Your First Skydive: Tandem Or Free Fall?

It can be a bit nerve-wracking to take on any new sport, but there is perhaps no athletic activity that intimidates beginners quite as much as skydiving. Since most people interested in skydiving have never jumped out of a plane before, it makes sense that skydiving can cause even the most experienced and courageous athletes to come down with sudden jitters. The fact that many people find their first jump so difficult makes the initial fall all the more critical. If your first skydiving experience is positive, you will feel more confident about your ability to learn skydiving techniques. If you don’t enjoy your first jump, you are unlikely to try again. In some sense, the first jump can make or break a skydiver.

Two standard methods for taking your very first dive are tandem jumping or accelerated free fall. In a tandem jump, you share a harness with an experienced skydiving instructor who has total control of the fall and landing. In an accelerated free fall, instructors help guide you during your time in the air, but you are on your ownness, open your parachute, and control your landing. Each of these methods has some advantages and some disadvantages, and deciding which one is right for you depends mainly on what you think your future as a skydiver will be.

Tandem jumping can be less frightening than an accelerated free fall. Many people opt to start with a tandem jump to get a taste of skydiving without being responsible for controlling any portion of their fall. People who only plan to skydive once often take a tandem jump because it allows them to relax and enjoy the ride while their jumping partner worries about the altitude, the parachute, and the landing. This will enable you to experience the thrill of skydiving while knowing that your safety is in skillful hands.

In an accelerated free fall, you exit the plane with two instructors, one on either side of you, who maintain a grip on your harness for the duration of the fall, controlling your speed, helping you improve your position, and assisting you with stability. When you reach four thousand feet above the ground, you open your parachute and pilot yourself down to the landing target. An accelerated free fall costs more than a tandem jump because it requires two guides instead of one, but unlike the tandem jump, it can count as the first leg of your training course towards eventual certification. This makes it a good option as the first jump for people serious about continuing their skydiving training.