Ribs, Fish, & a First Solo

I've been watching the menu for the weekly Friday lunch at Iola, waiting for barbecue ribs to show up. Haven't been there all this spring. Finally, today I had the chance to fly into Iola the first time this season, and lo and behold, it was barbecue rib day! Mmm! Jim and I arrived early, about 10 a.m., so he could work on an annual inspection. We feasted and then I flew solo back to Brennand for lessons.

Late in the afternoon, my 16-year-old student Mike and I went to Waupaca to review takeoffs and landings. Recently we did some serious crosswind work and his landings improved dramatically. Today, after two normal landings, a go-around on purpose, and a simulated emergency landing, Mike was ready to try it himself. Congratulations to him on his first solo!

Tonight I hopped back in 15X with Jim and we went to Shawano for the Friday fish fry at the Launching Pad. It was packed in there so it took a while, but the yummy perch was worth it. As a bonus, because of the delay, we got to see fireworks on a night flight back to Brennand.

Old Planes Fly-In

Father's Day weekend was packed with fly-in events, and one was an "old planes fly-in" at Northport (Poppy's, 38WI). It included a meeting of the Midwest Antique Aircraft Club (of which I'm not a member, so I could not eavesdrop). A van brought a few visitors from the King Veterans' Home. I flew in with the school Cessna 172, which was the best I could do for "old airplane," considering Todd brought his Ercoupe himself with his daughter along. He stopped at Waupaca's fly-in breakfast before making his first-ever trip to Poppy's.

Third Trek to Gaston's

After months of anticipation, I made my third trip to the annual Gaston's fly-in organized by some online message boards. We left Thursday, June 11th and came back Sunday, June 14th. This time I was (happily) pilot-in-command. I rode right seat while my friend Jim did most of the flying as a student pilot. As a good team, we navigated 500 nautical miles south in his 1961 Cessna 172, often with the GPS turned off and no VORs tuned in. The flight both ways went great and was quite enjoyable. We somehow lucked out in having smooth air and no headwinds most of the time. We were able to make the trip VFR, sometimes above the clouds.

We left Thursday evening and stayed in Burlington, IA overnight, where we stumbled across a new resort/casino complex called Pzazz. I wished we would have had time to goof around there, but it was pretty much nachos then lights out.

Friday, we left there and headed to Mexico, MO for cheap fuel. Then we ran into our only weather problem on this trip: a four-hour wait in order to let a massive severe thunderstorm pass our destination. We diverted to Lebanon, MO which was right behind us when we noticed the ugly dark blue sky ahead. I learned all about what a derecho is. It lasted about 12 hours that day, plowing its way across the south. Luckily waiting in Lebanon kept us just north of the mess. Check out the radar loop!

In Lebanon, we saw a plane with a bent-up wingtip from a recent storm. The plane was tied down there when a tornado passed nearby. We might have made it into Mountain Home ahead of the storm, but I really didn't want our plane to end up broken.

After enjoying Lebanon's weekly free lunch at the FBO and waiting, we left for Mountain Home. We logged about six hours total to get this far. Gaston's sent a van out to get us. We thought about landing at Gaston's, but I had bad memories of their runway turning into a mud pit two years ago after a storm. Since I didn't know what Sunday's weather would bring and we really hoped to get home Sunday, we tied down at Mountain Home on the pavement.

The fly-in itself was sort of ho-hum for us, which I know it usually is if you don't participate in the poker run or go for airplane rides. I did enjoy a dip in the pool and an attempt at catching trout in the river. I hung out with friends from the Pilots of America message board. Unfortunately after three meals in the overpriced restaurant, and a little too much boredom and being hot, I think I've decided this will be the last time I go to Gaston's for the fly-in.

Sunday we made the entire flight home in one day, and it was just over six hours. Our first stop was Mexico, MO again for a fill-up on gas and food. We had good timing because storms were threatening to overtake the route we just traveled. There were a few sprinkles after leaving Mexico. We decided to take a slight detour to Dubuque, IA to take a break and prevent sore butts. We borrowed the courtesy car and I showed Jim the view from the bluffs of Eagle Point Park. Our last leg had us passing Dodgeville and Wisconsin Dells, both of which have some oddities to take photos of. We were treated to a pretty sunset with rain in the background just before our final landing.

The nice flight had us wondering just one thing: where will we go next?

I took a lot of pictures during our flights. View the album or click the play button to watch the slideshow below (110 pictures):

Blue = TO Gaston's, Red = FROM Gaston's

Oh Glorious Instrument Rating

My instrument student and I flew an IFR trip from Appleton to Madison, WI and back tonight. We broke out on top of the clouds both ways and it was gorgeous, especially on the way back as the sun was setting. Watch the slideshow and video below and ride along!

An Airshow Performer Up Close & Personal

A popular airshow performer and Red Bull Air Race competitor, Mike Goulian, gave a presentation tonight inside the Lakeshore Aviation hangar in Manitowoc. This coming weekend is the Manitowoc airshow, "Thunder on the Lakeshore," and Mike is one of the performers. Tonight he talked about what it's like to be an aerobatic pilot and fly the Extra 330SC. The local EAA chapter invited pilots and the public to stop in for a brat fry and Mike's presentation.

Before leaving Brennand Airport, I gave 81Q a quick hose-down because it had been sitting inside for months. Our other plane is down for a 100-hour inspection so we're switching back to "my baby." While I was washing it, I saw our resident Stearman taxiing around for what I think was its first taxi test. I saw it back when it was stripped down to the metal frame, and now it's beautifully rebuilt.

Jim and I flew 81Q to Manitowoc as a combination test flight / something-to-do trip. We were sitting on our wonderful newly reupholstered seats. The airplane ran smoothly and performed great as usual.

At the start of Mike's presentation, we were seated looking at the front of his plane. A while later he swiveled it around so we were looking at it from the side. Then he invited us to gather around the plane. He and some helpers literally took the top off of the airplane so we could see inside. Mike described the plane's features including the fuel tanks, smoke system, and the spades on the ailerons. The cowling was already off so we could see the engine.



A couple of my coworkers from Green Bay showed up. Pat, the owner of our flight school, got an autograph. Mike was still signing autographs when Jim and I left to go back to Brennand. I thought it was an interesting and dynamic presentation. It's not every day you get to see inside these airshow airplanes. It was nice of Mike to share his time with us. Unfortunately I don't plan on making it to the airshow this weekend, but maybe next year!

I almost forgot that it would still be light out after we left the hangar. The sun was just setting. Even the sky to the north was turning pink. I couldn't see behind the hangars but I could tell it was going to look awesome to the west. I couldn't wait to get airborne.
Once we took off, we had a great view, indeed! The clouds were glowing and the air was smooth. What a perfect way to end the day.

Along the Front

Check out these pictures from a flight in the Arrow this evening! A weak cold front moved through and triggered showers around the area. Also there is one photo of some of the military vehicles parked at the airport in Oshkosh. Click the play button or click here to visit the album.