, I noticed that "fish out of the water " thing (unstability, oscilation, due to lack of arch), and it seemed logical to me that a better control in the air, would make for a better concentration on security and emergency procedures, which -like you said- is why I am thinking tunnel is worth the price (probably against what my bank account is thinking).
So far I plan on going to Eloy, cheap flights from where I live, bunkrooms, and probably the best weather towards march? By the way, does anybody knows what would be the best place for Feb/March/april weather-wise ?

David

[jondavidson 0]

- What is the yearly beer budget for a normal skydiver?


There are "normal" skydivers?

It's all a dream I dreamed one afternoon,
long ago.

[popsjumper 2]

Quote

i would definitely recommend getting in the tunnel (possibly before your 1st jump)....
it probably seems expensive, but add up the cost of your first 10 AFF skydives and compare it to the cost of about 10 minutes in the tunnel... PLUS you get video, PLUS you can hop out of the tunnel/have a quick debrief/hop back in (as opposed to waiting for your parachute to be packed, etc.)

Totally agree here with one exception....Tunnel time is what, about $14/min? Skydive at $20/min a. And like you said..NO PACKING!!!!!!!

It appears to be more expensive because you typically buy more minutes per day than you could jump in a day.

My reality and yours are quite different.
I think we're all Bozos on this bus.
Falcon5232, SCS8170, SCSA353, POPS9398, DS239