Model Flyer

Started with the dime store and Jimmy Allen ones and then a Wakefield
(sp) rubber FF. Then Quaker Flash and Zipper (with Brown Jr) with
which I won the annual contest in my home town in southern Iowa. Had
recovered bird and it was sitting next to car when my 'good buddy'
launched and did a loop and crashed into my bird cutting it in half. I
rebuilt for next year with an Ohlson 60 and enlarged it to half a
Sailplane size. Next year at first contest in Des Moines, made a 3
second motor run test and caught a thermal and it was gone. That fall
a farmer called. He had found in his corn field 28 miles away.
Nothing during WWII then C/L. Won the Salt Lake City 'D' speed with
an original (no rudder) McCoy 60. Raised four daughters and flew
Fighters. About 15 years ago got into R/C. Have a bunch now all over
my 'play pen'. Biggest a quarter scale P-51 copy of 'my' '51 (Kathie
Kay).

Had cataract taken out several months ago and not seeing good. Hope to
get a good set of glasses (they've tried several times) next week so I
can read and fly again. Am driving like Wiley Post flew.

It's hell to get old.

Good luck on the GA flying. It's great.

Big John.



On Fri, 14 Nov 2003 23:32:17 -0000, "Model Flyer"
wrote:


"Big John" wrote in message
.. .
Model Flyer

What do you fly by the way (C/L. FF. RC, etc) ? Raced for a while
till
my caller called it a day.


Did some FF rubber powered models when I was 12, however powered
flight started with C/L at 16 or 17 and graduated to RC when I
reached 30 or so, so I could say that I've been flying for 40 years.

Always wanted to fly 'real planes', however got glasses when I was 14
and only recently 86 discovered that I could fly with glasses. So far
Ive got about 13.5 hrs logged and a few more in the right seat.
Getting back to training this year, the group plane has been approved
for use for training through the a club at another field providing we
are all members of that club. So I can continue learning on the
aircraft I'm most likely to fly for the next few years.

Out of the blue I got a job offer at 54 and took it, so at least I
shall be able to pay for my flying without depending on the family
income.:-)