indoor skydiving
Discussion
(nsfw - contains some nudity)
www.wimp.com/indoor/
I first saw this on telly about 20 years ago IIRC, havnt tried it, but have always wanted to.
And as I recall a regular turbine from a Jumbo was fitted under the grill mesh.
Looking at this from the point of view of starting an indoor skydiving business, any guesses how much it would cost to buy, fit and service an engine with enough power to make this possible?
If you had a venue in your town, would you definitely give it a go at some point? Would you go more than once? How much would you be willing to pay?
Ive not done any reading/research, as I just dont have the means to start a new business like this at the moment in time, perhaps one day
I'd like to think it could be a very enjoyable and lucrative business idea, but there is no way of telling with a great deal of certainty. Does anyone own or run a similar type of business here, per chance?
>> Edited by ukbob on Monday 30th January 11:46
www.wimp.com/indoor/
I first saw this on telly about 20 years ago IIRC, havnt tried it, but have always wanted to.
And as I recall a regular turbine from a Jumbo was fitted under the grill mesh.
Looking at this from the point of view of starting an indoor skydiving business, any guesses how much it would cost to buy, fit and service an engine with enough power to make this possible?
If you had a venue in your town, would you definitely give it a go at some point? Would you go more than once? How much would you be willing to pay?
Ive not done any reading/research, as I just dont have the means to start a new business like this at the moment in time, perhaps one day
I'd like to think it could be a very enjoyable and lucrative business idea, but there is no way of telling with a great deal of certainty. Does anyone own or run a similar type of business here, per chance? >> Edited by ukbob on Monday 30th January 11:46
ukbob said:
i was offered the chance to do this a few months back....it was incredibly expensive for a seesion of only a couple of minutes so turned it down.
i think it was in the region of £100.....to me that was a waste of money for a couple of minutes in a massive hairdryer
I'm going here on the 4th March.......
[url]www.airkix.co.uk/[/url]
its about £30 for two flights lasting a couple of mins each, expensive i know, but looks like a lot of fun!
[url]www.airkix.co.uk/[/url]
its about £30 for two flights lasting a couple of mins each, expensive i know, but looks like a lot of fun!
I've done the Airkix one in MK. It's about £35 for a session. You're there for about 45 mins in total, including basic body position training, training video, suit fitting etc. You then have two 'flights' of about 2 minutes each. It doesn't sound much, but it's great fun and a huge buzz when the instructor lets go of you and you're just floating there - just before you try to wave at your mates and crash into the side...
To become good at it (doing forward rolls etc) you'd have to spend a fortune, but as a one-off experience I can recommend it very highly. About a dozen of us went and everyone was grinning like a fool afterwards - men and women alike.
The only other one in the UK is in Bedford, which opened a couple of weeks before MK, while I think there only only one or two others in the rest of Europe; Paris being one. They're just like wind tunnels that you'd use for aircraft/racecar development, but turned 90 degrees. You certainly wouldn't need a jet engine! Electric fans are perfectly adequete because the air speed is only around 130mph.
To become good at it (doing forward rolls etc) you'd have to spend a fortune, but as a one-off experience I can recommend it very highly. About a dozen of us went and everyone was grinning like a fool afterwards - men and women alike.
The only other one in the UK is in Bedford, which opened a couple of weeks before MK, while I think there only only one or two others in the rest of Europe; Paris being one. They're just like wind tunnels that you'd use for aircraft/racecar development, but turned 90 degrees. You certainly wouldn't need a jet engine! Electric fans are perfectly adequete because the air speed is only around 130mph.
ahonen said:It seems reasonably priced to me. Why they cant give everyone an extra few minutes I dont know
I've done the Airkix one in MK. It's about £35 for a session. You're there for about 45 mins in total, including basic body position training, training video, suit fitting etc. You then have two 'flights' of about 2 minutes each. It doesn't sound much, but it's great fun and a huge buzz when the instructor lets go of you and you're just floating there - just before you try to wave at your mates and crash into the side...
To become good at it (doing forward rolls etc) you'd have to spend a fortune, but as a one-off experience I can recommend it very highly. About a dozen of us went and everyone was grinning like a fool afterwards - men and women alike.
The only other one in the UK is in Bedford, which opened a couple of weeks before MK, while I think there only only one or two others in the rest of Europe; Paris being one. They're just like wind tunnels that you'd use for aircraft/racecar development, but turned 90 degrees. You certainly wouldn't need a jet engine! Electric fans are perfectly adequete because the air speed is only around 130mph.
Its one hell of an experience, something you'll be talking about for years afterwards. I think this would cost a LOT more to set up as a business than I thought. >> Edited by ukbob on Monday 30th January 12:16
UKBob, I guess that unlike indoor ski slopes and the like there are no real economies of scale. Only one person (plus instructor) can fit in the tunnel at a time, while you can put 50+ on a ski slope. Plus you're paying for an instructor to be with you at all times - and equipment hire. I guess that if you were competent you'd get a much better rate to fly alone, wearing your own gear.
It still seems a bit dear to a lot of people, though, but as a starting point for birthdays etc it's ideal.
The good thing about Airkix in MK is that it's part of a US group, so they can afford to stick at it while the momentum builds.
It still seems a bit dear to a lot of people, though, but as a starting point for birthdays etc it's ideal.
The good thing about Airkix in MK is that it's part of a US group, so they can afford to stick at it while the momentum builds.
ahonen said:True. If you read the airkix site, look at the pics, the size of the building, etc... Im guessing it would cost 7 figures to set up this kind of a business. As with anything there is a lot more than meets the eye. Im in no position to start anything no that scale and wont be for a long time, but its a fantastic idea and with so few centres in the UK it would likely do well if marketed well.
UKBob, I guess that unlike indoor ski slopes and the like there are no real economies of scale. Only one person (plus instructor) can fit in the tunnel at a time, while you can put 50+ on a ski slope.
ahonen said:True. If you read the airkix site, look at the pics, the size of the building, etc... Im guessing it would cost 7 figures to set up this kind of a business. As with anything there is a lot more than meets the eye. Im in no position to start anything no that scale and wont be for a long time, but its a fantastic idea and with so few centres in the UK it would likely do well if marketed well.
UKBob, I guess that unlike indoor ski slopes and the like there are no real economies of scale. Only one person (plus instructor) can fit in the tunnel at a time, while you can put 50+ on a ski slope.
I went and spectated at the MK one a couple of weeks back. I wouldn't really fancy it unless it was just me and an instructor and lots more flight time. I would not want a bunch of strangers watching me being manhandled by an instructor while i make a fool of myself 
The highlight for me was when the instructor gave the operator the wink and the operator turned the fan up so the instructor could 'show off'.
He jumped into the airstream in the armchair position and started doing circles round the outside of the chamber and then flipped over onto this stomach in the classic skydiving position and promptly vanished out of the top of the chamber and out of our view
and didn't come back for about ten seconds, when he just appeared back before us and then vanished again, all apparently with him making no adjustments to his 'flying' style.
Very impressive indeed
The highlight for me was when the instructor gave the operator the wink and the operator turned the fan up so the instructor could 'show off'.
He jumped into the airstream in the armchair position and started doing circles round the outside of the chamber and then flipped over onto this stomach in the classic skydiving position and promptly vanished out of the top of the chamber and out of our view
and didn't come back for about ten seconds, when he just appeared back before us and then vanished again, all apparently with him making no adjustments to his 'flying' style. Very impressive indeed
hedders said:
The highlight for me was when the instructor gave the operator the wink and the operator turned the fan up so the instructor could 'show off'.
He jumped into the airstream in the armchair position and started doing circles round the outside of the chamber and then flipped over onto this stomach in the classic skydiving position and promptly vanished out of the top of the chamber and out of our view
Very impressive indeed
They're good, aren't they? Our instructor did all that stuff at the end and to close the 'show' he dropped like a stone from the top of the chamber, before sticking one leg out and casually stepping through the exit door and walking off. Ideally he should've been wearing a tux, so that he could've adjusted his bow tie as he left the chamber...
ahonen said:
...but its a fantastic idea and with so few centres in the UK it would likely do well if marketed well.
Not so bad when you live between the two
. Even so I still haven't been to the MK one which I park next to en route to the gym, seems a little costly. Where is the one in Bedford? (I find MK better for EVERYTHING these days unless you want a pound shop for something)
Gassing Station | The Pie & Piston Archive | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff