Synopsis of my AirVenture 2018 Journey - Part 3

Thursday,July 26,2018, was another day away from AirVenture 2018  to pursue a scenic drive in the Wisconsin countryside. We packed a picnic lunch and headed over to Lake Michigan via Collins Marsh and Neustader Nature Center located at Collins,WI. . Corey and I repeated a route visited by he, his brother Bryan and friend  Ralph Briggs in 2016.

Going in the direction of Manitowoc we headed for the Lakefront.We didn't know of the work they had done to incorporate walking trails for all those visiting along the shore to enjoy but the white sands and clear water with gentle breeze was very calming.

Onto Cleveland ,to Hika Bay Park where we had a Lakeside view with water lapping only a few feet away from our picnic table. I couldn’t get over how clear the water was as we walked out onto the dock to get a picture.

We continued the shoreline drive down to Sheboygan,then turned back in-land to Fond du Lac and back up to Oshkosh passing the Seaplane Base. We then went through Oshkosh ending our loop back in Appleton from where we began earlier in the morning.

 On Friday Corey went into AirVenture for the day and I joined him for the late  afternoon…Arriving not long before the Replica Fighters Association hosted finale to the week, an awards banquet.

Picture By - Myron Winchester: RFA Awards Banquet July 27,2018

Thanks for stopping by today to see what happened on this part of our journey at EAA AirVenture 2018. I have one more installment to complete our week at Oshkosh,please check back later...

Have a great day!

Synopsis of my AirVenture 2018 Journey

 Sunday morning July 22,2018, came early at the Butcher household. Corey and I finished packing the car and headed towards the Mecca of the Airplane Home-builder at Oshkosh,WI,  AirVenture 2018. It would be my first time experiencing the sights and sounds of the World’s largest airplane extravaganza.

Reaching Oshkosh we made contact with Replica Fighters Association President Tony Pileggi and made plans for the following week.

Monday morning July 23rd ,came into view and we headed off  from  our lodging at Appleton towards our day at EAA AirVenture 2018 to meet some of the guys at the Replica Fighters Association Head Quarters.

Of course Corey was a well known member of the club, being editor to the group Replica Fighters Association Magazine over many years and he introduced me to a few other club members present when we arrived.

 The front porch of  Headquarters actually became a forum in and of itself. We sat discussing airplanes, past and present projects, as well as Experimental Aircraft Association Chapter endeavors ,discussing how to keep the art of amateur builders engaged into the future.

One of the individuals Corey and I chatted with was RFA member Ernie Moreno. Our conversation included how challenges arise for the local EAA Chapters in coping with bureaucracy. As we sat conversing, one of Corey and my fellow local EAA 675 members,Dave McCurry stopped by to check to see if we made it up to AirVenture and let us know he and his wife were also in the area.

A notable draw for Home-builders during the week was that of the Bally Bomber, pictured below.

We at the Replica Fighters Association were privileged to have the one-third scale B-17 Bomber, parked right outside the door. Most of the time people were milling about with everyone trying to get interviews and pictures of builder Jack Bally and his support team. But I stood in awe at the one part of the day when all was quiet as if the Bomber had been put to bed for the night.

More current news as of June 21,2020, the Aviation Community lost the man,Jack Bally who lived his dream and drive to build the extraordinary replica the Bally Bomber...

As the morning flew along on Monday, Corey and I went to take a look around one of the Marts to look into a new power plant for the Voisin 3/5 rebuild. We didn’t find one that would fit our criteria but certainly gained some valuable information.

In our walk to the Mart from Fighter Town we met up with a gentleman from Ames,IA that
Corey knows in association with being an A&P Mechanic ,Wayne Bausch that has done  work on a plane he flew for a friend. I found out what a small world we actually  have when I finally attend an AirVenture.  During our brief stop this F- 15 bomber kept popping up over us so I dropped my camera bag ,readying my camera to snap pictures as I listened for the burst of the jet engine, then it would  come into sight .

There were always multiple types of aerial activities going on perpetually over the AirVenture grounds so it was hard for me to put  my camera down. 

One of the most notable among the variety of aircraft  aloft was  The B-29 Boeing Superfortress called "Doc" ; it was an exhilirating moment when I was able to catch him floating overhead.

  Since I’d not had a chance to see the  afternoon Airshow we headed off from RFA Headquarters to the EAA Wearhouse to do some shopping for T-shirts. We needed to add to our wardrobe to commemorate our week and then went over to the airstrip sideline  to get a good place to sit .

We spent the afternoon watching planes of all makes and models zipping by in front of us. Our heads followed the numerous loops above. plus so many other things happening closer to us on the ground.

With the end of the Airshow we headed back to our lodging to cool off. Time to get ready for the rest of the week

Please come back to see in what direction our days took us!

Until then have a great day!

EAA AirVenture 2018 Airbus Theater

It was with  thankfulness to Corey that I was able to get down to EAA AirVenture Airbus Theater Tuesday evening July 24,2018, to catch the movie Dunkirk with him. I know he'd been busy with the guys at Replica Fighters Headquarters during the day while I stayed in Appleton inside recuperating from the respiratory illness contracted as we left from home Sunday, so I would be able to attend the movie. 

While the evening was settling in, the Ultralight people were getting their crafts put away...The sky writer was busy letting everyone know what the Experimental Aircraft Association felt about those in attendance and otherwise hectic schedules were beginning to take on a slower pace as night fell over the crowds wherever they chose to be.

After arriving to the open air theater for the evening showing, I began to experience some allergy symptoms and not thinking ahead initially I didn't place a person's best friend in that type of situation, kleenex in my purse. Corey was very helpful in going to  the car to get a supply so the evening wouldn't be a total loss with me feeling the pressure not to breathe. Since this was the only movie evening fitting into our schedule of which we were sure of the weather being half-way descent to sit out in the open.

The movie brought anxious moments for me just thinking about how the young men standing without any type of protection from enemy fire must have felt. The choices to leave the injured and dying because there wasn't any room to return to home.

If you have an interest in watching war movies , I would suggest this one because the outcome is one of heroics when the small boat fleet arrived to pickup survivors that otherwise may not have had a second chance at life.

The emotions of the Survivors often lead to choices to right what they see as a shortcoming in their own lives on the Battlefield. 

 

Thank you for giving us a chance to see the movie  at the AIRBUS Theater - EAA AirVenture 2018!

Afternoon Airshow EAA AirVenture 2018 Part 2

As I said in my previous post I wouldn't try to put every picture up on my blog that I took through Corey and my whole trip to EAA AirVenture 2018 but you never know...  I'm headed back to some more pictures of the Monday afternoon Airshow.

I would like to offer an apology to Gene Soucy for the misspelling of his name in the last post. You'll find his aerobatic skills aloft at AirVenture and other Air Shows throughout the country. I've discovered that one of his past aerobatic Team members happened to be Tom Poberezny   , they once formed the Red Devils Aerobatic Team along with Charlie Hillard.

When I wasn't snapping happy pictures in front of me I was checking out the  Jumbo Tron behind me to see what was in the staging area for next up on the field.

One of the female pilots  named Jessy Panzer taking the air Monday afternoon in her little Pitts Special reminded me of the free spirited pioneer women aviators Pancho Barnes or Amelia Earhart . I've found a video to let you see the skills Jessy shared with us on the ground. She is a graduate of the famous Emery-Riddle Aeronautical University starting her flying career at 18 years old.

As a woman it would be my opinion the purple,black and white paint job of the Pitts to be appealing. A little hot rod bi- plane.

As you can see in the collage I wanted to bring your attention to CriCri once again, the little planes ability to find itself up among the clouds. It's petite size didn't stop it from heading into perfect air to keep everyone captivated below. Were you there?

One more little plane that brought up the end of the afternoon show for us was  Navy Pilot  Justin Lewis in the high performance FLS Microjet ;  designed in the 1970's by Jim Bede of Bede Aircraft. Eventually the building rights ended up in the ownership of  Ed (“Skeeter”) and Richard Karnes when they started BD Micro Technologies, Inc. (BMT) in 1992 and they began distributing the Flight Line Series of kits for the homebuilder.

Imagine for a moment with me if you will a drag race between the Dracula Demon Bi-plane flown by Kurt Franklin and the Ford XROK driven by Vaughn Gittin's Jr..

Pictured on the Jumbo Tron above is the start of the Race  on the runway, of which I wasn't able to see sitting from my location on the ground.

In the short burst of speed we all know who led and headed on his way to meet every other aviator who was sharing AirVenture Airspace.

You may or may not know who I'm talking about! The Dracula Demon Bi-plane flown by Aerobatic expert Kurt Franklin of course.

If you should ever get the chance to see an Airshow go have some fun already !

Until next time have a Great Day!

Afternoon Airshow EAA AirVenture 2018

How far sidetracked can one individual get?!? Well, let me see...After a year and a month , maybe, I'll work on relating what I saw during my days at EAA AirVenture 2018.

I remember having some interesting conversations with Replica Fighters Association /EAA members while sitting on the front porch of Replica Fighters Association Headquarters. I must admit I wasn't at my best health-wise during Corey and my visit to AirVenture.

Monday afternoon Corey and I headed down to the Airfield after stopping to see about some Experimental Aircraft Association wearables and trinkets. We were successful in getting t-shirts but couldn't find the yearly hat pin for his hat.

The following pictures are those I  snapped as we sat in the hot sun. Spectacular sights were to be had with all the planes lifting skyward, looping, twisting and then gliding over the runway in front of us to a stop.

I'd come down with a respiratory ailment Sunday morning as we loaded the car to head north.  The respiratory difficulty was a replay of 2016 when I caught what was going around in our community, pneumonia like in expression : seems to arise during allergy season and of course the heat and humidity aren't my friend either when these symptoms take root.

I alternated visits  staying inside at our hotel with mainly  fresh air excursions at Oshkosh.

Tuesday, I stayed inside listening to music and sermons by Dr. David Jeremiah, getting time to be quiet and looking at all the Airshow pictures I took on Monday,  while Corey got to spend time with the guys as I healed from my respiratory ailment. I took my selfie in our room in Appleton after Corey had gone.

I'm going to put a few fun pictures in from the Airshow. I'd put every picture I took through my whole trip on here, but you know...

It looks like I'm going to write a few more posts about my experiences with Corey at EAA AirVenture 2018 at Oshkosh and just maybe add a few other ones about the birds and bees.The things I do to make my daily life a little more interesting.

No, I won't try to do it ALL today...