By: Jeff Challender

Friday 23 March 2007, at approximately 9:20 PM, I was watching TV In bed. It was my (Jeff Challender) 54th birthday. My wife came running into the room suddenly in a high state of excitement, and told me to come outside right NOW! Our son Max had spotted something in the sky that he was certain was a U.F.O.!!

I put on my bathrobe, and stepped out onto the front lawn. There, in the sky, low over the houses across the street at 10° to 15° above the horizon, was a U.F.O. all right! There can be NO DOUBT ABOUT IT! It’s position varied from due west, to northwest during the time we had it in sight. This thing, which seemed to be at least a half-kilometer distant, was literally "dancing" about in the air. It was soundless, and bright blue-white.

My wife rushed to get the camcorder, and once I got it started, continued to video tape this thing for almost 20 MINUTES!! I can barely describe the excitement. We watched this thing perform the most impossible maneuvers. It moved behind trees, returned and went behind the trees again. I hobbled up the street to follow it at one point, and it returned to its previous position, as if toying with me. So I went back to my chair on our lawn, and sat down. I “told” it I could not, and would not, chase it again, and that it had better stay in sight for me or I wouldn't continue to film it. I said these things half tongue in cheek, but THE THING SEEMED TO RESPOND! It DID come out from behind the trees, and stay there! It continued to bob up and down, and flit from side to side. Right after I told it to DO SOMETHING, it brightened considerably and performed something like a “fish hook” maneuver!

It's all so unbelievable even now! Finally, after nearly 20 minutes in sight, it dipped "behind" the neighbor's garage across the street. My wife said, "Oh, don't go away!". After a moment or two, IT CAME BACK UP! It stunted some more, finally going back DOWN behind the same garage for the final time, which was due west of our location. It didn't return. It looked to us like it may have LANDED somewhere in the agricultural lands about a kilometer to our west!

We waited an additional 20 minutes or so, hoping it would come back again. Unfortunately, it did not. So I went into the house and played the tape back on our TV. The tape came out sensationally! I did not zoom on the object but a couple brief times. I held the camera quite steadily by propping my elbow on the armrest of the lawn chair, and kept the houses across the street in the field of view almost the entire time. The film is incredible. We couldn't sleep until well after midnight. Must have watched the tape a half-dozen times that night.

Max saw the object first. He says it was here Wednesday night (21 March) as well, after Janet and I had gone to bed. He tells us it was dancing around out there for at least an hour. AND that it hovered directly over our house for a time. We have no reason to disbelieve Max. He told me about this sighting on Thursday morning (22 March) before he went to school.

So this thing was here twice in three days. Who knows, it may have been out there Thursday night as well. We didn't look.

Our pet cat, Misty, behaved abnormally during the event. She refused to come outside, and was meowing a great deal. In addition, she repeatedly performed the "Lassie maneuver". Coming to the door, meowing loudly, turning and walking back inside whilst looking at us. It was as if she were trying to get US to come in and get away from something which was frightening her. She did this at least four times before going in and hiding for the remainder of the night.

Our local MUFON field investigator, Mr. Jeremy Ray of Sacramento, came Sunday 25 March 2007, to take down my formal report. After he took my report, and looked at the video, we got in his car and searched the area west of our location for signs of a possible landing site. We came up empty handed. Saw a lot of horse pasture, with fencing and barbed wire, but nothing out of the ordinary could be seen from the roads. Of coure, we couldn't enter these fields to search more carefully without permission, so after about an hour, we gave up.

Some animated GIFs of the most intriguing parts of the video we shot that night have been prepared for your study. Those below are Part 1, from early in the video. Each is composed of 39 frames taken directly from the original 8mm tape. My camera is an older model Canon ES-55.

This animation illustrates the first of what I dubbed "the fish hook" maneuver. The object "bounced" around a little, and dove down at an angle, rising back up behind the trees. That's why you don't see the "bottom curve" of the fish hook here.

Events have been slowed to about half-speed to make it easier to follow.

The same 39 frames once again, but embossed for a 3D effect against a neutral grey background.

Although not visible here, there is a rather thick copse of trees to the right.

Above is only the first of many strange movements performed by this object, which was visible to us for well over 20 minutes. I cannot acount for it. It is NOT an airplane, helicopter, balloon, satellite, meteor, star, or planet. Venus was prominent in the sky far to the left of this scene, but was NOT gyrating wildly as this object was.

I can't identify this thing, so must classify it as an unknown.

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

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At the end of the day, it's up to YOU to draw your own conclusions.