Johnny Cockrell

Name

Johnny Cockrell

What are your PRIMARY roles at the DZ?

• AFF Instructor
• Videographer
• Coach

How many years in the sport/industry?

10

When you were a kid, were there any early activities that might indicate you’d one day become a skydiver?

I would always get in trouble in P.E. class for going on top of the slides & climbing poles and jumping off of them.

What was the circumstance that led you to make your very first skydive?

I had some extra cash and a Saturday off. So, one of my best friends and I pulled an all-nighter the Friday before, bought some “SuperMan” shirts from Walmart, and made our way to Skydive Quincy Florida to go on a tandem skydive.

What made you want to continue skydiving after your first jump?

The culture at the DZ was positively infectious and I felt like I fit right in. After landing from the tandem I just knew I would be doing it the rest of my life.

What’s the best/most memorable skydive you’ve ever made, and what made it so remarkable?

The Ohio State 27-Way Vertical HD formation record we set at StartSkydiving in 2019. This was the biggest formation I had the pleasure of being a part of, not to mention my 8th jump after taking a 3-year break from the sport for personal reasons. This jump totally re-lit my passion for the sport and made me hungry to take my skills to the next level, while setting a good example and helping new skydivers achieve their goals!

If you have one, what’s your personal motto/philosophy as it relates to skydiving?

Calm, cool, collected … don’t be in your head, but be in the moment…Feel the rhythm, feel the rhyme, come on boys … IT’S SKYDIVE TIME!!!

What three words would your colleagues/students use to describe you as a skydiver?

Cheerful. Outgoing. Optimistic.