From: Tony Texeira tonytex@cox.net

From: tonytex [mailto:tonytex@tonytex.com]
Sent: Sunday, September 26, 2004 8:02 PM
Subject: SEPT FLY -IN UPDATE #1

Hi Guys,

There was a pretty good turn out for the Sept Fly-In to Santa Barbara (SBA) this Sunday.

SBA wasn't a good pick this time. SBA was forecast to stay IFR until mid to late morning as were most airports on the coast. It was picked because it's on the coast where it's cool and would give us a change of pace from the heat. It didn't work out, so we went to another cool

airport for an alternate... Big Bear (L35). It was nice there.

Eleven pilots in five planes made this one. Flying out of Gillespie (SEE), Doc & Betty Kennedy with Robert & LeeAnn Werve in a 337 and Andy & Nigel flew out in a Comanche. Flying out of Brown (SDM) was Dennis Cullum in his RV4. Flying out of Montgomery (MYF) was Mike & Dominic in a 172 RG and Jim Newport & Tony Tex in a 337.

SEE, SDM & MYF were IFR till just after 0900. Then the sun burned quickly off the thin marine layer (bases 900' & tops 1400' and all three airports suddenly went CAVU shortly after 0900. Pilots leaving at 0900 got a IFR to VFR on top clearances whereas pilots leaving 5-10 minutes later took off VFR.

Once on top you could see forever and there was smooth air all the way to the mountains. L35's runway is closed for repairs, so the south taxiway is the temporary runway. There's 2500' to land on and it's no problem if you don't come barreling in like a fighter pilot. All five planes landed within 30-40" of each other. For take off, there's 3780' because you can use the extended taxiway. Again, no problem.

The temp was 72 with steel blue skies. It was perfect for an enjoyable 4-5 block walk among the pines to Thelma's. Over breakfast we did the usual hangar flying, solved the world's problems (avoiding Bush vs Kerry) and talked about our next Fly-in. LeeAnn did the honors of taking pictures. Our webmaster, (Chris Claborne), will post the pictures on: http://tonytex.com/ as soon as he gets them.

I must apologize to the people who tried to call me at L35 regarding which restaurant we were going to. I forgot to turn my cell phone on after I landed. However, I left word at the terminal we'd be at Thelma's.

Our next Fly-In will be on Sun, Oct 24 to Apple Valley (APV). It's got a decent restaurant. This desert airport can be pretty "toasty" in summer months, but the average temps in October range from 45 to 75. So it ought to be a nice autumn flight and we'll be in and out of there if the temps decide to climb above normal.

I know Sun, Oct 24 is on the weekend the AOPA convention is at Long Beach (LGB). But the 24th is the LAST DAY of the convention. There'll be many pilots flying out of LGB with "get-home-itis", like a gaggle of geese heading for home, and being bolder than they normally would be.

And bold pilots aren't know for their longevity. So I think most pilots would prefer a nice fun Fly-In flight to/from an uncrowded airport.

Anyway, mark you calendar, get your plane ready, or schedule one up, for SUN, OCT 24 for our Fly-In to APV.

Best of clear skies and tailwind,

Tony Tex

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