5 Unexpected Indoor Skydiving Skills You Can Learn With Us

You might think the wind tunnel is just for a fun, highflying time, but did you know there are quite a few indoor skydiving skills you can acquire from your time in the tunnel?

The indoor skydiving skills you build from flying may surprise you. While some are directly related to your flying abilities, several translate into your everyday life. Without further ado, allow us to share 5 unexpected indoor skydiving skills you can learn with us at Paraclete XP!

1. Learn To Face Anxieties

Trying new things can be stressful and, for some, it is downright anxiety inducing. Within a few moments of entering the wind tunnel, you’ll be blown away (pun intended). You might have built up the experience to terrifying proportions, but once you’re flying you’ll see you had nothing to worry about at all! 

It’s the same in other areas of life. You might be nervous about asking that special someone who’s caught your eye on a first date, anxious about a major work presentation, or maybe you’re afraid of taking flight on your very first skydive. No matter the source of the trepidation, once you step out of your comfort zone, you usually find you had nothing to fear to begin with!

2. Learn To Go With The Flow (Literally)

If you’re the type of person who has to be in control, an indoor skydiving skill that you’ll need to acquire is the ability to go with the flow. Fighting against the wind is fruitless. At first, flying in the wind tunnel is a strange sensation, and many folks “swim” when they enter the air flow: kicking their legs and paddling their arms.

With time, tunnel flyers learn that the key to stability is relaxing. Feel the wind and allow it to carry you. After you enter the wind tunnel, practice a nice skydiving arch, keep your legs extended and strong at a 45-degree angle, and hold your arms at about a 90-degree angle — this will be your neutral belly flying position.

Going with the flow is a valuable skill outside of the tunnel as well. Life is full of twists and turns. Remaining flexible and able to adapt to a changing environment will benefit you immensely.

3. Learn To Take Direction

Particularly in new and potentially uncomfortable situations, the brain can be easily overloaded by external stimuli. This can make it quite difficult to be receptive to directions. It is not uncommon for individuals to mentally “shut down” rather than listening and responding to critical instructions.

Indoor skydiving will test your ability to listen. Though you may be experiencing the impulse to fight or flight, you’ll need to quiet your mind and listen to your instructor. Like the others on our list, this indoor skydiving skill proves useful in instances outside of the tunnel. When the pressure is on, you’ll be able to keep a level head and listen.

4. Learn To Live In The Moment

At any given moment, it may seem like there are a thousand different things vying for your attention. The ability to be present may appear to be a luxury you can’t afford. The truth is you cannot afford not to be present. The only moment that matters is the one you’re in. You cannot change the past, and the future is influenced by your choices now.

The tunnel encourages participants to live in the moment. In part, you don’t have a choice. It’s nearly impossible to think of anything else while you feel weightless and are legit flying. Your whole being is focused only on the right-here, right-now body flight.

As you train your brain to live in the moment, you may find a bit more clarity out there in the real world. Instead of fretting over the future or rehashing the past, you’ll be mindful to stay present.

5. Learn New Moves

Developing indoor skydiving skills is a natural outcome of flight time in the wind tunnel. You’ll start with the basics and then move onto different levels and challenges.

First, you’ll focus on belly flying and, as you become more comfortable in the tunnel, progress to back flying. Once you’ve perfected stable back flying and transitions between your belly and back, you will move on to learning how to fly in a head up orientation … and then in a head down orientation.

The indoor skydiving skills you develop can also be used to fly with other individuals in the tunnel. The key to progression is practice and time. You won’t become a tunnel ninja overnight, so enjoy the journey!

Ready to see what indoor skydiving is all about? Book your first flight with Paraclete XP today!