baronn 111 #1 May 5, 2011 After trying to make a full time job out of skydiving for the last 3 yrs,. I'm wondering. is it really worth it? By far the lowest pay for the amount of time invested. Very hard to get other things going because it was necessary at the last place I was at, to put so much time in. I finally got fed up and quit and am wondering if it's worth going thru another summer of it. I have another business that pays MUCH better but, I miss jumping. I really enjoyed being an instructor and after investing so much in time and energy to get all my ratings, I hate to just walk away. I hated being enslaved by the management at the last DZ I was at. Seems like the last concern of anyone in this sport from DZO's to USPA is the ability of anyone to make a living by doing this. No ins., no benefits, and you can be replaced by the next 500 jump wonder that walks in the door. Anyone have any thoughts on this? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BobMoore 0 #2 May 5, 2011 You just about summed it up there. I had a regular Monday-Friday 8 to 5 job that paid the bills and I worked at the DZ, it was a tandem factory, on Saturday and Sunday. That was okay, for a while, then the DZ got sold and I didn't agree with some of the opinions of the new owner, who had no instructor ratings. Those ten years were some of the most fun years of my life but the novelty wore off and now I jump for my own selfish amusement."For you see, an airplane is an airplane. A landing area is a landing area. But a dropzone... a dropzone is the people." Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
diablopilot 2 #3 May 5, 2011 QuoteAnyone have any thoughts on this? Yep. You summed it up pretty well.---------------------------------------------- You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stayhigh 2 #4 May 5, 2011 If you have a job that pay much better why not focus on that full time and start fun jumpin???? There are lots of kids who has nothing else to do and really want the job. Have you ever thought that you are taking up that space?????? If i had a real job that pays more than being working skydiver then i would say fuck work jump, i would just show up at the dz only to fun jump. If you are one of those lucky ones with real world skill, then i'd say stop bitchin and just jump as part timer. Part time is the shit imo. Show up only when the dz is busy and making money.Bernie Sanders for President 2016 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
peek 20 #5 May 5, 2011 QuoteAfter trying to make a full time job out of skydiving for the last 3 yrs,. I'm wondering. is it really worth it? No. QuoteI really enjoyed being an instructor and after investing so much in time and energy to get all my ratings, I hate to just walk away. Being a professional in a "real job" and being a skydiving instructor do not have to be mutually exclusive. You will need to "fight" a little bit more to get some of those students to teach, but it will be worth it. (And you might need to teach at a DZ that is a bit less "commercial".) Quote...and you can be replaced by the next 500 jump wonder that walks in the door. Peter, if you are a really good instructor, it is my opinion that you should not even want to work for a DZO that would favor a 500 jump wonder over you. It will take a bit more work, but I think you can find a balance, enjoy yourself, and keep all of your ratings current too. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
obelixtim 99 #6 May 5, 2011 Like the saying goes, the only way to make a small fortune out of skydiving, is to start with a large fortune...My computer beat me at chess, It was no match for me at kickboxing.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jumpdude17 0 #7 May 16, 2011 Quote No ins., no benefits, and you can be replaced by the next 500 jump wonder that walks in the door. Anyone have any thoughts on this? I am a 500 jump wonder, where did you just quit so I can replace you. btw whats your wing loading??? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
baronn 111 #8 May 24, 2011 Mystery place. 145,673 to 1 if you must know. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jumpdude17 0 #9 May 26, 2011 maybe if the DZO's didnt treat the experienced guys like shit we wouldn't need the uspa and the manufacturers to dumb down tandems and there would be less tandem injurys and fatalities. instead they give us a list of tandem commandments trying to make it safe for any dumbass with 500 jumps to replace experience. turn and burn your instructors dzo's as long as you make your money who cares....right? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
airtwardo 6 #10 May 26, 2011 Quote maybe if the DZO's didnt treat the experienced guys like shit we wouldn't need the uspa and the manufacturers to dumb down tandems and there would be less tandem injurys and fatalities. instead they give us a list of tandem commandments trying to make it safe for any dumbass with 500 jumps to replace experience. turn and burn your instructors dzo's as long as you make your money who cares....right? Just curious...are you a TM at a commercial center? Have you been screwed over by a few DZO's?? If so who and why? Inquiring minds want to know where it's bad, and how bad IS it? ~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~ Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
riggerrob 558 #11 May 27, 2011 Yup! Long hours (ten hours per day, seven days per week), low wages (bus drivers make more), DZO changing your work load - at random, without telling you to your face -, but it was work-place bullying that finally pushed me out. Too many sadistic "comedians" reminding me of my injuries (in a plane crash). Rob Warner Strong Tandem Examiner Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
riggerrob 558 #12 May 27, 2011 Quotemaybe if the DZO's didnt treat the experienced guys like shit we wouldn't need the uspa and the manufacturers to dumb down tandems and there would be less tandem injurys and fatalities. instead they give us a list of tandem commandments trying to make it safe for any dumbass with 500 jumps to replace experience. turn and burn your instructors dzo's as long as you make your money who cares....right? ....................................................................... Manufacturer's guidelines are fine for professionals, but will make no difference to amateurs. Amateurs will continue to do what ever amuses them (horse-vaulting, boob-squeezing, etc.) while some DZOs back them. I quit my last full-time skydiving job after too many bullies shoulder-checked me and offered to punch me out after I dared to remind them of procedures written by Strong Enterprises. The worst part was that manifest reflexively backed the bullies and was not the least bit interested in my side of hte story. Even after the worst bully has moved on, the DZO is baffled as to why I am reluctant to work for them again. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jumpdude17 0 #13 May 29, 2011 Just curious...are you a TM at a commercial center? Have you been screwed over by a few DZO's?? If so who and why? Inquiring minds want to know where it's bad, and how bad IS it? dont want to mention names but there are more bad than good. I work somewhere now where I dont have to deal with the bs but understand there are a lot of TI's that still have to put up with it. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VideoFly 0 #14 May 29, 2011 I started off at a small DZ with a group of great people. We did a lot of RW and taught some students and did some tandems. At night we celebrated the accomplishments of the day. As years went on, tandem and video volume grew, old timers retired, and the RW and celebrations slowed down. Later on, the DZO got a new plane and hanger and the tandem business flourished. Workers would come and go each week and many had no names to be remembered. I became a worker and for a part time job, business was good. But it was work; not the fun and camaraderie we once had. I had a skydiving injury that ended my work status. Nobody cared and I was immediately replaced. I guess that’s the way things are at many DZ’s. I understand the business concept in running a DZ, but times have certainly changed. Now I do an occasional jump and to tell you the truth, I don’t miss the frenzy. In fact, I watch workers scurry from job to job with both admiration and concern. If you’re looking for warm and fuzzies, you’ll probably need to search around, but it seems that the skydiving business grows best with a somewhat impersonal perspective. In my full-time job, as a business manager and large team leader, I know that this does not need to be the case. But in my limited skydiving experience, it is just the way it is. Take it or leave it; you are expendable. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tink1717 2 #15 May 30, 2011 If you're making more at your other job and you're unhappy with pro jumping, then it's time to move on. Write the time and $ off as loss and don't make the same mistake again. Skydiving is a cottage industry that has no hope of becoming a mainstream business that has regular employees who enjoy the trappings of most toher businesses. That is simply the way it is and I don't see it changing anytime soon.Skydivers don't knock on Death's door. They ring the bell and runaway... It really pisses him off. -The World Famous Tink. (I never heard of you either!!) AA #2069 ASA#33 POPS#8808 Swooo 1717 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jumpdude17 0 #16 June 2, 2011 QuoteIf you're making more at your other job and you're unhappy with pro jumping, then it's time to move on. Write the time and $ off as loss and don't make the same mistake again. Skydiving is a cottage industry that has no hope of becoming a mainstream business that has regular employees who enjoy the trappings of most toher businesses. That is simply the way it is and I don't see it changing anytime soon. wow, you are either a dzo or a douche, there are other jobs that are seasonal or dependent on how many customers walk through the door, yet the people in other industries are still treated with respect and have rights as a worker. it has changed at some dzs and yes it can be a real job! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Deisel 35 #17 June 3, 2011 Please explain why you think this. Any establishment can be run in a professional manner. Anything from whore houses to crack houses to houses of worship and everything in between can make both the customers and staff feel appreciated and welcome. It all depends on how its done.The brave may not live forever, but the timid never live at all. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tink1717 2 #18 June 3, 2011 Because DZs are run as cottage businesses. No employee's, everyone is a contractor, no unions, benefits, wage protections or essential rights. That is not to say we aren't professionaL. It is to say we're small. I once thought that jumping would get to the level of, say skiing or SCUBA, but that was years ago and before I was in the biz. Now I see it completely differently.Skydivers don't knock on Death's door. They ring the bell and runaway... It really pisses him off. -The World Famous Tink. (I never heard of you either!!) AA #2069 ASA#33 POPS#8808 Swooo 1717 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tink1717 2 #19 June 3, 2011 Niether DZO or douche (unless you ask my wife), just been in it a while and having had a real job, with a union, benefits and the other protections largess confers, I don't see jumping as getting there. We will never be as big as, say skiing or SCUBA or golf for that matter. There won't be a deduction for a 401K for a tandem master or an AFF guy. We don't have the numbers to make that happen. I wish we did.Skydivers don't knock on Death's door. They ring the bell and runaway... It really pisses him off. -The World Famous Tink. (I never heard of you either!!) AA #2069 ASA#33 POPS#8808 Swooo 1717 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Squeak 17 #20 June 3, 2011 QuoteNiether DZO or douche (unless you ask my wife), just been in it a while and having had a real job, with a union, benefits and the other protections largess confers, I don't see jumping as getting there. We will never be as big as, say skiing or SCUBA or golf for that matter. There won't be a deduction for a 401K for a tandem master or an AFF guy. We don't have the numbers to make that happen. I wish we did. There are places in Australia that are working towards unionising now. Particularly the larger tandem focussed DZs. It can be done, but it requires a cultural shift. There's nothing stopping even small DZ from having Staff, and part timers.You are not now, nor will you ever be, good enough to not die in this sport (Sparky) My Life ROCKS! How's yours doing? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Plover 0 #21 May 24, 2013 Once again the moderators here have chosen to delete a bunch of perfectly innocent messages. So now it's time for some payback once again. Tsk tsk. It's too bad they continue this program of self-induced punishment. It would be so easy if they just left those innocent messages alone, and public. But, when they fucka wit me, I fucka wit them. So here we go again. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
demoknite 0 #22 May 25, 2013 Its so much more fun when you dont have to rely on the jumps or the DZO. A week of unseasonable weather is not going to make you miss rent. And your not fighting to get on the last load with a 50 year overweight woman at sunset cause you need the $50. Keep fun jumping and impart knowledge around the DZ. Maybe you can do some AFF jumps when the DZ is in a jam. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
irishrigger 31 #23 May 28, 2013 thats the question everyone has asked,is it worth it? it depends what you look from it. i used all of my rating to travel the world(Tandem,AFF,Master Rigger Camera etc ) NZ,USA,Thailand,Canada,Spain,Germany,France, Belgium just to mention a few. i enjoyed my time traveling and getting around. without a doubt New Zealand was the best place. i have also been very lucky in the places i have worked and have been treated very well by the owners of each centre,with only 1 exception. if you dont like the way you get treated,say thank you and move on to somewhere else. however these days i would advise keep your regular work and just jump on weekends and most importanly do a few fun jumps. doing tandem full time can get tiring and you loose the fun factor a bit. well i have after almost 5000 tandems. yes i still enjoy them but not as much as when i started. only other thing you can do is start your own DZ somewhere and make that your buissiness. then you are the boss and treat your staff the way it should be done! good luck with what ever oyu decide Rodger Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
baronn 111 #24 June 17, 2013 Seems like the best advice.... Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites