What makes someone pick the place to make thier first jump?

[Genn 0]

Other:

After my 18th birthday, my friend Jerry Ginder asked me if I wanted to make a skydive. I said yes, always wanted to! We went to the DZ he jumped at and I signed up for training.
Thanks Jerry!!

[pchapman 261]

I largely made my choice of first DZ based on the information that all the local DZ's had available. As this was in '88, I was looking at their mailed brochures, rather than websites.

I went for the DZ that put the most detailed information in their brochure, and indeed even put injury statistics in. (This was the Grand Bend Sport Parachuting Centre in southern Ontario, Canada.)

This was in contrast to most other DZ's, that often seemed more oriented to marketing than information. Most DZ's trumpeted how they had big safe soft landing parachutes and whatnot, but didn't really say much about why their systems or methods were safe or at least safer than the other guys.

As a somewhat techy guy, I was impressed by the DZ that would dare mention injuries, and also give me the most detail about how jumps would take place. I'd prefer a realistic appraisal of potential dangers over marketing hype.

I wouldn't be surprised if there are a lot of people whose selection criteria are quite different.

[SpringVark 0]

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I voted other.

The reason i went to the dz i went to for my first jump, was because it was the only dz within a 600 mile radius. Yes, i know this pole is probably aimed at US jumpers, but i just had to have my opinion.

Which SA DZ was that then?

[Jib 0]

Found out someone I knew jumped and asked him. He narrowed it down to the two closest and gave me some comments about each.

--------------------------------------------------
the depth of his depravity sickens me.
-- Jerry Falwell, People v. Larry Flynt

[inyournavl 0]

My first jump was July 3rd 2006, My daughter gave me a tandem jump as a Christmas present. She lives in New Hampshire so The gift certificate was from Maine. When I came back from vacation (I live in New Jersey) I started calling dropzones that I found on the internet. The first two I talked to didn't want to take the time for all my stupid questions. Things like, what will it cost me to become a licensed jumper? How much will gear cost if I decide to buy my own? When can I start? What is the instruction like? I already knew I wanted to be a skydiver, I just wanted some idea of what I was getting into, and the costs. Not knowing anything about skydiving (except that I wanted to do It, and it was expensive ) i didn't even think to ask about safety. Its a dangerous sport ...right? I KNEW that already, just answer my questions and sign me up. I feel very lucky that I ended up at Cross Keys. They answered all my qusetions and more. I have since found out that all DZ's are not the same. So here I am at 60 years old..and just found out I like the smell of jet fuel...and falling out the door of an airplane is great too.

It doesn't have to make sense, It's just the way things are.

[beowulf 1]

Before I did my first jump I had never heard of dropzones and had no idea that people just jumped out of airplanes for fun. I happened through Hinckley, IL on the way home from Aurora, IL and saw the sign for the dropzone there with their number on it. Wrote it down and called them as soon as I got home. I never shopped around or even thought to look for other dropzones. If I chose a different route home it might have been a long time before I ever skydived.

On another note I didn't care how much it cost to do a tandem. When they said $150 I thought that was pretty cheap. I thought skydiving would cost a lot more. I was willing to spend a lot more. All I knew was that I wanted to try it at least once. Little did I know how much it would really cost me but it's all worth it and I would do it all over again.

[Eule 0]

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I am looking to know about the process that people went through before the picked a DZ to make thier first tandem.

I had thought about jumping off and on for several years, but in the spring of 2005 I started thinking about it seriously. The first place I went was Google to look up local dropzones; I pretty quickly found one that was ~15 minutes from my house, another that is about an hour away, and some that are further out. I also found dropzone.com and checked the reviews of the dropzones. I looked at the DZ's Web sites and pretty much had the two closest DZs on my short list; if everything else had been equal I would be jumping at the closest one. Also, I knew that I wanted to start with AFF 1 and not a tandem.

One Friday afternoon I decided to go check out the close DZ - I knew I probably wouldn't be able to jump that afternoon unless I did a tandem, but I just wanted to check the place out. It was slow and they had just got done jumping for the day, but they invited me to look around, hang out, ask questions, etc, which I did. I felt that my other half might not be exactly thrilled with me jumping, and one of the questions I asked was how to deal with that situation if it came up. Also, I didn't know anyone at that DZ and none of them knew me, but one of the DZ staff decided it was a perfect time to start telling ethnic jokes - he didn't get the memo that not everybody who "is an X" also "looks like an X". I laughed politely at the jokes instead of calling him on it. I left that place and quickly decided that there needed to be a certain level of trust between me and the people who are going to throw me out of an airplane, and that I wasn't going to be able to trust at least some of the staff.

The next day I went out to the DZ that is about an hour away. I did the same thing - just hung out and asked questions. I asked the same question about handling the other half's reaction and got what I thought was a more mature and reasoned answer than at the first DZ. Also, nobody decided to tell offensive jokes to someone they had just met. I started to understand what was meant by "vibe". I called the hour-away DZ a week later and booked my FJC. I turned out to be a slow learner, so I've done lots of student jumps - the close DZ has missed out on thousands of dollars. :)

On a slightly different note, the hour-away DZ is now my home DZ and a couple of weekends ago I was talking to the owner. He was talking about the various ways he advertises and he mentioned that he was considering a smaller Yellow Pages ad, as he felt that his Web site had largely replaced it as far as attracting new customers. His take was that younger people are a lot more likely to look on the Web than to look in the Yellow Pages to find a business.

Eule

PLF does not stand for Please Land on Face.

[JohanW 0]

They had a package deal for a week's vacation - and I wanted a week's vacation.

I could have sailed a catamaran, or ridden a bike around a lake for a week, but I ended up jumping from a plane. I guess it took.

This was Static Line of course, not tandem. Never saw any of my fellow students again BTW.

Johan.
I am. I think.

[ZigZagMarquis 8]

I voted "Other"...


... as in the place I did my first jump was the place my skydiving friends I meet through work took me, then Whuffo, to see if I'd really "put my money where my mouth was" when I said, "You guys are Skydivers??! That's cool!! I wanna do that!"
Now here I am... 13 years later... no house, no long-term girlfriend, no non-whuffo friends, lots of skydiving gear, 3000+ jumps, spent most of my disposable income on beer and skydiving the past 13 years... the rest I just wasted... thanks friends! They don't even jump anymore!!!

[popsjumper 2]

I voted Other for Advertising.

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

[hookitt 0]

After jumping with Bungee Adventures, they set up a table so you could buy the video of you wanted and also laid out pamphlets for a skydiving center. One of the pictures was of an AFF Level 1. Right then and there I was certain that's what was next.

Weeks later I opened the phone book and looked up parachute. Found a listing to the closest dropzone and called them. Little did I know that call would screw me up forever. My first jump was 3 days later.

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[ChangoLanzao 0]

Other ... I went with a co-worker of mine who was a skydiver ... HERE's the story.

[porpoishead 5]

[ChangoLanzao] con un paracaida morao, rosao, y anaranhao..........lmao

dude that user name rocks


edited to add: answer to OP, other jumper, one of my bros said "i,m bringing you to go jump bitch"

if you want a friend feed any animal
Perry Farrell

[snank 0]

I had always wanted to skydive and never really knew what the deal was. I took my first jump last week all the way in Deland, FL (I live in Cleveland, OH). I had such a great experience hanging out at "The Perfect Spot-Bar and Resturant" that there was no other place I'd rather make my first jump. Then my mom paid for it since it was my 25th birthday...which made it even better. I don't care about location. I just like to do things in places that make me feel good.

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[Kynan1 0]

Location? Probably number one.

[lifesatrip 0]

I choose my DZ by hoping on the internet and see what was close. Read a little about it, sounded good so I went out to PST Arthur. For all the shit I hear about of you jumped rounds. I really enjoyed them

[timbarrett 0]

Other
1) Searched under "(city name) skydiving" and looked at the website- looked okay.
2) Rang them and made a judgement on how profesional and efficient they sounded primarily on the basis of how they handled my request for a FJC at the time of convenience for my wife and myself. They were willing to do one mid-week for me rather than just stick to their standard schedule.
Thus..location and professional efficient service. It was all i could judge by

After taking a break and needing to repeat most of the FJC I went looking specifically for quality instruction - not that i really knew anything to judge that. Came across the Skydive U website and liked the idea. Rang them and got some guy called Rob Laidlaw who told me about "Tunnel AFF" and he chose Deland in effect. Good decision and if anywhere is "home" I guess that's it now...

"Work hard, play hard and don't whinge"

[Kiakambala 0]

Hey i made a tandem jump recently and i decided on the dropzone as A) it was the nearest to me B) i have a friend who jumped there and said they were good and finally they have a cheap day. on thursdays it is only £125 for a tandem jump compared to £185. i think that is what finally swayed me towards them

[skydave238 0]

Other:

That very friendly person that answers the phone at the dz, and makes you feel like part of the family, even though you've never been to the dz.

Ready...Set...Go..!

SkydiveSwakop

[gauleyguide 0]

Other: Location, there is a DZ 35-40 min from my house. The next closest one is 2 1/2 hours away.
-A

"Don't keep your pilot chute a secret"

[millertimeunc 0]

AFF was the deciding factor for my first drop zone. I had planned to take my dad skydiving for Christmas, but I knew that he'd be a lot happier flying his own parachute than he would hooked up to a tandem instructor flying it for him. With that in mind, I looked for a DZ that offered AFF instruction for the first jump. That's how I found my first DZ. We both jumped that weekend, and I've been doing it ever since.

The best things in life are dangerous.

[strop45 0]

For me Location. Talking to the various AFF students who come to the DZ, its mainly word-of-mouth, i.e. they get refered by skydivers.

The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits." -- Albert Einstein

[floridadiver81 0]

my tandem was a birthday present from my brother. So i did it at his home dz. I didnt really have a choice as im very new to the sport. I didnt even know there are three dz's all within an hour of where i live in floridal...lol.

"Age has absolutely nothing to do with knowledge, learning, respect, attitude, or personality." -yardhippie
"Fight the air, and the air will kick your ass!!! "-Specialkaye

[pinkfairy 0]

Other:

There was only one that I knew of.

Relax, you can die if you mess up, but it will probably not be by bullet.

I'm a BIG, TOUGH BIGWAY FORMATION SKYDIVER! What are you?

[2shay 0]

LOCATION, it did not matter to me because all aircraft around here were 182. However, I later found the one further away was much much better.

don't try your bullshit with me!!!