Skydive New England regular takes home gold at national championships
Staff reports 1:50 p.m.
DOVER - A local man who regularly skydives from Skydive New England in Lebanon, Maine, won a gold medal last week at the 2017 U.S. Parachute Association National Skydiving Championships at Skydive Perris in Southern California. Paul Neely of Dover and his team took gold in the advanced eight-way formation skydiving event.
The National Championships drew more than 500 skydivers from across the country vying for medals in five different skydiving disciplines. In formation skydiving, eight-person teams exit the airplane more than two miles above the ground and race against the clock to form prescribed geometric formations in freefall before opening their parachutes. A videographer jumps with the team to capture the maneuvers for the judges on the ground. Neely, 53, is a pilot for UPS and has completed more than 1,400 skydives.
|