Oshkosh Days Updated: 7-28

Since "That Time of Year" happened to coincide with my dragging out a bushel or so of photos to scan into my computer, I thought I'd post a few here. It'll take a while on my Dial-Up Service, but I intend to work on it gradually.

For more then a decade, my life revolved around the Pietenpol Reunion at Brodhead, Wisconsin, usually followed closely by the EAA's convention at Oshkosh. I flew the Piet into Oshkosh six or seven times, coming up from the south, and using the "NORDO" or "No Radio" option. If aviation itself is not a thrill enough, try flying a tiny, 70 mph puddle jumper into the busiest airport on the face of the earth, sharing the ether with jets, helicopters, P-51's and their brethren, ultralights, and the occasional flock of seagulls from the adjacent lake.

The photos are not in any order, and aren't even so much about the Convention itself...there are BILLIONS of photos dedicated to that famous fly-in. These are just some of the peripheral adventures that I think are just as much fun.

Flying up the Mississippi River toward my flying pal's house and strip. Jerry built and flew an immaculate Kit Fox, that tended to make my old ride look a little bedraggled...


Arriving over Jerry's place...his Kit Fox is loaded and ready, waiting in his front yard.


That "Anxious Time": daylight is wasting, and we've got a lot of ground to cover. Top the tanks, hit the bathroom and crank-up.



Jerry's glowing Kit Fox, out over the Illinois corn and bean fields.


Railroad Navigation.



Snoopy Time !



Getting close to Mark's territory. We could see the cooling towers of Rockford, Illinois' Nuclear Plant from 50 miles away. Post 9-11, I'd NEVER fly this close to such a facility, but there were shreds of our freedom still around in those days.



Downtown Pecatonica, Illinois !



Hello !



Jerry on short-final at Brodhead, Wisconsin. A that moment, we thought we had the whole place to ourselves.



Several other Piets dropped in behind us, almost before we shut down



Photos from assorted years at the reunion:







Hopping Passenger rides, with Steve's Piet providing "Special Effects" !









Occasionally, they DO have some Heavy Metal Visitors:









Off to Oshkosh:

Steve's Piet and Ole Yeller shared an offered hangar the night before we headed to Oshkosh.



Steve Eldridge's Piet cruises through the Wisconsin morning. Steve flew his plane all the way from Provo, Utah for the reunion.





Fuel stop at Hartford, Wisconsin:











NORDO Instructions:



On Left-Base to Runway 18 Wittman Regional Airport. At this point, I had to knuckle down and ignore the airplane-chocked sky around me and Ole Yeller, watching for traffic in my immediate path, and try my best to fly the pattern in the instructions. I was always too wired to pick up my camera from the floor of the Piet and take a decent photo, but I DID usually duct tape a video camera to a strut and just let it run. This is a grainy still, made from a captured frame:



Parked with the "In Crowd" !!!!



"Nordo Nerds"...making use of Ole Yeller's shade.