Chicago Air & Water Show remains the Greatest Show Above the Earth
If you're old enough to remember how cool it once was to fly, you know just how glum the whole affair has gotten in the last few decades. An event like the Chicago Air & Water Show brings us back to the open-mouthed excitement of flight while visions of moon landings and Top Guns come to mind as aviation's top military and civilian pilots showcase their quick thinking and nimble-handed talents - not to mention their control of the gag reflex at those kinds of speeds and heights!
Like Madonna (who also turns 50 this month), the annual Chicago Air & Water Show celebrates its birthday by wowing audiences with the old hits as well as spectacular new stunts that'll have 'em talking the next day. In fact, the 2008 event is so big that organizers added a special Friday show and evening concert to the event that has become a summer tradition.
In prior years, Friday has been dress rehearsal for the breathtaking weekend stunts, but at 3 p.m. on Aug. 15, Carol Brady herself, actress/warbler Florence Henderson, leads the lakefront bunch in singing the national anthem. The U.S. Navy Blue Angels take to the skies, rearranging the air molecules with every swoop and turn.
Keep looking up, because actor and "SNL" vet Bill Murray salutes the USO of Illinois by executing a tandem jump with the U.S. Army Golden Knights Parachute Team. At 5 p.m., everyone's favorite "CSI: NY" detective, Gary Sinise, fronts the Lt. Dan Band for a free concert at the North Avenue Beach Boathouse. Both actors have deep Chicago theater roots: Murray honed his comedic flair at Second City in the early 1970s and Sinise co-founded the critically acclaimed Steppenwolf Theatre in 1974.
Right after the concert, just as your neck muscles bounce back, the air show resumes with additional audacious jumps, aerobatics and precision flying. Stick around for the brilliant fireworks display over Lake Michigan at 8:45 p.m. And that's just day one of the largest free air and water show exhibition in the country.
Saturday and Sunday won't disappoint with the extreme water show beginning at 9 a.m. at North Avenue Beach followed by the air show from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days. You can't miss if you snag a spot along the lakefront from Fullerton to Oak Street, but get as close to North Avenue Beach as possible for the best view of the Shell Extreme WaterShow, a pro freestyle tour featuring some of the planet's finest wave riders besting each other for kudos like the "coolest move" and the "best wipeout." The Munson Ski & Inboard Water Sports Ski Show Team offers water ski and wakeboard maneuvers and formations on the waters of Lake Michigan.
The U.S. Navy Blue Angels, in their F/A 18 Hornets, return with their unmistakable diamond formation and precision flying. No newbies, the team has showcased its amazing aerobatic choreography and luminous grace under pressure since 1946. The U.S. Army Parachute Team Golden Knights co-star by leaping from aircraft 12,500 feet above Earth's surface, speeding toward North Avenue Beach at around 120 mph and landing with grins on their faces. You can't learn this stuff at the Learning Annex, folks.
Other returning favorites include the unearthly F-22 Raptor aircraft, Lima Lima Flight Team, Aeroshell Aerobatic Team, the Firebirds and audience favorite Sean Tucker and Team Oracle (you think that flying backwards at speeds up to 100 mph might be the reason why?).
Among first-time Chicago Air & Water Show performers is the U.S. Navy Parachute Team, a 15-man squad of U.S. Navy SEALs and SWCC commandos freefalling from 12,500 feet and creating complex formations such as sideplanes, diamonds and T formations.
As the 50th Chicago Air & Water Show pays tribute to the men and women who have served our country, two special organizations - the Wounded Warrior Project and the USO of Illinois - will be recognized for enhancing the lives of service members.
The show has come a long way since its inception in 1959 when it featured a Coast Guard Air Sea Rescue demonstration, water skiers and a water ballet, a handful of games and a diving competition. Today, it boldly goes to where no man or woman has gone before - without a Dramamine drip.
2008 Chicago Air & Water Show
When: 3 to 9:30 p.m. Friday; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Where: Along and above the lakefront at North Avenue Beach
Cost: free
For more information: (312) 744-3315 or www.cityofchicago.org
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