West Woodward, OK Fly-in 2010

I took off work today (Memorial Day), in order to attend this fly-in. This would have been my farthest trip to date: 151 miles to be exact. I was REALLY looking forward to this trip. I heard about this fly-in via the SonexTalk e-mail group I belong to. There is a guy there that is building a Sonex, and a few others which are interested in building one. He was really hoping someone would fly down in a Sonex so he could look at one closer... I was determined to be that person.

The forecast was marginal at best! At first light (when I crawled out of bed) there was blue sky above. An hour later, when I left the house, low clouds and mist/fog had rolled in. The ceiling was down to 300 ft. My planned departure time was 0800. At the hangar I did a very thorough pre-flight, washed the windscreen, added a little oil, everything was ready to go. By the time 0920 arrived there was no clearing in sight.... I left for home.


This picture does not do it justice... but the weather was not good for a cross-country trip!

2nd Annual Rucker Airfield Memorial Day Fly-In Picnic

Boy, talk about a good time! Since I missed the Woodward, OK fly-in earlier in the day I was itching to make this fly-in! The field is located only 10 miles or so from my home strip. The ceilings at my field was still 8-900 ft. I thought about waiting it out in hopes for the ceiling to lift. It was all of 12:30 and getting later. My wife needed me home in the mid-afternoon so I decided to pack it up and go home... I decided to drive there instead and make this a family event. This turned out to be a good decision!

I was surprised when we arrived. There were more planes than I thought would have showed up. The ceiling was over 1000 ft, so I could have easily flown in without much trouble had my field been more cooperative. Come to find out there were a lot of wet spots on this grass strip. Not only that, there was a "hidden" low-lying body of water about mid-field. Everyone found this spot - more like it found them! SPLASH!! This was the norm for EVERY arriving aircraft. On take-off, it was common for a crowd of people to migrate on the grass, watching with eagerness to see if the plane could make it off before splashing into the water - prolonging the take-off roll. Most planes, except for the lightest, could not make it in time.

It had become very muggy outside. High humidity and very light winds made standing behind the prop-wash of departing aircraft a must. That is where you could find me. The grills were working full-time cooking hot dogs and hamburgers. Everyone else brought side dishes. There was enough food there that no one would go home hungry.

It normally seems like I am the only person that brings their kids to these events. Not this one! There were kids of all ages there. This is a farming community. And I would guess that even non-flying neighbors were there with their families.... it was nice.

How can you not respect the Stearman... you got to love it!

Me and Isaac in the background. Little Grace, drinking, in the foreground.

Homebuilt.

The Stearman looks massive compared to this Cessna. The Cessna would look massive compared to my Sonex...

I will plan to attend this event in the future. For only being the 2nd annual it was impressive. Here is a link to there blog: http://ruckerfield.blogspot.com/

Hillsboro, KS EAA Fly-in Breakfast

Got up around 0700 to fly up to Hillsboro, KS. Their local EAA chapter was having a fly-in breakfast. This is the first fly-in that I have attended with my Sonex. I was excited to go!

Right before take-off... looking down runway 17 at Cook.

Once in the air I realized that visibility would be an issue... it was POOR!

Looking East toward the sun. Maybe 4 miles visibility... if that.

Looking West was MUCH better.

Throttled back (a little) I was indicating 150 mph ground speed. Made it to Hillsboro in short order. It is only 55 miles from Cook (my home field) to Hillsboro. Here I am starting my downwind leg to runway 17.

Some of the planes there already. There was not a ton of people there, but respectable for the size of town.

My plane sitting on the grass. I hate parking in the grass with my super-tiny tail wheel. I took a friend up for his first Sonex flight - he is around 210lbs, my heaviest passenger yet. We hit the tail wheel first on landing but all was good!

After answering a few questions about the Sonex, and eating some pancakes and sausage, I took off... good time overall!

Grass Roots Aviation

Douglass, Kansas was the place to be on May 1, 2010. This small grass strip is home of our famous Lawrence Alley - a USMC Skyraider pilot. EAA did a Timeless Voices video with him: http://www.eaa.org/video/timelessvoices.html?videoId=27504931001

This little grass-roots aviation event was very impressive! There were planes of all shapes and sizes. I did a fly-by earlier in the morning but was not confident enough in my landing skills to land on this postage-stamp sized runway. My father, me, and the kids drove 20 miles east of where I fly out of to join in on the fun. When we got there, they were taking a group photo. I let my dad and kids (far right side) get in on the pic as I shot my own.

Just an awesome C140 airplane in one of the hangars.

A little formation flying fun!

There was a neighbor/pilot at the event who lived just a few yards from the strip. He kindly invited us over to visit some of his family. This guy owned some interesting animals: Kangaroos, turtles, and exotic birds - WAY COOL for me and the kids!

Powered-parachute rides...

I love looking at planes in different stages of construction; especially after building a metal plane myself.

Here is the runway. I am not sure this picture does the actual length any justice in just how short this runway is.

We could only stay 2 hours or so... I wish I could have been there earlier, but it was wonderful day for flying. I spent all morning flying my Sonex... working on getting the 40 hours flown off!

Sun n' Fun 2010

My first trip to Sun n' Fun! The family and I took a trip to Florida to enjoy some of the attractions that the Orlando area offers. I was "allowed" two days at Sun n' Fun, the rest of the time we went to Disney, Sea World, Coco beach, and of course, NASA.

In a nutshell, the time spent at Sun n' Fun was far from enjoyable. The kids were throwing one temper-tantrum after another. I should have known better. The second day we went my wife offered to stay with the kids at the condo we rented. The kids actually have fun there, playing on the balcony and watching cartoons. I felt a little bad about them staying there all day, and thought just maybe the second day would be better. NOPE! Anyway, I was glade to be there and will put this down as a "lesson-learned" trip. Here are few pics:

We had to walk a long ways to the front. There should be special parking for those with kids under 3 years old. Day 2 I got smart and parked a LOT closer.

Talk about a wicked-cool paint scheme!

I just love the T-51 aircraft by the Titan Company. It is a 3/4 scale P-51 mustang.

Very unique ultralight design. I really enjoyed Paradise City (the ultralight section).

You cannot go to Sun n' Fun and not visit the museum on the field. The museum was full of some of the coolest home-builts.

First Sonex Flight!

I have not posted anything in a little while now. I have been a BUSY bee trying to finish up my Sonex project. Like anything else, there is always those odd & in things that somehow prevent you from finishing on time. I received my airworthiness certificate 21 Oct 2009. After that, engine issues, and training for my tail wheel endorsement, delayed the first flight until now.

My tail wheel instructor (Jim B) wanted me to get some higher performance air time before taking the Sonex on its first flight. After we landed the RV6 he asked if I wanted him to take the Sonex up for the first flight. I agreed. I have not had much flying time in the past 2 years, and the time I do have has been in a very light 70mph airplane. Jim is WAY more experienced and current - he was the IDEAL person for the job, and I am grateful that he did it!

I was NOT expecting a first flight so I did not have ANY camera equipment. I quickly called my father to come out to the field - and BRING A CAMERA. He made it out there after take-off. He was able to snap a few pics. This is Jim landing. PERFECT landing.

The flight was a success!! A few high temps and a left turning tendency but all went well. Here Jim is in the red coat - he is thanking me for letting him fly the plane - NOT! I really appreciate him doing the first flight, and for all the advice and awesome training he provided me.

Wichita Flight Festival 2009

I was only able to go on Sunday August 30th because of a work. It was the first time that this show was free to attend. The scale of the show was dampened because of this, but nevertheless, it was fun and entertaining. Here is a short video clip showing some of the planes that were on display and show. Hopefully, next year my plane will be on display! Enjoy!