Westward ho, and a snap roll for kicks
I wound up spending a good chunk of Saturday in the air in one way or another. Audrey and I woke up expecting it to be gloomy and damp, but were instead greeted with a glorious sunrise and crystal clear skies. Not wanting to miss an opportunity to do some aerial surveying, I called the FBO and off we went. The area to the west of Sandpoint is characterized by a river leading west for about five to ten miles before beginning to work its way north. Just before the turn is the mouth of a tributary which itself heads almost directly north. We followed the tributary to Priest Lake and did a lap around the outside, noting that there is an intriguing looking grass field on the south end of the lake and what looks like it might be an old moraine at the north end. Given a pair of kayaks or a sailboat, the lake could make for interesting exploration, and I definitely wouldn't mind getting up into the north end a little more in-depth. We headed south after that to Mt. Spokane, which has five or six nice looking ski runs on it. I'm told it's a long drive by car, but come next winter I think I wouldn't mind going to check it out. There also seemed to be a large area of decent snowshoe trails on the north side at the foot of the mountain that might warrant some exploration. We took the long way back, over to Pend Oreille and around. There's a floating platform in the middle of the lake with what appears to be a hut and a small crane on it, surrounded by four bouys. I'm curious.
When the weather warms up enough to bring the freezing level to a reasonable altitude, I think I'm going to start making some IFR flights to places. Seattle, perhaps. I've been meaning to go back. Maybe Aurora. Maybe Missoula. Maybe Boise. Any thoughts?
That afternoon my boss took me up in his RV-6A and ruined me for other airplanes forever. I'd surmised that it'd be fun to fly in a Van's... but somehow the exhilaration of doing 180kts at a hundred feet escaped my normally vivid imagination. I've had people tell me that there's no experience as thrilling as racing a motorcycle... and likewise with powerful boats, offroad vehicles, lurid sexual exploits, etc. They are entirely wrong. Flying a plane like that gives you a more visceral adrenaline rush than any other experience available to a human being. Audrey seems to be getting the picture as well- when I came back a little woozy and grinning like a maniac, she started bugging me about when it was her turn to go for a ride.
Incidentally, a snap roll is what the FAA calls a "flick maneuver" in FAR 23, involving a sudden application of up elevator to cause a wing stall, followed immediately by an attempt to punch a rudder pedal through the firewall of the airplane. Hard rudder in a wing stall will "snap" the plane around faster than aileron inputs alone could.
My determination to build Green Eyed Devil is further heightened. I'm in the process of finalizing my decisions on a few key options. I know I want to find a way to fit an IFR panel into it, and I like the idea of a fuel injected 180 hp engine package with a constant speed prop. And because I know that tailwheels are both sexier and aerodynamically cleaner than tricycle gear, I've selected conventional arrangement for my landing gear. I think I've definitely settled on a sliding canopy, both for appearances taxiing around with the glass pulled back and for the added airflow before and after takeoff. Now the question is fastback or bubble canopy? One has slightly better aerodynamics and perhaps better roll protection in case of an accident. The other offers 360 degree visibility, which is an attractive prospect.
Better start saving. And studying plans.
-The Proprietor
When the weather warms up enough to bring the freezing level to a reasonable altitude, I think I'm going to start making some IFR flights to places. Seattle, perhaps. I've been meaning to go back. Maybe Aurora. Maybe Missoula. Maybe Boise. Any thoughts?
That afternoon my boss took me up in his RV-6A and ruined me for other airplanes forever. I'd surmised that it'd be fun to fly in a Van's... but somehow the exhilaration of doing 180kts at a hundred feet escaped my normally vivid imagination. I've had people tell me that there's no experience as thrilling as racing a motorcycle... and likewise with powerful boats, offroad vehicles, lurid sexual exploits, etc. They are entirely wrong. Flying a plane like that gives you a more visceral adrenaline rush than any other experience available to a human being. Audrey seems to be getting the picture as well- when I came back a little woozy and grinning like a maniac, she started bugging me about when it was her turn to go for a ride.
Incidentally, a snap roll is what the FAA calls a "flick maneuver" in FAR 23, involving a sudden application of up elevator to cause a wing stall, followed immediately by an attempt to punch a rudder pedal through the firewall of the airplane. Hard rudder in a wing stall will "snap" the plane around faster than aileron inputs alone could.
My determination to build Green Eyed Devil is further heightened. I'm in the process of finalizing my decisions on a few key options. I know I want to find a way to fit an IFR panel into it, and I like the idea of a fuel injected 180 hp engine package with a constant speed prop. And because I know that tailwheels are both sexier and aerodynamically cleaner than tricycle gear, I've selected conventional arrangement for my landing gear. I think I've definitely settled on a sliding canopy, both for appearances taxiing around with the glass pulled back and for the added airflow before and after takeoff. Now the question is fastback or bubble canopy? One has slightly better aerodynamics and perhaps better roll protection in case of an accident. The other offers 360 degree visibility, which is an attractive prospect.
Better start saving. And studying plans.
-The Proprietor