For the 11th year, Skydive Chicago in Ottawa, Illinois, delivered Summerfest—its annual midsummer celebration of all things skydiving—July 28 through August 5. Jumpers from all over the world gathered for a week of blue skies, nightly entertainment and what returning attendees describe as “the ultimate sky family reunion.”

Skydivers are aviators. Our bodies are low-performance aircraft. Under canopy we are slightly higher-performance aircraft. We share airspace with aviators of all kinds. So it makes sense that skydivers were well represented at AirVenture 2018 in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. The airshow, produced by the Experimental Aircraft Association and billed as “the world’s largest and most significant annual aviation event,” has taken place for more than 60 years. Occurring annually during the last full week in July, the show attracts more than half a million spectators each year.

85 competitors from 27 nations test their skills at the Federation Aeronautique Internationale 7th Canopy Piloting World Championships and 1st Freestyle Canopy Piloting World Championships.

Wingsuit flying is complicated and requires a significant amount of training, education, practice and dedication. It isn’t something you can just do a little here and there and still do it well. It deserves respect and your full attention. Your life is on the line, along with the lives of others. A wingsuit skydive presents many opportunities to make fatal errors. And don’t kid yourself about the risks to others: If you mess up in this sport, you can kill someone. It has happened before.