Jumping off a plane? Tandem or Solo?

[ruthless29]

I want to hear from those who have experienced sky-diving. Is it more fun going tandem or solo? With Solo, you only get 3-4 seconds of free-fall, with tandem you get about 30 seconds.
Tandem costs wayy more though.

Which Sky-diving company would you recommend? Its pretty expensive. I know if you provide student ID + have a big group, you get discounts. Where can we get good rates?

[NDman]

I don'tthink any reputable places would like you do solo in your first jump. Most countries require you to do at least 10-15 tandem jump before you can go solo

[spm24]

i went skydiving 2 years ago and it cost 250 $ for 2 hour training and then jump @ 4000 feet . with every jump after that only costing 65 $ i went solo and paid extra to go 1000 feet higher.


i would suggest going solo with tandum they do bring you almost 2x higher up but you also are straped to someone and just sit there and enjoy the veiw while someone else does all the work . Both solo and tandum they did not let me bring my digital camera to take pics while going down but the freefall is about 30 secs @ 4000 feet roughly.


i went here http://www.parachuteschool.com/pictures.html

Seems they droped there prices . also when you call to ask info ask if they have there jumpcam up and running when i went they had a problem with it but we got to see some reactions of the other jumpers and the look on there face while leaving the plane is priceless.

[grant]

I have done both. Most people would probably find going tandem more fun.

With tandem you get some freefall and probably a bit more chute time.

Also you only spend like 30 minutes being trained beforehand... going solo, you need to train for several hours.

With solo you're going to be pulling the handles yourself, but since you're being told on the radio what to do, it's not really that amusing.

The cool & scary part about solo is you climb out on the wing of the airplane before you drop off... when you go tandem, it's a lot less scary because you're just falling out the door, so you're not hanging onto anything & it happens very fast.

[dazz]

I don'tthink any reputable places would like you do solo in your first jump. Most countries require you to do at least 10-15 tandem jump before you can go solo

Next time, research a bit before writing nonsense,mmkay


I done 10+ jumps in 5 different places in Ontario. All of them
allow first solo jumps.

Price is usually $200-300. It includes training and 1-2 jumps
You'll get a certificate after that and all the next jumps are about $60-80

Oh,solo is much more fun IMO. Sure,you'll get less freefall,but you'll feel like you've accomplished more.

[grant]

I don'tthink any reputable places would like you do solo in your first jump. Most countries require you to do at least 10-15 tandem jump before you can go solo
Are you an experienced skydiver? Until you've done hundreds of jumps at various locations I'm not sure you're qualified to discuss what's reputable.

When you jump solo, the instructor holds your pilot chute in his hand as soon as you approach the door of the plane. That ensures that no matter how you leave that door (even unconcious) your main chute will immediately deploy.

Nonetheless, every jumper is trained in how to leave the plane in a way to minimize the chance of chute tangling, how to inspect the chute for tangling, and how to deploy the reserve chute in case it is tangled. All of this safety work is to turn a 1-in-100,000 risk into 1-in-10,000,000 risk of an accident.

Doing tandem jumps doesn't really train you on how to jump solo. But you do have to do a number of solo jumps before you will be permitted to free-fall (i.e., you pull your own main-chute cord).

[NDman]

Sorry for the mis-information. That's what I got from NZ when I had it. Asked 3 schools there and all said the same thing to me there. Didn't know Ontario is different but the schools in NZ told me that. My apology

[spm24]

i know Parachute School of Toronto does the tether approach on solo jumpers , where when you jump out of the plane 5 seconds after the plane the chute opens up . it was a amazing experince both times i did it , i hate rollarcoasters as well as small enclosed areas but would skydive anytime i could and afford it .


as a side question does anyone know a place that has a program for jumping . i know after getting your certificate it costs you less to jump but wondering if any place has a program that ends in you jumping solo and pulling your own main.

[Dr_luv]

Go Skydiving at Grand Bend (http://www.skydivegrandbend.com/Aboutus.html) They are absolutely awesome. You have to go through some training before the jump. Before jump they fit a radio in your helmet for communication. When it comes time to jump, you jump with two guys on either side holding on to an arm and onto your harness. You get to free fall for about 20secs, then they open up the chute and you get to come down all by yourself. They give you instructions by radio. Furthermore, you can pay for a dvd of the jump.

It's a great experience and you just might find yourself going back for more. You would be unfair to yourself not to experience such a jump! Visit the website for more details. Check out the video clip (http://www.matrox.tv/includes/scripts/streamvideo.asp?vid=2293) and pictures. It might be more expensive but it is really worth it. Here is how it looks, you would be the guy in the middle:

http://www.skydivegrandbend.com/lenarrow.jpg

[Sylvestre]

Did tandem with STI some years ago. Definitely had a blast! Didn't even realize there was someone else. The freefall is fun! heck, it's more fun than the actual parachute time.

[ruthless29]

my co-workers are convincing me thats a very risky and there have been recent accidents and people they've heard of where the paruchute didnt deploy in time. I have three options given that the safety is now a huge consideration:
- go solo
- go tandem
- not go

[snplow]

Actually, I'm pretty sure that NDMan is right that most places don't let you go solo on your first try.

However, if you want a solo jump experience, I would suggest going IAD (Instructor Assisted Deployment). Note that solo is different than IAD . They are similar in the sense that you have to let go of the strut yourself, but you don't get to pull your own chute (its automatically done for you).

I think that you need about 10 IADs before you can do solo, and I also think that tandum jumps do not count towards your certification as a jumper.

I would recommend tandum if you're a little hesitant. (Most people do tandum for their first jump anyways).

[gordholio]

my co-workers are convincing me thats a very risky and there have been recent accidents and people they've heard of where the paruchute didnt deploy in time. I have three options given that the safety is now a huge consideration:
- go solo
- go tandem
- not go

Of the three options, not going is definitely the safest.
I don't think I'd ever go skydiving, but I can appreciate that some like this sort of excitement.
I wouldn't find it exciting, just scary; that's why I wouldn't do it.:)

[formalentity]

what if the parachute malfunctions?? lol, It seems like fun but im not sure if I have the guts to do something like that :/.. might try someday tho.

[NLI10D]

Go Skydiving at Grand Bend (http://www.skydivegrandbend.com/Aboutus.html) They are absolutely awesome. You have to go through some training before the jump. Before jump they fit a radio in your helmet for communication. When it comes time to jump, you jump with two guys on either side holding on to an arm and onto your harness. You get to free fall for about 20secs, then they open up the chute and you get to come down all by yourself. They give you instructions by radio. Furthermore, you can pay for a dvd of the jump.

It's a great experience and you just might find yourself going back for more. You would be unfair to yourself not to experience such a jump! Visit the website for more details. Check out the video clip (http://www.matrox.tv/includes/scripts/streamvideo.asp?vid=2293) and pictures. It might be more expensive but it is really worth it. Here is how it looks, you would be the guy in the middle:

http://www.skydivegrandbend.com/lenarrow.jpg

this is what i'm planning to do this summer.

[grant]

my co-workers are convincing me thats a very risky and there have been recent accidents and people they've heard of where the paruchute didnt deploy in time. I have three options given that the safety is now a huge consideration:
WTF do your co-workers know... seriously... if you are concerned about safety, then talk to actual skydivers, or look up your own statistics.

contrary to perception, skydivers don't have death wishes. They are incredibly meticulous in preparing their equipment and following procedure. If you want to see what i mean, just go to the local drop site and watch them prepare their equipment and ask them what they do to remain safe.

When I jumped for the first time, someone asked how many people had died at that particular field. In the past 20 years, only 1 person had died... and that was because the jumper for some strange reason pulled their emergency chute during the only 300 feet that it was unsafe to do so even though the main chute was operating fine. (i.e.: USER ERROR).

So tell your pansy-ass coworkers to go suck an egg as they are ignorant & jealous of you having the balls to do something they're too scared to contemplate.

[flyinggonzo]

I jumped solo my first time.

They did not deploy my chute when I jumped.

My jump was from 10k feet. Two instructors jumped out with me. During the freefall, I watched my instructors, who flew on opposite sides of me, how to adjust my "box". At about 6k feet, they flew far away once they thought I had things under control. At 4k feet, I pulled my own chute.

I took my course at Grand Bend about 8 years ago. I'd recommend a solo jump because sky diving was something I wanted to do once in my life, and I didn't want to go half-way.