Ron Gilbert has a penchant for things that go boom. He likes shooting off fireworks, guns of all types, and he enjoys tinkering with other small ordnance. And when it comes to sending a 100-pound chunk of heavy metal skyward, he's the man with all the answers.

Gilbert is one of the country's pre-eminent experts in the art of "anvil shooting." He travels all over the South putting on what can only be described as the ultimate gravity-defying stunt.

"It's something of an art mixed with science," Gilbert said in a phone interview. "I guess you could say there's a little magic involved, too, because most people just can't believe they're seeing an anvil flying 150 feet in the air."