Air Trails

Welcome home!

2005-08-09T19:30:00.000-04:00

"Safe & Sound"

Too bad for CNN, Fox, MSNBC, Etc, etc....Didnt quite get the story it felt like they were hoping for....Watch this space for more rantings about that. Ive been biting my tongue until this mission was complete. I have lots to say about this.

Declaration of Revocation

2005-08-05T12:33:00.000-04:00

Mike over at Mikes Musings posted this, and being a citizen of both Great Britain & the United States, I cant tell you how much this made me laugh....

Declaration of Revocation by John Cleese

To the citizens of the United States of America, in the light of your failure to elect a competent President of the USA and thus to govern yourselves, we hereby give notice of the revocation of your independence, effective today.

Her Sovereign Majesty Queen Elizabeth II will resume monarchical duties over all states, commonwealths and other territories.

Except Utah, which she does not fancy.

Your new Prime Minister (The Right Honourable Tony Blair, MP for the 97.85% of you who have until now been unaware that there is a world outside your borders) will appoint a Minister for America without the need for further elections.

Congress and the Senate will be disbanded.

A questionnaire will be circulated next year to determine whether any of you noticed. To aid in the transition to a British Crown Dependency, the following rules are introduced with immediate effect:

1. You should look up "revocation" in the Oxford English Dictionary. Then look up "aluminium." Check the pronunciation guide. You will be amazed at just how wrongly you have been pronouncing it.
The letter 'U' will be reinstated in words such as 'favour' and 'neighbour'; skipping the letter 'U' is nothing more than laziness on your part. Likewise, you will learn to spell 'doughnut' without skipping half the letters.
You will end your love affair with the letter 'Z' (pronounced 'zed' not 'zee') and the suffix "ize" will be replaced by the suffix "ise."
You will learn that the suffix 'burgh' is pronounced 'burra' e.g. Edinburgh. You are welcome to re-spell Pittsburgh as 'Pittsberg' if you can't cope with correct pronunciation.
Generally, you should raise your vocabulary to acceptable levels. Look up “vocabulary." Using the same thirty seven words interspersed with filler noises such as "uhh", "like", and "you know" is an unacceptable and inefficient form of communication.
Look up "interspersed."
There will be no more 'bleeps' in the Jerry Springer show. If you're not old
enough to cope with bad language then you shouldn't have chat shows. When you learn to develop your vocabulary, then you won't have to use bad language as often.

2. There is no such thing as "US English." We will let Microsoft know on your behalf. The Microsoft spell-checker will be adjusted to take account of the reinstated letter 'u' and the elimination of "-ize."

3. You should learn to distinguish the English and Australian accents. It really isn't that hard. English accents are not limited to cockney, upper-class twit or Mancunian (Daphne in Frasier).
You will also have to learn how to understand regional accents --- Scottish dramas such as "Taggart" will no longer be broadcast with subtitles.
While we're talking about regions, you must learn that there is no such place as Devonshire in England. The name of the county is "Devon." If you persist in calling it Devonshire, all American States will become "shires" e.g. Texasshire, Floridashire, Louisianashire.

4. Hollywood will be required occasionally to cast English actors as the good guys. Hollywood will be required to cast English actors to play English characters.
British sit-coms such as "Men Behaving Badly" or "Red Dwarf" will not be re-cast and watered down for a wishy-washy American audience who can't cope with the humour of occasional political incorrectness.

5. You should relearn your original national anthem, "God Save The Queen", but only after fully carrying out task 1. We would not want you to get confused and give up half way through.

6. You should stop playing American "football." There is only one kind of football. What you refer to as American "football" is not a very good game.
The 2.15% of you who are aware that there is a world outside your borders may have noticed that no one else plays "American" football. You will no longer be allowed to play it, and should instead play proper football.
Initially, it would be best if you played with the girls. It is a difficult game. Those of you brave enough will, in time, be allowed to play rugby (which is similar to American "football", but does not involve stopping for a rest every twenty seconds or wearing full kevlar body armour like nancies).
We are hoping to get together at least a US Rugby sevens side by 2005.
You should stop playing baseball. It is not reasonable to host an event called the 'World Series' for a game which is not played outside of America. Since only 2.15% of you are aware that there is a world beyond your borders, your error is understandable. Instead of baseball, you will be allowed to play a girls' game called "rounders," which is baseball without fancy team strip, oversized gloves, collector cards or hotdogs.

7. You will no longer be allowed to own or carry guns. You will no longer be allowed to own or carry anything more dangerous in public than a vegetable peeler. Because we don't believe you are sensible enough to handle potentially dangerous items, you will require a permit if you wish to carry a vegetable peeler in public.

8. July 4th is no longer a public holiday. November 2nd will be a new national holiday, but only in England. It will be called "Indecisive Day."

9. All American cars are hereby banned. They are crap, and it is for your own good. When we show you German cars, you will understand what we mean.
All road intersections will be replaced with roundabouts. You will start driving on the left with immediate effect. At the same time, you will go metric with immediate effect and without the benefit of conversion tables. Roundabouts and metrication will help you understand the British sense of humour.

10. You will learn to make real chips. Those things you call 'French fries' are not real chips. Fries aren't even French, they are Belgian though 97.85% of you (including the guy who discovered fries while in Europe) are not aware of a country called Belgium. Those things you insist on calling potato chips are properly called "crisps." Real chips are thick cut and fried in animal fat. The traditional accompaniment to chips is beer which should be served warm and flat.
Waitresses will be trained to be more aggressive with customers.

11. As a sign of penance 5 grams of sea salt per cup will be added to all tea made within the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, this quantity to be doubled for tea made within the city of Boston itself.

12. The cold tasteless stuff you insist on calling "beer" is not actually beer at all, it is lager . From November 1st only proper British Bitter will be referred to as "beer," and European brews of known and accepted provenance will be referred to as "Lager." The substances formerly known as "American Beer" will henceforth be referred to as "Near-Frozen Gnat's Urine," with the exception of the product of the American Budweiser company whose product will be referred to as "Weak Near-Frozen Gnat's Urine." This will allow true Budweiser (as manufactured for the last 1000 years in the Czech Republic) to be sold without risk of confusion.

13. From November 10th the UK will harmonise petrol (or "gasoline," as you will be permitted to keep calling it until April 1st 2005) prices with the former USA. The UK will harmonise its prices to those of the former USA and the Former USA will, in return, adopt UK petrol prices (roughly $6/US gallon -- get used to it).

14. You will learn to resolve personal issues without using guns, lawyers or therapists. The fact that you need so many lawyers and therapists shows that you're not adult enough to be independent. Guns should only be handled by
adults. If you're not adult enough to sort things out without suing someone or speaking to a therapist, then you're not grown up enough to handle a gun.

15. Please tell us who killed JFK. It's been driving us crazy.

16. Tax collectors from Her Majesty's Government will be with you shortly to ensure the acquisition of all revenues due (backdated to 1776).

Thank you for your co-operation.

Waiting on Discovery...

2005-08-05T11:49:00.000-04:00

Discovery, or STS-114 has been cleared to return to Earth. The Shuttle is scheduled to undock from the Station at 3:24 a.m. EDT Saturday and land at Kennedy Space Center, Fla., Monday morning at 4:46 a.m. Ill be setting my alarm to watch. Heres to a safe return. Even if it seems like the mainstream media is really hoping the craft wil burst into flames on re-entry, I think the average American is still in love with the Space Program, And still hold it as an important and worthwhile investment.

The Lord shall stop thine traffic.

2005-07-19T18:35:00.000-04:00

I read this on DEonline today and just about fell off my chair laughing. Its from an article about beach goer's snarling up the traffic for miles around....

"I'm a Christian and I have learned a Scripture to always be content in whatever state you're in," said Arner, who has lived there for 50 years. She is accustomed to sitting at the edge of her driveway in her car, blinker blinking away. "I have to keep asking the Lord to help me with that when I'm thinking, when am I going to get a break?"

Seriously, God. Please stop paying attention to national disasters, sick children and putting your sons image on a god damn grilled cheese and help this lady put the old Pontiac on the street, would ya? And if you cant do that, please allow her to be comfortable sitting in the driveway with the blinker going and all that. What is it, your day off!?! Sheesh.

Its electric. (boogie, woogie, woogie.)

2005-07-18T21:33:00.000-04:00

From an awesome 4th of July weekend, Court & I.

Damn, VH1....

2005-07-18T21:22:00.000-04:00

Im just home from work and flipping channels. VH1 is running a show called "Wacky kids names" or something. Now, I would be the first to agree that pretentious actors really get on my nerves when they get on this whole trip that since they are so deep and artistic, it means the kids have to suffer with rediculous names for life, but this is a bit...over the line. they are making fun of every 3 month to 5 year old "kid-of-a-star", including photos of said kids, and not so witty "comedians" making fun of the poor kids names. Surely not going to help the poor little bastards in school....

From VH1.com....

All Access: Awesomely Wacky Celebrity Baby Names features a panel of comedians and celebrity journalists to look at the wildest, weirdest and most shocking names of Hollywood's offspring.

So come celebrate Hollywood's hottest trend of outrageous baby naming and join VH1 in saying "You know you're a star when your kid's name is Pirate."

Dizamn. That aint right.

Observations of a Corporate Lackey....

2005-07-18T19:33:00.000-04:00

I get more junk mail at the office than at home. "Sign up to get your blood pressure checked", "Its hot dog special week in the Cafe", "Jim in accounting on the other side of North America had a baby..."
I get hit up for money more often at work than I do at home, in Big Wilmy-ton. At least the people here admit its for someone's birthday or bridal shower and not because they "ran out of gas" (apparently the standard in pan-handling excuses in the greater Trolley Square region) But seriously, I'm here to make the crappy wage you pay me. You think I want to turn around and invest that it some broads dining set?
I'm often curious why the guy who just walked into the bathroom behind me felt he needed to lock himself in a stall to do #1. The 4 urinals are spaced far enough apart that 2 men can complete the operation without it being too uncomfortable of an experience.
Every email that comes from the managers about a new procedure or law is guaranteed to come with at least 3 "follow up" emails to clarify the first bullshit they sent me. And they will never...Learn.
If you don't want to see me on the internet, id suggest moving my desk from outside of your door. Nosey ass.
If your "team leader" spends the majority of the day playing air guitar at his desk, you are underpaid.
You cant call a department "Quality" when the work done in said department is anything but.
Its :15 minutes until I get to go home. Stay tuned to see my new tracking device. (you shall see)

Yeah, man.

2005-07-14T19:57:00.000-04:00

Bad taste? Just a lil' bit.

2005-07-14T13:30:00.000-04:00

No accounting for taste in Deerfield Beach, FL.

Over the holiday weekend, the town had its own fireworks display, complete with loudspeakers blaring "God Bless America". Nothing unsual about that....

Except that the version of "God Bless" that they used included excerpts of phone calls made from the twin towers during 9/11.

About 70,000 people had gathered to celebrate the Fourth of July when the song "God Bless the U.S.A." was played. The version had voices of people recorded during the terror attacks.
One voice on the mix said, "Oh my God, another plane has just hit." Another said, "Some of the casualties are in the collapsed building."
People at the celebrations said the mood of the night changed when the song was played.

Yeah. I should think so. Vince Kendrick, the town's director of parks and recreation, went on to say "If it was Memorial Day, no one would have minded".

Yes, its true. As Americans, we wish t spend Holidays listening to the last terrified words of people who in moments will be dead, at the hands of terrorists. Holy shit people. What the hell is wrong with Florida!?

The death of Delaware Blogging?

2005-07-12T18:35:00.000-04:00

I once had a blog that I used to cover politics. I think my biggest inspiration to start it, with the exception of needing a place to vent my frustrations, was the growing pool of local blogs covering similar subjects. I havent checked back with alot of them since I gave up my own blog, but when I did today...I was a little suprised. Ryan had Politcaltracker.com, which now, as you can see, suggests he call the billing department, as the account is suspended. Delavoice, which was by far the most popular local blog pertaining to politics, hasnt updated since May. Hubes Cube has a banner stating the site "no longer exists". (that aint a bad thing.) Maybe we're just all at the beach.

There are still some good blogs that are still kickin'. See Blogolution, Sneaking Suspicions and DanNation for politcal fun amongst other things. (Dan isnt from DE, but for a long time I thought he was. So, he qualifies.)

For just plain fun reads check out The Delawarean, Henna, Matt Hearn, Mike, and me. Sometimes. Apparently.

Oh, there will be bottlenecks...

2005-06-30T19:45:00.000-04:00

According to a recent study, the Delaware/Maryland shore area is ranked 3rd in the country for traffic bottlenecks over 4th of July weekend.

Interstate 64 in the Tidewater region of southeastern Virginia is second on the group's list of vacation bottlenecks, followed by the Maryland-Delaware shore, Branson, Missouri, and North Carolina's Outer Banks.
Rounding out the Top 10 are Cape Cod, the Jersey Shore, California's Napa Valley, the Amish country of Pennsylvania and the Catskill Mountains in New York.

Im heading to the beach late this Friday after work. Hopefully, the only bottleneck I encounter that night is the good kind.

Happy 4th of July

Personal Navy.

2005-06-10T17:24:00.000-04:00

Want your own battleship, or submarine perhaps? Yeah, me too. Its a common problem. Not enough affordable combat vessels priced to own by Joe E. Public.

Unless you are William Terra of Maine. Mr. Terra has built himself a 1:20 scale model of the Bismarck, complete with a working music system, and engine making 15mph, and....room for 2 people. Yes, he sails her. You can see the entire project here, but if like me you just want to roll on the floor clutching your belly and gasping for breath between laughs, just see the pic below.

Yes, as beautiful and impressive as the model is, the image of ol' Cap'n Terra in his little battleship complete with skippers cap is clearly the highlight.

Of course, if you want to sink the old coot, look no further than the Kraka, I assume a name influenced by angry white men, as in, "the Angry Kracka!" ....built by Peter Madsen and Claus Nørregaard. A fully submersible mini submarine. Yes, I shit you not.

N57 Air show

2005-06-09T12:10:00.000-04:00

Come one, come all...a good time for all. My airport has its annual air show this Sunday, June 12th. Details here. Ive been almost every year for many years now, and it gets to be more fun every year! Looking forward to it. The highlight for me will be seeing my friend Roger , one of the finest Cub pilots in the world, perform his "flying farmer" act in a J3 cub. As you can see in the picture below...he likes to land his plane on the roof of a speeding truck known as the "teenie weenie airport"....amongst other amazing things.

Roger and his Cub

Also looking forward to the great Matt Chapman and his breathtaking aerobatic routine. And, as always, ill stare at "Frenesi" and drool. (One of my favorite aircraft in the world)

Gates open at 9:00am
Pancake breakfast 9:00am til noon
Airplane and Helicopter rides
Antique and Classic car show at 10:00am
Museum open for free tours 10:00am
Air Show starts at Noon
Tickets:
Adults $15.00 day of show $12.00 in advance at airport office no later than 5:00pm Saturday
Children 7 through 12 $5.00 $4.00 in advance
Children 6 and under free
Free Parking

Click "MAP" for directions

WWII Planes:
FG1-D CorsairB-25 Mitchell BomberFM-2 WildcatT-6 TexanPT-19 FairchildO-2 CessnaDH82A Tiger MothDHC-1 Chipmunk
Aerobatics:
Matt Chapman and his CAP 231EXJames Beasley P-51 Aerobatics.Kevin Russo Aerobatics in his SNJ-6, Navy version of T-6 Texan ... not Secret Navy Jet - 6 !! Roger Lehnert's "The Flying Farmer" and his Car-Top Landing
Don " Beetle" Bailey in his L-29 Jet Aerobatics
Also:
Parachute Drops featuring Free Fall Adventures Dive TeamAlpha Squadron Model RC Aircraft DemonstrationHelicopter & Airplane RidesAntique Car ShowSouvenirsPancake Breakfast
Featuring Jim Beasley Jr. in his P-51 Mustang, Frenesi

Catching up....

2005-06-09T11:55:00.000-04:00

Excuse my absence...1 part busy, 2 parts lazy. So much to catch up on, but ill do it quickly...

5/26 was my birthday and started one of the best weekends ive ever had. Thursday was off to the Del Rose for a birthday drink. Alot of friends turned out, old & new to wish me a happy birthday...I was very flattered by it and suprised. I couldnt ask for better friends....A good time was had by all. From what they tell me.

My girlfriend had been bugging me for weeks about a suprise she had for me the following Friday. It turned out to be one of the best gifts I could ever want. She took me to Horizon Helicopters for an intro ride. Basically a 40 minute romp around Delaware in an Endstrom chopper. It was amazing. The pilot turned out to fly airplanes out of the same airport as me, so we hit it off early. He pretty much took off and landed, and I was at the controls the rest of the time, never breaking 700 feet. Lots of amazing views form that altitude. SO much fun. After the real flight I got to play with Horizons full simulator, which was a blast too. The instructors were impressed with my ability to fly a Helicopter fairly well without any instruction. Got the cogs turning. If it didnt cost $15k and then another $100k for a chopper, they'd still be turning! The people at Horizon couldnt have been nicer to us, and left Courtney and I shaking our heads days afterwards at the great experience we both had. Simply unforgetable. I have a few snap shots that Courtney took that I will put up soon, ...right now my new computer isnt all set up for adding the pics...but soon! promise.

Horizon's Endstrom Helicopter

I take it back. its only fair....

2005-05-16T11:01:00.000-04:00

So, Dave is NOT crazy.

NEW YORK (AP) -- Comedian Dave Chappelle wants to set things straight: "I'm not crazy, I'm not smoking crack," he tells Time magazine in an interview more than a week after his hit Comedy Central show was suspended and the rumors started to fly.

My bad.

Chapter 240's Increasingly Famous Pancake Breakfast

2005-05-13T11:37:00.000-04:00

EAA Chapter 240 at New Garden Aviation will host a pancake breakfast tomorrow at the hanger on the hill. These events go from 8a.m to noon, and draw folks by air and by car from all over. Lots of people from other local EAA chapters fly in to get some breakfast and support a fellow chapter. Even more come by car to check out the airplanes, meet some local pilots, or just to enjoy the morning and the food. Aircraft of many types fly-in to these events and can be viewed on the flight-line. Breakfast consists of pancakes, eggs, sausage, coffee/tea, OJ....all for $5, and its always great food. If you are in the neghborhood, (Kennet/Toughkenemon area) stop in and say hi. Ill be there all day with my family and friends. Weather looks good...Pictures to follow....

Also catch pancake breakfasts on these dates:

Saturday May 14th
Sunday June 12th
Saturday July 23rd
Saturday September 10th

June 12th also being the day of the always great New Garden Air Show.

Directions to N57 here.

Im Crazy, Biatch!

2005-05-12T16:39:00.000-04:00

NEW YORK - Comedy Central star Dave Chappelle has checked himself into a mental health facility in South Africa, the magazine Entertainment Weekly reported on Wednesday.

Get well soon, Biatch.

Doh!

2005-05-11T16:51:00.000-04:00

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A pilot and a student pilot were taken into custody Wednesday after their plane flew within three miles of the White House around noon, prompting evacuations there, at the Capitol and at the Supreme Court, officials said.

I wont go into much detail...story is linked above, and its all OVER the TV.

Blundering into restricted airspace is avoidable.

I wont pass judgement on these folks yet. Circumstances arent out. But id be willing to bet they either didnt know where they were, or they didnt plan this flight properly. No comunication was established, so they werent on the right radio frequency. That in itself shows a severe lack of the required steps to take to fly even near this area. let alone in it. Ill tell you this with all certainty. Starting a day like today by launching into beautiful blue skys and light winds is among the best feelings I know. However, being flanked by armed F-16's and a UH-60 Blackhawk, and then being cuffed on the runway, and temporarily bringing the United States government to an evacuation induced halt would bring an end to all that fun real, real quick.

These guys took off from Smoketown. I have been there on several occasions myself, as pilots from my airfield, about 50 miles away, find cheaper aviation fuel there than they can at N57.
The aircraft apparently belongs to a flying club there. It remains to be seen when the will get their airplane back, but I did see it being checked by bomb dogs on TV...so it should be cleared soon.

When you are heading out on a trip from point A to point B, you would usually file a flight plan, or you would request a "standard breifing". Both can be done via telephone. With the flight plan, you would advise a flight service rep of your departure point, estimated time en route, expected route, and destination. When you reach the other end and land safely, you would then close your flight plan. If you dont close the plan, and you forget, a flag will go up that you never closed your plan, and the search for you and your plane will begin by land, air and telephone.

A standard breifing consists of advising the flight service rep of your departure point, and destination point, among other info such as aircraft type, expected speed, altitude, etc...

In both of these cases, the flight service rep will then read back all pertanant information to your flight, including weather in the area, cloud cover, visibility, information regarding the airport you are heading to, such as runway closures or repairs, or navigation equipment under repair or broken......and NOTAM's, (or Notice to airmen). These include restricted airspace. Heading South from PA, they would always tell you about DC's airspace, and the ADIZ. (air defense identification zone). Inside of this area, all aircraft will be required to be operating on a flight plan, transmitting a discrete transponder code, and be in communication with air traffic control.

Ive posted an aviation map image of DC's restriced airspace and the ADIZ below. As you can see, if you have a map or a GPS, and you should have at least a map, its glaringly obvious where you dont want to be.

Why do I bore you with all this info? Just to prove a point. Todays incident is completely avoidable, and there are few instances I can think of that could excuse it. I do feel for this pilot, however,...because they may just clip his wings.

Rubbin' is Racin'.

2005-05-10T12:35:00.000-04:00

Being a follower of the NASCAR championship series for the past 10 years or so, Ive seen alot of good races, and alot of good wrecks. None, however, were sweeter than this.

My favorite race car driver has always been Rusty Wallace. When I started watching racing, it seemed like Wallace and Dale Earnhardt were racing each other for the win every week. Back then I just thought Rusty had the cooler car, and thus, I cheered for him. here we are 10 years later, and he remains the guy id like to see win on Sunday. So, I was thrilled when I saw this.

Rusty is retiring from racing at the end of the year, so Tony Danza....everyones favorite TV nanny, and Italian stereo-type poster boy, had Wallace on his show and decided it would be cute to race the Winston Cup champion in Go-karts....

NEW YORK - Tony Danza got quite a scare when he and NASCAR star Rusty Wallace were racing go-karts during the taping of a segment for the nationally syndicated "The Tony Danza Show."
Danza was leading as they entered the final lap on West 66th Street Monday morning, the show said. After Wallace gave Danza's vehicle a little "bump and run," the 54-year-old talk-show host lost control of his go-kart, which flipped over. Wallace, who rushed to Danza's side after the crash, said, "I thought I killed ya," to which Danza responded, "Yeah ... just before you retire, `I killed Tony Danza.'"

Good ol' Rusty. Still knows how to use that front bumper on all those deserving, after all these years.

*-Update-*

Video is now available of the flippin' Danza HERE. Joy!

Stuff Submarine.....

2005-05-09T12:40:00.000-04:00

A 147 page report released by the Navy & US Pacific Fleet on Saturday stated "If San Francisco's leaders and watch teams had complied with requisite procedures and exercised prudent navigation practices, the grounding would most likely have been avoided,"

The accidental grounding of this Los Angeles class attack sub occurred about 360 miles southeast of Guam this past January. An undersea mountain had not been factored into the ships course, and the nuclear submarine hit it at a depth of 525 feet. The resulting damage is below...taken soon after SSN 711 limped back to Guam. 1 man was killed, 29 injured.

The damage to the San Francisco was estimated at $88 million, and the submarine remains in dry dock in Apra Harbor under repair. The submarine commander has been reassigned, Navy speak for "career ends here", and reprimanded. Six crew members were disciplined.
Twenty-four-year-old Machinist Mate 2nd Class Joseph Ashley, of Ohio, suffered fatal head injuries in the crash.
Ashley's father says the commander apologized to the family, who say they have forgiven him.

Truth is, despite this young sailors death, things could have been alot worse. The ship was able to make it to the surface, and make it home. That isnt always the case, and the addition to the nuclear reactors aboard these subs, a collision can be the begining of a much greater disaster. I have almost finsished 'Blind Mans Bluff', a collection declassified tales of cold war submarine covert operations. From collisions with Russian submarines, which occured on more occasions than either nation would like to admit, to probable on-board torpedo malfunctions that killed the entire crew of the USS Scorpion, submarine history, like all military history has its nightmare stories. I highly recommend the book. You can get it here.

On a lighter note,

A PC game taking up alot of my time recently, involving, you guessed it, submarines...

Enigma: Rising Tide FUN!!!

A screenshot from the game......

In the coming months, I hope to visit the USS TORSK (SS-423) in Baltimore Harbor, USS LING (SS 297) at the New Jersey Naval Museum, Hackensack, New Jersey, and the USS BECUNA (SS 319), at the Independence Seaport, Philadelphia, PA. Ill be sure to post pictures....

Fritz and the chopper.

2005-05-09T11:10:00.000-04:00

Fritz from Southern DE blog, Sneaking Suspicions was lucky enough to get a chopper ride on a beautiful clear day over slower lower. He included some great pictures he took here. Looks like a blast.

His site is a great read at all times. Ive also included his May 4th blog entry below. A situation I wasnt aware of. Thanks, Fritz, for bringing it to my attention....

Flying Good Samaritans
My recent experience with helicopter pilots also included an introduction to a volunteer service that deserves wide support.
Angel Flight America is a charitable organization of pilots and their aircraft. They provide free flight services to folks who need help being transported long distances for surgery, or for other critical medical needs, including transporting organs intended for transplants.
The group is now seeking legislative help to amend the Federal Good Samaritan laws.
The latest version of the Volunteer Pilot Organization Protection Act was introduced in Congress on April 27. Here’s how one sponsor, Congresswoman Thelma Drake (R-VA), describes the bill:
The legislation would amend the Good Samaritan Act to provide necessary liability protections in the area of charitable medical air transportation. It would also protect volunteer pilot organizations, their boards and small paid staff and non-flying volunteers from liability should there be an accident. It requires the pilot be fully insured and does not protect the pilot if they are negligent. Instead, it addresses frivolous lawsuits.
A friend of mine, Neil Kaye, MD, is a helicopter pilot/owner and an active member of Angel Flight. In a recent email he gave a very practical reason for the legislation:
Currently, as pilots, we are facing insurance premium increases of up to 25,000/year if we don't get this protection. Many pilots will be unable to afford that coverage and will then not be able to provide this volunteer service. We need to protect good Samaritan volunteers.
I join Neil and his fellow volunteer pilots in asking you to contact your Congressional representatives to ask for their votes in favor of this legislation. In addition, if you’re a blogger reading this, please pass the word to your own audience.
Thanks very much!

What NOT to do...

2005-05-06T12:12:00.000-04:00

Black bear attack at Hickory Run State Park leaves three people injured

ALBRIGHTSVILLE, Pa. - A group of campers said a bear dragged a woman into the woods, clawed her and bit her, then covered her with brush and left. Feeney was camping on the eastern edge of Hickory Run State Park with Brian Scollon, 19, and Robert Brennan, 21. They bought some food, stored it in a tent, and went fishing. Feeney returned to the camp, found the bear in the tent and ran back to the others with the bear chasing her. The three then fled. Park officials said it was the first attack by a bear in Hickory Run's history.

With all due sympathy to the folks who had this scary experience....(all are OK....)

Going camping alot, if theres one thing I know its what to do if you come across a black bear. Ive come face to facewith bear 3 times in Virginia and never had a problem. These folks are an example of what NOT to do.

-Food in tent.

You never keep food in the tent. I would think that would be obvious. The bear is following the scent of food. And when you wake up with him poking his head into the tent, it wont be pleasant. Food should always be stowed away and hung in a tree about 60-100 yards from the campsite. You find a nice strong branch on a tree, one which will hold the weight, and toss a rope over, a good distance from the trunk (ever seen a bear climb a tree? phew!) and hoist it up out of reach of a bear standing on his back legs. (you can also "bear proof" food.)

Truth is, you shouldnt even cook within 100 yards of the campsite, and you should change out of the clothes you were wearing when you made the food before you go to sleep. Someday when im camping among the grizzly bears, ill heed this advice...but I admit to breaking those two rules many times....

-Running away.

Bad idea. As wonderful as Bears are, they are not too bright. You run, they run. They have poor eye sight. If you stand still, they might not even see you. If they do see you, you need to make yourself BIG by raising your hands up in the air, and start making some serious noise. Thats always done the trick for me. Avoid eye contact, and never run. Its a last resort. And never drop your pack if you have one on. If you were to be attacked, you could roll onto your stomach, and the pack will add some much needed protection at that point...

Im glad these folks are okay...but its possible that just a little bit of knowledge of how to handle a bear, in bear country no less, could have saved them the trouble. The one thing Miss Feeney did right? Once the bear had her, she didnt move. Playing dead is said to cause the bear to lose interest. Thankfully, I havent had to test that theory myself. Bear are as afraid of you as you are of them....usually they only attack for one of three reasons...they want food, they are defending cubs, or you ran. Its pretty easy to narrow the odds.

Missing F-18's

2005-05-03T00:26:00.000-04:00


F/A-18 Hornet

(CNN) -- A search is under way for the pilots of two Marine Corps F/A-18 jets that were lost Monday while flying in support of the war in Iraq, Navy officials said.

Navy officials said they believe the jets collided with each other in bad weather during a routine mission.

The crew of the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson lost contact with the planes about 10:10 p.m. (2:10 p.m. ET), a U.S. military statement said.

"There was no indication of hostile fire in the area at the time contact was lost," the military statement said.

Bad news. Its so rare that these guys, especially those picked to fly the U.S' finest multi-role fighter, have accidents. My initial hunch was a mid air collison due to lack of enemy fire, and bad weather...looks like the Navy and the Marines will be ready to confirm that soon...

You can bet that not only are they looking for the downed crew, they are also looking to find whats left of the 35 million dollar aircraft, and recover or destroy it. We dont let that stuff lie on the bottom of the ocean or on land for anyone to comprise the technology onboard...

The USS Carl Vinson: Nuclear-powered Nimitz-Class carrier, the largest warships in the world.

Good news....

2005-04-28T15:57:00.000-04:00

2nd chances are hard to come by.....




WASHINGTON (CNN) -- An ivory-billed woodpecker -- widely believed to be extinct and whose last confirmed sighting was 60 years ago -- is alive in Arkansas, according to a research paper released Thursday.

And there are plans to use federal money to preserve the bird's habitat.

Evidence the woodpecker still exists includes eight independent sightings between 2004 and 2005 and a videotape.

Seeing double?

2005-04-27T10:54:00.000-04:00

One of these things is just like the other.

Nope. Two favorite movies from my collection, both set aboard a modern submarine, and for some reason, being set in a submarine means having a red and black "infared" cover, and white block lettering.

Oh well. At least the movies are very different from each other as far as content, and are both really good movies...(Red October definetly being the better of the two...)

Which I cant say for these two....

I guess the thought process is...."They were stupid enough to like the the muscle bound moron taking care of children the first time. Lets just make the same movie and give it a different name..."

Me? Im current in post production on an original movie about an alien who comes from outer space to warm the hearts of a small suburban family. Im calling it T.E....

Uhhhh....Whaaaat?

2005-04-27T03:12:00.000-04:00

This has to be a first.....

WENATCHEE, Washington (AP) -- Two elderly men who had gone turkey hunting together died of apparent heart attacks just minutes apart, authorities said.

Elmer Sapp, 78, and Alfred Hurd, 70, were hunting south of East Wenatchee on Monday when Hurd got out of a pickup truck and chased a bird down an embankment.

Sapp followed and found his hunting partner lying on the ground, according to Chelan County Sheriff Mike Harum. Sapp then went back to the pickup, flagged down a motorist, told the motorist what happened and then collapsed.

AT -The Long Haul.

2005-04-26T11:43:00.000-04:00

Id love to pick up and head down to Springer Mountain, GA to begin walking the entire 2000 plus miles of the Appalacian Trail to Khatadin. The idea of it is intoxicating. I could save some money, quit my job, and be on the trails for 5 months or so, with no bills, no worries, sore feet, nothing but trees to look at, walking 25 miles a day.....yeah. The good comes with the bad.

Im going to begin my section hike of the AT this year. A popular method of hiking the whole AT without doing it all in one shot, alot of people hike the AT by state, or by mile marker. This Summer I can scratch Maryland and West Virginia off of my list, in 44 miles. Easy and short sections when compared to Virginia, which at just under 550 makes up a quarter of the trails total length. New Jersey offers another 73 miles, Pennsylvania 229 miles, and New York offers 88 and a half miles. Pennsylvania can be done in a few weekends of camping/hiking..since ints a neighboring state. New York ive always wanted to do, simply because ive heard the stories about being ablt to see Manhattan from the trail. Thats gotta be nuts.

According to current trailhead register data, 918 people have started an attempt from GA to hike the whole trail, as of April 15th. Currently, only one has checked in at Harpers Ferry, VA....thats a fast walker. Thats the 1000 mile mark!

Most folks think your crazy if you tell them you would like to walk from Georgia to Maine. I think it would be one of the most gratifying and rewarding experiences I could imagine. Since 1936, 8,425 hike completions have been recorded by ATC. This includes thru-hikes, and multi year section hikers. For some guys, like Andrew Skurka, 2000 miles just isnt enough. He is currently blazing the entire 7,700-mile Sea-to-Sea Route (C2C), which is a network of existing long-distance hiking trails that span almost continuously between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and will be the first person to do so.

I prefer the idea of something more like the pace of of Peter Jenkins. (Buy his books...worth every penny.)

ATC.org

Friday....

2005-04-25T16:00:00.000-04:00

...Was the first bonfire of the year. I could spend more Fridays like this.

Friday Night Bonfire

Hump Day

2005-04-20T11:27:00.000-04:00

Ahhh, Wednesday. Love it and hate it. Half way through another punsihing work week (im no fan of my current job) ..yet, it is only halfway...meaning the weekend is still slightly out of reach. Today, I have been denied from taking off this Friday in order to join some friends on an overnight camping trip to Quehanna. Not a good way to stat the day. Looks like rain is the order of the weekend, so flying will be out too. I think the weekend will be spent in mass cleaning mode, getting my apartment back to a sparkling condition. yay.

I had a dream last night that I was being held hostage, by Middle Eastern gentleman, in a Middle Eastern environment. Im not sure what that means. Im not sure if it was sparked by falling asleep while watching the Bourne Identity last night...I am sure that waking up and reading this made the dream come back to me as vivid as a movie ive seen 100 times. I guess it just says something about where my subconcious is.

Today the local newspaper has a headline about my company's first quarter profits icreasing by 17 percent. Interesting enough considering my slaray was decreased 10 percent this year.

I guess the upside is that its another beautiful 70 degree day, with light winds. Unfortunatly, Ill be spending it inside a big concrete box filled with computers. Its going to take a few post-work beers and a steak on the grill to make this one a good hump day. Sometimes I wish I worked for David Brent. At least then id have that to look forward to at work!

Street Art

2005-04-19T21:57:00.000-04:00

All of these pictures are drawn on flat surfaces. Amazing....

Sunday Pics

2005-04-19T21:32:00.000-04:00

Over Dads shoulder...Steep turns in the Citabria

Tiger Moth

Tiger Moth cockpit

A Seaplane at the fuel pumps

Two Piper Cubs in the "Ghetto Hanger"

Everyone in our family loves aircraft...even the dog.

Mini Trip Report

2005-04-14T21:03:00.001-04:00

Took a half day from work on monday to enjoy the nice weather. Beautiful sunny day with temeratures around 65 degrees. I decided to take a walk through the nearby Brandywine Creek State Park.

The park covers 933 acres of meadows, woods and the Brandywine creek. Its popular for day hikers, Kayakers, Trout fisherman, and people who were somehow misled into thinking frisbee golf is fun. Being a Monday however, I didnt see a soul, with the exception of some of the local wildlife, including an owl of which type i couldnt identify, a rat snake that measured at least 6 feet, and some turtles out on the creek banks enjoying the new Spring sun. All of them were too fast for my camera however, so hopefully better luck next time on that.

Brandywine Creek State Park

The park grounds are separated by grey stone walls built of local stone by Italian masons in the late 1800's. I can only assume they are the same folks who built the structure above, that is along a trail I hadnt taken before. four walls, steps and some windows are all that remains, the interior is now a pond supplied by a nearby tributary of the Brandywine, complete with frogs n' moss. It officially became a state park in 1965, among the first parks in the country to be purchased with Land and Water Conservation Funds.

All in all, great to be out on the trail in the sun again. Look forward to many more day trips to the area.

You can click here to see a satellite image of the area. The white square at left is the parking lot, and the park extends East of there to the creek and just beyond.

Rebirth of a Legend.

2005-04-14T20:41:00.000-04:00

Piper Cub

New fabric on the Cub

New fabric and dope

Many of the fine felllows at my local airport enjoy building and restoring aircraft. Im lucky enough to have caught this most recent project at the beginning.

At top is a ready and working Piper Cub. Another Cub almost identical to this one is currently being restored in the same hanger from the ground up for the first time in 40 years. You can see the most image of the project Cub above, receiving a new "skin" of fabric. Previosuly, the aircraft had been taken apart peice by peice and the old fabric literally torn away. I plan to take pictures of the progress every chance I get to stop by the hanger, and eventually ill post a link to a gallery where the progress can be tracked in order. Fascinating to watch. These pictures were taken last weekend. As of that day they had the fabric on the main fuselage, and were applying the "dope". the internal cables for rudder control were also in place, although the rudder is not yet attatched. Cant wait til she flys again!

2000 Miles to Maine

2005-04-14T12:35:00.000-04:00

Got my copy through Amazon recently.....

Heres the official description:

Inspired by Bill Bryson’s A Walk in the Woods, director Douglas Morse and producer Heide Estes traveled to the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail in Georgia. They became fascinated with all of the hikers they met. From Jack, who got stuck with an angry dog, to Malice and Kentucky, the Cheech and Chong of the A.T., to Matt and Angie, who planned to get married on the trail when they reached Pennsylvania. On the first day out, Estes and Morse met Chad, an easy going guy in excellent shape who found himself tempted to walk off the trail after just a few days. Hikers like Chad become our eyes and ears on the six month journey to Maine’s Mount Katahdin, more than 2000 miles from Springer Mountain in Georgia.

I enjoyed it overall. Some of it is laugh out loud hilarious. The best part of it for me all the things I could relate to, from the Mountain House meals being prepared to the endless quest for less weight/more room. Its interesting to see a clean shaven man, Chad, start the trail with doubts and be there when he finishes in Maine now resembling a member of ZZ top with a flowing beard. The biggest downside was the fact that the movie skips the majority of the trail. Of course I dont expect to see the whole trail documented, ( I dont have the kind of time. Ok, yes I do, but you know what I mean...) ...it starts at Springer Mountain in Georgia, and next thing you know you are in New England somwhere. I was disapointed I didnt get to see any of the short sections of the AT that I have personally hiked.

You get to meet alot of interesting characters on the way, folks young and old out to complete the quest of becoming a "2000 miler". You are there for the good times, and the bad, the frustrations, the exhilration of completing the goal. One reviewer on Amazon said it best....

BackpackingLight.com, Ryan Jordan Publisher, July 2004
"People who dream about being thru-hikers will either change their mind, or quit their job immediately and hit the trail. "

All in all, I would recommend this DVD to anyone, but especially hiker/campers. The familiarity with alot of the situations alone is worth a look. Trek, another documentary focusing on AT thru-hikers will be the next purchase for me. I hear its a little better. Ill let you know what I thought. : )

Taking the High Road....

2005-04-06T16:31:00.000-04:00

....anyone up for a walk?

Backpacker.com is currently running the High Point Challenge, a competition set up for hikers and campers to earn points for hiking X amount of miles or climbing mountains X,Y and Z. (Details here) Participants can win new camping equipment, trips to Mount Ranier, etc, etc...

Attatched to this promotion was a list of the highest point in every state. Of course, now im going to have to start knocking the local ones off my list. (DE, PA, MD, NY, VA).

Not for competition, just to say I did.

Here in Delaware, the highest peak is Ebright Azimuth, at a staggering 448 feet. On a busy two lane road. Welcome to Delaware. I havent been, to my knowledge, so that will be the first, and not so exciting mission. (I could probably complete this on my lunch break!)

Next door, Pennsylvania offers Mount Davis, at 3,213 feet. Rewards on top include a 50 foot watch tower, and the extra bragging rights os standing where George Washington stood in 1753. How she got her name is intersting too...from backpacker.com

What's in a name? For 180 years, until it was determined to be the tallest point in the state, Mt. Davis was known as Negro Mountain. Historians trace the label to an incident during the French and Indian Wars, when a black man named Nemisis was killed saving a white man from marauding Indians. When the mountain achieved its lofty new status, the search for a more appropriate, less controversial name turned up John Nelson Davis, a Civil War vet, pioneer, minister, educator, and, perhaps more importantly, owner of 26,000 acres on the mountain.

Maryland's tallest peak is Backbone Mountain at 3,360 feet. Apparently the hardest thing about this 1.2 mile hike is finding the trail head. apparently the only way to find it is through a spray painted "HP" scrawled in Orange on a guard rail(!!) Up top, a historical marker honors a Spanish-American war hero who was the great-great-grandson of one of the area's first settlers. The downside, apparently one gets a hell of a view Mt. Storm power plant from up there.

New York State offers Mt. Marcy, at 5,344 feet. The summit is a 14 to 20 mile hike depending on which of the four trails you choose. Apparently they also have the biggest, ugliest, meanest black flies in the state up there. Backpacker.com says....

The shortest way up is the Van Hoevenberg Trail, which undulates for 2 miles to the postcard-pretty lake at Marcy Dam. Then it's all uphill. Fortunately, the top is worth the toil: You get 41 other Adirondack peaks surpassing 4,000 feet, the Green Mountains of Vermont, and, as a bonus, a bird's-eye view of the ski jumps built for the soaring psychos in the 1980 Winter Olympics. On September 13, 1901, Vice President Teddy Roosevelt was lunching at Lake Tear of the Clouds (the source of the Hudson River) when a breathless guide reported that President William McKinley, who'd been shot by an anarchist in Buffalo, had taken a bad turn and was dying. After an energetic hike and series of all-night wagon relays, Roosevelt reached the North Creek Train Depot to the news that he had become, at 42, the youngest president in U.S. history. The rough-riding big-game hunter, who grew up hiking, fishing, and hunting in the Adirondacks, used his famous big stick to establish five national parks and millions of acres of national forest. No president, before or since, has done more to protect our nation's wilderness.

Bless Teddy.

Virgina is home to Mt. Rogers, at 5,729 feet. The fir trees on the summit obscure any spectacular views, but the 118,000-acre Mt. Rogers National Recreation Area includes the three highest peaks in Virginia, 400 miles of trail, herds of wild ponies and, diversity of plants equalled only by the rainforests of Brazil.

Backpacker says..

Nearby Damascus is a blessing for hungry hikers. The so-called "friendliest town on the Appalachian Trail" hosts a weeklong festival each May that lavishes food and entertainment on anyone carrying a pack. The Trail Days event kicks off with a town-wide yard sale and moves quickly into nonstop bluegrass, country, and gospel performances; slide shows and lectures; the occasional wedding (below); and good ol' southern feeds. Ken Fritz, owner of Cowboy's General Store, picks blueberries on Mt. Rogers for his signature 8-inch pancakes ($2.59 for three). The fire station puts on a legendary barbecue. And gear manufacturers repair packs, poles, and boots free. If you come, make reservations early, and prepare for a scene that's part Dead show, part Mayberry, and part outdoor retailer convention (www.damascus.org).

Ok, that sounds fun.

So, I plan to conquer these peaks. Ill set no time frame, and in no order. I plan to do at least two this Summer. After all, I can do one on my lunch break. : )

If anyone reading this has any further commens or observations about these peaks, drop a line in the comments and let me know!

Cool Google feature..

2005-04-06T15:06:00.000-04:00

May come in handy for campers and pilots alike!

Google's MAPS page now includes Satellite images of the US and Canada. You can type in an address, and see it from 76'000 feet! Also offers a zoom, and driving directions. From my own little recon session, it seems the images are circa 2003. I used the new Philadelphia Eagles stadium as a reference. In the images, the visible construction process is consistant with that time period.

Enjoy!

Aviation Events 2005

2005-04-06T12:40:00.000-04:00

From EAA240 based at N57

the ones that I actually get to Ill review here. Hope to see you out there!

Apr 9 - EAA240 Fly-Out to York
Apr 23 & 24 EAA Chapter 216 Pancake Breakfast, Drive-In/Fly-In, Young Eagles Flights - Cross Keys Airport 17N
May 12 - 15 - Lumberton, NC "Mid Atlantic Fly-In and Airshow"
May 14 - EAA Chapter 240 Increasingly Famous All-You-Can-Eat Pancake Breakfast - Fly-In & Drive-In
May 20 to 22 - Millville, NJ "Wheels and Wings Airshow"
May 22 - EAA Chapter 240 Hangar Cook-Out & Picnic (noon)
May 28 - 29 - NAS Willow Grove, PA "Airshow"
June 3 - 5 - Reading, PA Mid Atlantic Air Museum WWII Weekend
June 4 - 2005 Atlantic County "Day at the Bay" Festival & Airshow, Somers Point, NJ
June 12 - EAA Chapter 240 Increasingly Famous All-You-Can-Eat Pancake Breakfast - Fly-In & Drive-In
June 12 - New Garden 2005 Air Show N57 (corrected date) (2004 Air Show Photographs)
June 26 - EAA Chapter 240 Hangar Cook-Out & Picnic (noon)
July 23 - EAA Chapter 240 Increasingly Famous All-You-Can-Eat Pancake Breakfast - Fly-In & Drive-In
Aug 6 - Battleship New Jersey - Aviation day - Camden NJ
Aug 6 - EAA240 Fly-Out to Rhinebeck Aviation Museum and Air Show NY
Aug 7 - EAA Chapter 240 Hangar Cook-Out & Picnic (noon)
Aug 31 - Thunder Over The Boardwalk - Atlantic City NJ Air Show
Sept 3 - 4, NAS Patuxent River, MD "Southern MD Aviation Days"
Sept 10 - EAA Chapter 240 Increasingly Famous All-You-Can-Eat Pancake Breakfast - Fly-In & Drive-In
Sept 11 - EAA 70 Fly-In at Braden Airpark
Sept 25 - EAA Chapter 240 Hangar Cook-Out & Picnic (noon)
Oct 15-16 - RotorFest West Chester PA

Backpackin' Pick Ups - Part I

2005-03-28T15:27:00.000-05:00

With the arrival of Spring, attention turns to doing alot more camping. While I have enough gear to head into the mountains with everything I need, I seem to come up with ways every year in which to make my gear lighter& better. Its a never ending quest familiar to all wilderness campers... to take weight out of your pack, while constantly improving on the gear you have, and how it is packed and used. This year, some significant changes are ahead....

Going to be replacing my big old bulky Coleman stove for an MSR Superfly or Pocket Rocket. So long to those big old propane tanks.

I have always used a head lamp for camping trip, and always had the same problems...They take up too much room, and they eat batteries in no time at all. Recently, I stumbled upon this mini task light at Radioshack. It will replace the head lamps this year. Fits comfortably behind the ear, has a bright beam, runs on 20 hour batteries, and is about the size of one AA battery. (as opposed to the battery pack on my head lamp alone having room for four AA batteries....) And....the best part....its only $13.

EMS will supply a new boots, pack and sleeping pad, although I am currently undecided on the specific model as of yet. More to come on that. A trip to my local EMS outlet this weekend for some odds and ends produced a new Granite Gear compression sack for my sleeping bag, and some good ole Mountain Suds