I think today would have to classify as the most frustrating day I've spent at Oshkosh, ever. Yesterday the T-6 was up for judging, and we had the panels off and the plane cleaned up while we waited for the judges to arrive, like plumbers, between the hours of 1-4. You had to be there when they got there, and they'd take a picture of the owner or pilot, judge your airplane, and at the end of the show you get a plaque with your photo on it along with any awards your plane may win. We waited until two something, and then suddenly they cleared the warbird ramp from all persons thanks to a mass arrival they were expecting. So we had to leave the plane and stand behind a rope. I saw what looked like judges pulling up to the plane, and I said to the guy in charge of the rope, "Hey, I think those guys are judging my airplane right now and I'm supposed to be there." He responded with "They are authorized to be there. You're not." Well, okay then. Shortly after that a massive thunderstorm started moving through, and we had to button everything back up, panels on, canopy cover on, etc. We hadn't gotten the right type of tiedowns yet, so I had to jog, and yes I said jog, clear across the field to the tiedown place and buy a set of tiedowns for $20. We got back to the plane, got it tied down and got back to our trailer right about when it started dumping rain, and it rained the rest of the night. Meanwhile, the judges had come and said I wasn't there so they couldn't judge it and we'd have to reschedule and do it all again another day. Okay.
Enter tomorrow. I am relaxing in front of my trailer reading a book in the morning, when Steve called and told me to grab the kids and the Jeep and hightail it over to the Red Lot parking lot and over to the T-6 because the judges had come back and wanted to judge the airplane right now. I hadn't put in the paperwork to be judged this morning, and in fact did not want to be judged today at all because it was going to be a busy enough day and I couldn't sit for a 3-hour time block and wait for them. But they had different ideas, and needed me there in about 30 minutes or so. No problem, I thought. I was wrong. Traffic was stopped cold out on the road, and it took me one hour and 45 minutes to make it anywhere close with two kids complaining in the back seat. When I finally got to the parking lot for which I had a "special" sticker, they blocked the entrance in front of me, came over and said "We're all full here, you'll have to park in the orange lot." At this point steam was leaking out of my ears, but I called the guys again and told them I wouldn't be able to be picked up there after all. The judges were willing to take their golf cart and Come Get Me from wherever. So Chuck and an EAA judge hopped on the golf cart, charged over to the Orange Lot, and had me follow them back to the Red Lot. It was like Moses parting the Red Sea. They paused traffic, they went in an entrance we weren't supposed to, and they cleared a spot for me and escorted me right to it, then piled us all on the golf cart and took us right to the plane where the rest of the judges were still patiently waiting. They asked a few questions, took my picture, and were on their way. Meanwhile I'd lost 3 pounds and 5 years off my life from irritation alone. Or maybe 5 pounds and 3 years, I dunno.
At this point I needed to attend the "First Time Flyer at Oshkosh" pilot briefing at 11:30. No time for lunch, none of my stuff with me since I hadn't expected to take two hours to get from my trailer to the airplane. I borrowed a pen from someone and went in, where they had a briefing exactly like every other briefing I've sat through-nothing special to Oshkosh except diagrams of its airspace and patterns-the stuff they'd give at the regular briefing anyway. That lasted until 12:20 or so, at which time Nathan and I went together to the "Fly in today's airshow" basic briefing, which covered the exact same stuff we'd just gone over in the previous hour. That ended at 1:40 p.m. or so, at which point we were supposed to grab lunch and meet up for our specific flight group (T-6 for me, Fighters for Nathan) pilot briefing for the show. I didn't have time to stand in line for lunch, so I just waited until 10 till two then went to the tent where I was supposed to go. The wrong group was in there. The T-28 group was in there and had no idea what I was talking about, but instead sent me to a blue and white tent across the way. I go there only to find...nobody. So I go back to the briefing room and ask and nobody knows-but one guy points out a guy in a red shirt and said "He's T-6 lead, follow him." I followed him back to the tent I started out at in the first place where he realized the tent was taken over and moved us to another tent. By now we were late for the briefing so I didn't get a chance to talk to him ahead of time about me flying in the show.
That briefing starts, and we get a ways into it when he did a roll call and asked if that was everyone. I stood up and introduced myself and briefly explained who I was and what I was looking to do, which was just be a stinger or the person at the very end in trail, not in formation. As expected they weren't too thrilled that I didn't have my formation card yet, even though one isn't required to just fly in trail. Lead has the legitimate discretion to not allow someone in the flight if they aren't comfortable, but he didn't invoke that rule-instead, after making sure I'd met all the other requirements, he told me that there's an "Oshkosh Rule" that first time flyers at Oshkosh have to have someone who is qualified to fly the T-6 and has flown at Oshkosh ride in the back seat with them the first time out. And since you aren't allowed to have back seaters during the show, you also have to get FAA approval to do so. I let that go at the time, but after the briefing I asked what they would like to see from me to make them comfortable, and he knew I thought it was baloney so he said "I'm not bull-oney-ing you, it really is an Oshkosh Rule." Well, that "Oshkosh rule" isn't in the waiver, and it isn't in any printed requirements. When we asked the head of the warbird department of the show, he'd said I would be good to go (at Lead's discretion of course) to fly trail. So did Dave R+10. Nathan had never heard of this rule. Jim had never heard of it. Personally, I would think the "First Time Flyer at Oshkosh" required briefing would mention something about a rule that you have to have a backseater the first time out, since it is for pilots...on their first time out. But it had no such rule mentioned either.
My guess is that it's not really an Oshkosh rule, but rather an unofficial T-6 group rule. I'm actually fine with the rule, if they don't know you and they want to fly with you first, even if you're just behind them, I'm good with that-in fact it's probably a good idea. I don't know about having to do it during the show itself, but okay. I'd rather he just said "You know, you don't know us, we don't know you, instead of tossing you in at the last minute, why don't you sit out today and maybe we can see about someone riding with you later in the week, and if all looks good..." I'd have been good with that, even if I never ended up actually flying. But...it is what it is.
The main frustration here was pretty basic. If a person takes the time to fly all the way to Oshkosh, does their homework and talks to people ahead of time to make sure they meet the requirements, and spend ALL DAY LONG in pilot briefings, it's pretty doggone frustrating to be told at the last briefing that there is some mystery requirement that nobody else told you about that you don't meet.
To end it, they told me that if I hung around through the weekend, maybe one of them wouldn't feel like flying in the show and maybe one of them would be willing to fly my backseat during a show to meet the requirement, and that the show would be thin on airplanes so it would be my best chance at getting in the show. I thought about it. I debated on the "stick around and make it happen" side of me, which has always won in these situations in the past, but decided not to this time. It feels more like cutting off my nose to spite my own face, since I don't feel like losing hours at Oshkosh hanging around waiting to see if just maybe someone might be willing and sitting through hours of more required briefings. Instead, I will now go relax and be on vacation and enjoy myself. But have no fear, I'll be back. ;)
I got back to the campground and washed potatoes and thawed chicken and made a salad and ice run at the store during the airshow instead. I had woken up at 4:30 a.m., and just had one very long, tiring, frustrating day. At least it ended well with chicken on the grill, friends and a warming fire...
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