First off, the jump experience itself was fantastic. The instructor I was paired with, Bob, was the best part of the whole day. He was knowledgeable, charismatic, highly competent and confidence inspiring. Top notch, really.
As for the whole process itself, they could use someone to keep people informed of what is going on and to explain the impact the weather has on the whole event. I arrived in time for my scheduled jump, and could not jump until 5 hours later. Which is absolutely, completely fine and acceptable, because it is a safety issue having to do with cloud cover and the weather.
However, when I showed up, I was just left milling around the hanger area on my own. Nobody approached me or let me know what was going on or where I was supposed to go. If there is signage directing customers, I didn't see it.
I was able to identify a staff member, and I asked if there was going to be any jumping that day, and was told that he didn't know. That's it. No guidance, no offering of where to go to wait or when / where to sign paperwork or anything. Just left standing around with my thoughts and confusion, feeling ignorant and like I had annoyed the staff just by asking. My question might have been annoying, but as a brand new person to this whole process, I didn't know that, and nobody really gives you any kind of welcome or anything when you arrive.
Then I overheard this same staff member mocking me and others who asked the same questions, mimicking us and going on about how he can't control the weather. He said something like "I'll just fly up and move the clouds out of the way so you can jump. Would that make you happy?" or something like that, to the other staff members. So, that didn't really contribute to the experience.
You also pay hundreds of dollars for this experience, and when you are left waiting around for hours (understandable, beyond the company's control), it seems an added insult to have to pay a dollar for a bottle of water. At least give the people who paid 200 plus dollars to jump one complimentary bottle of water or a granola bar or cup of coffee or something while they sit around for hours waiting. Event that one, inexpensive gesture would have gone a long way.
All in all, the instructors and pilot seemed like good people who knew how to do their jobs well. The reception staff, if there even is any, could use a little help. read more