I got refered to this DZ from a website called NewYorkSkydiving... well it's not in NY it's in Pennsylvania Quakersville.. And it'll take you longer than 1.5 hours. After booking and paying the nonrefundable full upfront fee I read some website that says if they have to ask you where you're coming from before they tell you the location, something is fishy. Ashley also told me my previous tandem jump would count towards the IAF training. Seems like everyone wants you to repeat the jump b/c the $ issue. (understandable) And that's the general vibe I got, business. They advertise that they take you to 14500'. We jumped at 14000'. They of course ask you once you arrive would you like to purchase an extra height for 10$ to get you to that altitude. If you don't pay the 10$ more you only jump at 9500'. That's probably they're way of collecting gratuities in the form of cold hard cash versus the customary case of beer. =) I took some local roads and saw the corn and wheat fields. Detours made me arrive late, but they were cool about that and still got me up there. Like I read in someone else's review, you could be waiting for a long time before they get you up there. Probably because after each flight, someone is working on the engine and tightening some screws. Poop before you go, they only have a porta-potty by the side of the hanger, and when it gets hot outside.. you can figure out the rest. The training vs instructor. I've done my first tandem in longisland, NY and I noticed one big difference. In LI they helped you loosen the leg harness that's around your crotch by giving you support by allowing you to step on top of their feet. Over here in Pennridge airport, I had to help myself.. only after i started loosening my own harness during the tandem did he mention i would want to do that. Another difference, is the stink factor of the harnesses. Seems like there are more stinky harnesses in Penn. ;) No wonder people get their own gear. To avoid the maid of the mist effect. Despite the vibe and what not, i'd still go back. It's about the jump.
