Daycare worker turned stunt woman regrets nothing

HAINES CITY (FOX 13) - Call it a midlife crisis, but Margie Ritchie insists her 180-degree career change was much more.

Ritchie was happy with her job at a daycare and being mom to two girls. 

One day, however, she saw a show at Universal Studios Orlando and decided to become a stunt woman.

“The idea just got in my head,” Ritchie told FOX 13. “It seemed, like, so much fun.”

Ritchie thought there was no better time to follow her gut and chase her dream.

She signed up for John Zimmerman’s Stunt Camp in Haines City - a weeklong course where students learn to jump off towers, pull off fight scenes, and are even lit on fire.

“I like the quote that says, 'Everyone is given two lives. The second one starts when you realize you only have one,'” she said.

Ritchie's husband showed immediate support for her new quest. Her daughters were a little wary at first but they are now on board.

Other than her immediate family, not many other people know what she is up to.

“I probably have three people who know I am clear. I think that’s going to change after they see this,” she said.

For more information about John Zimmerman’s Stunt Camp, visit www.stuntcamp.us.