Hey, what about the great sport of Power Vomiting. I used to be able to hit the side of a building form 20 feet away. It makes a nice splatter pattern, too, artistic even.
Can't comment on refresher or recurrency, I've been jumping in the cold As for distance it is about 1.5 hours from the city, I live in NJ just on the other side of the Lincoln tunnel and get there from home in about the same 1.5 hours. Different routes. There is also a bus station in New Paltz (which is about 15 mins away) and getting rides to/from there usually isn't much of a problem once you get to know folks.
I have to say that the Ranch is a great place to jump, and a great place to learn. I started jumping in August of last year, graduated, and get my license there. Helpful, knowledgeable instructors, good planes, good times after the days jumping.