Saturday Flying

On By The Flying DutchmanIn Aviation, Six Chuter P32 Comments

My good weather flying streak has moved into it’s second day.  I got up early this morning and drove out to New Jerusalem for another morning of flying.  I got out to New J around 7am and was off the ground by 7:30am.  I flew south along the San Joaquin river initially.  I was noting how high it’s running and looking at the fog that had formed over it.  It was quite beautiful in the early morning hours.

Then I flew west along Highway 132, my old commute to work.  Then I turned northward and flew up Highway 33 towards Tracy.  As I came upon Kasson road I turned back east and flew around the airport for a while.  I only spent about an hour in the air but it was very enjoyable.

 

 

img_20190317_080252

Don’t tell the cops I ran a red light!

img_20190317_080916

Different almond varieties all planted in neat rows.  Note how some are flowering and others are in various stages of budding.  This farmer must harvest all year long!

I had an adventure on the way home and didn’t even know.  As I pulled up in front of my house I noticed that the battery that run’s my utility trailer’s winch was dragging along the ground.  It was attached to the trailer only by the two battery cables!  Both sides of the batter were scuffed up pretty badly and the top casing of the battery was chipped, however, the battery still worked!  I’ll be replacing the battery but it’s amazing how tough this little battery is!  FYI it’s a ExpertPower 12 Volt 18 Ah Rechargeable Battery (EXP12180).

 

I’ve secured the battery a little better so I’m ready to head out again!  More pictures from the next flight.

EDIT:  Forgot to add video from today’s flight.

Parachute Mobile Mission MISSED!

On By The Flying DutchmanIn Aviation, HAM, Six Chuter P3Leave a comment

I drove out to New Jerusalem this morning on a mission to attempt to make contact on my ham radio with another ham.  He was to be coming down in his parachute while I was going up in mine.  Sadly it didn’t work out that way.  My radio was unreadable… AGAIN.  So I contented myself with merely enjoying the beautiful scenery.

After all the storms today was just stunning.  It was a perfect Spring day.  I could smell the almond blossoms and alfalfa from 400 feet up.  I’m afraid I’m going to have to do this all over again tomorrow.

Enjoy a little raw video footage:

 

Parachute Mobile Mission 34: March 16, 2019

On By The Flying DutchmanIn Aviation, HAM, Six Chuter P32 Comments

Going to try to participate in Parachute Mobile tomorrow morning but I’m going to try to take it one step father. I’m going to try to contact a parachute from a parachute, a powered parachute that is.

More info about parachute mobile is available on their website:

https://wp.me/p1po2b-tD

Missionary Flying

On By The Flying DutchmanIn Aviation, Faith, Rans S-6ES Coyote5 Comments

When I was building my airplanes, I always wished that I could somehow use my gifts in aviation for the Lord.  I wanted to fly in the missions field.  But the guys that do usually have tons of flight hours and sponsorship.  I gave up on ever being able to fly for Christ.

However, I got an email this week that really encouraged me.  The email was from a missionary who is getting ready to purchase my old Rans S6ES.  This plane was badly damaged in a landing accident in the Sierra foothills.  I was trying to sell the plane anyway so it wasn’t too much of a disappointment.   The missionary was wanting confirmation that the plane he was going to buy really was my old airplane.  After sending me a few pictures I was able to positively confirm it was my airplane.  The outside looks completely different but the panel is just as I had built it.

Even though I will never fly the mission field it’s good to know that I contributed to Christ’s Kingdom in some small way.

IMG_1514

I won’t fly in the missions field but my airplane will!  Soli Deo Gloria!

Our Second Harvest Host Stay

On By The Flying DutchmanIn Aviation, Harvest Hosts, Lance, RV Life, Travel4 Comments

img_20190223_165745Well, a mere one week after our first Harvest Host stay at Klinker Brick Winery in Lodi we stayed at another winery.  This time we stay in Merced at Vista Ranch and Cellars.  My brother was going to be staying the night after we did.  I would have liked to have stayed the same night but I had work the next day.  So we spent a nice afternoon walking around the vineyard and orchards, dodging the bees who where busy doing their jobs, and just enjoying the break from the rain.  We stopped by the tasting room but since I don’t drink, I had a bowl of lobster bisque.  It was delicious!  Cristy tasted some sparkling wine and bought something in the gift shop as a thank you for being able to stay in such a beautiful location.

Most Harvest Host locations are boondocking only, meaning, there are no facilities available.  You bring your own power and plumbing.  This winery is different in that they provide three spaces that have water and 50 amp electric service.  No sewer service or dump station is available.  However, having electricity is AWESOME!  And if I’d known they have water, I’d never have filled up my fresh water tank to save some weight.

We spent the evening reading and catching up on some TV shows I downloaded to our iPad.  We heated up the soup she had brought and enjoyed a nice quiet dinner.  Even though there was a high school dance going on at the event center also located on the winery grounds, it was still very peaceful

That is, until a train went by.  And they go by very often.  There is a very busy stretch of railroad right on the other side of the street.  At times during the night it sounded like some of the trains were going to come right through our trailer!  But I fell right back asleep each time.

The next day we slept in.  I cooked some eggs for breakfast, and then we watched our church live on their website.  Just as church was ending my brother and his wife showed up.  We caught up a little, gave them the grand tour of our little Lance, and then headed back up to the visitor center to have some lunch together.  After some great conversation I had to start packing up.  Amazed that three hours could pass so quickly.

Vista-Ranch

It was really nice catching up with my brother and just enjoying a quiet getaway to Vista Ranch.  We will definitely be back soon!

img_20190224_150150

img_20190224_150134

Our First Harvest Host Stay

On By The Flying DutchmanIn Harvest Hosts, Lance, RV Life, Travel1 Comment

Many RV’ers take advantage of a website called Harvest Hosts.  It is a searchable map of wineries, farms, museums, golf courses, and assorted other attractions that allow RV’ers to stay overnight for free.  The assumption is that you will patronize their facility.  Cristy and I found Klinker Brick Winery in Lodi, CA through Havest Hosts and stayed there this past weekend.

They have a great facility with LOTS of RV parking behind the winery right next to their  vineyards.  It’s a beautiful view!  The only problem we ran into was that it had rained heavily off and on for the past two weeks.  This made for some very large puddles and some very soft ground.

img_20190217_103830

I did my best to find a high spot to park the trailer but we were tip toeing around puddles all weekend.  Still the folks at the winery tasting room were really friendly and understanding.  They offered to pull out their tractor if I got stuck in the mud. And the view during breakfast was outstanding!

After breakfast we took a walk before heading over to the tasting room.  I don’t drink wine and Cristy can’t drink wine so it was a short visit.  However, since we wanted to support them Cristy bought a T shirt.

We really enjoyed our stay at Klinker Brick and can’t wait to try another Harvest Host location.  Which, incidentally, will be next weekend when we stay at Vista Ranch and Cellars in Merced, CA.  We’ll let you know how that went.

img_20190218_102234

Beautiful walk!  But COLD!

Securing The Bug Screens

On By The Flying DutchmanIn Lance, RV Life2 Comments

One of the modifications I made to our Lance trailer was to add insect screens to keep muddaubermud daubers out of the furnace exhaust and water heater vents while the trailer is being stored.  The little buggers are everywhere out here and while they are not aggressive and don’t sting (at least I’ve never been stung by one) they build their mud nests in small holes and clog things up.

So I bought and installed some screens to prevent this.  However, the screens were meant to be mounted with really weak springs.  Other Lance owners have complained about brushing up against the screens and knocking them off the trailer.  Mine barely made it home from the RV storage lot after I installed it.  To rectify this I used some safety wire left over from my airplane builds and fastened the screens on securely.  They feel very solid now.

I did have to drill a couple of holes in the water heater access door to attach the screen.  The grate that is built into the door comes out too easily.

Both screens feel really solid now and won’t easily be knocked off either by my clumsiness or while driving down the road.

First RV Mod

On By The Flying DutchmanIn RV Life2 Comments

I belong to an RV owners group called LOA or Lance Owners of America.  Once of the points of pride in ownership for Lance owners is the modifications or “mods” they have done to their RV.  I’ve completed my first mod.  The trailer comes with a large closet in the back with a single shelf near the top.  We plan to use the closet as a pantry and storage area.  To that end I installed two more shelves in the closet.  I also added a couple of Command brand broom hangers.  There was one little “oops” but I was able to conceal it fairly well.  Cristy is pleased with the result so I’m not going to point it out! 🙂

Normally they would be mounted so that the lip would be pointing down so that you can hang clothes from them.  I mounted them with the lip facing up to keep items from falling off the shelves during transit.  Here are a few photos of this first mod.

I’ve got a pretty good sized list of mods I want to make to the trailer but some of them are pricey so they will have to happen over time.  Here is a list of the mods I want to make:

  • Front Window Cover – To protect the front window from road debris
  • Oxygenics Shower Head – To replace the factory shower head which has very low water flow.
  • Upgraded bed lift struts – The bed lifts up to reveal more storage.  The factory struts are not strong enough to hold the bed up when opened.
  • Bedside closet organizers – The closets on each side of the bed can actually hold more if shelving is used rather than the hanger rod that is in the closet by default.
  • Receiver Hitch – To be installed on the back of the trailer.  This will allow for the mounting of accessories such as a bike rack.

Here is a list of the mods I have already done.  I’ll have to get some pictures of these and write more about them in a future post.

  • TPMS System – Tire Pressure Monitoring System.  Allows me to monitor trailer tire pressure and temperature.
  • Bug screens – Screens over heater and refrigerator exhaust openings prevent insects from entering these openings when not in use.

That’s it for now.  We are really enjoying this little trailer.

The RV Journey Begins

On By The Flying DutchmanIn RV Life, Travel2 Comments

After 4 years of research and one year of actual shopping we have finally purchased our first RV; a Lance 1995 Travel Trailer.  We picked the trailer up on Saturday from Meeks RV in Acampo, California.  They gave us a walk through and demonstrated how everything works which took about an hour and a half.  We signed the paperwork and pulled out onto the highway for the first time.

I had to do some work at my job at 2am so we booked a spot at an RV park about 10 minutes away from where I work.  I got everything set up just in time for the rain to start.  I started going through some of the inspection items that I wasn’t able to complete at the dealer.  There were only two things that I could pick on.  I’ll start a list for when I visit the dealer again to have them take care of the repairs.

The RV park itself was pretty nice.  I’ve driven past it for years but this is the first time I’ve been to it.  I was assigned a pull thru site which made set up really easy.  It was really quiet which made resting before my late night work easy.  They gave me a key to the gate for a $10 refundable deposit so I could get in the gate after my work was done.

I rolled back into the RV park after doing my work at about 3:30am.  I turned the heater on and listened to the storm raging outside my warm little camper.  I actually had to turn the heat down at one point because it was too warm.  I slept in and completed a few more inspection items before joining my wife and son for some lunch.

My wife then rode back with me to spend the night in our new RV.  We had a really enjoyable time in the quiet RV park.  It rained and stormed most of the time we were there but there were but we still really enjoyed ourselves.  If our first shakedown cruise of the RV was this good then we have many more adventures to look forward to.   We plan to use this time to learn the ropes of living in an RV.  We’ll spend as much time in it as we can over the next 7 years and make sure that full time RV living is something we really want.  We can’t wait!