June 30: Today was a “Blue Sky” day, so for those that know me, that means its time to check the TFR’s, Notams, the weather and get the little bird out of the nest and get a little airtime. Most people also know that my favorite location to fly to is the Michigan City Airport (KMGC) because they usually have the least expensive self-service Avgas, the drop zone “Skydive Windy City”, and a local Hacienda.
Well today I did fly to Michigan City for all of the above, but it was also a good time to clean house and to drop off some used skydiving gear I was no longer using. I figured that Tom (my rigger) would find the stuff a good home. In addition though, I dropped off my jump rig which was overdue for an inspection and reserve parachute repack which is required every 6 months. With the reserve repacked I will be ready for the upcoming “Dink Dink Boogie” being held in August by the raw dogs in Grand Haven, MI. Boogie details can be found at rawdogscrw.com/dinkdinkboogie so give it a looksee!
Now that the para-gear was dropped off it was time to get my jump & flying buddy Dave and head out to Hacienda for chips, salsa and iced tea.
Upon our return we dropped by the DZ to see how busy they were. I was interested because I always like to take pictures of the tandem landings to show how much fun people are having and today was no exception.
I took some random pictures of two tandem loads then decided it was time to head home, so I stopped shooting and got the bird pre-flighted.
As I finished up, I noticed another tandem load had just taken off, so I decided to get in a few more pictures of their landings. As I was taking pictures Dave checked the radar weather and noticed a fast moving storm from coming across the lake from Chicago and suggested that I “kick the tires, light the fires, and get a move on back to Benton Harbor before the winds picked up.
Since its ALWAYS better to be on the ground wishing you were up there flying than being up there flying wishing you were on the ground, I took his council.
Had a smooth flight back home and even took a few shoreline pictures of the various beaches on the way home. A Good day, Good flying, and looking forward to the 4th and more good flying weather.
