1. Department
RED BULL AIR FORCE JUMP W/ UCONN SKYDIVING
Top Line Result:
During Spring Weekend at UConn, we made amazing strides in our relationship with the
school as we brought in Red Bull Air Force teammates Amy Chmelecki & Jeff "Jeffro"
Provenzano to join the UCONN Skydiving on a jump into the middle of campus.
Background:
1.5 years ago, UCONN Skydiving team was identified as a very unique group, one that
stood out from the standard collegiate club teams. With the Red Bull brand being no
stranger to the world of skydiving, we began to build a relationship with this group of
incredibly passionate individuals. We wanted to provide something special for these college
students, something that only Red Bull could.
Over the last few years, UCONN Skydiving has established themselves as a premier
collegiate skydiving team. Having added a number of accolades to their resume, including
but not limited too...
• 2015 Collegiate Nationals• Silver Medal: 4-way Intermediate• Bronze Medal: 2-way FS•
Gold Medal: Intermediate Sport Accuracy • Bronze Medal: Team Accuracy
• 2015 SkyVenture Indoor Tunnel• Silver Medal: 4-way Intermediate
• 2015 USPA National Championships of Wingsuit Flying • 3rd Place, 2-way Acrobatic
• 2015 Paraclete XP Indoor Championships • 2nd Place, 4-way Advanced
As these students continued to push their limits, sharpen their skills and add to their medal
count, they began brainstorming a way to leave their mark at UCONN.
Spring Weekend on campus was an opportunity to showcase their skills but more so their
passion for flying to their classmates. In 2015 they approached the schools administration
seeking permission to land in the middle of campus during Spring Weekend. Much to their
delight, after months of work, the jump was approved. Unfortunately the cards were not
with Red Bull that year as a stipulation was added that stated Red Bull skydivers would not
2. Department
RED BULL AIR FORCE JUMP W/ UCONN SKYDIVING
be allowed to jump with the club.
Red Bull is completely locked-out on UCONN's campus, outside of a student run CO-OP. A
single point- of-distribution, unfortunately, is not enough to service a school of over 19,000
undergraduates on a campus covering 4,100 acres.
Goal:
The goal in 2016 was to bring the World of Red Bull to life on campus through our athletes,
provide a unique learning experience for a select group of students and to create brand
visibility.
Execution:
After a successful year one jump, UCONN Skydiving was hoping to jump again, this time
with a little support from our friends in the Red Bull Air Force. These were individuals
whom they looked up, idolized and were jealous of. Through careful negotiations, Red
Bull’s involvement was green lit.
As the time window shrunk, and finally a hand dealt in our favor, we were able to connect
with Jeff & Amy, secure all approvals from the FAA & UCONN, arrange travel and get
them onsite to work with the team.
The jump took place on Saturday April 23rd. We secured a photography & videography
team to capture the day and bring this activation to life. While onsite, I was able to set
expectations with our athletes, the UCONN team and our photographers to ensure we
accomplished what we set out to do.
The plan was to do 2 practice training jumps at Connecticut Parachutists Inc before the
jump into campus. During the practice jumps the students worked with Amy & Jeff on the
in-air formations they would fly in as they plummeted towards the ground from 12,000ft.
Amy, Jeffro, 13 members of the UCONN Skydiving team and the Director of Residential
Life at UCONN successfully landed within the drop zone shortly after 2PM.
Following the jump, the entire UCONN team, athletes, SBM and Wings Team were able to
grab lunch at a local cafe. The UCONN team sat, joked and asked questions for almost two
hours with Jeff & Amy before departing.
Overall:
We were able to successfully bring the WoRB to life at UCONN, provided a very unique
learning experience for those students involved and created impact during a large moment
on campus. The Director of Residential Life was able to experience first hand how
professional our athletes were, the quality of experience they were able to provide and the
level of excitement they generated.
