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.
One would be surprised that there are more than cornfields outside the city of Chicago. It may take a little bit of driving (but less than two hours), but something magical happens after you leave the city limits and discover the depths of the Land of Lincoln – there is nature, history, culture and community to experience and create new memories.
There are many hidden gems to discover all over the great state of Illinois. Here are our Top activities to do outside of Chicago:
Skydiving has its own language where an outsider would be curious to hear lingo like “boogie.” Skydivers would smile, knowing that a boogie is a term for a large skydiving event, where a skydiving center comes alive with the gathering of unique airplanes, world-class skydivers, and fun nightly activities where most, have life-changing experiences and fall in love with skydiving even more.
If you were to look up the word boogie, you might feel a slight flashback to the 70s thinking of a disco night. The dictionary even says that a boogie is to dance fast to pop or rock music – boogie down. However, the simplest explanation from Dropzone.com is that it is “a gathering of skydivers, usually focused on fun rather than competition.”
