to perform trapeze in circuses and teach flying. Cirque du Soleil juggler Steven Ragatz was one of Bernadette’s first flyers, and flyer Elizabeth Feldman has formed her own group, Flight Club. “The story is more than just mine. All of these people who’ve been doing it for these many years also have a story,” Bernadette says.
B
ernadette calls her backyard trapeze the best in the world. A soft net a flyer can fall into while practicing tricks surrounds the swinging and catching bars. The equipment is taken down and inspected at least once a year to maintain safety standards. Once the temperature falls below 55 degrees, the net is taken down and flyers move inside the Twin Lakes Recreation Center in Bloomington to practice aerial silk, which also involves climbing and hanging to perform tricks. Unlike riding a bike, flyers must continue to practice to perfect their tricks and timing. Bernadette doesn’t see herself giving up flying “until her hands fall off.” And though she went through a difficult period, Bernadette says she’s living her happily-ever-after high above the ground. “I don’t think there’s anybody who would say their life was not enriched by having flown on the trapeze,” Bernadette says.
“I think everybody ought to have something that thrills them and will go on thrilling them until they die of old age. It keeps you alive, it keeps you vigorous. Some people get old and depressed, and I’m just old.” – Bernadette Pace
hops Unique S aily Open D Door & The Blue Fiddle The Pig &
Gasthof Amish Restaurant & Bakery G
True Homemade Buffet- 7 Days A Week- Groups Welcome Tr Meeting & Banquet Facilities- up to 300 people
2013 E
March 30 ventsEaster Egg Hunt June 8 Sept. 21 Qu Spring Festival ilt Auction & Fall Fest Nov. 1 & 2 ival Holiday Ba zaar
Gasthof G asth Village Inn- 82 room hotel,complimentary breakfast, group grou rates and extended stay discounts,outdoor pool,FreeWIFI
Flea Market Open April-October 9am-3pm Tues., Wed. and Saturdays
812-486-2600 • www.gasthofamishvillage.com OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK
HT-6181314
6659 E Gasthof Village Rd., Montgomery, IN 15