Skydiving links

The following is a short list of links, by no means comprehensive, but hopefully useful.

Drop Zones I have used

I've used two drop zones, one in Texas and one in England, and I would thoroughly recommend them both. And no, I'm not on commission.

England - Skydive Unlimited, run by Andy Parkin.

Very thorough training, with just two students per instructor when we did the preparation for AFF level 1. He does do jumps in the UK, but also organises trips to Florida and Spain, for slightly more reliable weather! Andy is ex-military, so his knowledge and instruction are spot-on, and by the end of it you certainly know what you're doing! Note: He isn't based at Netheravon any more, so don't do like I did and waste a day's leave! Get directions from him (they aren't on his website at the time of writing).

Contact: He has got a website at skydiveunlimited.co.uk, which is good for an overview of how Andy teaches. Get his email address or phone number from there if you want more info, but ignore anything about Netheravon!

Texas - Austin Skydiving Centre, run by Cindy Gibson.

Has a very large and obstacle-free landing zone in Lexington, about an hour's drive East of Austin, and is very friendly and welcoming. A lot better atmosphere than a certain other, perhaps more well-known centre in the area! The instruction is great, and all the instructors are very knowledgable. And the zone is still expanding, by the sounds of it, with more facilities and bigger planes. Great burgers, too, thanks to Tim, the master chef!

Have a look at austinskydiving.com for more details and contact information. Their site has just had a major overhaul, so have a look and get in touch with them. And when you call them, tell them some limey sent you.

Switzerland - Indoor skydiving centre

This so-called "bodyflying" centre lies on the North side of Zurich, near the airport. It's quite expensive, although it gets a bit cheaper if you're in groups and you have more than one go. Their website is at bodyflying.ch, and all the instructors speak pretty good English. Get the S-bahn to Rümlang and then either a 10-minute walk or a 3-minute bus ride to Riedermatt - then head for "Fox Town".

Other resources

• There are two good FAQs available from the Usenet newsgroups to answer most questions. (One is general, and one UK-specific) Pay particular attention to the 'How do you breathe in freefall' section of the rec.skydiving FAQ, as this topic is often overlooked by novices.
• The US Parachute Association has a load of good information, including lists of affiliated drop zones.
• The British Parachute Association is the main organisation in Britain, and has a list of drop zones and other, more British-specific information.
• Skydive University provides training material and certification in advanced skydiving techniques.
• The Spain-based Freefall University has some excellent articles on the differences between static line and AFF, "Life after AFF", and the equipment used, as well as more advanced topics like Freeflying and Skysurfing.
• The Wikipedia naturally has several pages on the subject.
• Robin Wilcox and Pud, with the best tandem photo I've yet seen.
• dropzone.com has a rather cool gallery, and a very useful directory of dropzones. Doesn't list them all, but does give loads of details about the ones it has, and even directions.
• There's a short directory of indoor wind tunnels worldwide at ground-rush.com.
• You want more? Sheesh, use a search engine.

Now what?

So now you'll be wanting to go on to see the Ways you can learn, or see some of my photographs, or read my skydiving diary. Or up to the main Skydiving page.