HurleyHucker 0 #1 November 11, 2011 Hey Guys, A friend and I are planning to take our AFF this spring and I was hoping to get some recommendations/opinions/experiences from the users in this forum. I' am living in Colorado currently and we are willing to travel around the west coast to find the course with the most bang for the buck....mainly meaning the course that teaches you the most. We really want to learn every aspect from start to finish, so afterwards we would feel comfortable getting our own rigs, packing our own chutes, and be able to go to any DZ with confidence. So far I have been told about the parachute center in LODI, CA is the place to go if your on a budget, we aren't rich by any means but this is something I DONT want to skimp on...definitely willing to pay for a better experience. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
artard 0 #2 November 12, 2011 Lodi is not a USPA drop zone and therefore the last place you would want to do your student training (among other reasons). You can get certified here in Colorado, but since you are willing to travel I would suggest looking at the A license packages at Skydive the Farm and Skydance Skydiving, they appear to be some of the best deals you can get starting out.http://www.mixcloud.com/prajna http://vimeo.com/avidya Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
thatfreaksam 0 #3 November 12, 2011 When I started jumping it was at a smaller business dropzone, not as small as a skydivers club, but it operated with a Pac 750, which means anywhere from 7-15 skydivers in the air at the same time. After receiving my license, I traveled around, went to some bigger dropzones where there were sometimes multiple planes running throughout the day (i.e. Spaceland, Deland, Z-Hills), and was initially wary about how many people there were in the sky at one time... most of these places operated with one or two Twin Otters, or at times a Twin Otter and another type of plane. That meant that I was in the air with sometimes 20 other people, with another load above us in the air getting ready to jump just minutes after us. My thought is that you might do well with starting out at a moderately sized dropzone... where you can learn to be in the sky with a large group of people, but not be over stimulated with 20+ people at one time. Granted you're a student, so the probability of you being around those other people are slim, but not impossible. So a smaller dropzone might be a better place to start. Not something huge like Eloy or Perris, but maybe Hollister, or Monterey Bay if you're looking for West Coast... I've never been to either dropzone, but from what I hear they're similar sized and operates similarly to my home dropzone. Best of luck in finding a place to start. Blue skies. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
DSE 3 #4 November 12, 2011 Both Perris and Elsinore have exceptional schools on the west coast, and Perris has a tunnel (invaluable when going through AFF). Both have several great instructors so you get good points of view from several people (I'm not a huge fan of single instructors throughout AFF). Both have very low-cost, onsite bunkhouses, and both have pretty decent weather year around. Both have exceptionally large landing areas for students. You're right; cheap isn't what you want when it comes to learning initial skills in skydiving. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tdog 0 #5 November 12, 2011 Quote After receiving my license, I traveled around, went to some bigger dropzones ... That meant that I was in the air with sometimes 20 other people, Where I teach in Colorado we often have two turbines in the air at the same time. But my AFF students RARELY have any other traffic... We all are on the ground, sitting on the trailer, waiting for the students to land. You said the key word, "after receiving my license". AFF students open very large parachutes at 5,500 feet, licenced skydivers open smaller parachutes at 3,500 feet. So there is already separation, and the separation gets bigger as time goes on. We can drop 35 people in 5 minutes and the AFF students are never near funjumpers. Every once in a while some tandems, but the tandems know this and get the hell away - and the tandem landing area is on the other end of the landing area, maybe a thousand or so feet away. I agree with your post, a novice dealing with traffic is a concern, but the concern is most common around 25th-100th jump when the student's skills are starting to line up with other skydiver's skills in terms of canopy size and pull altitude, not AFF, and therefore, I would not make an AFF buying decision on that. To the OP post. Lodi is an interesting place. Some real good instructors work there. The place is fun, and the people are nice. But, the price of the jump tickets some people say is too good to be true, and therefore there is something fishy. The stories range from conspiracy theory to facts. Facts such as the FAA shutting down the entire fleet. Guesses if the facts the FAA cited were true, etc... There are tons of posts online arguing these facts like junior high school rumor mills. Lets not turn this thread into anything like that (again)... I would 100% trust Lodi's instructors (the ones I have known). The aircraft - that is the only real debate, and instead of rehashing it here, search other threads. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jimjumper 25 #6 November 13, 2011 [email]jimwallaceskydiving.com Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wolfriverjoe 1,371 #7 November 13, 2011 There are lots of good DZs all over the country. Even in Colorado. I won't put down any place that has been suggested, but I will recommend going to where you will be jumping in the future. You say "in Colorado currently". Will you be there in the future? Or are you planning on being somewhere else? There's a lot more to "Learning to skydive" than just the skydive part. Building friendships with the people you will be jumping with in the future is important too."There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy "~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ron 7 #8 November 14, 2011 Learn at a DZ that is near you. It is the one you will jump at most of the time and you might as well start to learn about that DZ. One of the most difficult things to do after student status is to 'break into' the fun jumpers. Having been on the DZ will help you make friends and this goes a long way. Traveling to learn..... Well, any cost savings will be eaten up by travel and lodging costs. Save the road trips for after student status... You will get more out of it and maybe be part of a group from your DZ when you do it. Go to any DZ that has USPA instructors and you will be fine. I personally would avoid Lodi. Nothing against the jumpers, but the aircraft mx is the issue that would keep me away. Not from rumors, bit from the FAA actions to the DZO... You can do a search to find more info."No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms." -- Thomas Jefferson, Thomas Jefferson Papers, 334 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
