Under the watchful eye of my wife, Mary Ruth, two of us load up for some relative work. We normally use this Cessan 172 from 6,500 ft or higher.
This type of unusual shot is good sometimes. The poor quality of the picture is due to partial exposure of the film when I was caught in a strong wind, blown off course and knocked unconscious in a ditch, breaking the camera open. I revived enough to pull the film under my body and pocket it before it was a total loss. I got 3 of 36 pictures. THe canopy never collapsed and I was too dazed to help myself. I was draged out of the ditch and down a slope where the wind was less strong. I jumped again that day however. Spring 1957.
USMC John Downer, a jet pilot and airlines co-pilot preparing for his first jump. He insists parachuting is more fun than jet flying. That's me putting on the gogles to jump after him and talk him down from along side.
Mary Ruth and me - a proud wife and a proud husband.
Phil Miller and Clinton Smith over a German field. He reported 25 seconds of the delay in heavy clouds. He warns against others trying it and said he learned his lesson.
Postcard
16 Aug 1968 - Tony Lemus & Don Molitar are passing through. This card's only about the people & the games. The Aussies (Australians) always make fun of us whenever they can. We line our gear up out front of our tent in the morning. After the first time, several countries followed suit. So the Aussies carefully piled all their stuff in one big heap in front of their tent & saluted when we went past. Next time we went by there was a stuffed pair of coveralls lounging against the pile with one arm on a nearby chair and the glove around a beer bottle. At dinner last night we had a rousing 4 man band. The dinner ended up with beer coasters flying all over the big hall. Everytime things calmed down the band played something frantic. Cameron tried to sell me to the Turks as a harem girl but they said I wasn't fat enough - but I'd make a good belly dancer. Of course they couldn't say much. They decided they'd rather fatten me up & I now get Turkish candy at least once a day. I had a pleasant hour with the Russians trying to translate a copy of Love is walking hand in Hand (a Peanuts book) that I gave them. I didn't think my Russian was that good but we managed with German & French in there too. P.S.-They have a beer glass (not pitcher) that holds 2 quarts. They pass it around & the one who is the last before the finisher (2nd to last) has to buy. P.S- The Russian judge is a blond gal - 5'3" 180 lbs we call her "Super Toad."