Speaking of rocket belts, I just put up a piece I did for Discovery Online in 1997, for their Alt.Tech column, which I contributed to for awhile.
Called “Blow Your Socks Off,” it tells the story of the development of the original Bell Rocket Belt. There are even a couple of nifty short movies, with that kind of “Gee Whiz, Jimmy” ”60s space age narrative that we all know and love.