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Searching high and low
To me, Frank Casares exists as a disembodied voice I heard over a crackling walkie-talkie in a hectic airplane hangar. But during the first weekend of June, Casares, the general manager of the Mile-Hi Skydiving Center in Longmont, spoke not through the airwaves but through the air itself as the center hosted the first-ever 5280 Boogie Weekend Spectacular and Pioneers of Skydiving. From June 4 through June 6, Casares was an airborne Alan Freed, only instead of putting together one of Freed's legendary rock 'n` roll showcases, Casares brought together the best of the Front Range's most experienced skydivers, adventurous newcomers and close to 100 of the Pioneers of Skydiving, a group of old-school divers who started the sport more than 50 years ago. On June 5, I went to the Mile-Hi Skydiving Center for two purposes: to interview Casares and, of course, to jump out of an airplane. However, with every new communiquÈ over the walkie-talkie, it soon became apparent that the former was near impossible. The 5280 Boogie was a three-day party, and Casares was the host. Between organizing the massive event that brought hundreds of people to the Vance Brandt Airport, refueling planes, overseeing loads of jumpers and in general making sure everybody had a safe and satisfying time, Casares barely had time to take his own skyward turn. That didn't stop me from having a good time. My friend Jesseca and I suited up with pro jumpers Tom Aussem (pronounced "awesome"-that's right, awesome) and Brendan McHugh respectively to do tandem jumps. This was Jesseca's first aerial adventure and my first tandem experience, and as professionals accustomed to dealing with nervous novices, Aussem and McHugh mixed light-hearted small talk with gallows humor to ease the tension as they went through their preliminary instructions. When it was time to board our plane, I still hadn't met Casares, and it wasn't looking hopeful. The Mile-Hi Skydiving Center was growing more crowded, each hangar filling with folks headed up to or coming back from the sky. Employees were frantically making their appointed rounds, veteran jumpers were packing spent chutes for the next go-round and a seemingly random assortment of hangers-around were chatting, eating and just generally taking in all the fun. Soon Jesseca, Tom, Brendan, myself and videographer Chris Pope were taxied to the runway where a CASA tailgater twin-engine turbine aircraft was idling. I asked around, but Casares wasn't in the area. Putting on my bravest face, I shrugged my shoulders, boarded and, with McHugh strapped to my back, exited the plane at 12,500 feet-along with Pope, who was snapping photos of the event. "Did I just jump out of a plane?" Jesseca asked after we had floated to the ground. It felt like it, she said, but that just didn't seem to make much sense to her brain. This sensation of joyful unreality is part and parcel to the inaugural skydiving experience. The mind, which is bent toward self-preservation, can't quite grasp the notion of jumping out of the back of an airplane, regardless of how fun it is. This euphoric disorientation stayed with us as we taxied back to the hangar, slipped out of our jump gear and headed home. My notebook was empty, showing only a list of interview questions that were never asked. Did this really happen? I took the roll of film to be developed and waited anxiously for an hour, wondering if there would be actual photos or just a succession of blank exposures establishing my dementia. Ultimately, my sanity was acquitted by the developed photos proving that the experience did, indeed, occur. That left one remaining mystery. Is Frank Casares real? Or is he a composite creation of the twisted minds at the Mile-Hi Skydiving Center-a Keyser Soze of the skies? A Bobby Fisher of aerial sports? A visit to the center's homepage, at www.milehiskydiving.com, shows a photo of Casares and a list of credentials, and Lauren Mundell of CTA Public Relations-who handled press for the 5280 Boogie-attests to Casares' existence. My guess is that he is real, although it ultimately doesn't matter. Whomever you deal with, Mile-Hi Skydiving Center promises a safe and breath-taking experience for jumpers of all levels. The staff is friendly, helpful and professional, and Aussem, McHugh and Pope helped turn a day at the airport into the experience of a lifetime for myself, Jesseca and numerous other first-timers at the 5280 Boogie. Nothing tops the rush of plummeting to the earth at 130 mph. And Frank Casares-man or myth-thank you not only for the three-day festival, but for the exciting opportunities you provide to the community year round. Hopefully the 5280 Boogie becomes an annual event. I'll be back, and perhaps next time we will meet-be it on the ground or in the sky. I'm hoping for the latter. You don't need to wait until the next 5280 Boogie to do yourself the favor of jumping out of a plane. The Mile-Hi Skydiving Center jumps year round on weekends and on Wednesdays-Sundays during daylight-savings time. For more information or to schedule a jump, visit www.milehiskydiving.com, or call 303-702-9911. Reservations are recommended. The Mile-Hi Skydiving Center is located at 229 Airport Rd., Hangar 34G, Longmont. Respond: letters@boulderweekly.com
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