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The Boss
Group: Administrators
Last Login: 23/10/2007 12:58:29
Posts: 115, Visits: 547 |
| Well, me and 2 newbie friends went down to Airkix today for our maiden voyage there and had a great time. The tunnel is fast and smooth and there is loads of light - loads. Like Skyventure Orlando the tunnel is transparent plexi glass all the way round but there are huge window panes on the outside of the tunnel building itself letting loads of light in. This makes flying very comfortable and has the added benefit that people on the ground below can see you fly enticing them in to have a look. Also, weirdly - the extra light seems to make the tunnel "feel" much bigger than it's similar Skyventure cousins.
This is a recirculating tunnel and to put the benefits of this to test in a cold climate like the UK - today has been very cold.. close to freezing. The tunnel temperature was perfect. I mean it .. perfect. Can I just stress this point again - it was perfect!! I wasn't freezing my nuts off and I wasn't breaking in to a sweat, it felt totally natural. you could fly all day in here. This coupled with the natural light makes this is a great place to fly.
Most of the staff seemed very friendly and amenable and the standard of flying from the instructors was extremely high. The tunnel instructor in with us was with a South African guy called Nick (my memory is terrible, if I have this wrong please let me know and I will correct) he was very likeable and a very hot free flyer. His flying "style" was similar to Rusty Lewis who I must assume was responsible in part for his training (although I could be wrong). This is no bad thing at all!
So, the tunnel is fully operational and damn it - it flies really good. Now the site itself is still just a little rough round the edges, with a few building materials still laying around and in the tunnel building itself there was some work to complete, although NOTHING that would affect your ability to fly. To stress this point, I am talking about cosmetic stuff.. the tunnel itself rocks and you should get yourself over here! The reception area itself is pretty smart and there is a waiting area for people who are on classes with loads of huge comfortable bean bags.
The toilets that I was desparate to use (after 3.5 hours in the car to get there) seemed pretty grubby and were lacking in essential items like soap, toilet paper etc .. I don't know whether I caught it just at the wrong moment.. and I am sure this is stuff that will quickly get under control.. and I hope so, as a very "public" facing tunnel in a prime location stuff like this needs to be 110%. OK Ok I am being picky .. but you know .. stuff like this is important ;-)
Although everything WE did ran smoothly. The timetabling of classes didn't seem like it was going exactly to plan, with a couple of other people hanging round having to wait longer than expected for their classes. This is no biggie whatsoever, this is a new tunnel and it takes time for processes and stuff like that to begin to flow naturally. In any case the couple of guys who were waiting had a brilliant time and were awesome first time flyers.
All in all and excellent day, my friends that went with me had a great time and really progressed. This tunnel is in brilliant location, with loads to do around it - and flies extremely well. It is fast, smooth and strong. You will not be dissapointed if you fly at this tunnel. The staff seem excellent and can only get even better as they become more and more experienced at working at the tunnel. See you here soon!!!!
:-)
James
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| | | Supreme Being
Group: Administrators
Last Login: 14/08/2007 17:26:13
Posts: 123, Visits: 502 |
| Airkix rocked!!
I flew for the first time at Airkix yesterday, what a great tunnel!
The location of this tunnel is brilliant, you walk through the Xscape main building and to Airkix which is at the end .. (stopped for a look at the indoor ski-slope, doesn't look as fun as flying  )
There's a great atmosphere as soon as you walk into the reception, from the friendly staff to the real-time flight camera which is output through a flatscreen television behind the reception. The place looks really modern and funky.
I did a short briefing session which consisted of an informative DVD and a chat with one of the instructors.
Then it was suiting up time and off to the tunnel.
My instructor for the day was Michael, who was very friendly, knowledgable and made me feel very safe when getting to grips with flight. (He was also a bloody good flyer!!)
I spent a few hours there in total and didn't want to leave, towards the end of the day I had got more acquainted with the tunnel and had started to do some basic moves! 
It was good to see so many people coming by and watching from the observation area, I'd recommend flying here to all of them!
Overall I was very pleased with the setup, performance and staff at Airkix, and will definately be making more appearances there in the future! I'd recommend the DVD, too. That way you can take your flight home with you and watch yourself flapping around time and time again! (I do!  )
Cheers guys!!
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