Two Pilots & an LSW: Sweat Box

Early Morning Saturday, I was up and at the airport, pulled out the Citabria, taxied it over to the ramp where we were going, and we waited for the kids to arrive. We ended up having something like 80 kids. Unfortunately most of the airplanes had to cancel, so we had three of us taildraggers with only one extra seat, and one Cherokee 180 with 3 extra seats. It was 87 degrees yesterday with a high humidity heat index. The Citabria has a glass door you can't open in the air, glass roof, glass left side of the airplane, glass windshield, and two small air vents that don't point right at you no matter how you twist them. It was brutal hot in there. Each kid would get out and say they were sweaty, and they were only in there one time for 20 minutes. I didn't get out of the airplane except for a brief 10 min when I needed fuel, from 9:45 am until 1:30 p.m. We all just went and went and went, I'd help the kids buckle up while still buckled up myself. I thought I wore safe shorts, but when I got out of the plane, I had sweated so much it looked like I wet my pants--I had to pull my t-shirt way down and try to stand somewhere to get airflow.

The event itself went well even if we were short on pilot help. I had two kids who were on their 7th and 8th Young Eagle flight. They used to only let the kids do one, but then they removed that restriction, so the ones who really enjoy it keep coming back. I also had several kids who had never been in an airplane before. Almost all of the kids I had were energetic, excited, enchanted, and a lot of fun to fly around with. I was hot, but I had fun anyway.

We got done at 1:30, so I put the plane away and tried to air out a little, and then went in and had a little BBQ and potato salad. I was supposed to fly with Brad in the new Bonanza at 2 pm, but I needed a minute, so I ate, drank caffeine and water, and then at 2:20 I was ready to sweat again, I guess. He's only flown the C-172 and the C-172RG, so a Bonanza was a new animal for him. We had clouds, but we wanted to do air work, stalls, etc., so when he wanted to level off at 2500', I said "not in this one, let's find a hole and go higher". So we did. Started with just trying to hold altitude in normal turns, and steep turns, and slow flight. Moved into the stalls, and rapidly he discovered why I wanted more altitude. ;) We did those until they settled down and smoothed out, and then came in for a couple takeoffs and landings. Still need to do more work on all that, but he'll get there, and he's excited about the challenge. We've got another guy who will be checking out in the plane too, but he's going to be a challenge. He's already a challenge in a 172, so the Bonanza is going to eat his shorts. But hopefully we can get somewhere. The Bonanza is going to be the plane we use a lot like we did the Aerostar, which I think I already said will be sold/gone.

After I got done flying with Brad, I was again just a big ball of sweat. I couldn't get home fast enough. I walked out of my clothes and straight into the shower. We had one more thing to do--dress up a bit and go out to Noah Grant's Grill House and Oyster Bar with Ethan and Amber. We had King Crab legs that they split in half for you so you don't have to fight for the meat, and I had an excellent Dover, and calamari...good stuff. We had an enjoyable evening out, just as friends. We didn't get home until like 10 pm, and by 10:30 I was done and in bed. Long, hot, sweaty day.

And yet somehow, this morning I did not end up waking up with a headache. I have no idea how. I've been wearing this ring, and I've actually noticed a reduction in headaches. Not elimination, but how yesterday didn't end up in one feels like a miracle. I had two of them--buy one get one free--so I gave the second one to Morgan to try, as she gets bad ones sometimes too.

Morgan took the Aerostar down to Chattanooga, and ended up having to go missed approach because the weather was too bad, and had to divert somewhere else. Her first time doing that. ;) Finally she got in to Chattanooga, and BOB had a maintenance issue, which took half the day to get fixed. She's trying to text me, and I'm giving non-stop kid rides and I cannot help. I finally told her to call Steve if she needed anything. She eventually got her 3 currency takeoffs and landings in, and then gave two rides. We needed to give like 6 rides, but maintenance will maintenance. This morning she's giving rides until after lunch, and then heading back while JP and Mike M take it up in the afternoon for Mike's after-incident-training and hopefully sign-off to continue to fly BOB. Then she's flying the Aerostar back and flying with a student who is struggling before her Monday checkride.

Steve is out mowing the lawn, he likes Sundays to do house maintenance. Kaylee is down in Carmel doing something. She's been doing a lot more with friends, which is good. I went over last night to visit for a few with her and Molly. Kaylee had just hung out with Eden and done a "make your own candle" thing. Work is going well. I think she's doing okay. The car company gave us back her car, said they couldn't find anything wrong with it (again). Steve won't let her drive it to Indy and back, so she's still driving the Durango they gave her, we're driving her car around town where if it dies someone will be close by to help. We told the company this is a lemon and we want another car exactly like it that will stay running.

Guess that's about it for now. I'm planning on doing bedding/laundry, watching TV, reading, and doing not much of anything else for the day. Sounds like a plan.