**How do I get on the Excel Basic Camp email list?**

Just drop me, Melanie Curtis, a quick note at mel@skydiveelsinore.com, and I will keep you updated on everything happening at the DZ!

What is the Excel Basic Camp?

Well, first of all, Excel stands for Excellence and Commitment at Elsinore. We all have commitment to this awesome sport of ours, that’s the easy part—finding the path to excellence without guidance is generally what’s hard! If you’re a new skydiver looking for that guidance, people to jump with, a way to build solid flying skills, and some serious FUN—the Excel Basic Camp is the place for you!

Does it cost anything?

It’s FREE!!

When is it?

Click here to see the schedule

Who is it for?

The camp is open to all A-licensed (or above!) skydivers - everyone and anyone who wants to participate can come work on their skills in a social, relaxed learning environment. If you’re just getting off AFF and don’t know where to go next, don’t know who to jump with—come see us and we’ll get you going on getting better. If you already have some good skills, and want to continue progressing to a more advanced level—or want to just jump in to help out—by all means, come join the crew! We always welcome the help! If you’re a freeflier who kind of skipped the belly stuff, and feel like building some flat skills now—that’s cool too. Really, everyone is welcome!

What will I get out of it?

Over the course of the year we’ll be working on body position, forward and backward movement, fall rate control, side slides, center point turns—tied in with exits, freefall communication (eye contact), skydive preparation, debriefs, etc, etc. Depending on the skills each person already has, we can group/pair people up accordingly, and make skydives geared toward the things you need/want to learn—whether it’s basic beginning stuff, or more advanced skills geared toward 4-way, or larger formations. On top of that is of course making new friends, having fun, and singing Kumbaya with beers around the fire pit after hours. (I was starting to sound cheesy, I couldn’t resist.)

How will I learn?

You will learn by listening and doing! As Excel coaches, we try to get everyone in the air making skydives that they can learn from, and have fun with. We also try to get as much exit and freefall video footage as we can, when a camera is available. Then, video or no video, we get together after each jump for a coach-directed group debrief, where we all talk about our jumps, and everyone can learn from everyone else! Of course individual questions are always welcome too, so just ask us— anything, anytime.

“What else” talking about Elsinore events

As we build our skills over the course of the year, we’ll be able to start participating in some of the other awesome events Elsinore offers—like Easter Scrambles, the Poker Run, Dueling DZ’s, 10-way speed—the list goes on and on! Keep in mind that you certainly don’t have to come to every camp to participate in these other cool events—check out the dates for the Excel camp below, and you’ll notice that it’s going on pretty much three days a month all year long. We would love to see everyone at all the camps, but hey, we get it—life happens, no worries—so just show up whenever you can!

What about Excel 10-way?

In 2004, a bunch of spirited jumpers from the Excel Basic Camp worked hard, had fun and earned a slot on the Excel 10-way team, Elsinore Zehn. We trained as a team, went to Nationals, and competed together. It was an extremely rewarding experience for me (Mel) as a coach, and everyone got to learn what team unity and support is all about. We even got our picture in Parachutist!! Each person on the team had an open, positive attitude, and really cared about getting better as individuals, and as a team. Each year we will try to build a 10-way team for Nationals if the competition is relatively local (2006 in Eloy, AZ). Otherwise, we will have special Excel days that focus on the techniques used in 10-way, and other larger formations.

How do I get on an Excel 10-way team?

No matter what your skill level is now, you have the year to jump and work toward this goal. We begin organizing our teams after Excel gets going for the year, so come on out and get jumping. In the meantime, feel free to email me at mel@skydiveelsinore.com, to let me know you’re interested!

What about 4-way?

Whatever path in skydiving you’re interested in taking, we, the Excel coaches, will try to help you in the right direction. If 4-way is what you want to do, you have come to the right place! Elsinore Momentum, and Team Anomaly are only a couple of Excel success stories— putting in the time, energy, and heart to build their teams and go on to compete both locally and at Nationals. Cheese alert: We couldn’t be prouder!

What about the wind tunnel?

We try to offer an Excel Tunnel Camp with every Excel Basic Camp weekend. Each tunnel camp slot is 15-minutes of flight time, one-on-one with your coach. It is focused, individual attention on you, and what you need/want to work on. Each camp includes a full pre-flight prep session with your coach, one-on-one in-air and in-chamber coaching, followed by a comprehensive video debrief. Plus, you are in there splitting time with other participants (fun!)—while you’re out, you can watch the others fly—three feet away and on level! Clear visuals, and another great learning tool to take advantage of during the camp. Any questions, and anytime you want to get in the tunnel, just drop Mel an email at mel@skydiveelsinore.com, and we’ll get you flying! We can work around your schedule, or you can grab a slot in any of our pre-scheduled camps.

“What else” talking about what Elsinore offers

As Excel coaches, we’re here to help you meet people, have fun, and find the information you need. We certainly don’t know everything, but we know the people who do. Whatever you need, Skydive Elsinore has it to offer: focused professional one-on-one coaching, canopy flight instruction, tunnel camps, freefly coaching, gear selection, etc. etc. etc…. All that information is available to you—all you have to do is ask.

When is it?

All the upcoming camp dates are listed below— each day starts officially at 8:00am, so if you want to get an early start on those hot summer days, show up and we’ll hop on load one. Otherwise, we’ll see you when you get there, and make something good happen! Cool—can’t wait to work with all of you out there!

Go huge!
Mel, Steve, and Lou

Who are Mel, Steve, and Lou?

We are the Excel coaches running this whole show! We make up the 4-way team, Elsinore Gravity, and are training hard to compete at this year’s US Nationals. We are all skydiving addicts who thrive on working together and getting better, focusing most of our careers so far on formation skydiving. Of course, we have been known to get vertical every now and then too—tracking, hybrids, head-down— bring on the freefall! That’s us in a nutshell, and we look forward to getting to know you guys too. If you have any questions at all, email me anytime at mel@skydiveelsinore.com, or give me a call at the DZ, (951) 245-9939! Sweet! See you in the sky!

See Calendar for new dates