Wheeee... Ote Fagerstrom, 79, Valley City, right, and her sister, Ginny Iverson, 81, Fargo, are lifted up into the air as they go parasailing. Later, their sister, Ardelle Larson, 83, Palm Coast, Fla., also went up. The picture (top at right) shows the sisters high up in the air, attached  to this smiling parachute. The view was great  looking at the beautiful blue sky, blue water and sailboats in Florida.  (Submitted photo)

By Jean Schlegel
Valley City Times-Record

Who says three sisters, all “older ladies,” and widows, can’t do something extraordinary from their regular routine?
A Valley City woman, Ote Fagerstom, will tell you they can.
Fagerstrom, 79, and her two sisters, Ginny Iverson, 81,  Fargo, and Ardell Larson, 83, Palm Coast, Fla.,  went on a five-day cruise in February. But, that’s not the extraordinary. They all went parasailing in Key West.
Fagerstrom says if they can do it, anyone can, and she highly recommends it.
Going on a cruise is old hat to Fagerstrom. She and her husband, James, did that before he died three years ago. But parasailing, well, that’s something new. She had suggested to her husband years ago that they do that, but he nixed it, and she says, “That’s when I listened to him.”
While on their cruise, Fagerstrom and her sisters decided they would indeed go for the parasailing. Were they scared? “Not really,” she said. And, from the looks of the smiles on their faces on the pictures Fagerstrom came back with, they had a ball.
Fagerstrom said they went on a speedboat where they were hitched to a parachute like canopy, known as a parasail, which was set aloft in the air. The parasail is attached to a long towrope, which is pulled along by a speed boat. When the speed exceeds the stalling speed, the parasail rises, hoisting the pilots up into the air.

For full story, see Tuesday's edition of the Valley City Times-Record.