I am curious as to how many of you teeming millions have ever:
A: Made a skydive.
B: Earned your skydiving certificate.
C: Wanted to jump but have not gotten around to it.
If B, how many jumps do you have?
Thanks.
SkyBum —> 343 jumps and counting.
A. Two tandem jumps.
B. Sailed through the first four jumps of the AFF program. Screwed up the fifth and final jump. Was too tense and was potato chipping way too much and got flipped upside down.
C. Haven’t bothered to go back and finish it up.
Was a total blast though. The most fun I’ve ever had with my clothes on.
Five jumps, twenty years ago. Great fun, and I’m glad I did it, but I eventually decided the cost in both time and money exceeded what I was willing to put into it.
Haven’t managed to get to it yet. Spent the last few years working on various pilot ratings, and as you may know, being a small-time pilot doesnt pay well. Have a friend who is a dive instructor, so I can even get a discount, but its still been tough to pay for. For the moment, just allow me to live vicariously through your jumps.
The local skydiving plane (of a nearby outfit) often flies over my house. You can always tell which plane it is without even looking, because the engines sound so damn rickety. I guess they assume the people have parachutes anyway, so what the heck? 
A man recently landed off target on a jump from the above-mentioned place and died. He was supposedly a skilled skydiver. Stories like that make me very hesitant to ever try. 
But it’s pretty to watch the parachutes float down on a summer day.
When I took up flying my husband said he’d never complain about any aircraft I choose to fly as long as I didn’t jump out of any of them.
>sigh<
But, if I take that aerobatics course I want, well, I’ll have to wear a 'chute 'cause of the regs and, well, it would be just silly to have emergency gear I hadn’t actually practiced with so I’d just have to take a jump or three… right? 
THATS the spirit Broomstick!
still jumping, just back from a kydive boogie in Slovakia.
Have 111 jumps.
Closed 4th on my 100th, requirement for my C licence.
blue skies
elf
I’ve got my hang 3 license for hang-gliding. I purchased a Falcon 2500 slight three years ago and I get out about a dozen times a year. Very fun I highly recommend it.
I wish I would have done it when I was young and fearless. Now I get panicky on a step ladder. Shit. I shoulda when I coulda.
I don’t post here much but I defintly skydive.
930 jumps out of a plane and 140 off of objects and counting. Graduating from college and lack of funds slowed me up. Hopefully employment will speed things up.
I wanted to go skydiving for my bachelor party, so my groomsmen and I went. No tandem business–all day training and then jumping with two “spotters”, but otherwise free. Pulled my own cord (lost it, though), and fairly clean solo landing. Not really scary (thought it would be until it was time to go), a lot of fun and very memorable (not to mention immortalized on video).
Did it. Don’t feel the need to do it again (especially given how much time/$$ it takes to get really good).
That would be option C for me. I’m a huge fan of big scary things that could possibly kill me, so it’s just a matter of time before I chuck myself out of a perfectly servicable airplane.
I just jumped into my best friend’s wedding. Wore the full tux carrying cigars and champagne. Was definitly one of my coolest jumps. Glad you enjoyed it 
C for me.
What kind of $$/Time would I be looking at just to try it once?
I did a tandem jump for my 30th birthday. I had always wanted to. I got a video too, as it was probably a one-time thing for me. I will do it again if someone pays for it. It was extremely exhilarating. I wish the freefall could have lasted longer, though…it was so amazing. I felt so…free. There was none of that stomach-dropping stuff that you get on a roller coaster (though that’s fun too). Is this because you don’t have any visual context, such as something stationary beside you, to indicate how fast you’re falling?
Speaking of rickety planes, on the way up to my jump, I heard the tandem master ask the pilot about the fuel. The tandem master either said that it looked like we had too much fuel or not enough – I couldn’t tell. I was thinking, “Well, either way, I’m glad I’m getting out soon.” Especially when the pilot answered, ostensibly to reassure, “Oh, these [gauges] don’t work for s%#t anyway.” !
Dijon Warlock -
It really varies quite a bit depending on what state / country you are in. It also will depend upon whether you prefer to do a simple tandem jump or an assisted freefall (requires an extra jumpmaster to go with you since you are wearing your own rig).
Here in Utah a tandem runs around $160 and video is about $50 extra. As far as time goes, plan an entire day for an assisted freefall or a couple of hours for a tandem. Most drop zones will require a reservation and or a deposit. The entire training package can run upwards of $1200 but you can spread that out over 10 months or so. The jumps here also decrease in price as you progress. Once off student status jumps here average about $16 depending on how high up you go.
I highly recommend that you give it a try, it is worth every penny and you will never look at the sky in the same way. That is one hell of a nice playground up there.
You can find loads of information here: http://www.dropzone.com/
Let us know if you decide to give it a try…
Here is a shot to wet your whistle: http://www.dropzone.com/cgi-bin/gallery/imageFolio.cgi?action=view&link=Featured_Photographers/Mike_Garza/Exits&image=9513-03.jpg&img=&tt=
