LaPorte

I’m in a hotel room in LaPorte, Indiana. It took me about 5 minutes to pack my suitcase now. I’m getting good at this. ;)

I met up with Alan this morning, and we flew in the C-45 for his checkout flight. We flew 1.2, came down and got some lunch, went back up for 1.3, and topped off and he left while I ran home and made Ann dinner and meds, and then I ran right back out to the airport and got in the C-45 with Spencer and Cameron, and let Spencer fly us to LaPorte. I did the landing, but let him do everything else. He’s only got 20 hours of total tailwheel time.

Alan isn’t ready to be off on his own yet. We’ll do some more emergencies, some crosswinds, and more takeoffs and landings, and hopefully he’ll settle in after another couple of flights. Man I’m always on edge in the big taildraggers. Makes me so tired instructing in them. But I don’t really want to lose that tension because it keeps me focused on landings. Things just go sideways a lot faster in the Beech and the Six than they do in a Champ or the mighty Cessna, ya know? ;)

I got a text from Air Power History Tour Jon, asking if I could move the plane from Saginaw, MI to Toledo, OH, and do rides in Ohio the week of Aug. 17-22nd.  I don’t know yet. I may do a few days, but I doubt I’ll do the whole week…

Tomorrow I’m doing rides in the BT-13. I brought the C-45 up and JP is going to do the rides in it, because we don’t have another BT rides pilot. Nick will be doing rides in the PT-26. It’s nice that I’m the only person who can give rides in all of them plus the T-6, but it also keeps me busy. I’m the floater, who goes wherever they don’t have someone.  It all works out. Tomorrow’s going to be hot, and busy. At least I have my own guys here with me though. I appreciate and enjoy that more.

We ate out tonight at a golf course country club, all sweaty and oily and dirty. They took our money just fine. I had salmon and it was quite good.

I’m tired, so will go hit the hay and be ready for another early start to another rides day in another hotel for the weekend.  :)