Le Mars mayor takes a flying leap

The Mayor of LeMars jumped out of an airplane — on purpose — last night to highlight an upcoming event in his northwest Iowa city. Mayor Virgil Van Beek strapped on a parachute and jumped to promote the upcoming “Fly Iowa” airshow in LeMars on July 6th and 7th.Van Beek says it was a beautiful night, he saw the curvature of the Earth, and he says the experience was “awesome.” Van Beek’s plane went up 10-thousand feet, and then dropped down so his “free-fall” was six thousand feet.Organizers expect up to eight thousand people at this year’s “Fly Iowa” event which will feature professional aerobatics, demonstrations and displays.