America’s Freedom Fest 2019 – Goshen, Indiana

Fly Days, Miscellaneous Ramblings, Skydiving, ,

July 6 –  Well today was a planned road trip down to my old jumping grounds at the Goshen Municipal Airport in Indiana. I started on my trip in the late morning and while driving down drove thru two heavy duty rain squalls which in my mind did not bode well for attending an airshow.  With that said there can be a lot of different weather patterns in a straight line drive of 65 miles.

I arrived as the grounds were filling up with cars, trucks, horse drawn wagons and bicycles. The line of cars backed up to enter was starting to get long but I got in just before the major surge.  It was a bit of a hike  from the parking area to the event entry gate.

The clouds  were getting dark and heavy but I had done a quick run through of the area to get my bearing  before the rain squall hit. I had an umbrella with me but it was not going to be  much help in this downpour but I was able to enter the airport terminal just as the rain and wind struck the airfield.  It rained hard and fast for at least 20 minutes before letting up and the crowds returning from hiding under about a dozen very large tents.

They had lots of military aircraft coming in from World War II, from the Vietnam era there were the Sky Soldiers and their helicopters, and a good number of static aircraft displays to keep you occupied until the airshow started and many food vendors to keep you fed.

A highlight of the air show was the appearance of the United States Air Force F-22 Raptor which did a full 20-minute military combat demo.

It was estimated that  over 30,000 of people watched the planes in action, cars and jet trucks  racing to beat airplanes and helicopters, and skydivers floating in the skies above at this, the  third annual America’s Freedom Fest.

I left right after the airshow and before the fireworks began in order to avoid the traffic going home.   Here is a small sample of what you missed 🙂

Just before the rain!
In the FBO looking at people sheltering under the C54
Kids and Puddles
Darcy taking off
Darcy putting Big Red thru the hoops
Sky Demon
The Sky Demon using every one of its 450 horses.
Sky Demon going thru its paces.
SkyDivers
Sky Divers
PT-17’s Buttoned up before the rain
Sky Soldiers Huey’s & Cobra
Cobra – Mean Machine – Rides a bit salty at $400 – BUT what a ride!
Jet Truck vs Sky Demon
Yep- you really wanted ear plugs around this one
Fire fighting Helio taking on a load
Water drop – by this time the crowd would have appreciated the shower from a higher drop.
Raptor fly by- belly shot
Raptor just hanging in the sky on pure thrust.
Food Court
Some of the crowds
Leaving the Parking Area

 

Just before the Fireworks Began

July 3:  This year Saint Joseph (Mi) switched their day for fireworks from July 4 to July 3 to reduce crowds and so people who have to work the Friday after Independence Day won’t need to stay up late that night.   Here is a picture, lightened up a good bit, so you can see the people gathering and the number of boats anchored offshore of the piers about 20 minutes before the show started. According to the Berrien County Parks Department the estimated crowd size was 5,000 people just before the fireworks show began.

Saint Joseph Bluff – Picture of the park, silver beach and the boats off shore for the fireworks display

Family Skydiving

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.

 

 

Fly Day & Shore Line Pictures

June 30:  As I may have mentioned before,  on my way back from Michigan City, Indiana (KMGC) and watching tandem skydivers landing, the air was smooth enough to take a few shore line pictures  on the way back to Benton Harbor airport.   As you can see the beaches of South West Michigan are the most popular places to be in the summer months.

It even looks like the intake water crids at the nuclear plant are smiling, or maybe that’s a fat fish?
Weko Beach – Bridgman, MI.
Saint Joseph Mi. – Silver Beach
Tiscornia Beach Today
Jean Klock Park – Maytag Ironman 70.3 Steelhead Triathelon

Steak Fry Afternoon & Metal Detecting Dive Day

2019-06-29:   Saturday was a blue-sky morning that lasted all day. This was a very good thing as it was the biggest event day of the “July 4X4 Watervliet Independence Celebration & Carnival” that had been going.  As part of the celebration there was a “Fly In” & “Steak Fry” at the Watervliet Airport (40C) which I attended.

With all the rain we have been having here in SW Michigan there were no war-birds showing up as the grass field was a bit on the wet mushy side and was only suitable for light aircraft like the Piper Cub or Cessna 150’s.  As always “Fly In’s” are great meet and greet events, an opportunity to show off your plane, swap flying tales, and hopefully get some non-flyers interested in aviation.

And afterward,  if you wanted to cool off on this hot & muggy day, you could do so at Forrest Beach park. Though Big Paw Paw lake is getting to be very weedy and has rather heavy boat traffic towing water toys on holiday weekend like this, it was still a good day to get in a scuba dive.

Since I anticipated the heavy boat traffic I decided to stay in the shallows and do a bit of metal detecting. Now with that said, the water was warm and I kept my diving to less than 15 feet deep. Since the water in the shallows were warm there was no need to have a wet suit hood or gloves. Having garden gloves or something to protect the hands when grubbing thru the bottom muck is highly recommended though.

Finds for the day did not include any coins or rings but a lot of rusty can’s, nails, and a varied assortment of rusted metal junk including one old fashion plow tip.  I was only out about an hour and by the time I finished my dive the park was packed, and the parking lot filled and spilling over.

Its summer people so get out there and enjoy it!

Watervliet Airport (40C) FBO
A few of the light weight planes
90 HP – Piper Cub
60 HP – Cub
Both cubs leaving at the same time.
Forrest Beach Park just before the crowds enveloped it.

Lest We Forget

2019-06-23: Have you ever felt that history, particularly military history, isn’t being taught in our schools like it was in the “good old” times?

Why is it that many of our high school graduates, some say a majority, don’t know who we fought in WWII, who bombed us at Pearl Harbor or worst yet, believe that the holocaust never happened? Our children are not being taught the basic principles that have made this country great!

“Lest We Forget” was started by a group of veterans who felt that patriotism was too important of a subject to be given the short shrift that it presently receives in our schools and community. Our operating principle is “To brighten the future we must illuminate the past.”

Flag Alley
Bivouac Area
APC (Armored Personnel Carrier)
Halftrack armored vehicle
Field Shelter
Field setup
grousing time!
Re-Enactment – Pacific Theater of Operation
Nasty beast the flame thrower- life expectancy of the individual carrying it in combat was 10 minutes
DUKW – better known as “DUCK”
Water Buffalo (it has a big bite when necessary)
Higgins Boat or LCVP (landing craft, vehicle, personnel)
This was someone’s great idea!
MI Chapter – Vietnam Helicopter Pilots Association
Today’s Area of Operation was “‘Upton LZ” or “Whitwam LZ” if you prefer.
Army (Huey) UH-1H – Originally the Iroquois helicopter was designated HU-1 (Helicopter Utility) hence the Huey nickname.
Slick In Bound
Medivac Inbound (Huey or Slick – UH-1H)
Lest We Forget -> WW-1, WW-2, Korea, Vietnam, Cold War, Grenada, Panama, Iraq, Bosnia, Somalia, Haiti, Kuwait, Serbia, Afghanistan and the dozens upon dozens of other areas that involved placing our troops in harm’s way.

 

 

Benton Harbor Michigan & the St. Joseph River

Walkabout, ,

2019-06-20: As the pictures show, the St. Joseph river is quite high and overflowing its banks especially around Fisherman’s Park and the nearby boat docks. It is also pushing back up the drains and creating a bit of street flooding by the Whirlpool Campus on Main street.

Almost a floating boardwalk (Fisherman’s Park) – Benton Harbor, MI
The old boat house in the park- the dock-pier is under water. (Fisherman’s Park, Benton Harbor, MI)
The sign says it all. Still some people are driving thru it way too fast. (Main Street Benton Harbor – By Whirlpool Campus)
At least your car’s under carriage gets a nice wash.

 

Miscellaneous Ramblings

Miscellaneous Ramblings,

2019-06-18:  Is it True or False?

(Is) Fact-Checking Snopes: Website’s Political ‘Fact-Checker’ Is Just A Failed Liberal Blogger

Snopes’ main political fact-checker is a writer named Kim Lacapria. Before writing for Snopes, Lacapria wrote for Inquisitr, a blog that — oddly enough — is known for publishing fake quotes and even downright hoaxes as much as anything else.

While at Inquisitr, the future “fact-checker” consistently displayed clear partisanship (RELATED: Snopes Caught Lying About Lack of American Flags at Democratic Convention)

She described herself as “openly left-leaning” and a liberal. She trashed the Tea Party as “teahadists.” She called Bill Clinton “one of our greatest” presidents. She claimed that conservatives only criticized Lena Dunham’s comparison of voting to sex because they “fear female agency.”

She once wrote: “Like many GOP ideas about the poor, the panic about using food stamps for alcohol, pornography or guns seems to have been cut from whole cloth–or more likely, the ideas many have about the fantasy of poverty.” (A simple fact-check would show that food stamp fraud does occur and costs taxpayers’ tens of millions.)

https://dailycaller.com/2016/06/17/fact-checking-snopes-websites-political-fact-checker-is-just-a-failed-liberal-blogger

Miscellaneous Ramblings

Miscellaneous Ramblings

2019-06-17:  Two interesting items I learned about today

In January of this year (2019), it was announced that a rock sample from Apollo 14 collected in 1971 looks very much like it has a piece of rock from Earth within it! This would make it an Earth meteorite which struck the Moon and became emplaced in some of the lunar rock.

This would have happened like a game of Solar System pinball, as it would take a large meteorite striking Earth to knock some terrestrial matter free and all the way to the Moon.

Radiometric dating puts them at about 4.1 billion years old, so very early in Earth’s 4.5-billion-year history but importantly not as old as the Theia-Earth impact event which formed the Moon itself, so there was a distinct subsequent event which led to this lunar oddity.   https://eos.org/articles/apollo-may-have-found-an-earth-meteorite-on-the-moon

AND

Worried about rising sea level due to global warming or all the rain we have been having?  Just remember that Mount Everest, the highest point on earth, used to be the seabed before the Indian subcontinent collided with Eurasia.

https://eos.org/articles/apollo-may-have-found-an-earth-meteorite-on-the-moon