Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Sam Burgess Memorial Junket update - 6/25/08

J.W. French has sent along this update of the Sam Burgess Memorial Junkett, which you can read more about in this earlier post.

Left the wonderful group that hosted and entertained me at San Manuel, AZ, Chapter 1406 this morning. The flight for San Manuel was only about 45 minutes and once I got out of the high country the air was relatively smooth. The wind was about 45 degrees crossed, but only about 7 knots. I landed at Casa Grande (CGZ) this morning and was met by a large contingent of members from Chapter 1445 and a photographer and a reporter from the Casa Grande Dispatch. Mike Still had done a great job of organizing the event on short notice.

I gave a presentation on the life and times of Sam Burgess, and tried to quit 10 minutes before the audience expected it, which is what a wise old politician once told made the best speech. They just kept asking questions about Sam and the airplanes he built so I hung in there with them as long as they were interested. We adjourned for a great lunch at Mimi's.

My hanger host for the Acro Sport is Terry Emig, the an officer of the AAAA/ Catus Fly In and an old friend of Robert Taylor of AAA fame. He has a beautiful Stearman. One of the Chapter members had made Sam's acquaintance in the past. I saw a number of beautiful airplanes that belong to the members, including a pristine Stolp V Star and a 1941 J3 Cub with and 0-200 Continental engine with an electrical system and a starter.

My overnight host has accepted the challenge of getting my tired old bones up early so I can get to Payson in the morning before the heat whips up the wind and the turbulence. I will be going back into the mountains to get to Payson. I am getting a little more comfortable in the high country, but I don't I will ever be able to relax in that environment.

I'll try to report again tomorrow from Payson.

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