Blue Angels fans have figured out the Thursday secret as thousands jam beach

While the Friday and Saturday shows of Red, White and Blues Week are known to be tourism magnets for aviation fans from all over the country seeking a glimpse of the beloved Blue Angels − Thursday seems to be the day mainly for the locals, or those lucky enough to know a local who let them in on the secret.

It’s a day of roomier beaches, easier parking and shorter restaurant wait times all with the same roar and rumble of the Blue Angels taking to the skies at 2 p.m. But it may be less of a secret now than it was back in the day, considering the main Casino Beach parking lot was already full by 10 a.m.

As a slow and steady excitement built throughout the beach − measured by the increasing number of Blue Angel ball caps and American flag-inspired bikinis strutting along the sand to the sound of “Sweet Home Alabama” blasting in the background − it’s only a sample of what’s to come. Even bigger shows are still in store for the dress rehearsal on Friday and official Pensacola Beach Air Show on Saturday, which means a lot more neighbors moving into the colorful cabana metropolis that has already formed on the sand.

But even in the budding excitement, there were still slices of unexpected solitude left to claim.

Texas resident Luke Busha spent his afternoon simply, hooking shrimp on his fishing line along the pier, watching his children shriek with excitement over schools of fish passing by, easily visible in the clear Gulf water. Kyle Sorensen snacked on packed picnic lunches with his wife and daughters as the tide rolled in on the water line, arriving at the beach only two and a half hours until showtime to secure one of the best seats in the house. Couples sat curbside sloshing down bushwhackers out of Styrofoam cups from The Dock beach bar’s grown-up slushie machines. Melissa Lewkowicz, from Connecticut, moseyed into the beach by boat, visiting with friends and her boyfriend’s brother, who lives in Gulf Breeze.

“We actually came last year for the Fourth of July and we saw (the Blue Angels) then. I thought it was amazing, I loved it, it was great,” she said. “We actually brought our other friends, who are also from (Connecticut,) because we said that ‘you have to come down and see the show.’”

This time they decided to try the Thursday show to dodge some of the crowds.

“That’s why I think it’s great that his brother lives here, and he was able to tell us,” she said. “I was like, ‘Oh, we gotta go the day the show is.’ Not a good idea. It’s mobbed.”

While Sorensen is new to Pensacola and seeing the Blues fly has been on his to-do list, he is most looking forward to seeing the reaction of his daughters.

“My oldest daughter is very interested in planes,” he said. “I don’t know if they’ve seen anything like that up close.”

“We have a cooler full of food, some drinks and I guess the bare minimum to survive,” Sorensen joked. “It’s a long walk from the parking lot.”

Pensacola native Crystal Lane knows how the leisurely Thursday practices go with at least 50 Blue Angel performances under her belt. A Fat Albert-super fan and repeat victim of surprise to the Angels’ famed Sneak Pass maneuver − she still knows just when to arrive to get all the action. Sometimes, under an hour before showtime.

“I have been known to, on a Saturday, hop in the car around 1:15 p.m. You can drive straight on the beach because everybody’s already here. Get in the car, watch them fly, get in the car, and leave and don’t get caught up in the traffic,” Lane admitted. “So, I’ve done that on Saturday a few times.”

Blue Angel key influence riders

Meanwhile, while time moved slow on the high-80-degree hot summer day on the beach waiting for the Blues to fly, adrenaline pumped through the veins of those taking flights of their own.

For Austin Courson − J.M. Tate High School agricultural education teacher, FFA advisor and incoming assistant principal − Thursday was the day he took to the sky with an actual Blue Angel.

Courson was selected as a “key influence rider” due to his commitment to his students in agricultural courses, such as those focused on unmanned aircraft in agriculture, and in FFA. Under Courson’s leadership, Tate’s FFA chapter performed in the top 160 chapters out of 9,500 nationwide.

“Once you get the jumpsuit on and you’re prepared and walking out there to the jet – your nerves start building,” Courson said. “Once I was climbed in the jet, and I was strapped in at that point, it was a full commitment, so there was no backing out. I think anything new; you get that little bit of butterflies in your stomach because you don’t know what’s going to come, but you embrace that and do your best.”

Lt. Connor O’Donnell took him along for the full Blue Angel experience, then welcomed him back to reality when O’Donnell saw the consciousness filter back into his face after experiencing such extreme speeds.

“He turned the aircraft straight up for the sky, and we went straight up. So just like that, the adrenaline starts flowing. Your stomach sinks down. You’re using those practices that they were talking about, breathing and getting blood flowing and all of a sudden, he turned, we were inverted, and we were headed out over the Gulf of Mexico,” Courson said. “He took me through some of the maneuvers that they do during the regular show, the rolls. He did maximum speed, and then he did the minimum circle, and we were pulling like seven and a half G’s.”

While Courson “geeked out” over the mechanics of the jet alone, the ride was unforgettable and gave him a handful of takeaways to give back to his students at Tate.

“It really brings the idea of a culture of excellence that you’re always going to strive to be your best,” he said. “So, I think that’s one of those messages that I’m going to take back to my students, is every single day, we should have that culture of excellence, because we can always be better than we were yesterday and tomorrow, we should be better than we are today. That’s one thing they shared with me, is every single show throughout the year, their performance should improve.”

For Aaron Fitzgerald, a Red Bull Air Force helicopter aerobatics pilot, flights at extreme heights have become the norm since he was hired onto The Flying Bulls in 2017. Only during his rides, people jump out of them.

Fitzgerald and his team will be opening and closing out the civilian acts during Friday and Saturday’s shows on Pensacola Beach, where he will have four skydivers exit his helicopter before performing an array of maneuvers of his own. On Thursday he spent the day giving VIP flights leading up to the show.

“I love it because I’ve been flying helicopters for a long time, 30 years now, for aviation enthusiasts all over the country,” Fitzgerald said. “I really love sharing what we do with the nation and inspiring the next generation.”

For more events like Fitzgerald’s, view this weekend’s full air show schedule here.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Pensacola Beach Air Show on Thursday: Here's what you missed