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The Complete Guide to Skydiving
What it really costs, the gear you actually need, and how to make your first jump without getting ripped off or talked out of it
by Alumigogo Books
Chapter 1: What Is Skydiving and Why People Love It
Let's get one thing out of the way immediately: skydiving is not like the movies. There's no Hollywood slow-motion shot of your face contorted in pure ecstasy as you plummet toward the earth screaming. There is, however, a moment that will genuinely surprise you, a moment we'll get to in a bit. But first, let's talk about what this hobby actually is on a Tuesday morning, because that's where the truth lives.
A typical day at the drop zone - that's what we call the airfield or facility where skydiving happens - starts early. You drag yourself out of bed at 6:30 a.m. because the winds are calmer in the morning, and calm winds mean more jumps per day. You pull into a gravel parking lot alongside a row of other cars, many with "SKYDIVE" or "LIVE TO FLY" stickers on them. You'll see a small hangar, a little office, a grass field, and a few Cessna airplanes parked like old dogs waiting for a walk. The coffee is usually terrible. Nobody cares.
Here's the thing nobody tells you about a day of skydiving: it is mostly waiting. You check in, you find your instructor or your group, you gather in a circle for the morning safety briefing. The instructor goes over the winds aloft, the jump plan, the cutaway procedures - we'll get to those later. You do this every day, before every load, because repetition in skydiving is