Newbie needs advice

[nigel99 482]

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Ok, well like I said there's a wind tunnel not to far from me and it would club cheaper than a tandem to do so I'll look into that :)

Thanks

The Bedford tunnel is fantastic. Windtunnel is different to skydiving though. I haven't done a tandem but it would definitely be more of a skydive than the tunnel.

If I were in your shoes, I would probably choose to do AFF level 1 as my birthday present. My wife did 3 or 4 tandems prior to AFF, and she came off absolutely BUZZING (ask popsjumper if you don't believe me). The fact that YOU contribute significantly to the jump is what makes it.

If money is a concern or issue, then static line is a good option I suspect that there is more ground school involved in static line though, so it may require a full weekend of learning, rather than a morning. I'm not saying that is a bad thing.

[Dobbo049 0]

Thanks, cost isn't a big issue, but if I'm going to do the full course I cant really afford to do lots of other things too. And if I'm going to start the course I want to Finnish it. If I can't complete it because of lack of time and funds there's a good chance I might not be able to continue until next year and I don't want to leave that much of a gap between courses or I'll end up going backwards.

Like I said I'm going to go to the DZ soon and have a chat n see what they recommend.

[popsjumper 2]

The first place you want to start learning about the requirements and what it takes is the British Parachute Association.

http://www.bpa.org.uk/

Stroll through their web page and you'll find answers to many of your questions.

While the tunnel is a great training tool for freefall, you'll not get to use the skills you learn there for a few jumps if you start with the Static Line training method.

Those skills will immediately be beneficial if you start with the AFF training method.

Personally, I'd recommend the AFF route without the tunnel time. If you can afford the tunnel time before the AFF training, it's all well and good. However, it's not mandatory nor is it necessary. Your AFF course will teach you all you need to know. Indeed, some AFF instructors prefer you save the tunnel time until after your first couple of AFF jumps so that what you learn in the tunnel doesn't interfere with what the AFF course teaches. On the other hand, soem instructors prefer the pre-jump tunnel time.

Your best bet is to contact the drop zone you plan to do business with, go there and hang out for a day or so and talk to them to see what THEY recommend.

Good luck!

You might look into taking your AFF training in the U.S. Sometimes it's cheaper to fly here, do your training and return home with a license in your hand.

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

[popsjumper 2]

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My wife did 3 or 4 tandems prior to AFF, and she came off absolutely BUZZING (ask popsjumper if you don't believe me..

I'll certainly vouch for that!
You guys could be millionaires if you can figure out how to bottle that buzzing energy!

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

[Dobbo049 0]

Thanks :D
I think that's the path I'm going to head down.

Ill look into doing it in the USA but I can't see how it would be cheaper to do the course, fly there and back, accommodation and food than it would b to do it closer to home :)

[nigel99 482]

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Thanks :D
I think that's the path I'm going to head down.

Ill look into doing it in the USA but I can't see how it would be cheaper to do the course, fly there and back, accommodation and food than it would b to do it closer to home :)

It is certainly cost effective. Somewhere like Skydive the Farm has free accommodation, and flights into Atlanta are quite cheap. Food's not really the issue (you can live off of Walmart stuff for couple of dollars a day) - but the beer costs could be high.

[Dobbo049 0]

Ok well I'll look into that too :)

Deffinatly another option. Thanks for all your suggestions

[adagen 0]

I'd say yes. When you do AFF it's a big learning curve and you have to master freefall stability, canopy handling, and getting safely back to the landing area. If you are reasonably confident with freefall, it's easier to focus on the other aspects because your brain isn't overloaded with the strange experience of freefall.

I did AFF prep at the Bodyflight tunnel, which is actually not too far from Milton Keynes, and is a much larger tunnel with more facilities. However the MK tunnel also does AFF training.

The other thing Bedford has is a vertigo jump - it's not a bungee, it's a fan descender, and it's from 125 feet. I did that to prove to myself I could actually take that step into the great unknown.

Anne