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In Focus: Skydive Rick’s
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Michael Notar and his tandem partner/skydiving instructor, Paul Washak, parachute to the ground.
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While still on the ground, skydiving instructor Paul Washak goes over the procedure one last time with Michael Notar before they head into the plane.
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From left, Paul Washak, Michael Notar, Lenny Botak and Benjamin Kellogg.
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Lenny Botak, left, of Poland and Michael Notar, center, of Boardman work on arching their backs to prepare for their tandem jump with skydiving instructor Benjamin Kellogg, right, at Skydive Rick’s in Petersburg.
By Rami Daud
Staff photographer
The Mahoning Valley looks a lot different from 10,500 feet in the air.
“It doesn’t look real, it looks like a model,” said Lenny Botak of Poland — back on the ground.
His friend, Michael Notar, of Boardman, agreed and added, “I wasn’t nervous until the door opened, but as soon as that chute opened up, it was peaceful.”
Botak and Notar had just finished their first tandem sky dive.
With adrenaline still working its way through them, they were eagerly accepting information on training to sky dive on their own. Botak had not only accomplished his first dive, but also had ridden in a plane for the first time. He has yet to land in one.
In Petersburg, surrounded by green pastures, tucked away from main roads and in an atmosphere thick with close friendships and family, is Skydive Rick’s. Open year round, the certified, licensed instructors have more than 40,000 combined sky dives. Botak and Notar had discussed the idea of sky diving with many friends, but when it came down to it, they were the only two of their group who were willing to give it a try.
Arriving at Skydive Rick’s around 5 p.m. Thursday, the two were in the air by 6 and watching video of their adventure by 7.
The hour before their jump was filled with training, the basic do’s and don’ts of skydiving. Mostly procedure: When and which order to stick your feet out of the plane, how to recover from free fall by arching your back, when to pull the chord and how to land.
Jumping tandem has much less risk associated with it than doing it alone.
Regardless, it helps to have experienced instructors strapped to your back throughout the process.
As Botak and Notar suited up and headed out to the Cessna 206 airplane, their instructors, Benjamin Kellogg and Paul Washak, repeatedly went over the procedures — sharing stories and their excitement along the way.
Kellogg has been sky diving for seven years and has more than 1,300 jumps under his belt. Waschak has been doing it for 19 years — more than 2,600 times.
You could tell that they loved it. After landing, the two began preparing for their next jump, but no students were lined up — it was for them.
How could you blame them, as the owner of Skydive Rick’s, Rick Kuhns, said to Botak and Notar soon after they landed. “Now you know why birds sing.”