Water show turns up the heat

Standing 80-feet in the air, Bobby Snaglewski smiles at a crowd while doing a hand stand, right before he plunges into a tank of water only 9 1/2 feet deep.

This trick is done three times a day at the Permian Basin Fair and Exposition.

This six-year show diver said he knows all about the dangers of his job.

“I cracked six teeth — I just landed short,” Snaglewski said while imitating a fist punch to his face, to demonstrate the way it feels to hit the water chin first.

“There’s many dangers, you know everything is moving so fast — our pool is only 9 1/2 feet on a good day,” Snaglewski said, “Its very dangerous for foot, ankle injuries and knee injuries.”

Snaglewski said he hasn’t seen any head injuries and hopes it stays that way.

Snaglewski found himself in the high diving business after his diving coach viewed the show in Canada.

After Snaglewski’s coach sold him on the idea of being a show diver, he moved to Boise, Idaho, where he trained for two months.

The man who trained Snaglewski, Antonio Martinez, was present at Sunday’s show.

Snaglewski called him his father on the road.

The family theme rings true even in the crowd.

“(The show) its good family fun-check it out,” Snaglewski said.

The high dive show is going on all week at the fair and can be seen three times a day.

What makes this week’s performance extra special is that it is a brand new show.

“We do a prisoners against cops routine with an actual diving competition, a lot of crowd participation and it finishes off with an 80-foot high dive to determine the winner,” he said.

The last show of the evening also offers something you won’t see at the earlier shows.

“The last show every night, we will set one of our guards or prisoners on fire, depending on the outcome of the story,” Snaglewski said.

Andy Jones, a second year show diver from Salt Lake City, Utah, encourages people to come out and see the performance.

“It’s just crazy stuff - with people on fire,” he said.