$60 for the day =$120 for the weekend. Free food and (soft) drinks for the pilots. Free accomodation if you wanted for the night. Use of the aeroplanes if you wanted at a fairly cheap rate. I didnt work for nothing, got paid, hours in the log book and then got out of there.
If I had something better on then Id just say I wasn't available without the possibility of the flying not being there the next week.
I'd say (as DZ's go) it wasn't bad.
If you were screwed then that's your problem. What I was getting at was your comment "pay peanuts, get monkeys" You obviously weren't there when I was there because the other pilots were extremely professional and used meatbombing as a stepping stone (a paid one at that).
If you weren't there on the weekend you'd have got the $120 pulling a shift at the servo.................