This past week, the Golden Knights descended upon Skydive Chicago for yet another residency of tandem skydiving. The U.S. Army’s Golden Knights occupy a unique role in the armed forces as one of three Department of Defense-sanctioned aerial demonstration teams, alongside the U.S. Navy Blue Angels and the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds. The Knights perform regularly at public demonstrations, compete at national and international skydiving competitions, and—in the Tandem division—share their love of the skies by facilitating tandem jumps for educators, government officials, other fellow soldiers, and even selected celebrities, including local ABC-7’s meteorologist Cheryl Scott, who just made her first tandem at Skydive Chicago last week.
“The expert in anything was once a beginner.” – unknown
The walls of Skydive Chicago boast about the newly licensed skydivers, and the names of all graduates since the skydiving center’s inception in 1993 are recognized on a plaque. The halls of Skydive Chicago are full of world-class athletes – local, and from around the world – and you’d most likely never know it as everyone works and plays together!
When you’re new, it can all be overwhelming on how to fit in. Lucky for us here, there are a plethora of coaches that specialize in bringing up newbies like SDC Rhythm XP, the A-license club, and of course, Rookiefest – the mega rookie event of the year!
Maybe, dear reader, it has crossed your mind. Perhaps it did so when you were sitting idly at your work desk, clicking around some viral videos of wingsuiters high-fiving over a mountain somewhere. Maybe it was a feeling that gripped you as you checked out a friend’s grinning tandem skydiving video. Heck — you might have even thought about it lying on your back in the park, looking up at clouds.
How easy is it to learn to skydive? What do you have to, like, do?
You’d be shocked at how easy it is. Most folks are! You see: Skydiving has never been easier to learn, so this challenge is totally within your grasp.
Andi Masengarb posted a positive review about her third tandem jump with Skydive Chicago at the end of June. She also mentioned that the tandem was a surprise birthday gift, and her girls were there to watch the skydive from start to finish.
We decided to reach out to her about the three tandem experiences and find out who had gifted her with the most recent surprise package. It turns out all three tandem jumps have been with Skydive Chicago, all three have included video and pictures, and all three have a story.
New solo skydiver? Curious about Rookiefest? Man, have we got the expert for you. Her name is Ellen Jones, and we absolutely love her.
Ellen is a hometown superstar in our eyes! She got started skydiving right here at Skydive Chicago before moving to her current base in El Paso, Texas. It was a long time coming: she came to do her first tandem here one year, then a second tandem the year after that — and, after her third tandem the following year, she went all-in and got her USPA A-license through the AFF solo skydiving program here. We couldn’t be prouder of her!
Summerfest is the epitome of epic. Beginning next Saturday, Skydive Chicago will be launching its annual celebration of everything that makes our sport so incredible: amazing jumps, nightly events, live music, and fantastic food. It’s the perfect opportunity to trade your desk chair for a rig and spend some time with your buddies in the sky.
Event Season at Skydive Chicago is upon us and what perfect timing now that the weather has cleared. Events can be exciting as there is so much amazing energy when you pack 700 or more skydivers on a dropzone.
Are you looking for the most cost effective, time efficient way to become a licensed skydiver? At Skydive Chicago, we offer one of the most proved and innovative instructional skydiving programs in the nation: Accelerated Freefall Progression (or as we like to call it, AFP).
Within the purview of our instructional skydiving program, we also have a program designed to fast-track you to obtaining your license by giving you everything you need to become a skydiver in a week. You read that right: a week*. In just seven days, aspiring skydivers can earn their United States Parachute Association A-license.
What’s so great about receiving an A-license in a week?
Before you deflect, I want to preface this by saying that this call to action has nothing to do with tense political issues and is not intended to inspire pointless, petty arguments; after all, Skydive Chicago is a place people come for some relief from all of that.
It’s a question that comes up more often than you might think: Does a newbie have to do a tandem jump for that first skydive? As a matter of fact, no — but it’s usually a very good idea. Here’s why.
