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Sunday, June 24, 2018

Flying high...

If you should be inclined to catch the Thunderbirds in the Air Force Air Show at Hill Air Force Base today (or in the future) I have just a few words of essential advice:
Take water, cold water.
Take and wear sunscreen. Apply often and liberally.
Wear a hat and sunglasses.
Wear good, comfortable shoes.
Take a chair.
An umbrella cuts the heat.
Bring earplugs.
Take cash and prepare to spend it for food and trinkets and cold stuff.
Prepare for a long day as the Thunderbirds don't perform their amazing and thrilling show until 3 o'clock "sharp" and even then, it's a 45-minute wait while they go through their pre-flight checklist on the way to actually taking off.
If you take children, secure them with a wristband with your phone number on it. Lots of little folks ended up in the Lost Children facility awaiting reunification.

And take advantage of the UTA special which allows you to ride the Frontrunner and bus bridge for $5 round trip. Not only does it save you the headache of fighting traffic and finding parking but the police made concessions for the buses, allowing them to speed through the intersections without delay.
It's still a crusher at the end when thousands of fans try to leave and board all at the same time.
We went yesterday morning after a stint with our ward cleaning the church so we were there fairly early. (It opens at 8 a.m. and flights begin around 10 a.m.)
If we were to go again I would wait until the afternoon and go around 2:30 so as to catch the Mighty Thunderbirds.
They truly are worth the effort. They are fast (the races toward one another are made at 1,000 miles per hour!) The planes are gleaming. The choreography is unbelievable as these giant, powerful jets fly within inches of each other's wings, tip, dip and roll with seemingly little effort.
You KNOW one tiny mistake could be disaster.
It's thrilling.
It make you appreciate the skill and the training involved.
It makes your heart ache.
I recommend it but like a Scout, go prepared!






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