In 1999 after Doing 2 of the largest shows I had ever put on which were both illegal and in a very small backyard, I was starting to get concerned about getting busted. I started to look into any kind of training I could get into and found out about an organization known as Pyrotechnics Guild International (PGI).This was an organization filled with lunatics just like me. Each year they hold a weeklong convention where you can make and or blow up as many fireworks as you wanted, truly a pyros' paradise. In addition, they also provide shooter training classes and certification.
So in August 1999, I was off to Fargo North Dakota for the Stargate convention on my way to becoming a fireworks display professional. What a time I had. I had made my own makeshift fireworks before but here I learned to make actual aerial shells and aerial rockets. I even learned how to make Coffee Creamer Lampares which incidentally are one of the most incredible effects I have ever seen. I never took cream in my coffee since then let me tell ya.
Over the next 5 nights I worked on 7 different crews setting up shows that would be put on that evening. Each night there were 3 or 4 different shows put on by a few different crews. I attended classes regarding ATF regulations, display operations rules and safety procedures, electrical firing systems, and shell building. After it was all over I took a test and got my PGI display operators certification.
Once I returned to Michigan I did do a few small shows for fair openings through contacts I met at PGI. But now I was off to Austin Texas...
 Next Page |
 |