SoarCNY

Last Fight of Season

2011-12-21T15:29:00.001-05:00

We have been blessed with an unseasonably warm and snowless start to the winter. Looking forward to almost the end of the year on a 10 day forecast, temperatures are expected with remain mild though there is some snow in the forecast.

Once the snow accumulates at our grass field here in Marcellus we are done. A couple years back the owner stopped plowing and sold the snowplow. We do have a few pilots that mount skis and continue right through the winter. Someday I'd like to do that. In a few days we will close up the hangar, sealing it with insulated panels until spring.

It couldn't have been a more perfect day for what will likely be our last flight of the season. The air was smooth and visibility very good. High clouds radiating across the sky thickening to the west with the approach of our next storm.

With the sun low in the sky, the ground below was dark. Much darker than the sky. The contrast was too much for my camera and as a result either the sky was blown out with no color or the ground was near black. I tried an HDR with 3 shots but even at 75 mph there was too much movement for the images to align properly. Instead, in Photomatix, I created a pseudo-HDR using one image. Not quite the same quality as with a series of 3 or 5 shots, since in this shot the dark area have to be lightened so much that noise is beginning to show. I still like it...

Looking west across 5 of the Finger Lakes in Central New York. Otisco, Skaneateles, Owasco, Cayuga and Seneca (just a sliver below the horizon)

Looking south across Kate's Otisco Lake.

The town of Skaneateles at dusk.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS TO ALL !

Fall Colors and Waterfalls

2011-10-27T18:17:00.001-04:00

On a short flight from my home base at Marcellus Airport to Ithaca Regional Airport I circled Taughannock falls and Carpenter Brook Falls in New Hope. Beautiful colors on this late Fall day.

Taughannock Falls

Carpenter Brook - upper falls

Carpenter Brook - middle and lower falls

Alexandria Bay for Fathers 81st Birthday

2011-09-19T17:28:00.004-04:00

I wanted to do something special for my dads' birthday. I wasn't around for Fathers Day as I was flying as copilot with a friend taking his Lambada to Florida to be put up for sale. This would be nice...

Flying out of Marcellus Airport we like to keep the plane with something less than full tanks during the summer months which makes clearing the trees much less stressful. Particularly with a west wind there is quite a downdraft coming off the trees that line the runway. This slows both acceleration once in the air and climb. With about 1/3 tanks we headed over to Skaneateles for a top-off. Once there we found the card reader out of order. Though we had enough fuel to reach Fulton and probably even Watertown, I decided to go back to Marcellus for the 5 gallons Kate and I keep in the hangar. As it turned out there was only 3 gallons in the can. But with that there was plenty for the 45 minute flight to Watertown.

In the air headed north with dad at the controls.

Passing Lake Ontario at Sandy Pond. This is the outlet to the lake. I love the colors and patterns of the sand in the water.

After fueling in Watertown it was only a short flight up to the Thousand Islands. Here is the Thousand Island bridge over the channel and onto Wellesley Island. A ship has just passed under the bridge headed towards Lake Ontario and beyond. I tried to find the ship name from various online sources but couldn't identify it.

Alexandria Bay

We used to rent a camp here back in the late 1960's. It's still there but the area has become much more developed. There is a little island just offshore that as a kid I would row, and later, motor out to for play and swimming. This now has a summer home filling most of the small rocky outcrop.

Boldt Castle

We landed at Maxon Field. It is only about a mile south of Alexandria Bay and a fairly easy walk into town.

We ate at the Admiral's Inn. I remembered this place from a previous visit to the town last year and liked the look and feel of the outdoor dinning. Lunch prices were reasonable.

Maxon Field is soon to be another closed airport. Currently it is abandoned and the field is being reclaimed by nature with grasses and weeds filling in from the sides and growing up through every crack in the asphalt. The first 1,500 feet of the runway on the east end isn't too bad but beyond that weeds became thicker and thicker until the runway was barely visible. Sad to see these small fields go...

Dad did most of the flying going both ways and did a fine job of keeping us on track and altitude.

Passing Nine Mile point, the sun and clouds came together for an interesting shot.

Inspection Day and some flying

2011-09-11T10:15:00.002-04:00

Dave Jones came up from Cortland to do annual inspections on both the club and private aircraft. We had a good turnout for the day with Jay, Joe, Brett, Mark, and Tim on hand. Having worked the previous night I arrived a little late with the club planes already being buttoned up, only Jay's ASW-15 and my Libelle 201B still needed to be checked.

It was a nice day for flying though a layer of cirrus weakened thermal activity considerably. There was lift, and both the rides given by Jay could be seen circling and climbing.

Some hangar talk after Dave finished some paperwork. (L-R) Dave, Brett, Joe, Jay, Tim,

Joe polishing the 2-33 canopy

Our newest member Andrew

Jay explaining effect of the flight controls

2-33 on tow above

Visitor, Joe and Brett

OUr towplane landing

Mark, Brett and Joe towing the L-33 to the staging area

Brett readying for flight

AirVenture 2011

2011-08-10T11:33:00.000-04:00

On our first morning we found that in addition to frequent buses circling the 'North 40', drivers of golf carts and cars would offer open seats to people walking. Rarely, did a vehicle pass that wasn't full. This morning as Jeff and I began walking towards Camper Registration a driver in a VW stopped to ask if we wanted a ride. The driver was Tom Poberezny, Chairman of the AirVenture Fly-in since 1977 and President of the EAA from 1989-2010. Thanks for the ride Tom!

Breakfast that morning was at the Warbird Cafe on the north end of the show and closest to our campsite. As you probably guessed from the name it is adjacent to an area filled with warbirds. Hundreds of them! I counted at least 2 dozen of my favorite, the P-51 Mustang.

On display is "Glacier Girl", a P-38 that made a crash landing on the Greenland ice cap in 1942 where it sat for 50 years while becoming covered with 300 feet of snow and ice. In 1992 it was recovered and then restored to flying condition. There is an interesting read of this aircrafts' final flight, and its recovery half a century later at: Glacier Girl

With over 12,000 aircraft arriving and departing AirVenture this is the busiest airport in the world during this week.

The Taurus G4, Pipistrel's electric powered entry for the CAFE Green Flight Challenge. Rules for the flight: 2 hours duration at 100 mph with a 30 minute reserve. Economy must be the equivalent of at least 200 passenger miles per gallon. One way to double passenger miles per gallon is by doubling the seating to 4!

Hundreds of vendors with parts and expert advise. Here, Jeff is discussing his options concerning the oil leak in his Lambada. This Rotax supplier has a good stock of parts on-hand and can have almost anything here within a couple days.

More interesting, around the corner...

The legendary Bob Hoover spoke to a crowd of over a 1000 in front of "Ole Yeller" the P-51 he performed in during the '90's. Bob answered questions and shared experiences from his early flight school days, interesting flights as a test pilot, and a great story of his escape from a German POW camp in a stolen Focke-Wulf similar to one parked a short distance away.

Focke-Wulf 190

Custom paint and the HP to back up the statement it makes!

I'd never seen this before. Helicopter aerobatics in the "Red Bull" BA105.

A centerpiece in the static display area was a collection of Burt Rutan designs. Thursday was Burt Rutan day and we were treated to both the Boomerang and the Starship taking to the air.

David, Jeff and Warren during show.(right to left)

Jet powered cars or trucks are real crowd pleasers. Lots of smoke and flame, very fast and very loud. In fact they are so fast, it almost doesn't look real. In the act a couple planes compete with stunts to decide who gets to race the car. Then with the jet engine on the car spooling up, the airplane makes its run. As the plane passes the car at over 200 mph the car driver goes to full throttle, releases the brakes and with an air shaking roar the afterburner kicks in. Within a few seconds the car is moving well over 300 mph and passes the plane like it is going backwards. Then add a little pyrotechnics...

The show was stopped briefly as we all were reminded that a go-around, even one in front of a crowd, is the best decision when things don't look quite right on final. The F-16 ran off the end of the runway collapsing the nose gear. Fortunately there were no injuries. Video of this on youtube I have to add that I don't know all the details on this incident and whether equipment malfunction might have caused this.

Mornings and evenings were special times while at Oshkosh. The brief time between the heat and humidity of the day and the mosquitoes at night was wonderful.

We had planned on leaving Wednesday by noon. However the night before we were already watching a line of showers on radar approaching from the west. We knew it would be a small window between when the airport opened at 7:00 and before the front arrived. Upon waking I rolled up my sleeping bag and readied my pack for loading in the plane. Stepping out of the tent I was greeted by the first light of the day illuminating, in brilliant red, a wall of clouds and showers approaching rapidly.

From the looks of the clouds I was convinced that the end of the world was approaching. We made sure everything was as secure as could be, grabbed what we could carry and quickly walked through the fence off airport property and to the Hilton for shelter. As it turned out the storms passed with only moderate rain and no significant wind.

While eating breakfast and waiting on the weather at the Hilton, I noticed that Harrison Ford was there for breakfast as well. I did take a picture of him from a short distance away that came out quite well, however I will not post it as I feel it is an intrusion on his privacy.

When the kids were young I used to joke with them that the Indiana Jones movies were based on my life before settling down. In fact Harrison Ford got that part because he looks so much like me. I would even stand next to the TV so the resemblance could seen.
I don't know why they would laugh.

Flight to Oshkosh for AirVenture 2011

2011-08-04T16:09:00.002-04:00

Departing Skaneateles (NK71) under partly cloudy skies Jeff and I climbed into smooth air and headed west. We had a flexible plan that would carry us southwest over PA and OH then west-northwest across IN before turning north and passing just offshore of Chicago to avoid the Class B above and inland. The plan was to stop at Timmerman (KMWC) airport just north of Milwaukee to meet up with Warren and David Lee flying a Piper Warrior II before making the last leg into Oshkosh Whitman Field (KOSH). Knowing of some shower activity along the route and particularly in the Chicago area we kept one eye on the Garmin 496 displaying the weather ahead.

Within a short time wisps of clouds were forming below. As these thickened we discussed whether above or below this low layer would be the best option. Seeing some shower activity ahead on the Garmin I thought at first that below might be the best choice. However cloud base below was too low for comfortable cruising and we could see for quite a distance ahead with no sign of cloud tops that would give us trouble crossing. To the north towards Lake Ontario the clouds ended and this gave us an escape route if needed. Jeff felt that we should continue above and I agreed.

Flying on top turned out to be the correct decision as we later learned from David and Warren. We had left ahead of them while they were at the fuel pumps. David's Warrior II cruises about 20 kts faster and would have little trouble catching us in the air. However, from the time that we departed until David was rolling, the low cloud layer had spread east to Skaneateles. Once in the air they couldn't find a sufficient break in the ceiling to climb above. Forced to stay below what became a lowering ceiling they found themselves only able to get as far as Batavia. Luckily, the delay there was short and conditions improved enough for them to take-off and climb on top.

Crossing into Indiana skies cleared and the farmland and towns came into view. This didn't last for long...

At first in the distance, then looming overhead, cirrus clouds. Spawned by storms to the southwest of Chicago the cirrus thickened and darkened the sky. XM radar on the Garmin showed showers, some quite heavy, close to our turn-point near Gary, IN. We switched the radio to 121.7, a frequency reserved for air-to-air communications and we heard constant talk between pilots trying to work their way around both the showers and the Class B airspace of Chicago.

As more clouds began to form below and the view to the west was ominous, we decided to fly NNW across Michigan. This would put us east of Lake Michigan and north of this weather for a crossing of the lake from near Muskegon, MI

Cloud tops to the west of our track.

We landed at Grand Haven Memorial just south of the busier Muskegon. It was a quiet little airfield and gave us a chance for a short break before crossing the lake. Jeff also wanted to check on a small oil leak. Climbing out of the plane and walking around to the front we spotted oil streaks on the belly. Removing the upper and lower sections of the cowling showed the greatest concentration of oil in the area of the recently replaced oil sensor. Whether it is blowing past the threads of the sensor or through a crack in the oil pump we couldn't tell. Fortunately it is a very slow leak with about 1/10 quart of oil lost.

Being cautious, Jeff climbed using reduced power and made use of a thermal close to the airport to gain altitude. Once sufficient height was attained, we started across the lake.

At any point well beyond the first part of the crossing we were within gliding distance of Grand Haven. We had climbed to 12,500 over the lake. With a 28:1 glide ratio, 2.5 miles of altitude translates into about 70 miles of gliding range. These calculations were very reassuring however I imagine the hour it would take to glide this distance would seem to last forever!

At least we had some company out in the middle...

After staring out into the haze and across the blue waters eventually the western shoreline came into view.

We stopped at Timmerman and within a short time David and Warren arrived. They were able to fly the Chicago route without much trouble. With a review of the Oshkosh NOTAM we took off and headed out on the final leg of our journey to AirVenture. David was close behind and we both joined the stream of airplanes along the approach to Oshkosh. Everyone is lined up single file over the railroad tracks flying at 1800 feet and 90 kts. Here we are over Ripon which is the entry point for this approach to Oshkosh. Ahead of us is a Cessna with other planes visible beyond that.

Through the whole approach procedure incoming aircraft are required only to listen. First to ATIS before 15 miles from Ripon, then to Approach for commands from controllers along the approach path. We rock wings to acknowledge that first contact then simply follow instructions beyond that. We were assigned runway 36R probably because of the slower speed of the motor-glider. Most aircraft were landing runway 09. 36R is the taxiway, 36L is the main runway. It is painted with large colored dots wich are touchdown points that can be assigned enabling controllers to land 2 aircraft at a time. (first plane lands long, second plane short) There is lots of room as the runway is 9,000 feet long. The EAA expected close to 15,000 aircraft!

Once on the ground there are flagmen at every intersection to keep us headed in the right direction. With a "GAC sign held up to the windscreen they knew to direct us to General Aviation Camping. Arriving late afternoon on the day before the show we did a lot of taxiing, all the way to the absolute furthest point on the airfield just off the approach end of Runway 09.
Here is our campsite the following morning. We were on the NW end of the airport along the perimeter road. In the distance one of the buses is visible making its outbound run from the show to the "Northwest 40". These buses passed every 10-15 minutes or so and made the mile trip to the show much easier with the heat and humidity during our stay.

With 2 tents and 4 people sitting around Jeff's Lambada, I had a couple people ask me if we all came in that plane. I answered "Yes. Why?" (David"s Warrior was parked even further out and close to a busy road. It was quieter a hundred yards in by Jeff's plane so we all camped together here.)

A Short Visit to ISA Sunday

2011-08-01T08:21:00.003-04:00

Sunday was a warm sunny day with light and variable westerly winds. Cumulus clouds were building as Kate and I decided it was a good day to visit our friends in Hamilton. We turned 45U east, settled into an easy cruise and enjoyed the green mid-summer scenery below.

Arriving at Hamilton we could see from the upwind leg to RWY 17 that the days' soaring was about to get under way.

This was the first time I've managed to connect with the club this year and I was happy to find Jay, Brett, Kevin and Joe on the field.

I like the club's 4-wheeler. I've never been on one before but had the opportunity to drive it with the L-33 in tow and Brett walking the wing. Why does everything move at any speed except walking speed?

Brett was the first to go.

I ran as quick as I could to try for a shot of Kevin through the windscreen of 18L, but got to the tow plane about the time he began his takeoff roll.

While I was in the staging area Joe invited me along for a ride in 'Big Red'. It's been a couple years since sitting in a glider and quite a bit longer since sitting in the back of the 2-33. Yet, as soon as I was strapped in it felt as though no time had passed since then.

Off tow I pointed out a small cloud that was close. Joe headed towards it. As happens so often, the moment you turn towards a promising cloud it immediately begins fall apart. We never made it to the far windward side where lift might have been, as sink was already pushing us lower.

Looking for other options, Joe turned back east towards a nice bump we felt earlier in the tow but we only passed through a short area of zero sink.

Back over the hills northeast of the field and again a momentary teasing of zero sink as Joe called pattern entry. Approaching base leg we finally found some lift, however it was too late. We were in the pattern and committed to landing.

Thanks for the ride Joe! It felt great to fly in a sailplane again.

Kate flying us home

Virginia Airplane Exchange

2011-07-20T16:40:00.006-04:00

On this particular Saturday Jeff and I, with his ASK-14 in tow, drove to Staunton VA delivering it to its new home ahead of Jeff's September move.

Rather than opening up the house for one night Jeff accepted an offer from his friend and neighbor Michael Godfrey for an overnight stay at his home.

Michael's home

It was an enjoyable stay. Michael is a very interesting person with a vast amount of knowledge about the area and its history. Michael is a naturalist, writer and has also produced a nature video called "Audubon Videoguide to 247 Birds of North America". I currently have it at the top of my queue on Netflix...

Michael has started a blog called "Birding On The Farm". Michael is an excellent writer and I look forward to following his work. It can be found at: Birding on the Farm

For dinner we were to have short ribs cooked over a wood fire. Michael had picked up some barbecue sauce for this at the store but decided there were too many ingredients with unhealthy sounding names. So, Jeff pulled out his smartphone and after a short search we had a recipe for homemade sauce. Even though nothing was measured and we didn't have all the ingredients which forced us to substitute or leave out a few items, it was great!

Jeff reading recipe with phone in one hand, ingredients in the other

Michael cutting avocado for salad

The view from Michael's looking northwest towards Buffalo Gap

This was Grandma Moses' home which she and husband Thomas bought in the late 1800's. It is located just across and down the road. Michael owns this house and is in the process of rehabilitating it.

This is one of the the oldest mills in the area. It survived destruction by Union forces during the Civil War by going unnoticed, hidden in a valley.

Jeff's home and land from a neighbors' hill

By mid afternoon we had arrived at Shenandoah Regional Airport where Jeff's Lambada lives. We packed up and headed north towards NY.

Shenandoah Regional Airport

The Massanutten, visible from Rt 81 runs parallel to the highway from Strasburg to Harrisonburg and is about 50 miles in length.

For most of the length of the Massanutten we ran the ridge with trees blurred by our 90 kt airspeed.

There is a very active soaring club at Front Royal. Strong thermals for most of the year and 46 miles of ridge and wave when the wind blows. When we arrived it was late in the afternoon and we could hear gliders entering the pattern for landing, with the exception of one lone 1-26 still working lift.

From Harrisburg until Williamsport we followed the Susquehanna. I've always been interested in this river. I've flown several time over the west branch as it winds its way across souther NY and northern PA. Some day, I would like to paddle the North Branch from Cooperstown all the way into the Chesapeake and the Atlantic.

From Williamsport we flew out over a sparsely populated area of forest and hills that give few options for landing out. This has always looked like "No-man's land" to me and I generally fly quite high when crossing in my glide-like-a-brick Cessna. In a short time we passed east of Elmira and then all too soon we were over CNY and descending towards Skaneateles.

First Flight of Jeff's Schleicher ASK-14

2011-06-11T09:52:00.013-04:00

Friday we gathered at Skaneateles Airport to help Jeff rig his ASK-14 for a first flight. This plane is a beauty and was on the cover of SSA's Soaring Magazine in 2006.

Assembly went quite well with no real problems. For the summer it will remain assembled and hangared.

Willie and Jeff connecting the ailerons.

Before towing out to the runway Jeff spent some time getting comfortable in the cockpit. Then after a little trial and error with choke/throttle combinations the engine was started. It has a 4 cylinder 2 stroke Hirth engine of 28 HP.

On the runway and ready to go!

Lift-off...

A good omen!

I flew our 150 over from Marcellus so we could do a little air-to-air. Circling outside the thermal as Jeff was in lift, he easily out-climbed my 150 turning in sink or even neutral air.

For Jeff's first flight I kept a good distance away or above. We'll get together again soon for some closer photo work.

Jeff's flight lasted about 40 minutes, rolling to a stop just a short distance from his hangar. This is one sweet little glider. His smile says it all!

Flight to Melbourne

2011-06-06T07:32:00.038-04:00

Once again another one of these "Once in a lifetime" flying adventures has presented itself to me.

This time it was an opportunity to assist Lauren Pitcairn, a Lambada owner in flying his motorglider from Hoge Farm 56PA in Pipersville, PA to Melbourne FL where it would be left with a dealer to be sold. He has a new Stemme on order and it is due to arrive soon.

While Laren is a capable pilot able to make the journey himself, it is always easier to have two heads and another set of hands in the cockpit. (And, it is more fun sharing the experience)

From Pennsylvania south, the weather was forecast to be near perfect for the two day trip beginning Sunday morning. However NY and PA had showers predicted for Saturday afternoon. Sunday morning, fog and low clouds might prevent me from flying my Cessna down to meet him at his field. I decided it would be better to deal with showers than fog and headed out Saturday afternoon. This turned out the be a good decision as skies were mostly just partly cloudy, though my plane did get "power washed" briefly twice on the way down.

Hoge Farm (56PA)

Landing at Lauren's house we tucked the 150 behind a line of trees for the night until there would be space in the hangar the following morning. After a nice dinner with Laren and his wife, we planned the flight using Jeppesen charts and the AOPA Flight Planner.

Laren's Hangar

Sunday morning, as forecast, low clouds and poor visibility were upon us with better weather just to the south. We took our time getting ready for departure, allowing time for the clouds to lift a bit and visibility to improve. By the time we were fueled and loaded there were hopeful patches of blue.

In the air we found the clouds were indeed low. Not much over 1000 AGL and visibility was poor but acceptable. We pointed towards our first waypoint at COBUS intersection. This would bring us around the east side of Philadelphia's Class B and line us up for a straight shot to Cape May, NJ.

Cruising along at low altitude over the farmland of Central NY is fine. There we have so many fields, that with an engine failure you could almost establish a glide, close your eyes and likely roll out onto a field. Here, as we headed SE, the ground became more and more developed. Eventually it got to the point where even in a motor-glider our options were becoming scarce. Fortunately about that time the low cumulus clouds began to open up allowing an easy climb above.

Crossing the Delaware River

In the clear, cool air above this mostly scattered layer of CU we found smooth cruising and less headwind than was forecast. In a short time Delaware Bay came into view and flying SE along the bay we passed directly over Cape May and crossed into Delaware.

Approaching Cape May

Delaware and maryland passed and we were approaching lunchtime. We landed at Accomack Airport in Melfa, VA. Asking the airport operator about our options for restaurants he suggested the Island House Restaurant. He made a call and someone was coming to get us. This person turned out to be the owner of the Island House, who is also a pilot and enjoys coming to the airport to bring other aviators out for a meal overlooking the marsh. Both Laren and I chose the "Award Winning" crab cakes and were not disappointed. These were the best crab cakes I have ever had. A ride back to the airport from the manager and we were on our way.

Cruising along the Chesapeake

Within a short time we had come to the mouth of Chesapeake Bay. With enough altitude for a motor-glider we crossed looking down at a couple dozen oceangoing ships waiting at the in the bay.

By late afternoon we were in North Carolina. Turning east toward the ocean visible on the horizon, we squeezed between two military operation areas and descended towards Beaufort, NC for the night. As we approached the coast we saw what must have been hundreds of boats returning from the sea and into the bay at the end of the day.

Approaching Beaufort

It was Sunday, the next day would be Memorial Day. Landing we found the airport packed with planes. There were no tied-owns available, with topped off tanks we had to leave the plane on the grass at the end of the line. Fair weather and calm winds we forecast for the night.

Sunset on the bay in Beaufort, NC

The following morning a cab ride brought us to a locked up airport. Neither of us thought to asks about access codes to the tarmac the night before. We might have had a long wait, but fortunately the airport operator showed up early and we gained access to the field after only a 30 minute wait.

In the air we headed west to clear airspace and climbed into the cool air before turning south to pick up and follow the coast again. Within an hour we were passing Myrtle Beach, SC. I made a couple unsuccessful attempts to contact my sister who was in Myrtle Beach with her family for my nephew's baseball tournament. Not that they would be able to see us at cruising along above the scattered clouds, but it would have been cool for the kids to know we were up there somewhere at that moment...

Passing Myrtle Beach

Cruising was easy and we were picking up about 7 kts of tailwind. Laren had a Garmin 496 for navigation and Jeppesen Charts. I've never used Jeppesen charts but found that I like the way they present the most used information. I have worked a little with a Garmin GPS before and after a quick refresher with the online manual before leaving home I felt comfortable entering our chosen course and changes during the flight.

Our view for much of the day

By lunchtime we were into GA and passing close to Saint Simmons Island, GA. Landing at McKinnon Airport we topped the tanks and thanks to the use of a courtesy car found our way to lunch at the marina.

Landing Saint Simmons Island

Lambada in good company...

Heading south along the tidal marshes, the fractal rivers and shoreline were absolutely amazing. What fun it would be to explore this area and its secluded beaches in my kayak!

Crossing into Florida in the distance we could see the clouds were beginning to grow. Further along moderate cumulus clouds were close to our route and moving to cross our path.

Looking down the Florida coast

Not a cloverleaf

As we neared Daytona showers were visible below these larger buildups. Fortunately there was enough room for us to squeeze by these clouds and restricted airspace to the west. We were now less than an hour from Melbourne. Ahead, more buildups. With no room to skirt these and tops higher than we wanted to climb we decided to descend under the clouds.

Laren with moderate cumulus

This gave us a nice view of the Kennedy Space Center as we passed. The Shuttle landing runway and launch complexes all visible in the distance.

Melbourne tower asked us to report in 10 miles out and immediately gave us clearance to land on 9L when we did.
Jim Lee was on the ramp waiting to guide us to the hanger.

Approaching Melbourne International

The following morning we rented a car for the drive to Orlando. Arriving long before our flight and checking for anything earlier we grabbed the last two seats on a direct flight to Philadelphia leaving two hours earlier than the one we had booked. This got us back to Laren's in time for me to hop in my 150 for a hazy, hot flight back to Marcellus that afternoon.

Approaching home in the haze. (Skaneateles and Otisco Lakes)

Thanks again Laren for sharing this adventure with me. I had a wonderful time!

2011 Spring Set-up Day

2011-04-10T16:59:00.005-04:00

Scheduled for Saturday April 16th at 10:00.

Our towplane is fueled and ready for another season.

Come out and join in the preparation for another wonderful soaring season!

End of season disassembly day

2010-11-07T17:39:00.000-05:00

With a good member turnout and organization, disassembly and storage of the club ships went quick and easy. This was good since with a breeze the upper-40's afternoon temperatures started feeling a little cool towards the end.

Jack, Greg and Joe

Jack encouraging a bolt to slide out

Jay removing a fairing from the 2-33

Brett on the wing strut

Stop everything, watch Phil landing his Cessna 140!

Greg tensioning line supporting the 1-26

Our Sunday towpilot Kevin

Gliders in storage for another long Central New York winter

Jeff piloting my 150

Interesting clouds on the way back drew us on top for a while

Glory

George’s and Jeff’s Excellent Motorglider Adventure

2010-11-01T16:04:00.001-04:00

Predictions were that the passage of the low pressure system, that brought hurricane force winds to the Midwest last week, might produce great ridge soaring conditions Friday, October 29, on the Allegheny ridges. George and I reckoned to find out just how great.

We planned a launch from Skaneateles in the Lambada at sunrise on Friday morning, figuring we’d power to the north end of the main ridge at Williamsport PA by 0930, then head south along the ridge, with the engine idling, and we’d see how far south we could soar by sunset.

Friday morning approached and the short term weather predictions were not looking favorable for an early start. Rain and snow were forecast for the Skaneateles-Williamsport leg, with ceilings possibly down on the high ground south of Elmira NY.

At least it wasn’t snowing when we pulled the ship from the hanger and refueled at 0800, so convinced that though the ceilings were low, the temperature/dew point separation was good and holding, we launched into the dark overcast sky. We figured making a decision first 20 miles on at Ithaca, then again another 30 miles further at Elmira, and that we would be prepared to turn around if the ceiling was not lifting or if some really nasty weather developed. The winds were high and building, we required a 30 degree crab flying in a 25kt crosswind.

Ithaca looked good, as did Elmira as we passed over at 3500msl. The surface layer, at 1000-1500 agl seemed to be breaking up, so we thought to fly above that and below the upper ceiling at 6500 msl. That didn’t work, as the upper layer filled in below as we headed south. The view ahead looked reasonable, though, with acceptable cloud clearances above the high ground. After flying in a bit of snow, and maneuvering around a ridgetop wind farm, we were within sight of Williamsport. We made an initial assessment of winds on the ridge, then landed at Williamsport for a short break.

We relaunched at Williamsport around 1000, powered to the ridge and proceeded south initially with the engine idled. It was tough going, that end of the ridge running mostly SW and not favorable for the particular WSW wind conditions. We had to power up a couple of times, particularly to cross the short water gaps in the ridge. Finally, less than 10 miles south of Loch Haven, where the ridge had turned more SSW, we were able to sustain flight using only the winds on the ridge. I was flying 70-80kts mostly at ridge level, in bumpy air, as we passed Tom and Doris Knauff’s Ridge Soaring near Julian. Several sailplanes were being prepared for launch. We still had solid ceilings only 200-800’ above the ridge.

We reached the gap in the ridge at Altoona. That gap is 8 miles wide, and normally requires stronger ridge winds or thermals to cross, and as I was flying low on the ridge I did not have the altitude to coast across. I had to power up to cross the gap, so I classified that as a land-out. I would have a total of 3 land-outs on that first part of the ridge. The ridge was working really well south of Altoona, the ceiling was rising, so George chose to fly higher above the ridge at a slower speed. He was banking the altitude. Approaching Bedford, the next significant 8 mile gap in the ridge, we observed that the ceiling was breaking up and seemed to be organizing itself with the alignment of the ridge. Curious! With only 1000’ in the bank, and no thermals yet as the sun had not reached the ground, George pushed on into the gap, planning to power up when necessary. Well, to our surprise, we were not losing altitude! Flying best L/D, George kept finding and following little bits of lift, and by the time we crossed the gap and were back on the ridge, we had lost only a few hundred feet of altitude. The Eureka! moment came when we realized that WAVE was developing, and that we had been flying across the gap under the up side of a wave rotor cloud. We proudly announced that fact over the radio to the sailplane pilots at Knauff’s, who were either already launched and flying back and forth on the ridge, or were still on the ground, waiting for thermals to develop in order that they could cross the Altoona and Bedford gaps.

We initially attempted to climb out of rotor and into wave, but that was not yet possible as the wave was still too weak and high, but the ridge was working well south of Bedford, so we proceeded on toward Cumberland, flying at treetop level on the ridge. We negotiated the Cumberland gap, although there was a moment when we were both eyeing a prison yard for a possible land-out field, and we soared on south over the Knobley’s, a very low and uneven part of the ridge. We tried again to stay high and bank the altitude, and that worked until we reached Keyser, where I made my final “land-out”. From Keyser we soared the ridge all the way to Petersburg, WV, where we tested the wave, then landed for a short break. It was only 1300, and already we had flown 120 miles under power from Skaneateles to Williamsport, and 200 miles on the ridge (with only about 10 minutes of powered flight.)

We met with our good friend Larry Stahl, the airport manager at Petersburg, consulted the maps, and considered whether to keep heading south, to see if we could soar another 200 miles to reach Tennessee by sunset. We decided to go for it!

Departing Petersburg, we powered to the ridge, idled the engine and soared in wave to near 9000’, with the variometer indicating 6-18kts lift. We continued south in wave, jumping back to the secondary then the tertiary wave as the primary wave weakened and filled-in. Finally about 40 miles south of Petersburg, the sky cleared and the wave quit working, so we made a long descent back down to the main ridge.

We met a significant challenge 90 miles south of Petersburg, 10 miles north of Covington, VA. There the front ridge ended at a remote reservoir, so we had to climb as high as possible then push downwind and east over the reservoir across a 4 mile gap to the back ridge. Reaching the back ridge, we arrived low, so traversed the face of the ridge several times, gaining 50-100’ of altitude with each traverse, until we reached the ridge top and could proceed south. It turned out that the planning and execution of that transition was terrific training for the several difficult transitions that lay ahead.

We pushed on to Covington VA, where we negotiated a 6 mile gap across a smelly industrial valley full of highways, railroads, power lines, rivers and smokestacks. The next 80 miles involved flying closer and closer to the ridge as the winds diminished in the late afternoon. The transitions were managed, and we found ourselves with the goal in sight. We made a last climb on the ridge to near 3000’ msl, turned south, pointed 20 miles downwind to a reservoir on the Tennessee border with Virginia, and hoped for the best, flying at slightly slower than best L/D speed. To our great relief, we kept finding little bits of lift. And the tailwind didn’t hurt either, as we reached the reservoir and the Tennessee border at 300’ agl, with the sun preparing to set. I powered up and made a high speed approach and pattern to the nearby Virginia Highlands airfield at Abingdon, VA. We unpacked and secured the Lambada in the dark, and took a taxi into town.

Abingdon is a wonderful historic Virginia town, with many fine taverns and an fabulous old hotel, the Martha Washington. That restored hotel was once a private residence, then a “finishing school” for young ladies, a hospital during the Civil War, and finally a hotel with spa. We dined at the oldest tavern in town and treated ourselves to a nice room at the Martha Washington, then slept in until mid morning.

We didn’t get into the air until 1000 or so Saturday morning, but with the tailwind that approached 50kts at 7500’ msl, we did manage to do quite a bit of touring and sightseeing on our 520 mile flight back to Skaneateles NY. We briefly visited North Carolina, then turned north and headed initially up the Blue Ridge Mountains toward Roanoke VA. We overflew and wagged our wings at the folks assembling gliders and preparing to launch at the New Castle VA Blue Ridge Soaring Society near Roanoke. Then we headed back over Covington and pointed at Petersburg, WV again. A short stop at Petersburg, to visit Larry and to refuel, and we were back in the air at 1500. At 7500’, with a 30kt tailwind, we were able to burn up the last miles, landing at Skaneateles at 1730.

An epic adventure, possible only in a touring motorglider like the Lambada.

Jefferson Shingleton [jefferson@shingleton.com]
George M Hernandez [george.m.hernandez@gmail.com]

Just south of Elmira. Note snow showers in the not too far distance

Beginning of the main ridge on the Susquehanna at Williamsport, PA

Moist air capped some of the hills with clouds

Passing Ridge Soaring we had some company from a Duo Discus?

Our first signs of wave south of Bedford

Roll clouds over Petersburg, WV

Jeff climbing in rotor

In wave at 8,500'

George

We were quite low after shifting downwind to the next ridge. It took quite a few passes to regain altitude in the easing afternoon winds

Mountains and haze just past Peterstown, WV

Our last ridge at days end. We worked this for all it was worth to bank altitude for the final glide to TN

We needed every bit of energy to cross the border, arriving under 300'!

Martha Washington Hotel and Spa in Abingdon, VA

Inside looking back at the front entrance

Frost left dew on the Lambada as the morning sun nicely warmed the air

Martha Washington from the air

Slow flight into a 25kt wind. (note GPS and airspeed difference)

Looking back over the foothills of the Blue Mountains

New Castle Gliding Club

There was still some color in the remaining leaves

Ingles Airport located onto the ridge over a resort called Homestead.

What a view!

Ridge crest just south of Petersburg, WV

Over NY again as the sun was getting low in the sky

Descending towards landing at Skaneateles

Jay's Flight to Humphery Peak, AZ

2010-06-13T08:15:00.000-04:00

The forecast was for 9000 ft thermals in the Agulia valley where we were flying out of Samply airport, a small grass strip West of Phoenix about 75 miles. The famous Tony Smolder ask if any one wanted to fly to the Grand Canyon. Of course I did and 2 others also wanted to try it, Robert and Eric.

Tony led the flight and waited till we all got to 8000 over the valley. We then we headed toward the Bradshaw Mt's. and Prescott . We got to 12000 working lift over the Bradshaw's and easily glided over Prescott valley and on towards Mingus Mt.. At Mingus we climbed to 12 to 13000 ft. and then flew NE over the Cottonwood valley and toward Sedona where some clouds in the mountains formed a street towards Humphrey peak. We stopped for fuel up to 12 to 13 again and we would glide down to around 8000 and then search for lift . We all stayed together and used each others thermals . Tony somehow always found the good ones 8 to 900 FPM lift and was always ahead of us. We climbed under the clouds over the red rock formations at Sedona and then past Flagstaff to snow covered Humphrey peak where we had to stop because there were no clouds further towards the Canyon . Tony then called it off and said, this is what we call drag and drop and he left us there! ....

So I was a little worried about this . I was 125 miles from anything familiar and had the least XC air time of anyone in the group. I was at 14500 and wanted to make to 15 and turn the peak so I worked near the peak for a while wasting valuable time, till I hit 15000 then flew and turned directly over it and then aimed toward Sedona where Tony and Eric were , at least 30 miles away. I could not see anyone but they said there was lift where we found it on the way up..By the time I got there the lift was gone and so were they ..I was at 8500 and scratched back to 10 before I tried to cross the huge Cottonwood valley . Cottonwood airport is on the East side of Mingus Mt. in the valley so I knew I could land there. I made it to the East side of Mingus at 7500 which is about the same height as the Mountain . I scratched and scratched and called Robert on the radio and ask where he hit any lift around Mingus. He said under the small clouds to the South which did save my ass and got up to 9000 .

I only got to 9000 one more time and made back after a long time struggling late in the day with few weak thermals to work . I was happy to see the melon fields near Samply come into view....

Flight to Sensenich At Lancaster, PA

2010-06-06T09:19:00.001-04:00

Neither Kate and her instructor or myself have been too happy with the acceleration and climb on our little Cessna, so a trip to the Sensenich propeller shop in Lancaster was needed.

Departing Marcellus in the morning we were headed towards MVFR or IFR weather that was forecast to improve within the next hour or two.

A short hop over some low clouds on the way to top off the tanks in Cortland. Skies below opened as we passed Homer and we easily descended for landing at Cortland.

With full tanks it was a slow climb to 4,500, then about 5,500 to avoid could tops as we passed through Binghamton's airspace to the VOR and V499 south. Smooth easy cruising above the clouds. Eventually we settled in at 6,500. A nice WNW breeze at altitude gave us a good wind correction angle and we cruised along at 90 mph over the high forests of northern PA.

About an hour and a half out it was time for a short break. A slight diversion from our route brought us to Bloomsburg PA nestled up against the Susquehanna River. With all of its meandering through the hills we pass over this river about 3 times as we head south.

Parked at Bloomsburg.

The downside to river front property...

At Sensenich hanger.
It was decided on the advice of the technician there, that our prop was due for an overhaul. After 23 years in service it had developed enough roughness that it needed to be profiled as well as re-pitched about 2".

Lancaster's terminal (side view).
Jeff and I had lunch at the Fiorintino's Resturant inside. The special was soup and crabcake sandwiches. It was good. While eating I watched a continuous stream of aircraft departing on RWY 31 directly in front of us. I noticed how they all seemed to climb so fast and strong and wondered how we were going to look in comparison...

The down side to airplanes...
Another fuel stop at Hazleton, PA.

With full fuel, again it was a slow climb. Fortunately, with 2 glider pilots onboard we knew what to do as we entered a thermal.
Pull up and circle!

Power plant along the Susquehanna.

Jeff and I

Back in NY we swung by Frozen Ocean where Jeff's Lambada is living while Skaneateles has its runway repaved.

Skaneateles.
The main runway has been closed for a few weeks, but the 3,000' grass cross strip remained open.

Our propeller.

Sunday May 16th

2010-05-18T05:26:00.000-04:00

The soaring forecast for Sunday was calling for a fairly strong day limited by 5,000' cloud base. With all the difficult soaring weather lately I couldn't pass up on an opportunity to catch some ISA action. Unfortunately I had to leave early in the afternoon and could only stay around for the first launch somewhere close to 2:00 PM.

Greg assembling the L-33 with Brett's help

Kevin and Brett on take-off in 18L

Phil gave Kate and my "new" 1965 Cessna 150 a checkout

Sunday graduation at Colgate brought in a variety of visiting aircraft

Kevin demonstrating his knot tying skills

Brett hooking up Greg in L-33

Greg ready to go

Libelle for Sale

2010-04-19T17:08:00.000-04:00

Greetings all,

Occasionally a few things happen that are minor in themselves but result in much bigger changes.

A couple weeks back I caught a cold from one of my coworkers. Because of this I was unable to bring the Libelle to Hamilton, help out with the spring work day and also deliver my check for last years parking fee and this years dues. The following Saturday I was up early since the cold that sent me home from work Thursday night was finally releasing me from its grip. Kate was dropping her car off for some work in a Camillus shop not far from my house. I offered to pick her up for coffee rather than let her wait at the shop.

After coffee we returned for the car but a communication mix-up resulted in only part of the work being done. Kate and I both had our cameras so we decided to ride over to Camillus Airport to shoot planes while we waited for the car. Then as we walked past the open T-Hangars we came across a Cessna 150 with a "For Sale" sign in the window and the owner right there to answer questions. Kate and I have talked for years about buying a plane together but never really took any real steps to do it. That got us talking about it again.

The result, Kate and I are buying a plane. It may or may not be this little 150. But it will be something.

Hence, my beautiful magical Libelle is up for sale...

I've placed an ad on Wings & Wheels and also on our website SoarCNY.

Here is a direct link:
http://soarcny.prohosting.com/Libelle_ad.htm

Otherwise there is a Hyperlink at the bottom of the left side navigation bar on the site.
http://soarcny.prohosting.com/

more soon,
George

2010 Soaring Season is Approaching!

2010-03-27T18:24:00.000-04:00

We have survived another winter. Although there are likely a few more snowflakes yet to fall, trees are budding and flowers are pushing up through the thawed earth. Spring is here!

Last week while hiking at Clark Reservation State Park I rested on a rock in the warm sunshine. Looking east towards Hamilton I saw the beginnings of Cu forming. Within a short time many more were scattered around the sky. It wasn't a strong day but clearly a day we could remain aloft with conservative flying.

At our winter meeting we discussed the airports' decision to move us to the west side of the runway. As the season gets closer we will need to work out some of the details for our operation. Particularly, the tie-down and assembly areas need to be chosen and marked so anchors can be installed. I'm not too familiar with the west side, is this area going to need to be carved out of a field or is there already a sufficient mowed section?

Perhaps sometime over the couple weeks we can gather for a look at the area.

Flight with Phil in his Cessna 140 to Laconia, NH

2010-03-07T11:04:00.000-05:00

Phil invited me along for a flight up to Laconia, NH. Originally we had planned on landing on the ice runway at Alton Bay on Lake Winnipesaukee. However recent rains and mild temperatures opened up water along the shoreline forcing the closing of this seasonal landing strip.

Pre-heating the engine on a frosty morning.

Readying radios, GPS and other equipment for the flight.

On take off climb the 115 HP engine gave us a strong climb even with full fuel.

Clear skies and good visibility enabled us to almost see our destination hundreds or miles distant. At 9,500' there was a moderate north wind that cut our ground speed at bit both directions.

After parking and tying down at Laconia, Phil's sister met and then joined us for lunch at a local resturaunt.

Back in the air, we photographed some property in the vicinity of the Laconia Airport.

From the south looking across the village of Alton Bay, Lake Winnisesaukee and beyond to a cloud capped Mt Washington.

As a child I had stayed somewhere along here with my grandparents. (almost 50 years ago!)

Though the ice runway was closed, we made an approach and low pass over the runway.

We flew around the shoreline of the lake towards Laconia. (keeping a safe distance from people and structures)

The ice may not have been good for airplanes, but ice fishermen and ice kite skiers were making good use of it.

Wing struts with a shallow depth of field

Me

Phil with the setting sun on his face

I don't know... Thought this looked interesting :-)

On final runway 35 at Hamilton.

Phils Cessna 140. Such a nice plane. I want one.

First flight of 2010

2010-01-11T12:41:00.001-05:00

On the coldest day of the year yet Jeff invited me out for a ride in the Lambada. I was unable to met him until noon so he went up for a ride and was landing to pick me up just as I arrived.

I always try to get a picture of Otisco Lake for Kate. A few years ago I was able to kayak until the end of January on this lake.

There was a west wind blowing across the hills between the lakes and these clouds had the look of some light wave action down low.

Lake Ontario was covered in lake effect clouds and showers. Snow showers we trailing off to the east over the Tug Hill Plateau and beyond.

A short climb to warm the engine and deliver a little heat to our feet.

Returning to Skaneateles we saw Bill Volcko taxiing his Challenger II towards the runway. We contacted him on the radio and connected up for some air-to-air photos...

Town of Skaneateles.

Jeff let the plane descend "hands off" to explore its stability. With the engine off, prop feathered and spoilers open we settled into an 800 FPM descent in a gentle spiral.

Inspection Day '09

2009-08-23T11:24:00.001-04:00

First, I would like to welcome 2 new members to our club. Steve and Vince Cusumano. Both were out Saturday to help with preparing the club ships for inspection.

With the tow plane, 3 club gliders and 5 private ships assembled and ready for inspection, Dave Jones went right down the line and checked all our ships.

From near to far. Don w/ Russia; Jeff w/Cirrus; George's Libelle.

David Jones CCaviators

I love the smell of Jet fuel...

With the inspection complete. Jeff Shingleton and Danny Guido decided to fly. With changeable conditions timing was everything. Unfortunately for Danny in the club L-33 a shower moved through the area just as he was towed up.

Jeff launched later in his Club Libelle and found good lift.
_______________

From Jeff,

I did get a nice appx 2 hour flight in after inspections were complete. I launched at around 3:00 into low gray skies with scattered rain. I probably would not have flown under normal circumstances, but had decided that I would be DARNED if I was going to rig the glider (for the inspection) and NOT fly. So with a feeling of resignation and anticipating a short flight, I launched behind Jay and Ames in 18L.

Jay took me to near cloudbase of 3500’ over the village, where I released into zero sink. Promising! Well, in 20 minutes I managed to lose 1000’, and was prepared to maneuver for pattern entry, when I finally kinda figured out the lift, and made a connection to 1 kt going up. There was not much wind so it seemed I was grinding away in the same spot SW of the airfield for twenty more minutes. I finally made release altitude and cloudbase. Whoopee! In fact I could net get over 3900’ the entire flight. Cloudbase varied between 3000’ and 3900’. The clouds were raggedy, and most of the good lift was around the cloudbase perimeter. The center of the cloudbase actually had sink, there was so much moisture in the clouds. And where the lift was working, there was definite cloudsuck going on. At one point, I was going 100kts in a 45 degree bank in a big sweeping circle around the cloud perimeter, and was being sucked up into the cloud. During the worst of that, I looked over my shoulder and 80’ above me, in the cloud, was a turkey vulture, circling. I think that he was lost, because no way could he see the ground. One minute later, as I darted in and out of the cloud, there was the vulture 50’ below me. He too had found a way out of the cloud.

Jay’s and Danny’s advice was good – Get high and stay high! That was the ONLY place today that there was any lift.

--------------------
Interesting skies...

Is this wave?

Danny, Amy and Don

A couple hours later Jeff returns

Jeff pulling up into the pattern

All this and pizza afterwards!

2009-07-13T12:11:00.000-04:00

A beautiful day! Jeff and I flew up to Rose, NY (just south of Sodus Bay) for breakfast at the EAA1017 annual fly-in before cruising over to Hamilton for the afternoon.

We had a good turn out of members and 2 rides flown by Jeff K in the clubs' 2-33.

Randy Baker, one of our CFIGs rode in on an electric bike and allowed anyone interested to take it for a spin.

Greg Natke showed his "green" side by bringing his Army truck to the field. It also serves as mobile bleachers and I imagine could tow all the gliders to the staging point in one trip.

Brett took up the club L-33

Jeff launched in the Lambada right behind Jay in his ASW-15b, then returned to pick me up for some air to air photos. Unfortunately Brett found only sink and was in the pattern before we could join up with him. Jay headed W and we passed below him on his return from the Tully area.

We found pretty good lift and managed to climb up to cloud base with the engine off before turning west towards Skaneateles. Hamilton is visible just to the left of the nose.

When we were just west of Hamilton a call came on the radio from a Guard C-130 that it would be transitioning the Hamilton area at 500'. Shortly afterwards we spotted it below moving fast.

Most of the flight back was made with the engine idling. If we weren't headed upwind we might have been able to soar the entire distance. Looking north some large buildups could be seen in the distance near Canada.

Flight to visit the Pitcairns

2009-07-13T08:20:00.000-04:00

Jeff and I flew down to Vansant Airport near Allentown, PA then a couple miles south to the Pitcairn's airport to meet another Lambada owner and compare possible structural changes to the Lambada.

Along the way our traffic watching was aided by this little device that watches for transponder signals from nearby aircraft. It compares the broadcast altitude from an encoding transponder to its own pressure altitude to determine how far above or below it is. The signal strength is used to calculate distance. Until the nearby aircraft is spotted it feel like something out of a scary movie, you know something is approaching but you can't see it...

Two Lambadas.

Lauren Pitcairn and his son David. A very interesting family history. Pittsburgh Plate Glass; Pitcairn Aircraft
Family History
John Pitcairn

Looking for any difference in construction.

As we were leaving David fired up the Stearman for some air-to-air photography.

Some interesting cloudscapes returning to CNY.

Approaching Skaneateles, we spotted Jim Murphy departing Frozen Ocean and were treated to a brief fly-by of his newly built RV

Saturday Soaring

2009-06-13T23:25:00.000-04:00

The soaring forecast predicted good lift early in the afternoon but moisture and upper level instability promised some over-development and afternoon showers. Cloud development looked great on the flight over from Skaneateles.

Arriving in Hamilton Don was already rigged and ready to fly his Russia.

Jeff and Phil launched in the Lambada right behind Don and followed him on climb. After about an hour of soaring they returned with the engine off and made a dead-stick landing on the grass. Brett flew with Jeff next.

Here, Don is talking about the advantages to flying with a flight computer.

Soooo cute... I understand Don has matching PJs (with feet)

Phil, Brett, Greg, Don, Jeff

Charging the L-33 gear strut with nitrogen

Mennonite farmer at work.

Dodging showers on the return. We managed to avoid the heaviest thanks to Jeff's Garmin 496 and XM Weather

"Big Red" landing

2009-05-27T19:30:00.000-04:00

Landing Video from the weekend.