1962...young Sasless and another Civil Air Patrol Cadet were learning to fly Gyro Copters. One of the Squadron Seniors had several and a non-powered version that was attached to a wooden platform on the back of a Ford Pickup Truck.
The Copter was loosely chained so that there was about two feet of slack but not enough to get off the side of the platform and Students would be driven down the Taxiway of the airport and allowed to practice "flying" the machine.
Somewhere in the Course of instructions it was not emphasized that the chains were there just to limit the movement a bit and were not supposed to be pulled hard against for any length of time but instead the aircraft should be hovered mid-travel or so.
Young Sasless being the Observer on the one particular run took scant notice of the Copter being pulled hard against the Chains by the other Cadet....and at some point the laws of physics, structural limits, and commonsense all came together to creat an interesting end to the flight, the Copter, and the cab of the Pickup when the rotor head, mast, and associated bits went many different directions all in a flash.
We survived although the other Cadet did go to Hospital for a few days, and I took a severe beating from the Rotor blades as they went about their business of killing the Gyro Copter and remodeling the Cab of the Pickup Truck.
I should have taken a hint from all that and stuck with Airplanes perhaps.