| Frequently Asked Questions:
We’ve been asked a few times before…
Who is the USPA and are you rated through them?
How’s your safety record?
Can you breathe in freefall?
How fast will we be falling?
What height do we jump from?
Will I see my friend in freefall?
What’s the landing like?
What if I’m afraid of heights?
Do we actually land on the beach or in the water?
Can we share a video?
If I am under 18 can I still jump if my parents sign for me?
What if I am over the weight limit?
What’s the best time to skydive?
Can we be in the airplane together?
How hard does the parachute open?
How far are you from New York City?
Can I take a train to the Long Island Skydiving Center?
How far in advance should I make my reservation?
How far are you from The Hamptons?
Who packs the parachutes?
Is skydive spelled skydive or sky dive?
What if my sky diving question was not answered here?
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Who is USPA and are you rated through them?
The United States Parachute Association or USPA is the regulatory
or governing agency-serving skydivers. They are the only such
agency in the United States and have set forth standards in skydiving
safety and training. Skydiving centers that have pledged to abide
by these safety standards are called “Group Members.” The
Long Island Skydiving Center is a USPA Group Member, and all
of our Instructors possess instructional ratings recognized by
USPA.
How’s your safety record?
While skydiving is definitely an extreme sport carrying an obvious
risk of serious injury or death on every jump, we are proud to
say that we have not had a single student injury at the Long
Island Skydiving Center. Statistics have shown that skydiving
injuries typically occur during a poorly executed landing. The
tandem skydiving method employed by The Long Island Skydiving
Center greatly minimizes this risk by the direct supervision
of our highly experienced USPA rated tandem instructors. The
equipment used at The Long Island Skydiving Center is also the
most advanced tandem skydiving equipment available on the planet.
Safety is our primary objective. Please keep in mind that accidents
are still possible.
Can you breathe in freefall?
The freefall and parachute environments do not cause any difficulty
in breathing; however, some students have commented that it was
awkward to breathe during the first few seconds. This is caused
not by lack of oxygen but by the surge of adrenaline and excitement
of first jumping out of the aircraft. Sometimes when a person is
startled they draw in a breath of air and hold it. When you exit
the airplane you must continue to breathe in and breathe out.
How fast will we be falling?
Typical freefall speeds are approximately 120 MPH although this
can increase or decrease slightly with body size and position.
The freefall speed record is over 330 mph. An experienced skydiver
using specialized equipment achieved this speed record.
What height do we jump from?
Our typical jump altitude is approximately two miles above the
planet or 10,000 feet providing a typical 40-50 second freefall.
This is the highest altitude allowed by the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) on Long Island. Above 10,000 feet is a busy
heavy jet corridor into high volume New York City Airports. On
occasion skydives are allowed from a few thousand feet higher,
but it’s rare and potentially hazardous. The FAA also forbids
us to jump through clouds. If there is a cloud layer which prevents
us from climbing to peak jump altitude, we offer skydivers the
option of a slightly lower skydive under the clouds or to reschedule
their skydive to another day.
Will I see my friend in freefall?
You can certainly try to see your friend in freefall. However with
the fast paced environment of freefall, spotting your friend
several hundred feet away is unlikely. After one tandem skydiving
pair leaves the airplane, it will take several seconds for the
next pair to leave. During this slight delay, the plane has traveled
several hundred or even thousands of feet away horizontally from
the first pair.
What’s the landing like?
Several factors come into play when we land a parachute. Most tandem
parachute landings are very soft, often times standing up nicely.
However this soft stand up style landing cannot be guaranteed
and students must be physically fit enough to perform a harder
falling down or sliding style landing. Generally, a person is
fit to tandem skydive if they can perform some other rigorous
sport such as tennis, basketball or racquetball and not injure
themselves. Please consult your physician if you have doubts
about your physical condition or strength.
What if I’m afraid of heights?
Many people are hesitant to skydive due to their personal fear
or discomfort of heights. A skydiving experience does not equate
to being, for example, at the top of a ladder, bridge, or building.
You are simply too high up to have any height induced vertigo
or dizziness. We are literally over two miles up when we skydive.
An individual would no more encounter a fear of heights during
skydiving than when flying in a jet airliner.
Do we actually land on the beach or in the water?
Although the water and beach are relatively close to our target
landing area at Spadaro’s Airport, we are prohibited from
landing on the beach unless special event permission is granted.
Can we share a video?
Two people can appear in one video on the ground preparing for
the sky dive and possibly for landing, but in freefall, one student
can only be filmed by one camera.
If I am under 18 can I still jump if my parents sign for me?
Unfortunately no. The age requirement of 18 is set forth due to
the hold harmless waivers every skydiver must agree to and sign.
These waivers are only binding if the person signing is at the
age or consent, 18, or older. Parental or guardian permission
holds no validity when signing legal documents directly related
to release of liability regarding recreational sports.
What if I am over the weight limit?
If you are over the recommended weight of 225 pounds, it is still
possible to make a tandem skydive. The tandem weight limitation
is based on a combined student / instructor/ parachute pack loading
and cannot exceed 500 pounds. Persons larger than 225 pounds
must be proportional to their weight and in good physical shape.
The work placed on the instructor becomes much greater with heavier
people so it is necessary that students weighing in excess of
225 must pay an additional amount to the instructor for their
efforts. This is typically calculated by adding $1 per pound
over 225 pounds. If your weight exceeds 225, please call.
What’s the best time to skydive?
There are a couple of factors to consider when answering this question:
weather, scheduling, and video/photo images. For weather reasons,
it’s best to schedule as early in the day as possible.
In the event we have inclement weather, we have all day for conditions
to improve. Also, when the weather does break, we start with
the students with the earliest appointments and work our way
down pushing everybody’s scheduled appointment time back.
We are much like a doctor’s office and the fewer students
there are in front of you the less delays you’ll encounter.
For video and photo images, most professional photographers prefer
soft morning and late afternoon light. While our professional
photographers prefer these times, we make nice images all day
long. Keep in mind, you’ll probably be making your jump
about one hour after your scheduled reservation time.
Can we be in the airplane together?
Yes. We will make every effort for you to jump with your friends, however, this is not always possible.
How hard does the parachute open?
Most students would say the parachute opening was not nearly as
hard as they anticipated it to be. On occasion, the parachute
will open harder than normally expected. Although possible, it
is unlikely you would sustain any injuries from an opening. Please
consult your physician if you feel you may have a condition where
you should refrain from skydiving.
How far are you from New York City?
We are located 65 miles east of New York City. It’s about
a 75-minute drive from the city depending on traffic.
Can I take a train to the Long Island Skydiving Center?
From Penn Station take the Long Island Railroad (LIRR) to the Speonk
Station.
Our drop zone is five miles west on Montauk Highway. A cab ride
from the station ranges in price between $5 to $10. McRides Taxi
631.281.8581 or 631.288.3252.
How far in advance should I make my reservation?
We recommend a few days notice during the week and about a week’s
notice for a weekend appointment. Also, you’ll have a better
chance at getting a prime time slot the earlier you make your reservation.
Often during July and August, the only appointment times available
are between 6:30 – 8:30 am and 6 – 7 pm. Larger groups
should also give consideration to the fact there may not be a large
enough time block available for your group on the day you are requesting.
Make your reservations as early as possible, and feel free to call
or email anytime for availability.
How far are you from The Hamptons?
We’re located in East Moriches, NY only eight miles west
of West Hampton, NY.
Who packs the parachutes?
At the Long Island Skydiving Center, all main parachutes are packed
by our instructors or our staff FAA certificated parachute riggers.
Auxiliary or reserve parachutes are inspected and repacked every
120 days, per FAA regulations, by our staff FAA certificated
parachute riggers.
Is skydive spelled skydive or sky dive?
Many, if not most, people think skydive is spelled with two words
but in fact it is one: SKYDIVE. You will see the spelling throughout
this website changing back and forth between the two. This is
simply a technique to raise our key word hits in many of the
search engines and not because we’re confused about skydiving
in Long Island, New York or sky diving in the North East. Thanks!
What if my sky diving question was not answered here?
Please give us a call or drop us an email. We’re eager to
answer any questions you have.
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