WingsOfun.com BLOG #49: June 16, 2014
WELCOME PILOTS
It's been a busy week traveling around North Carolina and Virginia. The great news is that I had the opportunity to meet with some nice people and pilots. Through my work with the state we have been preparing for our youth aviation education camps and I'm very proud to be associated with the Discovery Place Museum (DPM) in Charlotte, N.C. Long time pilot, John Austin (DPM), has been presenting science programs with an aviation flair to enthusiastic audiences from across the region. Speaking of aviation youth camps, please let me know if your group is sponsoring a camp in North Carolina and I will advertise the program.
This week's article is a book review of Buccaneer by journalist, author, pilot and friend MayCay Beeler. It was great to be able to attend her book signing at a major book store in Greensboro, N.C. In her own bubbly, enthusiastic style she discussed the book about pilot/drug runner Jack Carlton Reed. You won't want to miss reading this book!
~TC Freeman
“Keeping the fun in high performance aviation training.”
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SPECIAL BOOK REVIEW OF “BUCCANEER” BY JACK CARLTON REED
AND MAYCAY BEELER
AND MAYCAY BEELER
By TC FREEMAN
“MayCay (Beeler) has a book signing tonight,” was the comment of a co-worker as I filled up my Nalgene water bottle from office water cooler. My response was, “That's awesome, I remember her saying she was working on a book a few year ago, I am so happy it's finished!”
For those of you that don't know, because everyone knows MayCay, she has been a long time staple in the Triad area (Greensboro, High Point and Winston-Salem, North Carolina) media, along with being a veteran pilot and flight instructor. I remember her on the local segment of the television show, “PM Magazine,” with co-host Rod Davis in the 1980s. Fast forward to the book signing of Buccaneer, the life story of the Bahamas-based drug smuggler pilot Jack Carlton Reed.* While I was hooked solely on the fact that this book stood for a literary accomplishment of someone I know, it also has the exciting themes of adventure, romance and the examination of how a person that came from a very normal childhood became involved in the dealings of the Columbian drug trade. While these elements alone are enough to spark anyone's interest, I was pleasantly surprised with many of the deeper sub-theme's such as the purpose of life, love, faith and inner-strength.
“Buccaneer,” Strategic Media Books
Some of you might be thinking, “of course you are going to give your friend a glowing book review!” In my own defense, I have two criteria for deeming a book as a personal favorite. One, usually reserved for John Grisham novels, is that I neglect all of my usual responsibilities in order to get more “face time” with said book. Two, “the chip test,” that I literally take the book everywhere to steal a moment or two reading, including my favorite Mexican restaurant. If it's good the book will have the remnants of salsa and tiny chip fragments between its covers. My book is available for inspection anytime to prove my positive endorsement of the book Buccaneer.
I definitely get a kick out of the tactics described, from a pilots point of view, that were necessary to fly undetected from secluded airports in the Bahamas, Columbia and the United States. If memory serves me correctly he described it as being a “paranoid bush pilot.” I've always wondered, how does a pilot would have the nerve to do illegal flying? As with any pilot decision making, it's more calculated than one might think. On a deeper level, it is interesting to see how Reed, coming from a good wholesome upbringing, wound up in a life as a drug runner. Our experience with movies and television taint our image of such characters as rotten to the core. However, the truth is that very subtle life events, circumstances and choices over time culminate into a life far from its origin. I respect that he admits to his wrongs and stands by them while refusing to “sell-out” others for a reduced sentence.
The book tends to follow a three-act formula, the early years, drug running and the trial plus incarceration. At the height of Reed’s drug running exploits, he lived the good life with his girlfriend Sheldon and treasured pet dog Norman in Norman's Cay, Bahamas. His taboo relationship with Sheldon creates liabilities to the operation plus animosity between Reed and her family. Norman's Cay island has a 3,000 foot runway that was intentionally picked as the hub of operations between Columbia and the United States. While security was prevalent and periodic issues withstanding, the island life was overall relaxing, fun and peaceful; which was contrary to sensationalized media descriptions.
My favorite surprise of the book comes after his active drug flying when he and Sheldon move to Panama. In this section of the book he comes to terms with his past and discusses how to living life void of the expectations of society, not in a counter-culture way, but out of genuine personal growth. When it comes to money he says, “Ideally, money is a blessing to facilitate establishing a self-reliant lifestyle, so that you never have to depend on money again. That is the ultimate challenge and ambition.” For a short while he was able to create his utopia with girlfriend Sheldon until disaster struck their secluded Panamanian dream home.
The third act of the book covers Reed's fight for freedom as close friends testified against him in an effort to gain a lighter sentence. Amazingly, he forgives those who tearfully testified under the strong-arm tactics of the government during a time of “zero tolerance.” As a model prisoner he tries to remain hopeful, but it's apparent that the years of fight are slowly chipping away at his resolve and connection to the outside world.
While serving time in prison, Reed was frequently approached by journalists and authors wanting to tell his story. MayCay was one of many making such a request and was denied along with all of the others. Something told her to keep the lines of communication open and a letter-writing friendship blossomed between the two on the topic of flying. Over the course of many years Reed ultimately asked MayCay to be his biographer. Using her journalistic experience she collected his memories, asked questions and verified sources to complete the story of “adventurer, drug smuggler and pilot extraordinaire,” Jack Reed. You don't want to miss the unique twist of events that happen in the final chapter of this man's life.
*Buy “Buccaneer” at:
About the author:
TC Freeman has been flying since he was a teenager and is now an aviation speaker and author. Being employed as an Aviation Safety Specialist for state government, he has a passion for spreading the thrill of flying just for the fun of it via the website, www.WingsOfun.com.
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~TC FREEMAN
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