Almost Pink Mist

By Keith Maystorovich
 

It was the summer of '78, a week or so after the BIG 4TH up Mosquito Creek. A great time to be working on CGG 08. Our crew had moved from Mosquito Creek, where we had been living for about a month or so over to Victor, Id. & set up camp near Pine creek pass. Bobby Bondage (Bolten) R>I>P> had taken a sabbatical of sorts, leaving the Disciplines (powder crew) to forge ahead without him. It was myself, Lex, Stanley Promak, and a newt. I was carrying the radio and was taping the big red 5lb sticks we used at the time to the P cord. (remember the head aches them things gave you on a hot day?) Dave Kornya was in the recorder (RIP), and as usual we were "Running for Dollars". We had just gotten a new rack of 16 shots we'd been waiting for, so the shooters weren't far behind. Dave had a recorder move coming up and called me to ask if it was alright to shoot the shot behind the one I was working on. He needed that last shot to move. I was nearing the end of the shot I was on and said sure. I had one 5lb stick in my hand, but walked a few feet away from the p cord, and covered my ears, the big red sausage right next to my head. The next thing i knew I was laying on the ground. Two shots had gone off at once! I called Dave on the radio to inform him of this. (we were doing 50lb per station at the time) Dave's reply was, "You mean a 100lbs went off at once?" To which I replied, "No, only 95lbs, I still have 5lbs in my hand!" Dave promptly stepped out of the recorder and took a shit!!!! Tom Butler, our stickman extrordinar, and I went to look how far apart the ends of the shots had been from each other. They had been at least 15ft apart!!!! I've been high on life ever since.