One Crazy Flier

Murphys Law and Flying

2011-03-19T14:33:00.000-07:00

My brother Warren and his wife Sheila came to visit us recently. It was a really fun time, although Murphy's law was in full affect.
He had bought into a 1/6 ownership on a little Champ airplane housed at the Estrella Warbirds museum and was planning on flying it every day. As it turned out the plane was out of annual so the first 4 days were spent performing an annual inspection on the aircraft. Then of course there were scheduling problems with the instructor and generally poor flying weather. In the end Warren got everything resolved and we ended up getting some really great flying in. One day we flew to Shafter Airfield. We made a couple of trips to SLO airport (for pie and coffee) and a trip to Santa Maria Airport for lunch. I got a lot out of the experience as I got to see Warren deal with some heavy air traffic around SLO airport and about a 16 knot crosswind landing at Santa Maria airport. I can't wait for the next time bother is out here so we can do it again.

Finaly a new Post

2011-02-02T11:14:00.000-08:00

So whats been happening since July when I posted last? Lots naturally, our hectic lives continue rolling on.

The family is doing good, Matt is an outstanding student as always and Luke is really starting to come into his own scholastically. I credit it to Suzette's perseverance at working with them on their homework. Einstein was right when he said genius is 1 % inspiration and 99% perspiration.

Suzette is doing well physically, I finally got her to pull back a little from the many events she is constantly volunteering to do so she can get some much needed rest.

I am starting to get back into working out, Zach and I are making a point of going surfing every Monday morning after I drop the boys off at school. Last Monday the waves were about 6-8 feet at Pismo. Too big to make it outside but we had a fun time on the inside section, caught lots of waves. I let Zach use my long board and he stood up a number of times, it was a fun experience.

My brother Warren and his wife are coming to visit the first part of March so I am looking forward to that. He bought into a little tail dragger airplane locally here and we plan on flying lots. It's going to be a blast. Well that's about it for now, I will post some pictures later.

2010-07-10T09:33:00.000-07:00

We made a trip down to LA, saw a Angeles baseball game and then spent a day at Disneyland's California Adventures. It was a fun trip.

2010-07-10T09:26:00.000-07:00

Fun in So-Cal

2010-07-03T15:11:00.001-07:00

2010-04-28T21:14:00.000-07:00

I know Warren, it has wood spars and you hate them. But the spars are inspected yearly and they don't have a single crack in them. Plus its not like I am going to be doing outside loops in it, its even placarded against intentional spins.

2010-04-27T08:13:00.001-07:00

Check out this little plane. I have a chance to buy a 1/7th share of it and I think I am going for it. Its a 1946 Aeronca 7BCM with a newly rebuilt C-85 Continental motor. It's hangered at the Estrella Warbird Museum so there is no hanger fees and it will be very low cost to fly.

These interior photo's are not from the actual plane but they are from one of the same year, make and model, except ours has a transponder so I can fly into Class C and B airspace. Its got a nice roomy cockpit area with lots of big windows. The kids will love going for flights. Even Suzette says she will go up in it with me (after she loads up on Dramamene).

Another day in paradise.

2010-02-11T10:28:00.000-08:00

I train with the SLO Regional SWAT team once a month. Last month we had someone taking pictures of us. At this months training they gave each of us a DVD-R loaded with a ton of photos. Here's the macho warriors putting a mean scare on an empty building.

A more traditional plane.

2010-01-18T20:26:00.000-08:00

Well, the owner of the little yellow plane below has decided to sell it so I can't fly it anymore. Therefore I am flying a Piper Cherokee like the one above. It costs me $10 per hour more to rent but its probably going to save me money in the end as its actually a lot easier to fly then the one below and is faster so those mandated cross country lights will go allot quicker. I logged another 1.2 hours on Saturday in the Cherokee. Hopefully the rain we are getting now will let up as we are scheduled to fly our first cross country to Shafter Airfield on Friday. If the weather cooperates I will get a flight physical at that location.

Flight training.

2010-01-09T19:10:00.000-08:00

I am back in the flying saddle again. This is the nice little plane I am currently training on. Its classified as a Light Sport Plane but its really pretty nice, has fuel injection, glass cockpit flight instruments (all the flight instruments are displayed on a computer screen) and even an auto-pilot. Its a fun plane to fly, takes off in about 100 feet and climbs like you wouldn't believe. I put in 2.6 hours flying it this week-end. The weather was gorgeous, clear with no wind and about 70 degrees. In other words just another ridiculously beautiful Central Coast day.

Say goodbye to my third airplane project!

2010-01-02T20:36:00.000-08:00

Well its sort of sad but I am selling my Soneri experimental aircraft project. As much as I enjoyed working on it I realized if I sold it I would actually have enough money to get my pilots license. It seemed kind of silly to be working on my third airplane project (forth if you count my ultralight) and yet not actually have a pilots license. So I stuck an advertisement in Barnstormers and what do you know, it sold. The guy is coming by tomorrow to pick it up with a U-haul truck. I will miss the airplane but it will be great to be able to rent an aircraft and fly Suzette and the kids somewhere fun.

Here's the progress on the truck, diamond plate steel is going on.

Progress on the truck bed.

2009-12-25T17:59:00.000-08:00

Here's a post for Warren. This is our F-450's flatbed after I stripped all the nasty wood off it. I was pleased to see it is very structurally sound with lots of supports. Next step is to sandblast the under-surface, paint it with rust inhibiting primer then gloss black paint. After that we will be attaching diamond plate steel sheets where the wood used to be. We will have the coolest looking heavy duty truck in California.

Aye, now thats a manly truck!

2009-11-28T15:21:00.000-08:00

Today I picked up the truck Warren purchased. It is truly a beast of a truck and is in very good shape. I expected some small dings and such but the body is in near perfect condition. We will be painting it gloss black, it should look awesome! I am kind of concerned about Suzette though. Recently I have noticed her quietly mumbling something about contacting Sheila and between the two of them getting a restraining order against Warren and I ever using eBay or Craigslist again. I am sure she is only kidding, I think.

Apparently I have become my father!

2009-11-21T21:09:00.000-08:00

So I woke up this morning, pulled on some comfortable clothes and went down stairs for a cup of coffee. Suzette takes one look at me and starts laughing, she says "Oh my god, you have become your father" and ran for a camera. The worst part is at first I didn't even know what she was talking about, I actually thought I was dressed OK. For those of you who don't know what I am talking about, my dad dressed rather unusually. It wasn't uncommon to see him wearing striped pants with a plaid shirt and when you questioned his unorthodox dressing habits he would proudly brag about how he bought his whole outfit for less then a dollar at Goodwill. Its sad to say apparently the apple does not fall far from the tree.

This is "The Hook" AAARRRRR. I went and checked it out when we were camping up north. I almost went out but it was pretty small on that day and I whimped out and sat on the cliff drinking my mocha coffee drink. There was one good set that came in while I was sitting there, with about 5 foot waves which made me feel like a fool for not getting in the water. Then the waves got really flat. But this place definately kicks when the swell is in. I really liked the surfers etiquette sign and had to take a picture of it.

Mr spider says Hi

2009-11-13T10:43:00.000-08:00

Tis the season to be stepping on lots of these if you don't watch where you step, we see them everywhere. We love them and try to scoot them off the roads when we see them. They don't always appreciate this as I think they like the hot asphalt.

No post is complete with out a picture of an airplane and a truck. Warren just purchased the Ford F-450 below for our contractors business.

I thought Jason might like to see his truck, I start it regularly and it even has a spot in the barn since I organised the area.

Our camping trip was an adventure.

2009-11-13T10:34:00.000-08:00

Here is a few pictures from our camping trip at New Brighton Beach. Yes we had little fat bandits raiding our camp every evening. Here they are chowing down on Polly's dog food. Luke and Matt had fun playing in the water although it would have been nice if it was warmer. We also rode the steam train up a mountain, that was lots of fun.

Halloween or candy overload

2009-11-13T10:23:00.000-08:00

Matt and Luke had a lot of fun on Halloween, Matt was dressed as a baseball player and Luke was a stormtrooper. We went trick or treating in Creston then went to a friends haunted house in Templeton where Suzette took the boys on another round of candy gathering. Looks like I may have had a little to much candy myself by the last picture.

Matt is really enjoying baseball

2009-09-27T16:11:00.000-07:00

Matt is in Little League this year and has a great eye for the ball. I'm thinking baseball scholarship Ha Ha.

Suzette bought this setup which has a ball mounted on it and you use it to practice hitting the ball.

I have already planned out the location for our baseball field. Now that I don't have an ultralight I can use my landing strip as a baseball field. Matt and I are practicing hitting and catching a little every day. He seems to be having a lot of fun and that's what counts.

Church and rodeo combined, only in Creston.

2009-09-27T16:02:00.000-07:00

We had an interesting church service the other day. It was held at the rodeo grounds at Creston. Every year they have a large rodeo and traditionally they hold the church service in the grand stand and then the rodeo events begin. I thought this was a cool picture, and they served yummy donuts. You know we will be back again next year.

Hey look, the grass is growing and so are the weeds

2009-09-23T19:57:00.000-07:00

Here is a shot of Suzette striveing to beat down the weeds. The grass is growing fast but man, those weeds are growing even faster. We have to continue hoeing them out for at least a few more weeks, then we can hit it with Weed-and-Feed and really put a hurt of them. Suzette has been out there every day working on it.

The grass plugs are planted and my back hurts.

2009-09-05T15:57:00.000-07:00

Here's the grass planting warrior working the soil and spreading potting soil on the surface. It's been so hot during the day that I put out halogen lights so I could work on it in the evening when it was only 80 degrees.

Once the soil was prepped Matt and Suzette really worked hard and made it all possible. We had 20 flats to plant with 72 plugs per flat, that's a whole bunch of plugs at 12 inches separation (for you people without a calculator handy, its 1440 plugs). We got an assembly line process going after a little practice. I measured and drilled the holes and watered them, Matt got the plugs out of the tray, dipped them in a root grow solution and dropped them on the holes and Suzette planted each plug.

And here is our finished product! I am so glad they are in the ground.

I fired up the sprinklers and everything is looking good. Of course my back is killing me. Lucky for me I have a cold corona with lime in the fridge calling my name. Waayyyne, Waayyne, please come drink me.

Gotta go, duty calls.

2009-08-27T11:25:00.000-07:00

Check out this cheesy shot of me in all my SWAT gear. You know what they say about boys and their toys.

Jason's truck

2009-08-26T17:58:00.001-07:00

Jason's truck is looking like a true Creston vehicle (its covered in dust and needs a wash). I am starting it regularly and its running fine. It can't wait for your return so someone will wash it. It's also very jealous that Anna would talk about getting another car Ha Ha. Sorry Anna, your out of luck, the Falcon is going up for sale once I get it looking better. And yes, gloss black is going to be its primary color although I will include some red on the sides and the hood scoop.

2009-08-25T12:07:00.000-07:00

OOOH NOOO, its here early! Suzette ordered lots of very expensive, super grass that will supposedly need little water and loves high heat and clay soil. It was not supposed to be delivered here until Sept 12th, which would have given me a little time to properly prep the soil. I came home the other day and it had been delivered early ARRRRRGH. So now the push is on, gotta get it into the ground. Right now its taken over the garage and it's doing well but I need to get it into the ground pronto. Well, it will be nice to have it better established before winter gets here but I would still like to throttle those people at High Country Gardens.

My longboard is sick. I had some bad delamination on the deck. I was talking with a surfboard shaper and he told me how to fix it. I have pealed the fiberglass cloth off and will be filling with some stuff called Q-cell mixed with resin, then I will top it with new fiberglass cloth. Don't worry Anna, I will leave your surfboard alone Ha Ha. It's still hanging on the wall waiting for your return.

Look! the drip system is paying off and the plants are growing great, even in August. In years past they were lucky to survive the August heat

I thought I would take a picture of my latest project I have started on. Its a 1961 Ford Falcon Futura. I found a set of four lug rims with tires for $50 on Craigs'list for it so I dragged the car out from under a ton of trash where it was stored in the back of the barn. After I sell the forklift this will be the next thing to get fixed up and sold.

We had a great vacation!

2009-08-12T14:24:00.000-07:00

Luke is ready to hit the road!

We stayed over night at Lake Havasu, the motel was not that great although it was cheap, but the lake more then made up for it and the kids got a kick out of the London Bridge. It was great to have a break from driving and take a dip in the water.

2009-08-12T14:18:00.000-07:00

Luke and Matt really like the horny toad lizard the Gabe and Jackson caught for them to see!

2009-08-12T14:13:00.000-07:00

Here is a shot I took with Barbara on the front porch of her house.

2009-08-12T13:57:00.000-07:00

Here is everyone but Barb on the front porch of Barb's house. We really had a lot of fun in Las Cruces! Check out Suzette's Blog as she has a lot more photo's.

2009-08-12T13:48:00.000-07:00

Here is what I enjoyed the most about Leggo Land. They had a giant water area with water shooting everywhere, this picture really does not do justice to it. The parents were supposed to stay with their kids but mostly it was a ton of out-of-control kids blasting each other (and us parents) with water. The huge buckets on top of the structure would fill up with water and when the center of gravity got too high they would dump, lots of fun.

2009-07-12T20:09:00.000-07:00

My sister Barbara came out from New Mexico to visit for 4 days. We had a fun time eating way to much good food!

2009-07-06T09:50:00.000-07:00

Here is a shot of the Sonerai IIL frame, work in progress.

Here is a picture of my latest tool I purchased (Craig's List of course). I have wanted an Oxygen/Acet welder for a long time. It's next to the forklift which needs to be sold.

I have welded in the brackets for the gas tank and added the panel. Its a little sparse on instruments so far but that will come with time.

2009-07-05T11:50:00.000-07:00

On Friday we had a fun family day at Pismo Beach.

Here's Art and me in our favorite mode, accept you can't see our bottles of cold Coronas.

2009-07-04T16:36:00.000-07:00

Here's the BBQ king on Father's Day. It was a fun time with lots of good food and drink!

2009-06-30T22:12:00.000-07:00

This is my brother, when we were kids I wanted to be a pilot and he wanted to be a cop so naturaly I became the cop and he is a pilot. The blood on the windshield is from a bird strike. Thank god they make those windshields strong.

2009-06-21T19:15:00.000-07:00

This is my Beaver Ultralight I just sold. Or as my wife affectionately called it "your flying lawn furniture".

2009-06-21T19:08:00.000-07:00

My brother's plane, 1956 Piper Tri Pacer

Progress report

2009-06-21T18:51:00.000-07:00

Well I have been working pretty hard on the Sonerai IIL project and several other projects. I completely went through my Beaver Ultralight and sold the aircraft. Hated to see it go but I needed the room to work on other things in the shop. The Ultralight was a hoot to fly but it was just no use for anything other then flying short distances around the patch. It's one of the main reasons I am building an aircraft that will cruise at 135 MPH, so I can cover some distance.

Towards that end I will need to get my pilots license. My very nice brother who owns a Piper Tri-Pacer is going to leave it with me for a couple of months so I can get my license in it. I will include a picture of it, the ugly dude in front is my bro.

As I said work is progressing on the Sonerai. I added tubes on the turtle deck so I can wrap aluminum sheeting around the top surface. I also welded the brackets for the gas tank and installed the tank, have not plumbed it yet. I built an instrument panel out of some finish grade paneling. It's about the right stiffness but light in weight, I'm pleased with how it looks. In the near future I will post more pictures of the Sonerai, Until then talk with you later.

2009-04-28T17:20:00.000-07:00

This is a photo of the aircraft frame, wings are leaning against the wall behind it.

Getting Started

2009-04-28T17:08:00.000-07:00

I will be using this block to keep track of the construction of my Sonerai IIL experimental aircraft and of course to have fun and learn a few things.

First off, a few things about myself. I am 47 years old and so far have lived a very blessed, interesting life. I have four children, Anna 23, Zach 21, Matt 10 and Luke 5 and a wonderful wife Suzette. Anna and Zach are moved out of the house and living their own adventures. Read about Anna and Jason her new husbands adventures in their blog (aventuras con Jason y Anna). They are in Chili teaching English