La Crosse Skyrockers Mix, Norris preview July 4, plus how firework shows have changed over 35 years

The La Crosse Skyrockers’ Sonya Mix and Bennett Norris in the WIZM studio Tuesday for La Crosse Talk ahead of the big July 4 show at Riverfest on Friday.

La Crosse Talk airs weekdays at 6-8 a.m. Listen on the WIZM app, online here, or on 92.3 FM / 1410 AM / 106.7 FM (north of Onalaska). Find all the podcasts here or subscribe to La Crosse Talk wherever you get your podcasts.

Mix has been playing with fireworks for 35 years, while Norris has been with the Skyrockers for 12, and we discuss how this stuff has changed so much over that time.

We also discuss what it takes to put on a fireworks show, and maybe provide a spoiler or two for the Fourth. The Skyrockers will set up all day Friday in Pettibone Park and the show begins at 9:40 a.m. Mix did say the show will be catered to those people at Riverfest.

Other topics we discussed included whether they like doing the Fourth of July show from Pettibone or the New Year’s Eve show from Grandad Bluff, the evolution of fireworks — last year they created a firework flag — and how drone shows are becoming more popular.