George Harding, EG '85, once shook hands with a pyrotechnics wizard who had only a thumb and 1-1/2 fingers remaining on his left hand. It was a dramatic reminder of the hazards of the business of lighting fireworks.

"He told me, 'Be careful,'" remembers Harding. "He'd been setting off fireworks all his life. But, as he said, 'I made a mistake. I got cocky and thought I could do anything.'"

Harding, a computer systems consultant who has been staging fireworks shows in his spare time since 1989, didn't need much convincing to take safety seriously. Working within arm's length of exploding gunpowder, he insists on stringent safety standards.

"Some people think I'm overbearing about safety," says Harding, who majored in electrical engineering, "but I've had zero injuries. The company I work for puts a strong emphasis on safety, both for the audience's and the operators' sakes."

Working alongside Harding in the pit and equally cognizant of the risks is another Delaware grad, Craig Prettyman, AS '82, who majored in computer science and now works full time at UD's Information Technologies. The two got to know each other when they worked together at UD, and Prettyman joined Harding's crew five years ago. Another full-time UD employee and computer systems specialist, Rich Duggan, also helps shoot.

Watching things explode has always
been a passion for these computer experts. All three used to blow things up as kids--"firecrackers in tin cans, models we'd built and gotten tired of," chuckles Prettyman. "We fiddled with chemistry sets--sets you couldn't buy now if you tried--to make
stink bombs and crude gunpowder."

Harding says he always wanted to be a "shooter" but never knew if he'd have the opportunity.

"My parents taught me the love of fireworks," he says. "Now, they come to watch our shows and they say, 'Yep, that's my son setting off the fireworks.' That's one of the reasons we do mostly local shows."

Harding contracts with Fireworks by Girone, of Vineland, N.J., to stage pyrotechnic displays in the Delmarva area. His gigs include local country clubs, Dover's July 4 celebration and the Blue-Gold All-Star football game held each June at UD. This fall, the company has agreed to present fireworks at the first night football game of the season. The Sept. 9 game against the Citadel also will feature a post game performance by UD's Marching Band. Having done some 70 shows in the past 10 years, Harding and Prettyman now have enough business to satisfy their urge to detonate.

"We get enough repeat shows that we don't have to go out looking," says Harding. "When I first started, I would do shows wherever I could. I don't actively pursue them any more. But, one year I didn't do a show from September till June, and by then, I was itching to light a fuse."

Typically, a 25-minute show costs the client about $8,500, says Harding. The cost varies according to the length and the pace the sponsor wants. Slower-paced shows allow more time to appreciate the display; a faster pace provides more excitement–and it costs more.

"The biggest show I've ever done was in Puerto Rico about six years ago," Harding recalls. "It was huge. It took 20 people three days to set up and cost the sponsor about $200,000."

The spectrum of colors and effects that modern fireworks can produce is impressive. Originally invented at least 1,000 years ago by the Chinese, fireworks now come in many shapes and sizes, ranging from the size of a lima bean to a missile 24 inches in diameter. Besides the two main categories of fireworks--chrysanthemums and peonies--there is an array of explosives that includes double ring shells, palm trees, torbilions or spinners, fish and whistles, glitters, tails, willows and go-getters.

"Oriental fireworks are packed in spherical shells, and Italian ones come in canisters," says Harding. "We usually use Oriental-type shells, which produce symmetrical explosions, but it depends on what the customer wants."

Packed inside a shell, explains Prettyman, is a core of gunpowder, explosive pellets equipped with time fuses and a main fuse. Different mixtures of chemicals produce different colors and types of explosion, including the sparks, rockets, noisemakers and splitting stars that make a crowd gasp with delight. The whole unit is compressed and wound tightly with paper, and a tail of gunpowder-dusted fuse is left hanging outside.

"A 10-inch shell can shoot up 900 feet high and explode to a diameter of 650 feet," says Prettyman.

When working with powerful explosives, planning and division of labor are key. Harding begins by selecting the types and sizes of fireworks his crew will use. The morning of the show, he and his crew pick them up at the Girone warehouse and drive them to the show site.

The crew's average set-up time is five hours, although total time from set-up to clean-up can run as long as 13 hours. Guns made of high-density plastic tubes are mounted in rows on wooden racks in a zig-zag or rip-rap arrangement, like the Civil War-type fences boys build for mock battles. Shells are then loaded into the guns. The guns are not normally reloaded during the show, but may be re-used later.

"Plastic is a phenomenal material for the guns because it doesn't shatter," says Harding. "It stretches and wrinkles and gets deformed, but doesn't break apart like metal can."

"The traditional method of lighting fireworks is to load and reload metal guns buried in the ground," explains Prettyman. "It's cheaper to do, but it's much more dangerous because when you reload, you're putting gunpowder in a burning hot gun with sparks all over the place. The plastic guns are much safer. One time, I was standing near a gun when a shell went off accidentally inside it. The gun was demolished but it didn't shatter, and I wasn't even touched."

"You can also light the fuses electrically," says Harding, "but it's really boring. I can't get my crew to do it. You just sit there and push one button after another. And, it's tough to set up because you have to get all the wires just right."

Setting off the fireworks is a masterpiece of organization. The shooter lights the fuse with a flare, then turns and walks away as it erupts into flame. Harding normally allocates one person to fire each size of shell.

"That way everybody is in their own space, and nobody's running around," he says. "Everybody has their own job to do, and we're constantly checking with each other as we light the fuses."

After a day's back-breaking work lugging heavy guns, racks and shells, the actual firing of the guns is a welcome release. The heat of the explosions, the deafening booms and the smell of smoke are all part of the experience.

"The smell of burning gunpowder is the greatest smell on Earth," Harding says. "There's a saying that 'He who hath smelt the smoke is ne'er again free.'"

"Being so close to the guns, the noise is incredible," Prettyman adds. "It's like cannons going off in your ears. The salutes– the concussion shells that usually begin a show, the ones that just make a big boom and a spray of white sparks--they make the sound you can feel through your chest."

And, the heat can be intense. "It was 100 degrees at the show we did on July 4," Prettyman recalls. "Sparks rain down all over you, but you wear a hat to keep them out of your hair. All our shirts have burn holes in them. But, you don't usually feel the sparks on your clothing--unless they're decent-sized pieces--because you're all sweaty."

One of the biggest worries in staging a fireworks display is the weather. Firing salutes before a show, besides having the effect of teasing the crowd, helps to check wind speed and direction. A little breeze is ideal to blow away the smoke created by the explosions, but the show must be postponed if there is too much wind. Weather conditions can sometimes make pyrotechnic operators wonder why they're in the business.

"This year, one of our July 4 shows was rained out," recalls Prettyman. "It poured down rain for hours, and we were out there in a thunderstorm in a big field, under a tree, trying to keep the shells dry. We were basically doing everything they say you shouldn't do when there's thunder and lightning. I was running around with a staple gun trying to keep the plastic cover down because the wind kept blowing it off. Then, the show was called off because it was too late."

"They rescheduled it for Labor Day weekend," adds Harding. "Then, it was canceled because of the drought!"

Eclipsing the disappointments are the memories of outstanding shows.

"One time I did a gig in the Poconos when it was snowing," Harding remembers. "It started out with a column of skiers skiing down the mountain holding flares. It was the most beautiful show. But, one of my favorites was a show I did at a wedding. It was stunning. Fireworks should be required by law at every wedding."

The sights and sounds of the brilliant plumes exploding in the heavens never fail to bring back the sense of power and awe that keep the crew coming back for more.

"It's a thrill; it's exciting," says Prettyman. "Everyone likes fireworks. They're pretty; the audience appreciates them. I guess blowing stuff up is a guy thing. It's loud, it's noisy, it's sexy."

"Out there shooting fireworks, it's a wonderful place to be," agrees Harding.

"We do it for the love of it," Prettyman continues. "We certainly don't do it for the money. And, it's butt-busting work."

"Yeah, it's miserable work," Harding says. "But, you get 25 minutes of absolute glory."