I Got My Skydiving License, Now What?

Key Takeaways

Achieving your skydiving license is just the beginning … the possibilities are endless. From personal skydiving goals and skills camps, to boogies and an abundance of skydiving disciplines to explore, the A License is just the first open door in the world of skydiving. Plus: the cost of skydiving after license significantly decreases! How much does it cost to skydive once you have your license? Around $35 per jump ticket. If that doesn’t convince you to get licensed, we don’t know what will!

When someone decides to learn to skydive solo, they are in pursuit of their A License. The A License is awarded by the United States Parachute Association (USPA) and is the first of four skydiving licenses (A, B, C, D). Following a tandem skydive, an A License is the ticket into the great, vibrant world of skydiving! 

If you just gained the coveted “A” stamp on your forehead, you’re probably chomping at the bit with the question: What can I do with my skydiving license?! Let’s get into it. 

How Do I Get People To Jump With Me? 

Don’t stress, young flyer! We all know that walking into a dropzone can be more intimidating than the actual jump itself. And similarly, asking people to jump with you as a novice is pretty nerve-racking, but the jumps themselves will be chock-full of knowledge and fun. 

Here are some tips to keep in mind when asking others to jump with you: 

• Be yourself! Skydivers are friendly people, so if you’re a skydiver, you know what that says about you!
  
• Jump with people who are better than you. Jumping with those who are better than you is undoubtedly intimidating, but that shouldn’t stop you from pursuing it. The best way to learn in the sport is to be the least experienced person on the jump (and ask all the questions)!
  
• Join the Perris Organizers. At Skydive Perris, one or several load organizers (i.e., jumpers with tons of experience and at minimum a coach rating) are on site every day, asking for only one thing: to jump with you! As long as you are cleared for solo, our LOs will welcome you into the fold; no minimum jump number required. They’ll organize jumps that suit your level and debrief with you afterwards. This program is completely free; all you have to pay for is your own slot, so don’t hesitate to take advantage of it!
  
• Be open-minded. If you have a preconceived idea that a certain discipline is closed off to you, cut that out! Meaning, if the people available to jump are doing a discipline that you’re not familiar with, and they’re able to help integrate you into it with safety first, then go for it!
  
• We all started right where you are. Don’t inflate your experience or abilities, just be honest with yourself and others about where you are in your progression. Remember, we all started with that very first skydive. 

Pro tip: You don’t know unless you try! If you have the urge to ask someone to jump with you, do it. The worst they can say is no… and when they do, it’s usually for safety reasons, so don’t take it personally.  

Skydiving Disciplines

Everyone’s skydiving journey is different. Whether you choose to ignite your competitive edge, learn to instruct, or simply jump with your best friends, there’s something for everyone. Here’s a quick look at some popular skydiving disciplines: 

• Formation skydiving (FS): Have you seen people holding hands in freefall while falling in a belly-to-earth position? That’s formation skydiving! 
• Freeflying (FF): Headstands at 120mph and carving around one another at warp speeds is what freeflying is all about! 
• Movement. Wait … aren’t all jumps considered movement jumps? Well, yes! But, no. Movement jumps – like tracking and angle flying – are when skydivers initiate horizontal movement in freefall by tracking or angling their bodies in specific orientations.
• Wingsuiting: Once you have at least 200 jumps, wingsuiting is something you can choose to pursue. Many wingsuiters aspire to learn XRW – cross relative work – where wingsuiters and high-performance canopy pilots fly side-by-side! 
• Canopy relative work (CRW): Think formation skydiving, but with parachutes. Canopy pilots can maneuver their parachutes to stack on top of each other and build formations that can be seen from the ground! 

Many people are not sure where to start, and the abundance of options is part of the beauty of the sport! Our best tip: try a bit of everything, all while keeping safety first. Dip your toes into each at your own pace and find what fits your vibe. And if it changes years later … no problem! 

Attend Boogies

A boogie is a skydiving event where jumpers come to make skydives, meet people, and advance their skills in the sport. It’s a social, jump-intensive celebration of skydiving culture! 

Is it worth getting a skydiving license? (We’re going to get a bit mushy for a second). Yes, getting a skydiving license is worth it for so many reasons, but especially for the community you’ll gain. Boogies are reflective of the heart of skydivers, and getting to attend them is a benefit of achieving your skydiving license. Many dropzones have an events page where jumpers can learn about and sign up for boogies, camps, and training courses.  

One of our most popular boogies – the Skydive Perris Fresh Meet – is held annually to help newly licensed jumpers integrate into the sport. Placing fresh skydivers with seasoned organizers encourages growth in the sport and connections with mentors! 

Sign Up For Skills Camps

If you’re serious about advancing your skills, skill-specific camps are the way to go. Skills camps are similar to boogies in the vibes, but with the addition of a hyper-focus on honing your skills. 

There are camps for all levels of jumpers, from beginner to advanced. Skills camps are organized events that place attendees with experienced coaches in specific disciplines. For example, if movement jumps are something you’re passionate about, attending an angle camp is a good idea. There are camps for every discipline, and every level of every discipline! 

At Skydive Perris, we host tons of them each year, and you can find them in our Calendar of Events. 

Set Personal Goals 

Setting goals in the sport encourages a mindset of growth and anti-complacency. After making hundreds or even thousands of skydives, it can be easy to fall into a headspace of stagnation, and setting goals helps us avoid this. The best thing about goals is that they’re personal! Whether you want to become really great at accuracy when landing, learn to be an instructor, or become an organizer – you can do whatever you’re feeling called to do. 

The most important thing about goals is that they’re measurable and actionable. So, stop putting off those skydiving dreams and get out there! Put a timeline on your goals, we assure you they’ll be more achievable and less daunting. 

Can you make money with a skydiving license? Yes! Skydiving is a career path that many people choose and make a goal. Whether you’re good at customer service, communication, teaching, videography, or many other attributes, there is a place for you in the skydiving community. 

Ready to see what skydiving is all about? Book your first jump today or sign up for the Perris Skydiving Program – one of the best skydive training programs in the world. Blue skies!

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