Let me start off by saying that I am not a daredevil by any stretch of the imagination. I don't particularly like heights. I'm not a big fan of roller coasters although I will go on them with my son if no one else is there to do it. And I have no desire whatsoever to jump out of a plane. So when the opportunity to try in-door skydiving came up, I was pretty hesitant. I'm sure I thought what many people think - can I do it? Will I be able to fly or will I sink to the floor? Will I like it? The answer to all three questions I found out is a big YES!
So how does one go about indoor skydiving? Well, the process is surprisingly simple. Go to iFLY's website HERE to reserve your fly session date and time. It is recommended that you arrive an hour early before your fly time. This will give you time to sign in and fill out your waiver at one of the many touch screen kiosks. Once you are signed in you can go into the flight deck viewing area to watch other people flying. The massive wind tunnel is located in the middle of the room with plenty of seating all around. So, yes, you will have an audience during your fly time!
We met our certified flight instructor and watched a 5 minute instructional video on the proper body position for flying. Since you cannot hear while in the wind tunnel, your instructor will communicate to you through hand motions. Two straight fingers means keep your legs straight, two bent fingers means bend your knees, pointing up means keep your chin up and the thumb and pinkie up means relax. That last one is a lost easier said than done! Once you have watched the video and had all of your questions answered, it is now time to suit up! Lockers are provided to put all of your belongings in. You are then issued a flight suit, googles and helmet. You can also wear ear plugs if you wish and gloves to keep any rings from flying off. You will also need to tie back long hair and don't forget to wear your tennis shoes!
I'm all ready!
When it is your group's turn to go, everyone will enter the flight chamber "waiting room" and you will sit on the bench and wait for your turn. Getting into the tunnel was a lot easier than I thought it would be. You pretty much just "fall in" and your instructor is there to catch you. Your instructor will be with you the entire time you are in the tunnel to help you fly. And I would just like to take this moment to apologize to my instructor. I'm not going to lie - my first flight was pretty rough. When I entered the tunnel I could not feel my body so even though I thought my legs were straight, they apparently were not and this resulted in me going everywhere in the tunnel. But my instructor was so awesome and patient and did a great job of keeping me from hitting the walls and floor.
I am really glad that two flights are included in your reservation because the next time I nailed it. And it was so much fun!
At the end of your fly session you can elect to participate in a "high fly" and that is when the instructor holds on to you and you get to do some "extra" fun things - going around in a circle and flying up high in the air tunnel. It was a lot of fun, but be ready for it! It seems like you are going around a lot faster than it looks and I was convinced I was going to hit my head on the ceiling, even though apparently we only went about halfway up the wind tunnel (which is still 30 feet!) Check out my moves here:
https://youtu.be/9PIBGH-syGI
Once you are done your flight instructor will lead you out of the flight chamber. That is it! You will receive a personalized flight certificate, and pictures and videos of your flight will be available for purchase.
The entire iFLY experience lasts about 1 hour and 45 minutes and each flight is the equivalent of 1.5 skydives.
iFLY is located at 10654 Palm River Road in Tampa. They can be reached at 813-773-4359.
Hours of operation are:
Monday-Thursday 11am-10pm
Friday: 10am-11pm
Saturday: 8:30am-11pm
Sunday: 9am-10pm
For more information and to book your iFLY time, go to their website at https://www.iflyworld.com/tampa/.
CONGRATULATIONS TO SEAN MURRAY WHO WON A FLIGHT PACKAGE (valid for 4 flights shared by 2 people, 2 video clips from your flight session and rental of flight suits, helmets and googles for 2 people) from iFLY!!
