Day two and three of the race went pretty smoothly. From Hot Springs, AR we flew to Cameron, MO, did a flyby without landing and on to Illinois. Illinois was great with lots of food, music and the American Red Cross. We waited a couple of hours for weather to pass and then were off to Indiana where we planned to spend the night.
Our fly by in Indiana went well and we circled out to the right to cool down and prepare to land. At this particular airport the flyby was in one direction 200 feet over the runway and landing was on the same runway, but in the opposite direction. We were cleared to land, on short final with gear and flaps extended and the airspeed nice and slow when tower instructed us to do a 360 to the right to avoid the next airplane on the flyby. It was very dangerous to undertake the maneuver and in retrospect we should have said unable, but we didn't want to delay the other team's flyby so did as directed. As we came out of the 360 we were no longer lined up with the runway but cleared to land. After some additional maneuvering we got ourselves lined up and with variable crosswinds, and ended up with one of our nicest landings. Phew! Glad to be on the ground after that one.
We had to park N4685M on the grass and secure it with our tie down stakes. It was disconcerting how easily the stakes could be pushed into the ground. Typically it takes a hammer or at least a heavy rock to drive them in. We secured the plane as best we could.
We found ourselves at a very sorry Best Western and walked to the Texas Roadhouse for dinner. The walk was a bit longer than expected and took us over the interstate. There was a sidewalk so no worries. After dinner as we exited the Texas Roadhouse we saw a black sky to the west and there was lightening. By the time we were on the overpass, feeling very exposed, the lightening intensified, the sky became even darker and the first few drops of rain began to fall. We walked faster and faster, and with a 50 yard dash to the very sorry Best Western, got in just before the skies opened.
As we entered the lobby one of the guests told us about a tornado warning, but the joke in the lobby was there is always a tornado warning.
Once in our room Sheryl dialed in the weather channel and that is when the tornado warnings became real to us. Never having heard one I thought it was a fire alarm. The wind outside was howling to the point we stayed clear of the windows and we watched in horror as the storm approached the airport area where 85M was secured on the flimsy tie downs. Soon the lights went out and we just waited.
Once the storm passed and the lights came back on I called the airport to see if there was any damage to the airplanes. They said not to worry because they had 20 minutes notice and got just about all but 3 or 4 airplanes into the hangar and the ones remaining outside were not damaged.
In the morning we checked weather and the outlook was not good. Most of the next leg was not VFR and we would have to watch to see if we could even get out. The storm that passed the night before was now in our direct path.
We went to the airport to wait out the weather only to find that N4685M was not one of the airplanes put into the hangar and was not where we had left it. It pulled the stakes in the rain and weathervaned into the wind. As a result the rudder appeared to be broken so we had 85M hauled into the maintenance hangar to be checked out. Word of our possible damage spread like wildfire among the other racers. The mechanics inspected the linkages and the front landing gear and proclaimed no damage. A panicked call to Pete back in Plymouth confirmed that based on what we described, he believed there to be no worries.
Around 4 PM we were ready to take off with clear weather. Unfortunately I failed to pull the wheel chock, so after a bit of embarrassment we were off. We tested the controls as much as we could while taxiing and on initial roll out and luckily all was well with N4685M. She had survived a close by tornado with grace.
We flew to our next stop in Parkersburg, WV, did a flyby and continued on to the final stop in Frederick, MD. Flying over the mountains into MD was hairy. The cloud layer was low and the ground was high so we had to thread our way through. The GPS highlighted the towers so that really helped. The thermals were wicked and we bounced around mercilessly.
One at our final destination we tied down and left the plane at the field.
We heard of the trials and tribulations of many of the racers including equipment malfunctions like vacuum pumps, starters, batteries, a carburetor and lights, one racer lost a wheel faring, some racers flew the wrong runway on their high speed flybys and some failed to communicate with the other racers, the timers on the ground and even the Class Delta towers.
After spending many days on post flight briefings and then the final banquet last night we ended up with no penalties and finishing 41 out of 51. Although this may not seem to be very good results we are happy with them, especially considering we never flew “full throttle” which is what is expected during this race. We finished with great experiences and safely.
Today we leave for home in MA.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Day One of the Race
We are alive and well in Hot Springs, AR and the name fits. It is brutally hot.
We had a 4 AM start today so that we were checked out and ready for the final 6 AM briefing and breakfast. At 7 we were off the the airport. The rental car required fuel so we pulled into a Marathon station. The credit card machine at the pump was labeled inop so in I went, past all the police cars, which I assumed were there to get morning donuts and coffee. Wrong. Some big event had just occurred and I got booted out of there by FLPD. We found gas, got the plane loaded, pre-flighted and we were good to go with just a minor squawk. The cargo door of N4685M wasn't closing properly but Sheryl fixed it with a screwdriver.
As race team one we were the first to get started and lead the parade to the runway for run-up and takeoff. It was great to take off ahead of the pack and have the opportunity to stay ahead throughout the first leg to Waycross, GA. We flew relatively low at 3000 feet and dropped down to 1000 feet due to clouds over the Okefenokee Swamp in southern GA. Our first dive for the runway and flyby in the Bonanza with gauges redlining was a bit of a trip. Passing by a tower that reached a higher altitude than we were at was a bit intimidating, too.
Waycross hospitality was outstanding. The County Commissioner welcomed us, many of the locals greeted us with their own aviation stories, including an elderly gentleman who's mother flew air races when he was a boy, and the great homemade BBQ (what I have come to find out as being a staple in the southern states).
We overstayed our intended layover in Waycross due to the enjoyment of talking with the locals, talking with the other racers and watching many of the other planes doing their flybys and landings. Considering we had one set of instructions, there were a multitude of variations - some comical and some a bit dangerous.
Our next leg was to Tuscaloosa, AL. This airport is under the control of ATC with a tower. As we were receiving our instructions from the tower it was apparent that the poor guy trying to deal with normal traffic as well as 51 airplanes doing high speed flybys and then returning to land was more than he had bargained for. Sheryl was eyes outside making sure he didn't make a mistake that would put both us and another plan on a collision course.
We had originally hoped to stop over in Tuscaloosa and take advantage of the wonderful offer from Cousin Pam to stay with her family, but due to a somewhat rare east to west tailwind we had to push off.
Our next leg was to Hot Springs, AR. Did I mention it is really, really hot here? The outside temperature at 3000 feet was over 90 and although we didn't have an inside temperature gauge, my guess is 90+. Pieces and parts of me that "glowed" with the heat were pieces and parts I did not think capable of doing so.
The intent was to do a flyby in Hot Springs and then go on to Cameron, MO, but between the heat and fatigue of the day we decided we had enough. This was a good decision as I experienced signs of heat stroke shortly after landing.
Lots of water to drink, a shower and a good dinner set that straight. It is now 10 eastern time so after a long day, it is time to flight plan for tomorrow.
We had a 4 AM start today so that we were checked out and ready for the final 6 AM briefing and breakfast. At 7 we were off the the airport. The rental car required fuel so we pulled into a Marathon station. The credit card machine at the pump was labeled inop so in I went, past all the police cars, which I assumed were there to get morning donuts and coffee. Wrong. Some big event had just occurred and I got booted out of there by FLPD. We found gas, got the plane loaded, pre-flighted and we were good to go with just a minor squawk. The cargo door of N4685M wasn't closing properly but Sheryl fixed it with a screwdriver.
As race team one we were the first to get started and lead the parade to the runway for run-up and takeoff. It was great to take off ahead of the pack and have the opportunity to stay ahead throughout the first leg to Waycross, GA. We flew relatively low at 3000 feet and dropped down to 1000 feet due to clouds over the Okefenokee Swamp in southern GA. Our first dive for the runway and flyby in the Bonanza with gauges redlining was a bit of a trip. Passing by a tower that reached a higher altitude than we were at was a bit intimidating, too.
Waycross hospitality was outstanding. The County Commissioner welcomed us, many of the locals greeted us with their own aviation stories, including an elderly gentleman who's mother flew air races when he was a boy, and the great homemade BBQ (what I have come to find out as being a staple in the southern states).
We overstayed our intended layover in Waycross due to the enjoyment of talking with the locals, talking with the other racers and watching many of the other planes doing their flybys and landings. Considering we had one set of instructions, there were a multitude of variations - some comical and some a bit dangerous.
Our next leg was to Tuscaloosa, AL. This airport is under the control of ATC with a tower. As we were receiving our instructions from the tower it was apparent that the poor guy trying to deal with normal traffic as well as 51 airplanes doing high speed flybys and then returning to land was more than he had bargained for. Sheryl was eyes outside making sure he didn't make a mistake that would put both us and another plan on a collision course.
We had originally hoped to stop over in Tuscaloosa and take advantage of the wonderful offer from Cousin Pam to stay with her family, but due to a somewhat rare east to west tailwind we had to push off.
Our next leg was to Hot Springs, AR. Did I mention it is really, really hot here? The outside temperature at 3000 feet was over 90 and although we didn't have an inside temperature gauge, my guess is 90+. Pieces and parts of me that "glowed" with the heat were pieces and parts I did not think capable of doing so.
The intent was to do a flyby in Hot Springs and then go on to Cameron, MO, but between the heat and fatigue of the day we decided we had enough. This was a good decision as I experienced signs of heat stroke shortly after landing.
Lots of water to drink, a shower and a good dinner set that straight. It is now 10 eastern time so after a long day, it is time to flight plan for tomorrow.
Monday, June 21, 2010
The Race Starts in the Morning
We have gone through two days of briefings and spent all sorts of time going over FAA regulations, flight planning, and strategizing over the best airplane configuration to fly (manifold pressure, leaning, prop rpm, cylinder head temps, exhaust gas temp, cylinder temp differential, etc). Our heads are spinning with all the data.
At this point, the night before, I think we are in pretty good shape. The stress is beginning to creep in but Sheryl and I are doing a good job at keeping it at bay, thanks to family and friends we keep calling and asking questions of.
Just to add a bit of fun to the equation we lost electricity in the hotel for about two hours during a severe thunderstorm that looked more like a tornado when we looked out of the window and decided to step away from the glass. As we sat in our ever warming room we could hear the rescue squad from the local FD getting a little girl out of the elevator while her mother talked to her on her cell phone and wrung her hands in worry.
As for the race, the big concern is over safety for this particular racing event due to the large number of racers (51 teams at final count) and percentage of first time fliers (2/3rds). Launching 51 planes within 15 minutes to fly the same route over low altitude and going into an uncontrolled field could well possibly be a recipe for disaster.
This was the best possibly year for Sheryl and I to be in a fast airplane and with the opportunity to take off first for safety purposes. We will initially start out ahead and be able to stay ahead of the "traffic".
It looks as though we may be able to take advantage of a rare tailwind blowing east to west so initially plan to fly from Fort Myers, to Waycross GA, to Tuscaloosa, AL to Hot Spring, AZ finishing up in Cameron, MO tomorrow. Our only regret will be to pass up on the Tuscaloosa hospitality of cousin Pam.
At this point, the night before, I think we are in pretty good shape. The stress is beginning to creep in but Sheryl and I are doing a good job at keeping it at bay, thanks to family and friends we keep calling and asking questions of.
Just to add a bit of fun to the equation we lost electricity in the hotel for about two hours during a severe thunderstorm that looked more like a tornado when we looked out of the window and decided to step away from the glass. As we sat in our ever warming room we could hear the rescue squad from the local FD getting a little girl out of the elevator while her mother talked to her on her cell phone and wrung her hands in worry.
As for the race, the big concern is over safety for this particular racing event due to the large number of racers (51 teams at final count) and percentage of first time fliers (2/3rds). Launching 51 planes within 15 minutes to fly the same route over low altitude and going into an uncontrolled field could well possibly be a recipe for disaster.
This was the best possibly year for Sheryl and I to be in a fast airplane and with the opportunity to take off first for safety purposes. We will initially start out ahead and be able to stay ahead of the "traffic".
It looks as though we may be able to take advantage of a rare tailwind blowing east to west so initially plan to fly from Fort Myers, to Waycross GA, to Tuscaloosa, AL to Hot Spring, AZ finishing up in Cameron, MO tomorrow. Our only regret will be to pass up on the Tuscaloosa hospitality of cousin Pam.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
Saturday in Sunny and Stormy South Florida
Today started at 4 AM as we prepared ourselves and the plane for the handicap trials. The idea was to get out early before the thermals, wind and clouds started to build up.
I flew with a wonderful woman from TX as the race official setting the handicap for N4685M. She is an orthopedic PA who flies for a living and falls back on her PA position while on furlow. She was very knowledgeable about Bonanza's so that helped the process along. She was also complementary on how I handled the plane which made me exceedingly happy.
When Sheryl and I flew into Fort Myers the weather was so poor we were not able to see this beautiful area, but today the air was clear and the water was blue and it was just beautiful.
After the handicap trial we were to go to inspection, but needed to put the new larger numbers on the plane first, but wait, where are the numbers? Answer? No where to be found. By now we are becoming proficient at finding new sets of numbers, so after the delay of doing so, we slapped them onto the plane and got it off to inspection. Inspection went well, thanks to Pete for letting me know where the correct weight and balance was and to Bill for making sure I tagged all the pertinent information in the airplane log books.
With some free time on our hands we took a tour of Sanibel and Captiva Islands. Beautiful!
Tonight was the welcome BBQ with giant pig roast. We met the first time racer team were were assigned to mentor. The poor kids are having all sorts to trials and tribulations including equipment trouble and not having all the required documentation.
We also got to meet the Sandi/Heather team. Sandi works with AOPA and she and I never met before, but had many opportunities to talk about the race during the preceding months. Heather, her teammate, is a management level air traffic controller on the NY TRACON who was on site when Captain Sully put the USAir plane into the Hudson. It is her voice on the TRACON preceding the air traffic controller who was in direct contact with Captain Sully, trying to find an alternate location for him to land. Just talking to her brought tears to my eyes all over again over that incident.
I learned something from my new friend Sandi tonight, so as a special note to the "other Bill" in Indiana, what is this I hear about you needing a checklist for pontoon boat usage? Something about needing a gas tank??? Do tell. Would you like to fill us in?
Back to race info. The deadline for arrival was noon today. As of tonight there is still one race team that did not get in due to weather. There are also three that withdrew for various reasons. We are now a total of 50 airplanes.
I flew with a wonderful woman from TX as the race official setting the handicap for N4685M. She is an orthopedic PA who flies for a living and falls back on her PA position while on furlow. She was very knowledgeable about Bonanza's so that helped the process along. She was also complementary on how I handled the plane which made me exceedingly happy.
When Sheryl and I flew into Fort Myers the weather was so poor we were not able to see this beautiful area, but today the air was clear and the water was blue and it was just beautiful.
After the handicap trial we were to go to inspection, but needed to put the new larger numbers on the plane first, but wait, where are the numbers? Answer? No where to be found. By now we are becoming proficient at finding new sets of numbers, so after the delay of doing so, we slapped them onto the plane and got it off to inspection. Inspection went well, thanks to Pete for letting me know where the correct weight and balance was and to Bill for making sure I tagged all the pertinent information in the airplane log books.
With some free time on our hands we took a tour of Sanibel and Captiva Islands. Beautiful!
Tonight was the welcome BBQ with giant pig roast. We met the first time racer team were were assigned to mentor. The poor kids are having all sorts to trials and tribulations including equipment trouble and not having all the required documentation.
We also got to meet the Sandi/Heather team. Sandi works with AOPA and she and I never met before, but had many opportunities to talk about the race during the preceding months. Heather, her teammate, is a management level air traffic controller on the NY TRACON who was on site when Captain Sully put the USAir plane into the Hudson. It is her voice on the TRACON preceding the air traffic controller who was in direct contact with Captain Sully, trying to find an alternate location for him to land. Just talking to her brought tears to my eyes all over again over that incident.
I learned something from my new friend Sandi tonight, so as a special note to the "other Bill" in Indiana, what is this I hear about you needing a checklist for pontoon boat usage? Something about needing a gas tank??? Do tell. Would you like to fill us in?
Back to race info. The deadline for arrival was noon today. As of tonight there is still one race team that did not get in due to weather. There are also three that withdrew for various reasons. We are now a total of 50 airplanes.
Friday, June 18, 2010
We're here!
Flying from Georgia to Fort Pierce this morning went smoothly. The skies were hazy and at 3000 ft AGL it was at times difficult to see the ground. There were also several ground fires smoking things up.
The number of small planes in the air at any given time can be daunting in Florida. With Orlando airspace taking up a huge section of central FL and all the restricted air spaces, including Cape Canaveral, there are a limited number of north/south routes along the east coast that don't involve congested areas or flying out over the water. There was lots of flight training going on today and the little airports were buzzing. We were receiving advisories from ATC but with so many planes many came quite close to us with no word of warning from ATC. The voice on our in-flight traffic advisory chirped "traffic, traffic" several times, which provides a really good adrenaline rush if you can't quickly locate exactly where the other plane is. The lesson learned for next time through this area is to fly high.
We dropped Bill off in Fort Pierce and proceeded south west to Fort Myers. Several large thunderstorms were building both north and south of us but our route looked clear. The smaller general aviation airport that was our destination is under the large controlled airspace of Fort Myers International. The original plan was to approach from the north so that we didn't have to fly a long distance at less than 12oo ft to say below the controlled airspace. Due to a thunderhead that developed just north of the airport, we ended up coming in on a diagonal which resulted in a long distance at about 1000 feet. After being trained to keep altitude this felt a bit uncomfortable but after an extended downwind we landed uneventfully.
We had a lovely greeting from the crew here and it was wonderful to see so many of the racers from previous years.
Of course we were supposed to put our race numbers on before we got here and we forgot, so Sheryl and I applied ourselves to the task. After getting the first number on Sheryl commented that our number looked smaller than the rest. Well, turns out the folks that made the numbers made them to the wrong size, so we set out wildly looking to see how to find new and larger numbers. All we need are two 18 inch tall number ones.
Terry Carbonell, one of the racers and an official with the race, helped us out with some extra vinyl material she had. As we went back out to the airport to apply the larger numbers that previously mentioned thunderstorm that was to the north hit with a vengeance. The skies opened and it rained torrentialy for over an hour. The lightning was amazing. The logical thing to do instead was to eat, so we did.
Many of the racers have not yet arrived due to the thunderstorms. Sitting in the lobby this evening with one of the racers, call after call came in cancelling this evening's hotel reservation. The weather should be good tomorrow morning so with an early start they should get in before the noon deadline and ahead of the expected afternoon thunderstorms.
We received a call later this evening that our handicap trials are scheduled to be wheels up at 7 AM tomorrow morning, so it looks like a 4 AM wake up call is in store. Tomorrow we will be assigned our handicap.
The number of small planes in the air at any given time can be daunting in Florida. With Orlando airspace taking up a huge section of central FL and all the restricted air spaces, including Cape Canaveral, there are a limited number of north/south routes along the east coast that don't involve congested areas or flying out over the water. There was lots of flight training going on today and the little airports were buzzing. We were receiving advisories from ATC but with so many planes many came quite close to us with no word of warning from ATC. The voice on our in-flight traffic advisory chirped "traffic, traffic" several times, which provides a really good adrenaline rush if you can't quickly locate exactly where the other plane is. The lesson learned for next time through this area is to fly high.
We dropped Bill off in Fort Pierce and proceeded south west to Fort Myers. Several large thunderstorms were building both north and south of us but our route looked clear. The smaller general aviation airport that was our destination is under the large controlled airspace of Fort Myers International. The original plan was to approach from the north so that we didn't have to fly a long distance at less than 12oo ft to say below the controlled airspace. Due to a thunderhead that developed just north of the airport, we ended up coming in on a diagonal which resulted in a long distance at about 1000 feet. After being trained to keep altitude this felt a bit uncomfortable but after an extended downwind we landed uneventfully.
We had a lovely greeting from the crew here and it was wonderful to see so many of the racers from previous years.
Of course we were supposed to put our race numbers on before we got here and we forgot, so Sheryl and I applied ourselves to the task. After getting the first number on Sheryl commented that our number looked smaller than the rest. Well, turns out the folks that made the numbers made them to the wrong size, so we set out wildly looking to see how to find new and larger numbers. All we need are two 18 inch tall number ones.
Terry Carbonell, one of the racers and an official with the race, helped us out with some extra vinyl material she had. As we went back out to the airport to apply the larger numbers that previously mentioned thunderstorm that was to the north hit with a vengeance. The skies opened and it rained torrentialy for over an hour. The lightning was amazing. The logical thing to do instead was to eat, so we did.
Many of the racers have not yet arrived due to the thunderstorms. Sitting in the lobby this evening with one of the racers, call after call came in cancelling this evening's hotel reservation. The weather should be good tomorrow morning so with an early start they should get in before the noon deadline and ahead of the expected afternoon thunderstorms.
We received a call later this evening that our handicap trials are scheduled to be wheels up at 7 AM tomorrow morning, so it looks like a 4 AM wake up call is in store. Tomorrow we will be assigned our handicap.
Thursday, June 17, 2010
Still enroute to Florida
We awoke to pea soup fog in MA this morning so took our time over a leisurely breakfast to allow the weather to pick up a bit and for Bill to fix the car tire. We were loaded with wheels up around 11 AM and boy, were we loaded. Between the required equipment and log books, the three of us, full fuel and baggage for three we were at max gross weight.
Bill brought the left over lobster salad so it was a gourmet flight.
Bill flew the first leg with the first hour mostly in the clouds. We started to pop out at times and got glimpses of Newport, RI, Long Island and a peak at New York City. We overflew JFK and could only see the the jets popping out on top of the cloud layer. We continued on uneventfully over the Delmarva Peninsula, over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel and then into Currecheck (sp?) (ONX), just past Norfolk for fuel. The arrival was abrupt, a traditional chop and drop, something Bill admonished us NOT to do on the race. We can guess why he was in such a hurry to land.
On final going into ONX there was a kite landing with two folks on board ahead of us. Luckily it was brightly colored and beautiful to see, but looks to dangerous to me.
As we fueled some of the kite fliers caught Bill and suggested he "loose the girls" for a big beer blast planned for later in the day - guys only - yeah, right. Bill chose to stick with us. Smart man.
From ONX Judy and Sheryl took the pilot and copilot seats with Bill in the back. This was our first opportunity to fly together in over a year and the first time in the Bonanza. We did fine with a flew opportunities for Bill to make suggestions from the back seat. Once a flight instructor...
A line of thunderstorms developed over the Carolina's so we diverted west to fly around them. A weather advisory was published announcing the line of thunderstorms as being 25 miles wide, severe with winds up to 60 mph and one inch hail. At this point Bill was thinking that testosterone laced party back at ONX was starting to sound pretty darn good. We successfully navigated the thunderstorms and made it to Statesboro, GA. Where is that you ask? I'm not sure but somewhere in the northeast corner.
After a light dinner we are settled into the hotel room for a bonding experience since we all three snore!
The weather briefing for tomorrow looks thunderstorm free until around 2 in the afternoon so with an early start we should be able to get Bill to Fort Pierce in a couple of hours and then one more hour to cross over to Fort Meyers and arrive at the race start.
Bill brought the left over lobster salad so it was a gourmet flight.
Bill flew the first leg with the first hour mostly in the clouds. We started to pop out at times and got glimpses of Newport, RI, Long Island and a peak at New York City. We overflew JFK and could only see the the jets popping out on top of the cloud layer. We continued on uneventfully over the Delmarva Peninsula, over the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel and then into Currecheck (sp?) (ONX), just past Norfolk for fuel. The arrival was abrupt, a traditional chop and drop, something Bill admonished us NOT to do on the race. We can guess why he was in such a hurry to land.
On final going into ONX there was a kite landing with two folks on board ahead of us. Luckily it was brightly colored and beautiful to see, but looks to dangerous to me.
As we fueled some of the kite fliers caught Bill and suggested he "loose the girls" for a big beer blast planned for later in the day - guys only - yeah, right. Bill chose to stick with us. Smart man.
From ONX Judy and Sheryl took the pilot and copilot seats with Bill in the back. This was our first opportunity to fly together in over a year and the first time in the Bonanza. We did fine with a flew opportunities for Bill to make suggestions from the back seat. Once a flight instructor...
A line of thunderstorms developed over the Carolina's so we diverted west to fly around them. A weather advisory was published announcing the line of thunderstorms as being 25 miles wide, severe with winds up to 60 mph and one inch hail. At this point Bill was thinking that testosterone laced party back at ONX was starting to sound pretty darn good. We successfully navigated the thunderstorms and made it to Statesboro, GA. Where is that you ask? I'm not sure but somewhere in the northeast corner.
After a light dinner we are settled into the hotel room for a bonding experience since we all three snore!
The weather briefing for tomorrow looks thunderstorm free until around 2 in the afternoon so with an early start we should be able to get Bill to Fort Pierce in a couple of hours and then one more hour to cross over to Fort Meyers and arrive at the race start.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Departure Day is tomorrow
It has been very hectic getting ready for this year's air race but also very exciting.
Unfortunately we had a sad event in the family. Jerry's wife Laurie lost her grandfather suddenly on Saturday morning and the funeral was today. Laurie's family is very close knit and this was a tragic and unexpected event.
As I started this update Bill was driving Sheryl to our house from the Providence airport after her trip here from Indianappolis. I set out to get Sheryl but had a flat tire. Luckily Bill was able to complete the mission and Sheryl was not stranded in Providence.
Sheryl and I are planning on leaving for Florida tomorrow morning. The weather is not looking promising for an early morning VRF departure. The big news is that Bill will be coming with us to Florida. Bill and I have been trying to buy a house on a short sale in FL for several months and finally got the word it was a go, so Bill will need to be there on Saturday for inspections. He will then find his way home on SouthWest while Sheryl and I proceed to the start of the race in Fort Meyers.
Sheryl and Bill quickly became fast friends on the trip home from the airport and Sheryl even convinced Bill to stop for lobster and clam chowder so we had a seafood treat for dinner.
Sheryl and I spent time going over the charts for the race course this evening. Since tomorrow will be IFR and we will have Bill along, the plan is to fly the first leg out to FL with Bill and I in the front seats and Sheryl in the back. Once we get into VFR conditions we will switch Sheryl to the front for the remainder of the trip. This may allow for Sheryl to get acquainted with the Bonanza before actually flying it.
So many folks have been tremendously generous with their time and equipment to get us ready for the race. To name a few, Pete and the crew at Yankee Aviation making sure N4685M is in tip top condition, the "other Bill", Bill Griffith for Sheryl's familiarization with the Bonanza including over 10 hours of flight time in his, Ty Lingo for additional instruction and safety procedures for Sheryl, Mike Haden for helping Sheryl with presentations for race fund raising and of course the XXXXL shirts (what a hoot, never saw one that big) and hats, Craig Lesinski for flight training with Judy, Bill Snow for being an awesome husband and letting us take his plane, and of course the "other" Bill to mention again for the very, very generous check toward gas money. We also have so many, many well wishes from friends and family for fair skies and a safe flight.
Track us on www.flightaware.com if you want! All you need to do in enter the airplane tail number, N4685M. We can also be tracked via the airraceclassic.org where there is a link to track your favorite racers. We are team #1. Yippee!
Unfortunately we had a sad event in the family. Jerry's wife Laurie lost her grandfather suddenly on Saturday morning and the funeral was today. Laurie's family is very close knit and this was a tragic and unexpected event.
As I started this update Bill was driving Sheryl to our house from the Providence airport after her trip here from Indianappolis. I set out to get Sheryl but had a flat tire. Luckily Bill was able to complete the mission and Sheryl was not stranded in Providence.
Sheryl and I are planning on leaving for Florida tomorrow morning. The weather is not looking promising for an early morning VRF departure. The big news is that Bill will be coming with us to Florida. Bill and I have been trying to buy a house on a short sale in FL for several months and finally got the word it was a go, so Bill will need to be there on Saturday for inspections. He will then find his way home on SouthWest while Sheryl and I proceed to the start of the race in Fort Meyers.
Sheryl and Bill quickly became fast friends on the trip home from the airport and Sheryl even convinced Bill to stop for lobster and clam chowder so we had a seafood treat for dinner.
Sheryl and I spent time going over the charts for the race course this evening. Since tomorrow will be IFR and we will have Bill along, the plan is to fly the first leg out to FL with Bill and I in the front seats and Sheryl in the back. Once we get into VFR conditions we will switch Sheryl to the front for the remainder of the trip. This may allow for Sheryl to get acquainted with the Bonanza before actually flying it.
So many folks have been tremendously generous with their time and equipment to get us ready for the race. To name a few, Pete and the crew at Yankee Aviation making sure N4685M is in tip top condition, the "other Bill", Bill Griffith for Sheryl's familiarization with the Bonanza including over 10 hours of flight time in his, Ty Lingo for additional instruction and safety procedures for Sheryl, Mike Haden for helping Sheryl with presentations for race fund raising and of course the XXXXL shirts (what a hoot, never saw one that big) and hats, Craig Lesinski for flight training with Judy, Bill Snow for being an awesome husband and letting us take his plane, and of course the "other" Bill to mention again for the very, very generous check toward gas money. We also have so many, many well wishes from friends and family for fair skies and a safe flight.
Track us on www.flightaware.com if you want! All you need to do in enter the airplane tail number, N4685M. We can also be tracked via the airraceclassic.org where there is a link to track your favorite racers. We are team #1. Yippee!
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