I came to Skydive Milwaukee to take Accelerated Freefall (AFF) courses…read more AFF begins with The First Jump Course (FJC). After that course, the student puts on her own parachute and then, accompanied by two instructors, she jumps out of a plane (AFF Level 1) and begins the progression toward complete solo flight. My FJC course lasted 4-5 hours and my instructor was very thorough. She taught me everything I'd need to know for a successful skydive. I didn't just jump into this (no pun intended). My first and only tandem was in 2001, and then I spent 2 years watching my he-pal do this. Once I decided to begin AFF, I spent 3 months sitting at SDMKE's picnic tables, observing instructors and learning "the rules" of this dropzone. I also did my research. This sport, when done mindfully and properly, was one of the safest of "extreme" sports. Maybe you're reading this because you're about to jump tandem, or maybe you're looking for a place to start AFF. Maybe you're in "the zone" and uber confident. I can tell you about my own experience: I was terrified. Regardless of the research I did, or how much I wanted to experience motor-less, human flight, none of that really registered when I was about to throw myself from an airplane. I read a female-skydiver's blog about her journey through AFF. She sounded so confident about each jump--even the ones she had to redo, she was just like, "Yay!" and "Woo hoo!" and "This Rocks!" I felt nothing but terror. Though I was 100% sure this was something I would enjoy (because I enjoyed tandem so much), every single cell in my body screamed, "NOOOOOOO!!!!! Don't do this!!!!" The weather was beautiful that day I finished FJC. The afternoon wind was nice. A good, steady wind is perfect for landing a canopy because you don't come ripping in, you just kind of softly float down, down, down. I wanted the weather to suddenly go bad, for the wind to just get wicked strong... I wished for an upset tummy, but when none of those happened I reluctantly manifested for a flight. RELUCTANTLY. Another AFF student was studying his workbook nearby and so I chatted him up to distract myself from my unrelenting anxiety. His name was Diego, he was a college student at UWM, younger than me by 20 years or so. I told him it was my first AFF jump. My voice was very obviously shaking. And I asked: "Did you feel scared on your first jump?" "Of course!" He said. And I felt so human when he added, "You're jumping out of a plane. It's scary stuff." Within 30 minutes I was ascending to altitude. My two AFF instructors for Level one, Josh and Hooch, coached me through the jump. Several times, Hooch asked how I felt. "Nervous," I replied each time. He gave me the hand signal for 'relax' and said, "Try to have fun." Easier said, you know what I mean? At 13.5K feet, I could feel my blood pumping in my ears. I took deep breaths and visualized a successful jump. At 13.5K feet, the lights to the right of the cabin door changed from red to yellow to green. I watched other skydivers leave. That was the scariest part of the entire jump... watching others seemingly vanish and feeling the airplane lurch from the loss of their weight. When the rest of the skydivers were gone, Hooch took position outside the plane, I crouched in the doorway and Josh was on my right. I looked into their eyes and I saw intense focus. I imagine they've seen everything from naturals to soup sandwiches. It was that moment I realized there was no turning back. Both of these men were gripping the fabric wrapped around my arms, and one of them was hanging outside of the plane. I didn't want to be a soup sandwich. All of my "why's" vanished, and the only WHY that remained was: Why the EFF am I doing this? But I jumped. I think I blacked out for a few seconds from the shock, but once I was focused, I completed the tasks assigned and deployed my pilot chute as directed. The parachute opened happily, I landed, and my instructors said it was a successful skydive. I'm now licensed with close to 200 jumps under my belt. I don't have the terror, but there's still fear and the fear helps me focus. It keeps me alive. And if anyone tells you to relax, cool. If they tell you to smile, give them the finger. We all handle situations differently, and if you skydive with a mean mug, then get "mean mug" stickered to your helmet and OWN IT. Anyway, it's one of the greatest things I've done in my life. It's pushed me physically and mentally, and I'm in love with the personalities I encounter in skydiving, and especially at Skydive Milwaukee. You can ride with the window down and stick your face into the wind or float in one of those fancy iFly tunnels, but there's nothing like this experience. And you can't ask for a better place than Skydive Milwaukee. Good luck! See you out there!

I was a temporary "transplant" from another state when I started looking into skydiving and found…read moreSkydive Milwaukee last year. I wanted to do something bigger than myself, to challenge myself, and to finally cross off an item from my bucket list. What I expected: To get an adrenaline rush, a bunch of sweet pictures, and a great story to tell. What I got: A family of people who pushed me to better myself, looked out for me, laughed with me, and supported me when life was hard. Skydive Milwaukee is more than just a business, it's a community of passionate professional individuals who are genuinely excited to share their love of skydiving with you and will go to every effort to help you make your goals happen. From the moment you walk in the door and get a friendly "hello" from the office staff till the final heart-pounding seconds when you slap a final high-five with the other jumpers and exit the plane, Skydive Milwaukee will make you feel like you're a part of the club. Their friendliness and care will make you feel strangely at ease about jumping out of a "perfectly good airplane." And it's not just a feeling. The staff at Skydive Milwaukee is comprised of tens-of-thousands of jumps worth of experience and knowledge, and has the means to professionally guide you through the experience safely and soundly. I had plenty of doubts and concerns about skydiving, but interacting with the staff of Skydive Milwaukee quelled them as I experienced their professionalism, skill, and care. If you are even remotely interested in skydiving, spend a day at the Skydive Milwaukee dropzone and I guarantee that it will convince you. I went from being afraid of heights to completing a total of 27 jumps receiving my A-level License. I will never forget my summer with the Sky Knights, and Skydive Milwaukee will always be my "Home Dropzone," no matter where I go.

Anything I would say in this review would simply be a repeat of all the other reviews. My wife…read moresurprised me with a jump for our tenth anniversary, and I was a little surprised because I'm 63 and a paraplegic. The staff was incredibly nice and supportive, making me feel extremely comfortable. Every single employee made me feel very welcome and my entire experience was incredible. For anyone looking to cross off a dream on your bucket list this is the place. Be sure to get the video package so you can relive your experience and share it!

My daughter and I went on July 2nd. We had the time of our lives. Sean and Riley were great…read moreinstructors and made us feel at ease. We highly recommend this place to anyone wanting to go skydiving. The cool thing I got to see was a bald eagle flying under us. I can't wait to go again. Great job Riley and Sean and thanks.

Zipline adventure was great! Want to give a big shoutout to Chad I locked my keys in the car (we…read morewere the last group of the day) & he waited patiently for us get in contact with an auto service. It was a 90 degree day & he allowed us to wait inside & borrow a phone charger. His mama show be proud of the man he is & his boss should give him a raise

Wonderful time and experience! Dan and Trisha were wonderful guides and made the experience fun and…read moresafe!

What a great day! The people at Seven Hills Skydiving are very experienced, professional, friendly,…read moreand fun. The training was thorough and we felt safe. We had an exceptional experience and highly recommend Seven Hills!

Had a great time with Russ and Griffin, it was my first jump ever and had so much fun, NO review…read morecould do this entire experience justice what a thrill!! Recommend everyone who loves adrenaline has to do this at least one time!! 10/10 plus got video from multiple views to relive the epic event!!

literally had such an amazing time at sky Midwest, Travis and Steve were amazing, Travis was my…read moretandem partner, made me feel comfortable, made me laugh, he was cool, didn't scare me, it just overall it was a great experience seriously the process was seamless. Steve was taking video/filming and he was super funny awesome and cool.The staff was friendly. My dad brother and I got to play pool while we waited super simple class, and then they got us right up right away, and we had a great time. We were in and out in two hours. There were no problems no issues they got amazing photo and video seriously awesome atmosphere great staff cool place.

What an experience! My friend and I had a fantastic experience and had a great day jumping out of a…read moreplane! We had a beautiful day to go, mid-august. The staff was all super friendly and made sure we understood everything that was going on and kept us feeling safe. Great location, on a clear day you can see milwaukee and Chicago from the air! We did the photo and video package, we'll worth it to have pictures of these amazing memories. There is plenty of time to do a variety of poses and faces in the air, even with the wind against you. Even you're even thinking about going, do it!!

We had an incredible experience at iFLY Rosemont, and a huge part of that was thanks to JB! He was…read moreabsolutely amazing with me, my husband, and our 11-yea-old twins. His personality made everyone feel comfortable and excited, and his enthusiasm was contagious. He was patient, encouraging, and gave clear instructions that helped us feel confident in the tunnel. What a fun way to spend time as a family! We will definitely be back!

Even though I didn't fly myself, everyone who was at iFLY for the experience was smiling from ear…read moreto ear. Check in was friendly, although a bit confusing between the online ordering and the additional options that were being offered upon arrival. In addition to the safety video to watch at home, the instructor was very thorough with what to do and the different hand signals since there wouldn't be any talking once inside the tunnel prior to the fly. After suiting up and the instructions, the fun began. I think this is the one time in life when a minute doesn't fly by. There was an option to add more fly time at the end too. The finale includes the instructor showing off with a couple minutes of cool stunts. The option for video is a must for remembering this extra special experience. If you do love it, a special is offered to buy packages at steep discounts that never expire. Overall I can see why people would love this experience and would come back for more. It's not cheap but it's also not something you get to do everyday!