West Of Takes Flight

With the “Where Is West Of” section located in the front of the paper, West Of has shown up in dozens of countries and been to every continent. Yes, even Antarctica! People have taken the paper to several Major League Baseball fields, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Statue of Liberty, the Grand Ole Opry, the Eiffel Tower, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Great Wall of China, the Great Pyramid of Giza, and literally hundreds of places in between. We’ve had pictures of soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. West Of has been underwater and on top of mountains. We even got one of a fireman in the middle of a fire (not sure if West Of survived that one).
Every week a new picture is run in the paper and we’ve been doing this for more than 10 years now, so that’s at least 500 photos at exotic and some not-so-exotic locales. Some of my personal favorites are the more obscure places that show up in “Where Is West Of” — the Golden Flake Potato Chip factory in Garden City, Ga. or the UFO Welcome Center in Bowman, SC, for example. Last year, the father and son team of Gary and Craig Crossley took West Of on a cross-country trip and took pictures along the way, covering roughly 3,200 miles over seven days, passing through 13 states. All the while West Of was with them, for every National Park and quirky roadside attraction.
While we truly enjoy receiving every single photo we get of readers with the paper, this week’s “Where Is West Of” is truly unique and maybe the coolest one I’ve ever had pop up in my email inbox. Jonathan Dunagan, who lives off of Bees Ferry Road in West Ashley took West Of on an airplane and then at about 14,000 feet above Monroe, Ga, he jumped out of the plane while his friend snapped what is probably greatest “Where Is West Of” picture ever. There is also a video of the breathtaking dive.
Asked what would possess him to take West Of on a skydiving trip, Dunagan simply says, “I wanted the free taco.” Taco Spot in West Ashley offers readers a free taco if they’re “Where Is West Of” photo runs in the paper. OK, that’s a pretty good motivation. Their tacos are delicious. But the more important question is, what would possess someone to jump out of  a perfectly good airplane?
Dunagan, who just moved to West Ashley in February and is now learning to kite surf, claims he’s really not an adrenaline junkie. “What draws me to (skydiving) the most is the peace and freedom that comes along with each jump.” He’s made more than 500 solo jumps since he started just two years ago. And while I’m sure each jump is memorable, it is this last one that the folks at West Of will always remember. Thanks Jonathan, for taking us along for the dive!