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It has been 3 years since I attended the first Clinton Fly-In in 2001. That event was an adventure from the moment I first considered attending. Like everything in life, our flying perceptions are greatly filtered by our experience. That first year, was my first travel beyond the Pacific NW and was in my first airplane, the 150/150 known as the Acme Flying Machine. |
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I had barely over 100 hours then and was going to fly with a group of four other aircraft to an event that none of us had ever undertaken before. This year as I returned, I had crossed 400 hours and was now flying my "Redbird" a 177B Cardinal. The members were gracious in that they allowed a 177, Piper and even a Stinson to join the gaggle with nothing more than an occasional ribbing for "crossing over" to the dark side (i.e. those who do not own a Cessna 150 or 152). My route included two trips over the Rockies at altitudes to 13,500 with DA's well in excess of that. What took three days in 2001, was accomplished in one this year. While my skills and abilities have a long way to go to even be described as mediocre, I have matured as a pilot in these three years. The flight was a joy without concern for schedules or weather. If it happened it happened. Time frames were only a concern if the sun was setting. Royson must have taught me that. I arrived Wednesday evening. I was excited as I began my decent into CWI as it approached 8 p.m. I anticipated a welcoming committee as I called in on Unicom. I got Merle I think. "Did you need anything, if not, I'm going home."
Under Lori's careful choreography of the registration and meals, and Airboss Mayotte and son Tom's choreography of the aircraft, the event went with precision. One comment I made, as I "observed" from my helper status was how transparent all the hard work was to the attendee's. The proverbial "duck" comparison was in order (calm on the surface, paddling like crazy under the water) certainly applied. The weather was wonderful, even cool, which was a stark contrast to the blazing heat and melting humidity of my first year. I will take blessings like that. I got to become 30 years younger at this event, working aircraft on the runway and taxiways just like I did as a plane captain in the Navy...ah the glory days of youth. The soreness the following days reminded me of the maturity thing again. I got to see a lot of familiar faces this year. Royson, Lori, Gordon, Joel (and Fury), Wayne, Charles, and so forth. Really enjoyed seeing Sarah again, as I remembered her making the first event much better as she helped me through my spark plug problem. Met lots of new folks this year too. Problem was, many of them had attended 2002 and 2003, so I was the apparent newcomer. In all, it was with some remorse that I saddled up at first light Sunday morning. I had lots of time to ponder over the vast expanse of real estate that is South Dakota, Iowa and Montana. Was it worth it? Yes, friends are friends and they are worth the effort to keep in touch. Will I go again? Lord willing, yes. It seems that life can dictate your circumstances as I found the prior two years. What did I enjoy the most? That's difficult. I think Royson beaming like a proud father will be etched in my memory (kind of like kids: costs a fortune to raise them, but you forget that when they succeed).
Jeff Davis |
