Pros and Cons List for Picking my AFF DZ

[tstar 10]

I'm torn between two DZs to get my AFF training at! So I would like to make a pro and con list and attempt to rank them accordingly. However, I don't think I know enough to come up with a comprehensive enough list and I'm hoping the collective wisdom and experience in here can help! Here's what I have so far;

Open seven days a week

Students given priority

Driving Distance

Home DZ “Raport”

Reputation/Comfort level

Price

I'm not even sure how much emphasis to place on each "metric"! What do you think???

Tim

[wolfriverjoe 1,523]

A couple others:

Load capacity (how many jumpers go up in a given day?)

Availability of student gear (will there be a student rig available when you want it?)
Quality of the student gear goes along side that. Not necessarily age, but what kind of shape is it in and how well is it taken care of?

The 'open 7 days' will be a pretty busy DZ. That can be good, because you'll get more opportunity to jump. But it can also be bad because you might not get the level of personal attention you want. 

One of the bigger ones will be 'atmosphere' and 'comfort level'.

How are you treated as a student?
How are the other fun jumpers treated by the DZ? 

One of the things I love about the bigger DZ I jump at is the way the DZ & DZO treat the fun jumpers. We're a community. There are social events on a regular basis. Cookouts, musical events, just hanging out around the bonfire at night. 
The DZO has been quoted in an industry article that he wants that community. He wants a fun place for him, his wife and kids to jump. His 2 sons both jump and his wife is a pretty hardcore competition jumper (multiple medals in a couple events at a few different levels). 
The DZO has also said that any student who has made his/her first jump is now a part of the community and is welcome at any of the 'social stuff'. They are actively encouraged to hang out after jumping and join the shenanigans. 

Price & distance (as long as it's not 'stupid far') would be last.
The cost of training is a rather small portion of what you're going to spend. 

I drive a half hour to the 'nearby' 182 place. 
Or two hours to the bigger one (mentioned above).
I have no issues going that far, and typically take a tent and spend the whole weekend down there. I've done "Friday afternoon through Sunday night, come back Monday morning" a couple times. More often it's 'leave early Saturday morning, come back late Sunday night' though.

[tstar 10]

Thanks for the additional items to consider!!!

Tim

[wmw999 2,443]

No matter how much study you put into this, you'll be able to find something you should have considered in retrospect -- because of individuals, rather than location etc.

You don't know which DZ has the instructor who happens to mesh perfectly with you, or the one who thinks entirely differently from you.

So pick three (or five) things to base your decision on, make the decision, and go skydiving the next day.

Take it from a champion over-thinker...

Wendy P.

[tstar 10]

LOL Yeah, admittedly an active over thinker as well! Especially since I've been waiting since last fall to get this going... I've had to save money, lose weight and get in better shape. I've purchased the SIM and read it cover to cover. I even stressed over which shoes to buy for my skydiving adventure!

I need professional help! 

Tim

[wmw999 2,443]

4 hours ago, tstar said:

LOL Yeah, admittedly an active over thinker as well! Especially since I've been waiting since last fall to get this going... I've had to save money, lose weight and get in better shape. I've purchased the SIM and read it cover to cover. I even stressed over which shoes to buy for my skydiving adventure!

I need professional help! 

Tim

I took my class from someone who wasn't associated with any DZ; because of that I moved around DZ's a couple of times, and lost a little time due to that. So I made my first freefall a couple of jumps later (back in the days of at least 5 static lines first). But I still got to freefall, and I learned a couple of things from the mistakes I made that I wouldn't have learned had I not had a wildly unstable jump. I thought it was awful at the time, but in retrospect it gave me a powerful lesson on myself.

I took longer to progress than most people because I was still in college when I started, and unwilling to sacrifice college to skydiving. I took 13 years off because of family.

But here I am, almost 46 years after starting, with some world record jumps (though not any 400-ways), and a longterm enjoyment of the sport. Where I started doesn't matter any more, other than the "glory" I get from having almost 500 round jumps.

Keep getting in shape, make sure you have good range of motion and flexibility, and congratulations on where you are -- I'll bet that regardless, you feel better than you did last fall, and enjoy doing more things. That in and of itself is enough, right?

Wendy P.

[timski 80]

16 hours ago, tstar said:

Thanks for the additional items to consider!!!

Tim

Grove city, congrats on the middle of NO WHERE!!! lol!  So what DZ's are within your drive limit??? 

So it goes without saying, bigger plane, more jumps... I would also say, more quality jumps. That little extra altitude is always welcome. (not to mention the comfort). 

Do you have the resources to travel, to say FL? And knock out jumps all day for a week? 

I live Joe's lifestyle with a local 182 within a 30 min. drive, or big planes in all directions within two hrs... Make the drive for bigger planes. 

Enjoy the progression.   

[tstar 10]

Wendy - Amazing how things change and progress. I wish I would have started this sooner in life and honestly I don't know how in the world I've missed getting into this. It's right up my alley... Thanks for the encouragement.

Tim - LOL Yep! Nowhere indeed!! I like it rural for most things, not all though!! I'm driving four hours one way for 15 minutes in the wind tunnel... How crazy is that??  As mentioned previously, I need professional help! I'm taking my granddaughter for some fun flying so that'll be cool and worth the trip alone!

I'm looking at Grove City (1hr 24 min) or Cleveland Skydiving Center (2hr 14min). I would prefer the latter but because of unpredictable spring weather I'm leaning towards Grove City. Planes are similar and Grove has a hard runway... I did two tandems at Grove late last fall.

Tim

[Ralerups 0]

Call the manufacturers. I bet they have a list of people in each state.
Unfortunately, they dont have one for my province in Canada and its taking forever to get answers from the comapnies over here...