MarBrock

The manifest office at Cullman does have room for a couple of people to pack, but when a dozen jumpers land from the Beech, the office clearly is not the DZ's packing area. Regardless, Cullman has become my home DZ, and I love the place. In time, I hope Jonathon and Sandy build a business to rival the larger DZs toward Atlanta, but Skydive Alabama has my business just as it is.

Skydive Alabama is a small DZ adjoining the Folsom Field Airport in Cullman, AL. Folsom does a lot of pilot training and is large for a general aviation airfield, certainly larger than the small airport in Cedartown, GA where I learned to skydive. At Cedartown, the skydive center's plane was usually the only plane flying, but small planes and helicopters fly around Folsom continually. When the wind blows parallel to Folsom's two long runways, as it usually does, the wide, flat lawn between and surrounding the runways is an excellent landing area for skydivers. When the wind blows perpendicular to the runways, landing into the wind close to the DZ office while avoiding concrete and those busy runways might be tight for an inexperienced jumper, but I've never had to find out. The crowds at Cullman are small and friendly, with a relatively high ratio of experienced jumpers to students, and the recent addition of a Beech 99 makes Cullman a top-notch place to jump. I learned to skydive on Mike Mullins' King Air, which climbs almost twice as fast as the Beech 99, but a fifteen minute ride to altitude in the Beech 99 hardly seems longer than eight minutes in the King Air. The interior is more spacious, the seating is much more comfortable, and the exit is larger. The packing area at Cullman is a hangar with carpets spread out on a concrete floor, not bad surroundings for an aviation buff; however, the DZ advertises "heated/air conditioned indoor packing" at its web site, and the hangar doors were always open when I was there. It's not a big deal, but it is a little misleading considering the tone of criticism aimed at Cedartown (Atlanta Skydiving Center) at Skydive Alabama's web site. Some of the criticism is justified, but Cedertown really does have a very nice indoor facility, and Cullman's skydive center really doesn't. On the other hand, the airport facility at Cullman is very nice and even has a restaurant operating in some seasons. The "consumer warning" at Skydive Alabama's web site (a jab at Cedartown) is a little unseemly for my tastes and seems a poor marketing strategy to me. Giving a competitor so much attention could be counterproductive eventually, particularly if Cedartown cleans up its act a little. Cedartown's landing area is not the best, and some of its business practices are a little shoddy, but the facility and staff are excellent. I've had some great times at ASC, learned a lot from the world-class staff and friendly clientelle, was well treated after an injury and still have a warm feeling for the folks there, even the cut-throat DZOs. I'll jump at ASC again, but the friendly atmosphere at Cullman and that Beech 99 make the three hour trip to Cedartown seem a whole lot longer.

Here is version 2.0 of a review I submitted a few days ago. Practically everyone, even friends of the DZ, comes away from ASC feeling like a tourist in an Arab street market (no ethnic slur intended). The gripes about business practices are on target. I saw one group from Nashville call the police (to no avail) after traveling to the DZ while the skies were closed following the WTC catastrophe. They had called several times prior to the trip and were never informed of the flight restrictions. They were not able to jump and received only a raincheck. I traveled from Huntsville, AL the same weekend and had a similar experience, although I knew better what to expect, having visited the DZ before. A friend of mine called Saturday morning, the same weekend, to be told "we're flying", then traveled three hours for nothing. The receptionist "thought" they would fly. Unfortunately, dissembling is a habit at ASC. Two weeks earlier, I traveled to the DZ, after calling for confirmation, only to find diving restricted for the entire weekend by inclement weather. God controls the weather, and I sympathized with the DZ when flying was restricted, but the truth is: the management is a little unscrupulous. The DZ sponsors a series of websites (skydivehuntsville.com, skydivenashville.com, skydivebirmingham.com, etc.) which paint a misleading picture about the proximity of the DZ and competing options. Cedartown is just over the Alabama border with Georgia, so the Alabama marketing isn't so misleading, but Nashville is a stretch. The place isn't grotesquely fraudulent, but it is definitely Clintonesque. O.K. That's the downside. Basically, the owner is a no-holds-barred small businessman. Otherwise, he seems like a nice guy. The upside is a very comfortable facility, good equipment, excellent staff (distinguished from management) and the King Air. Students seem to like the place better than experienced skydivers. Possibly, students are first in line for the better plane. They are paying $150 a jump after all. I've heard other complaints about altitudes lower than advertised, but I've always jumped from 14,000 feet. I drive to Georgia, despite closer DZs, primarily for that reason. Especially on AFF dives, the extra altitude is worth the trouble. Also, I've been very satisfied with the competence of my jumpmasters, and that competence, more than anything else, is the value in a training dive. Another downside is an unprofessional atmosphere which sometimes pervades the place, due largely to managerial neglect. I've also seen repeated, reckless swooping over the observing deck. Sure, it's thrilling, but it's also an accident waiting to happen. Tolerating this practice is is bad business, because many observers are not skydivers and have signed no waiver. Furthermore, I doubt the waiver legally covers injury to an observer. If a skydiver kicked me in the head while I stood in the observing area, after establishing a pattern of pulling the stunt, I would not hesitate to sue. The bunkroom and shower facilities are nice, if you like the rustic feel, but teenage (and some older) pack-rats freely (and loudly) party to all hours of the night on weekends, making the experience less than suitable for students wishing to risk life and limb with a clear head. I punched a cloud on level IV (third and final attempt). Truly, I'd love to do it again, but if I had done it on the first, much scarier attempt, I might not have enjoyed it so much. On the other hand, ASC has a good safety record (by its account), no fatalities and nearly 50,000 tandems without a serious injury. I saw a minor injury (chipped tooth) when a loose radio hit a woman in the jaw after a hard opening. The landing area isn't huge, and it is surrounded by trees, but I've never had a problem with it. Basically, I like the place, but what do I know? It is like an Arab market, but you learn to deal in an Arab market. Don't take anything for granted. Don't buy a dive in advance unless you're buying a package and plan return trips. No refunds, only rainchecks, no exceptions. That's the deal. I prepaid my AFF dives, because I wanted the extra incentive to see it through. A reservation doesn't help much, and the DZ requires a $75 deposit which you forfeit if you don't show. If you wait all day and the DZ doesn't provide a dive, they don't charge your card, but that's the closest thing to generosity you'll find at ASC. Caveat emptor. With a more customer-friendly management style and a tighter reign on the daredevils and party animals, ASC could be a much nicer place to skydive. In the long run, I think more candid marketing and a more lenient refund policy is better business, but I'm not the one paying the mortgage on the DZ. Hopefully, management will get the message someday and reorganize a bit. ASC has everything else going for it and doesn't need tactics which risk alienating customers to attract them. Addendum: I called the DZ last Saturday morning and received a very candid description of the cloud cover from the owner. I drove down anyway hoping for clear skies in the afternoon. The skies did clear, but the center did not permit AFF students to jump in moderate but gusting winds. I appreciated the precaution. On Sunday, I completed my AFF training and left on the top of the world.