Hey Guys,
I too took what was then called the "chicken run" and left SA for the States. It was really out of necessity, I had recently left the Saaf and spories wasn't recruiting. It was hard at the time and I still miss SA, but the lifestyle here is great. I frequently visit SA and always notice that the infrastructure seems just a little worse than the previous visit.
There are a few 'sithefricans' here and we still keep in touch and compare notes. Lotsa 'sithefrican' accents on the radio these days over Europe and the Pacific, so it seems a lot of guys made it out.
Best to all,
Mike G