Showing posts with label Brian and Dan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brian and Dan. Show all posts
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Chili Bash at the 7th Heaven Hangar at Wittman Field
Omigosh! It just keeps getting better! I was able to go to the Chili bash while Michelle ran errands in Oshkosh. I met Wayne Daniels who is the president of the chapter. I brought along some of the pictures Brian gave me from his air racing career and a book called Air Shows from Walter Boyne's collection. Wayne enjoyed the pictures, and since he has a Sonex, he knew what a Sonerai was, and he told me John Monnett was a member of this chapter. I usually suck at mingling, but obviously, when it comes to aviation that isn't the case. I continued to mingle and met a man named Jim Cunningham who is writing biographies of Steve Wittman and Bill Brennand. He flew into the Chili bash from Illinois. I then met Bill Brennand who owns the Brennand Airport here in Neenah, and I also met Doc Mosher who flew a lot of early aerobatic air shows waaaay back when. It was amazing all of the people in aviation I met and it really reinforced to me how important it is to preserve my corner of aviation history.
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Saturday, 5 September 2009- EAA Picnic and Hanging Out With Brian
Today started out with me catching the Metro to College Park Station. From there, I caught the H bus to Laurel, MD. When I got downtown, I transferred to another bus that was supposed to drop me off at Brockbridge Rd and 198 so that I could walk the rest of the way to Suburban Airport (W18). But Brockbridge Road passed before I could get off and the next thing I knew, I was on a freeway and the bus had no intention of turning around for me.
When it dumped me off, stranded for 2 hours, at Arundel Mills, I decided to go charge my phone in the shopping center. While I was disappointed that this was going to make me an hour late for the event, a canyon blue SWA jet appeared in the sky, taking off to one of Southwest Airlines 67 destinations. It cheered me up.
After charging my phone inside, I returned to my awful fate of riding the bus back to Laurel, but a taxi driver BEGGED me to let him give me a ride- name my price. I said I could do $15. But when I realized I had to stop at an ATM, I upped it to $20 and gave him a five dollar tip for dropping me off at the entrance of W18 (Suburban Airport).
The party was off to a slow start, In the meantime, I greeted Carl, the airport manager and Brian (one of of the pilots who flies an experimental Cub). Soon the pilots were giving Young Eagles rides in their Cubs and helicopters. I had a delicious hamburger and was granted permission to cross the airport and runway to check out the airplanes in the hangers on the other side. I saw a Long EZ make three fast passes over the runway a little later, and met the pilot when he landed.
When all the Young Eagles had their rides, I was invited to change altitude in the Cubby. They called me a "Young-at-Heart" Eagle, and Brian said I qualified because I was a little bit knowledgeable and extremely enthusiastic! Yay!
We made two circles of the airport because the helicopter was in the way after the first circuit. I didn't mind. I enjoyed the feeling of flying and felt the air on lifing the wings. I tried to picture it as if the air was visible. I spent too much time taking pictures though, and upon realizing that, I put the camera away and focused on the instruments.
Then Brian, my air race pilot friend, and I visited Doug's hangar where he was building a Challenger II with Dan's help. It was very interesting. I did get distracted by a ground hog that scampered into a hole near the hangar. I was fascinated by the metal work and recalled the time when I was able to build the control surfaces of a Progressive Aerodyne Sea Rey.
Brian had offered to give me a ride to work after a visit to Clopper Lake and a ride in the canoes, but we got there late, having to take a detour to my storage unit to get my work uniform. Since we couldn't ride the canoes, Brian presented me with an early Christmas present, a colorful Spitfire glider. We threw it around and I let Brian adjust the wings for a more straight and level flight after each attempt. Then, as we returned to Germantown, we missed a turn and ended up at Brink Road.
While we were were on the Brink, Brian remembered a friend that lived nearby. We circled for a while and finally found the house tucked away in a densely wooded neighborhood. The house was dark, but Brian went ahead and knocked on the door and visited with a friend he hadn't seen a while, while I remained in the car. Then as we were leaving, he shined his headlights on the backside of the house and right there before my eyes was a V-Witt! I only knew this because he had shown me examples in some books I bought from the CGS Aviation Museum. It was quite a sight, as I had learned about Steve Wittman who designed them and Brian said that he got to fly this particular one.
That had to be the highlight, other than the Cub ride. We checked out the movie theater, but nothing impressed us, so we went to Cold Stone Creamery for ice cream, and then Taco Bell for Cheesy Gordita Crunches. Then he dropped me off at work.
When it dumped me off, stranded for 2 hours, at Arundel Mills, I decided to go charge my phone in the shopping center. While I was disappointed that this was going to make me an hour late for the event, a canyon blue SWA jet appeared in the sky, taking off to one of Southwest Airlines 67 destinations. It cheered me up.
After charging my phone inside, I returned to my awful fate of riding the bus back to Laurel, but a taxi driver BEGGED me to let him give me a ride- name my price. I said I could do $15. But when I realized I had to stop at an ATM, I upped it to $20 and gave him a five dollar tip for dropping me off at the entrance of W18 (Suburban Airport).
The party was off to a slow start, In the meantime, I greeted Carl, the airport manager and Brian (one of of the pilots who flies an experimental Cub). Soon the pilots were giving Young Eagles rides in their Cubs and helicopters. I had a delicious hamburger and was granted permission to cross the airport and runway to check out the airplanes in the hangers on the other side. I saw a Long EZ make three fast passes over the runway a little later, and met the pilot when he landed.
When all the Young Eagles had their rides, I was invited to change altitude in the Cubby. They called me a "Young-at-Heart" Eagle, and Brian said I qualified because I was a little bit knowledgeable and extremely enthusiastic! Yay!
We made two circles of the airport because the helicopter was in the way after the first circuit. I didn't mind. I enjoyed the feeling of flying and felt the air on lifing the wings. I tried to picture it as if the air was visible. I spent too much time taking pictures though, and upon realizing that, I put the camera away and focused on the instruments.
Then Brian, my air race pilot friend, and I visited Doug's hangar where he was building a Challenger II with Dan's help. It was very interesting. I did get distracted by a ground hog that scampered into a hole near the hangar. I was fascinated by the metal work and recalled the time when I was able to build the control surfaces of a Progressive Aerodyne Sea Rey.
Brian had offered to give me a ride to work after a visit to Clopper Lake and a ride in the canoes, but we got there late, having to take a detour to my storage unit to get my work uniform. Since we couldn't ride the canoes, Brian presented me with an early Christmas present, a colorful Spitfire glider. We threw it around and I let Brian adjust the wings for a more straight and level flight after each attempt. Then, as we returned to Germantown, we missed a turn and ended up at Brink Road.
While we were were on the Brink, Brian remembered a friend that lived nearby. We circled for a while and finally found the house tucked away in a densely wooded neighborhood. The house was dark, but Brian went ahead and knocked on the door and visited with a friend he hadn't seen a while, while I remained in the car. Then as we were leaving, he shined his headlights on the backside of the house and right there before my eyes was a V-Witt! I only knew this because he had shown me examples in some books I bought from the CGS Aviation Museum. It was quite a sight, as I had learned about Steve Wittman who designed them and Brian said that he got to fly this particular one.
That had to be the highlight, other than the Cub ride. We checked out the movie theater, but nothing impressed us, so we went to Cold Stone Creamery for ice cream, and then Taco Bell for Cheesy Gordita Crunches. Then he dropped me off at work.
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Saturday, 29 August 2009- To College Park Airport Air Fair 100 and Beyond!
One of my highlights this year is the College Park Aviation Museum AirFair 100. It was a once in a lifetime celebration of 100 years of aviation history at College Park Airport, as well as an unprecedented waiver of the restricted airspace regulations for takeoffs, landings, and passengers in the area. I signed up to volunteer as soon as I heard of the opportunity.
The morning started with my arrival at the volunteer tent. I was issued an orange t-shirt, an AirFair 100! Visor and a meal wristband.
After eating a purple bagel at the volunteer trailer, I reported to my post at the front gate as a greeter and a baby counter. At about noon time, a police officer's horse left a line of material that would be unpleasant to step in, so I watched the foot traffic and tried to guide folks away from the manure. When Greg Koontz started his act, I was granted permission to take my break. The show was fabulous and I had a pretty good view. Afterward, I got to say hi briefly. He kind of remembered me from the Sun 'n Fun Fly-In. I returned to my post where I remained until 4:30. Then the magic began!
One of the last people I greeted at the gate was an older gentlemen wearing a polo shirt with a personalized DC-3 embroidered on it and a particular N-number. I knew from the shirt that this man had some kind of tie to that DC-3 and asked. He said his DC-3 had a green and yellow Air North livery and was based at Hagerstown. I couldn't believe one was based so close!
I got to walk around the exhibits for the last half hour. I found Al who was trying to sell some old model airplanes. He offered the rest for $10. I was crazy excited for these airplane gifts! He packed them carefully in a large box which I hugged close to me as I wandered among the airplanes and booths in the static display area. When I came to an EAA tent, some of the guys jokingly asked if I had puppies in there. I let them know that I'm at an airport and I get excited about airplanes.
One of the guys, Dan, took a look at my collection and went gaga over one of the seven planes- just the same way I did when I was offered the collection. He was a pilot and was in the process of building a seaplane called a Challenger II. I told him I would give him the airplane in exchange for the promise of an airplane ride. I asked him to sign my Pilot log and put his phone number. He was flattered to sign next to the likes of Patty Wagstaff, Corkey Fornof, and the Aeroshell Aerobatic Team. Then he said there was someone I should meet and get his signature. He called his friend, Brian, over. Out of respect for his privacy, I won't post his last name on the internet.
Brian was a Formula Vee air race pilot who flew races and set records in the 1980's and 1990's. He brought one of his airplanes, a Monnett Sonerai called Miss Annapolis to the Air Fair. He was wearing a red flight suit with a variety of air race and record setting patches and a red beret. He seemed happy to talk about his experiences, and when I told both Dan and Brian my situation, I became an immediate hero and inspiration to them. Brian said my enthusiasm for aviation was a breath of fresh air. The clouds circled around us growing darker and grayer, threatening to rain. I helped Brian and Dan clean up and then remove Miss Annapolis' wings and push the fuselage into the trailer. Dan gave me a ride to Metro and I was invited by both Dan and Ron (Designer of the Minicoupe, and EAA Chapter 4 president) to the chapter's picnic being held at Suburban Airport (W18) next Saturday, the 5th. Today was a truly magical day!
The morning started with my arrival at the volunteer tent. I was issued an orange t-shirt, an AirFair 100! Visor and a meal wristband.
After eating a purple bagel at the volunteer trailer, I reported to my post at the front gate as a greeter and a baby counter. At about noon time, a police officer's horse left a line of material that would be unpleasant to step in, so I watched the foot traffic and tried to guide folks away from the manure. When Greg Koontz started his act, I was granted permission to take my break. The show was fabulous and I had a pretty good view. Afterward, I got to say hi briefly. He kind of remembered me from the Sun 'n Fun Fly-In. I returned to my post where I remained until 4:30. Then the magic began!
One of the last people I greeted at the gate was an older gentlemen wearing a polo shirt with a personalized DC-3 embroidered on it and a particular N-number. I knew from the shirt that this man had some kind of tie to that DC-3 and asked. He said his DC-3 had a green and yellow Air North livery and was based at Hagerstown. I couldn't believe one was based so close!
I got to walk around the exhibits for the last half hour. I found Al who was trying to sell some old model airplanes. He offered the rest for $10. I was crazy excited for these airplane gifts! He packed them carefully in a large box which I hugged close to me as I wandered among the airplanes and booths in the static display area. When I came to an EAA tent, some of the guys jokingly asked if I had puppies in there. I let them know that I'm at an airport and I get excited about airplanes.
One of the guys, Dan, took a look at my collection and went gaga over one of the seven planes- just the same way I did when I was offered the collection. He was a pilot and was in the process of building a seaplane called a Challenger II. I told him I would give him the airplane in exchange for the promise of an airplane ride. I asked him to sign my Pilot log and put his phone number. He was flattered to sign next to the likes of Patty Wagstaff, Corkey Fornof, and the Aeroshell Aerobatic Team. Then he said there was someone I should meet and get his signature. He called his friend, Brian, over. Out of respect for his privacy, I won't post his last name on the internet.
Brian was a Formula Vee air race pilot who flew races and set records in the 1980's and 1990's. He brought one of his airplanes, a Monnett Sonerai called Miss Annapolis to the Air Fair. He was wearing a red flight suit with a variety of air race and record setting patches and a red beret. He seemed happy to talk about his experiences, and when I told both Dan and Brian my situation, I became an immediate hero and inspiration to them. Brian said my enthusiasm for aviation was a breath of fresh air. The clouds circled around us growing darker and grayer, threatening to rain. I helped Brian and Dan clean up and then remove Miss Annapolis' wings and push the fuselage into the trailer. Dan gave me a ride to Metro and I was invited by both Dan and Ron (Designer of the Minicoupe, and EAA Chapter 4 president) to the chapter's picnic being held at Suburban Airport (W18) next Saturday, the 5th. Today was a truly magical day!
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