Senior hopes to pump up crowd as Flying C
So what exactly is a Flying C?
Warren Cleary might have the answer.
The Georgia senior wants to skydive into Kelly/Shorts Stadium during halftime of CMU home games.
While he’s falling, he would form his body into the shape of a “C” to bring CMU’s Flying C logo to life.
The outdoor recreation major has more than 200 skydives under his belt and does light maintenance and helps train beginners for Central Michigan Skydivers Inc., 5453 E. Airport Road.
“If our (logo) is going to be a Flying C, let’s see a Flying C,” Cleary said.
After landing on the field during halftime, Cleary said he would run through the crowd in his jumpsuit while waving a flag. He said he also would use a water balloon gun to shoot T-shirts at the spectators and possibly hold a raffle.
Cleary is welcoming suggestions and help through his 500-student-strong Facebook group, Flying C.
For his services, Cleary is asking the university for as much as $10,000.
“I would buy a maroon and gold parachute, maroon and gold jumpsuit, jump insurance and fuel, pay a pilot and rent a plane and still have money left over for next season,” he said.
Cleary said he first started thinking about skydiving to pump up the crowd at Kelly/Shorts when he was a freshman, but he was not an experienced-enough skydiver to seriously consider asking the university until this year.
Nick Williams, associate athletic director for External Affairs, said CMU had a skydiver drop in during the first night game at Rose Arena in the mid-1990s.
“We’re always looking for something exciting to add to the game from a fan and spectator point of view,” he said. “The novelty of it would be fun.”
Williams said he has spoken with Cleary and no decision has been made yet, but the university would need to look into possible liabilities and work out the timing so as not to cause any delays for CMU’s televised football games.
Desmond Sharkey, owner of Central Michigan Skydivers, said there are a lot of elements involved in skydiving into the stadium.
“Weather conditions play a factor. If it’s an average day, (the jump) shouldn’t be a problem,” said Sharkey, who has made more than 6,000 jumps in his lifetime.
He said a football field is not a small target for a competent and experienced skydiver such as Cleary.
“I believe that Cleary will draw additional people to come see games and it will also help pump up the fans if they see something new and different from what they’re used to,” said Ryan T. Anderson, grounds team captain and Kalamazoo senior, in an e-mail to Central Michigan Life.
Anderson would be in charge of monitoring the conditions on the ground and relay them to Cleary.
“This is something that’s done at colleges quite frequently and it could be done here,” Cleary said.
