| The old mountain bike has kind of become my default choice and I ride it most of the time. I noted that in my letter dated 3-22-09, I spoke of just having resurrected the machine, so I guess I have been using it for about a year. Normally I keep the trip odometer displayed, but I pushed the wrong button while trying to reset it, and the total odometer reading popped up. I was surprised to learn that I had just coasted past 1000 miles. That much in a year is more than I would have guessed. Maybe distance also flies when you are having fun... I returned from my lunch bicycle ride a bit early one day and on a whim, decided to inspect the bicycle tires for thorns. I located and removed several, and in four cases, green slime (the internal bicycle tube patch kit) oozed out. A single spin of the wheel caused the oozing to stop and to my surprise, both tires remained inflated (day 8 as of this writing). I don't claim to understand how it works, but that goo is wonderful stuff, and I anticipate putting it in every tube of every bicycle I use. |
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We have had our share of winter this year. We haven't received a lot of snow depth, but more times than I wanted, I had to clear the nasty stuff off the windshield. Even though the temperatures have been in the 60's for the last two weeks, four days ago I was still scraping ice... Given that we just passed the vernal equinox, perhaps the the temperatures will soon become bearable again. |
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I finally filled the empty tank on the Mercedes, and based on that single data point I think I may have made an egregious mistake. The tank accepted 19.356 gallons of fuel, at a cost of $52.05, after having gone 390.2 miles since being full. That approximates 20.2 mpg, or 13.3 cents per mile, making the cost of a round trip to visit Nathen et. al. about $350. I don't expect to see Arkansas any time soon in that vehicle... I briefly toyed with the idea of converting it to natural gas which I could fill out of my household service (given a few thousand dollars worth of compressors) but upon learning that methane combustion results in the engine running significantly hotter, particularly at high end of the horsepower range (think burnt exhaust valves) I have kind of given up on that as a solution. |
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| March 20th, AJ, Brittney, and I went to the Davis-Monthan Air Show. I didn't calendar very well, and ended up with a conflict in the morning--a Ward Service project. It was announced to start at 9 am and last about 2 hours. Not wanting to work until 11, I came early (8 am), only to find that the project was well under way. We were finished by about 9:15, and I left from there. Barbara was planning on attending with us, but was not feeling well. We arrived about 11, and sat in traffic forever, and finally walked through the last check point just about noon. |
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The air show has many simultaneous events that almost everyone who attends, comes away with a unique set of visual images. One of the recurring themes in several of the demonstrations consists of aircraft flying at each other at high speed, and then diverting at the last second. It seems reminiscent of a game of arial "chicken." It seems a bit juvenile when stated like that, but non-the-less I enjoyed seeing it again... |
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| And again... |
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| And again. |
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| Another of my favorites was aircraft flying in close proximity pairs with one member inverted, top to top... |
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| or bottom to bottom. |
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Colored smoke is a way to visualize the path of the aircraft... |
| and was used time after time... |
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after time. I very much enjoyed seeing these maneuvers. |
| AJ went dressed as a "Green Bay" billboard, and there were a couple of strangers who commented on his shirt and even solicited his comments on Green Bay's world famous Quarterback who turned Traitor. I don't make it a habit of critiquing the clothing worn by strangers (at least not to their faces), but I suspect sports fanatics may just possibly be a different sub-species. It just seems odd to me that an individual would identify with some group or other of entertainers who play games for a living. |
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| But then, I guess there are areas where I share characteristics with them. For instance, the B-17 shown here, is one of my favorite aircraft, even though I have never set foot in one. They just look like the want to fly, and I find that very appealing. |
| There are not a lot of them left flying, and given that this one is based in Mesa, I suspect I have seen it before. |
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In fact, at one air show they offered 15 minute rides (in one this one, I think) for a paltry $350.00 per person. I didn't have that much cash, and truly doubt that I would have parted with it if I did. Still, it would be fun... |
| This one was a Static display in the morning, then flew in the afternoon. One thing that was evident from the flying aircraft, was that radial engines leak oil. That's not surprising, given that a couple of the nine cylinders that surround the crank shaft (like the spokes of a wheel) actually sit upside down under the oil pan. |
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Davis-Monthan is situated such that the crowd faces South and West to view the event. If it faced North, there would have been less of this... It seems like the Air Force should have considered that factor before construction started. |
| This is the C-17 Globemaster. It is the latest and greatest in the long line of cargo planes in the Air Force inventory. For reference, the upturned portion of the wingtip measures just over 9 feet. The top of the tail sits 55.1 feet off the ground--about the same as a 5 story building. |
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Their maximum effort departure was impressive. The aircraft assumed a 30° nose up attitude, and just went. Not too shabby for something the size of a whale. |
| This Douglas A-1 Skyraider is another remarkable aircraft. It was designed at the end of WWII, but did not see service there. It did serve in Korea and Viet-Nam. Note the six pylons under each wing where munitions can be attached. |
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Most air shows have a "Heritage Flight," where old and new fly together. This portion of this show was kind of weak, with only two aircraft (A-19 and A-1). Just minutes before they had a B-17 Flying Fortress and a P-51 Mustang flying together. Perhaps one or both of them developed problems, or had a commitment elsewhere (as both left the area). |
| The Air Force kid (they all look like kids to me) stationed by this Predator (an unmanned drone) claimed that it is the same model currently being used in our relatively successful missile attacks in Afghanistan and Pakistan. I thought the Air Force had upgraded to jet powered models, but I guess there is no reason a priori that the old prop jobs won't still work. If you live in a third world country, your AK-47 won't shoot that high, even if you could see them. |
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It is difficult to capture photographically, but the rear stabilizer/elevators on this F-22 raptor move independently (note that they are sitting at different angles). That must be a maintenance nightmare, but at the same time increases the maneuverable of the aircraft. |
| This is one large fan that, when it was driven by few hundred horsepower, would stir up more than just a few zephyrs. |
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This looks like lots of fun, but at the same time I have to wonder if I would ever have the nerve to jump out of a perfectly good airplane... |
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| Since the show is sponsored by the Air Force and they set the schedule, they chose for the finale, the Thunderbirds. The Navy has the Blue Angels, whose routines are very similar to those of the Thunderbirds. The Army has the Army Sky Knights, whose precision flying is done in helicopters. I have only heard of them briefly and never seen them. The Marine Corp is connected to the Navy, and at least one of the Blue Angels is a Marine Corp Officer. |
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I suspect you that if, in the right crowd, you posed the question as to which precision flying team is superior, you could generate some heated discussion. Now that I have seen both, I suspect they are pretty equal. I am happy to watch either. |
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And last, but not least, they had a U-2 fly over (but not land). I think I impressed AJ when I saw it as a spot on the horizon and named it. The wings just looked too long to be anything but a glider. Even making a low pass, it is a very quiet aircraft. Until they turned on their after burners just prior to leaving the area, I did not hear it at all. I thought they had been phased out in favor of the Blackbird, but the announcer suggested there is at least one U-2 airborne 24/7/365!!? It was a fun time, even if the 3.5 mile walk (estimated by examining the area using Google Maps) did leave me sore for the next couple of days. |
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