LEISURE: SKYDIVING BOOGIE HELD THIS WEEKEND

If a thrill is what you seek, the fourth annual Skydiving Boogie at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport might just be the event for you this weekend.

The Frog Fest skydiving boogie will be held from 10 a.m. to dusk both Saturday and Sunday at the airport.

Spectators are invited to come watch; anyone interested in jumping can also participate. Certified jumpers can board the plane for a jump for just $18.

First-time jumpers must pay $150 for a 45-minute instruction and then a tandem jump with a master instructor. You must be 18 years old or older to qualify for the jumps.

Bruce Loy, airport manager expects about 100 people to come for the jumps. The plane used will fly to 14,000 feet, drop the divers and return for another round within 14 minutes, he said.

Nearly all the skydivers are certified members of the U.S. Parachute Association.

Members of the public interested in the jump are invited to attend the instruction course. "A lot of people just like to experience the free fall," Loy said.

They will free fall for 1 minute from the 14,000 feet height before a parachute cord is pulled, he said.

The skydiving festival is called a Frog Fest because it is named for a group of divers who had been known as the Frogs, Loy said. "They started it and we've made it an annual event."

Shuttles will be available from the airport to the City of Roses Music Festival downtown. The music festival also runs Saturday and Sunday. For details or to sign up for a jump, call the airport office at 334-6230.