Since I had been very active on twitter, I had a lot of friends in aviation in various parts of the US and Canada that I wanted to meet, and the trip included a tweet-up at the Harrisburg International Airport called #MDT324, for "Avgeeks" or aviation enthusiasts like me. I had pretty much abandoned Facebook for two years at the time, so my primary means of sharing my trip was through twitter. The Greyhound Discovery Pass (or AmeriPass as it is also called) would enable me to travel wherever Greyhound and its partners went for 30 days for a flat rate of $439. I worked hard to save up the amount and obtained my Discovery Pass in early March.
When Kyle and Amanda Franklin had their accident in Brownsville, TX on March 12, I learned about it on twitter. It was when I realized that Kyle and Amanda had been scheduled to perform at Sun 'n Fun, and now wouldn't be there, and that Amanda was Matt Younkin's sister, that the idea of making a Get Well Card came to me. I visualized it in the form of a scrapbook before I found one. One thing that bothered me from the time I put two and two together, was that Amanda's role as narrator for Matt's show was sorely overlooked, as well as her origin as a Younkin. Having met Matt in 2010 at Sun 'n Fun, and having heard Amanda announcing for Matt's show in '09 and '10, these details were important to me. From his show, I had learned about their father, Bobby Younkin, whose legacy and memory Matt and Amanda honored with each aerial dance to the "Elephant Waltz" and "Wind Beneath My Wings". It was this element of his performance that made his show most memorable and inspiring. Upon hearing the somewhat of an extent and seriousness of Amanda's injuries combined with the hope that she would recover, I wanted to see her make enough of a recovery that she'd at least be able to continue to announce for her brother's show. To me, Younkin is synonymous with RESILIENT.
EUGENE, OREGON March 15
The "Card" began its 12,000 mile journey on March 15, as I boarded the Greyhound bus to Eugene, Oregon. While it was raining in Eugene, I was determined to visit the airport. The Card was well protected in a waterproof bag. After taking the city bus as close as it would get me to the airport, I still had an hour's walk to get there. The rain didn't subside and I was drenched but victorious when I entered the terminal. I sat down in the restaurant inside the terminal and enjoyed the best cup of seafood chowder I had ever had. That was also where I designed the front page of the Card. I upgraded to a bowl on my second order. When asked why I walked to the Eugene Airport in a rainstorm, I answer, "so that I can say I did". Yeah, a little crazy, but I lived to tell the tale.
I took a cab back to downtown Eugene and learned that the Greyhound station didn't remain open for 24 hours as I had counted on, so I ended up hanging out at a bar next door overnight. I played pool and charged my phone, had an order of fries and before the bar closed at 3am, I doubled a $20 bill in the Oregon lottery slot machines.
Now that the bar was closed, I waited outside the Greyhound bus station, where I felt a little vulnerable but never unsafe. A homeless man did stop to talk to me. I tried to steer the conversation toward airplanes when he was asking me about myself. He even offered me a coat which I gave back to him when the station opened in the morning.
SALEM, OREGON March 16
I then took the bus to Salem, Oregon when I was scheduled to meet @crazedpilot from twitter. He flies a Kitfox and has a line of Crazed Pilot logo wear, and on his website he sells other useful merchandise to make flights more comfortable. For example, his hats don't have that annoying button that gets in the way of a pilot's headset. Had the weather cooperated, he was going to give me a ride in his Kitfox, but the weather didn't cooperate. We did have a nice visit and he gave me a sleeve of Crazed Pilot hats to distribute at Sun 'n Fun and for my tweet-up raffle. He then gave me a tour of Salem in his car and delivered me to the Greyhound Station and became the first person to sign the Card.
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA, CANADA March 17
I learned that the connection wouldn't get me to Vancouver in time for my next appointment, so I decided to take the Amtrak instead. It was a worthwhile and enjoyable alternative for travel. I didn't get to see much of Seattle as I had hoped, but I did make the transfer to the bus again and entered Canada for the first time ever. Customs was okay- interesting and efficient as far as I remember. I arrived at the Denny's in Vancouver at 2am and proceeded to eat a late night meal that was meant to keep me awake until I could get to YVR (Vancouver International Airport) once the sun came up and take a nap before meeting up with Leighton. It worked out as planned. I got my phone charged while I napped at YVR.
The time came for me to meet up with Leighton and he gave me a tour of the airport's perimeter before we sat down to eat at the Flying Beaver Bar. It was a good meal on the deck and we engaged in fun Avgeek conversation. After the dinner, we went to Leighton's favorite place to plane spot and watched several Airbuses, 737's and 747's land. He then dropped me off at the bus station and I began the southbound leg back to Seattle before turning eastbound for Minneapolis. Leighton also gave me a photo of his of Kent Pietsch flying at Abbotsford that was to be given out at my tweet-up raffle. That will be hard to part with.
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA March 19
I've never been to Minneapolis either. It was cool there. As I was approaching the city, I got the idea of contacting one of my Southwest Airlines friends to see if he'd like to hang out. It turns out he did. He and his girlfriend gave me a tour of the city- showing me the giant spoon and cherry sculpture. As he now worked for Target, it was appropriate that we visit the local Target where I bought some much needed socks. Because of Nathaniel, I will never look at socks the same way. I then took a bus to the airplane model store at Mall of America and then visited MSP. Later in the evening we went out to their favorite pizza place for dinner before I caught the bus to Oshkosh.
OSHKOSH, WISCONSIN March 20-March 22
When I arrived in Oshkosh at the the airport terminal which also serves as the Greyhound station, John and Rose were there to greet me. They gave me a tour of the airport as it is the other 50 weeks in the year when Oshkosh Airventure is in full swing. There was snow still on the ground. They drove me to view the famous "Dots". that mark landing spots on the active runways for the biggest airshow in the USA. I saw the Orange Dot, Green Dot, and White Dot on Runway 9. Also, John helped me up into the giant snow machines they use in their frigid, snowy winters. We also admired the DC-3's at Basler Aviation, and checked out the VOR at my request. Later we met up with some of my other Oshkosh friends at West End Pizza for a celebration as I continued my journey to Sun 'n Fun. Kelly and Hal were there with their spouses, and Sam was there too. I had my first ever Margaritas and we had a good time. Everyone also signed the Card with sincere wishes for a successful recovery. I spent the night at John and Rose's and they gave me some WAHF collectibles for me and some for my tweet-up raffle.
The next day, I visited the EAA museum and also the EAA office where many signed the Card. Later, Rose and I visited the local thrift store where we found a toy hangar. I really wanted it!!! Rose made kebabs and veggies for dinner.
In the morning, Rose made a "Farmer's Breakfast". It was delicious. We then visited Brennand Field. It was pretty quiet, but I found a Beech 18 that needed some attention.
Rose and I had a nice visit with the FBO operator. When I visited Oshkosh in October 2009, I walked to Brennand Field from Neenah, Wisconsin, 7 miles each way. It was once owned by Bill Brennand, an early air race pilot who flew Steve Wittman's airplanes to much success. He's now inducted into the Wisconsin Aviation Hall of Fame (WAHF).
While Rose had things to do, I visited the library where I learned more about Bill Brennand from their library archives. Before catching the bus, Rose, John and I had our traditional lunch at Culver's which included fried cheese curds.
CLEVELAND, OHIO March 23
It was raining lightly when I arrived in Cleveland. I had intended to visit the Cleveland International Airport, but when I looked at my google maps and realized that the Cleveland Burke Lakefront Airport (BKL) was a hop, skip, and jump away, I walked there instead. I was so glad I did also! The first thing to get my attention was a poster about Mary Feik. She had been instrumental in the development of the T-33 and not that many people seem to know that. I was thrilled to find her mentioned! The other things that thrilled me were locating another Link Trainer and also finding the Elinor Smith Sullivan Aviation Library. I had written a biography of her passing in NYCAviation online news website after her passing. Finally, I visited the office of the Cleveland National Airshow and met Director, Daniel Biggs and his staff. Having known the Franklins, they signed the Card. I found a lot of love for them there. They also gave me some parting gifts including an airshow t-shirt, program and pin. Daniel then gave me a ride to the bus after buying me a Subway Roast Beast Sandwich.
HARRISBURG, PENNSYLVANIA March 24 - 25
Here is my write-up for my visit to Harrisburg International Airport: I live in Sacramento, California. Harrisburg International Airport's March 24th tweet-up was right on my way, on my upcoming trip to Lakeland, Florida- that is, timing-wise. I needed a good road trip. Greyhound dropped me off in downtown Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in the morning. I simply walked down to the corner of Market Street where I caught city bus route #7 to the airport. In fifteen minutes, the driver dropped me off on the airport side of the street and pointed out a tunnel and stairway that led to the road to the airport. (While some city bus route 7s deliver you to the front door, some route 7s do not). The walk from the tunnel wasn't bad at all- about 15 minutes to the terminal door. (I was tugging a roll-aboard.)
As a pedestrian approaching the terminal a less standard way, I entered the closest doorway which put me in the baggage claim area. The cleanliness and design of the terminal impressed me, and the Welcome to Harrisburg International Airport sign greeted me as I continued toward my destination.
My destination was the Observation Area on the third floor, accessible to the public. I have to hand it to the folks at MDT, that was a great move for a modern airport terminal, and kudos to the architect who designed it so well. I enjoyed a close up view of airline operations, a C-130 and 727 performing touch 'n goes, and general aviation operations out of AvFlight with the Susquehanna River in the background...
...Which explains the "Old terminal", now vacated. As I walked the perimeter fence of the airport to check out the General Aviation FBO, Avflight, I passed the "Old Terminal". Its architecture caught my eye. From my point of view, it looked like it was designed to look like a ship on the shore of the Susquehanna River. A surreal feeling swept over me as I pondered the decades of memories and history associated with the building. I was grateful to see it. I offered a moment of silence as I imagined what its glory days may have been like.
I took a few minutes to compare the old on my right and the new on my left and felt a feeling of satisfaction that the splendor of the new building complimented and honored the legacy of the old.
With this new perspective in mind, I returned to the new terminal and proceeded to explore its first and second floors. As I walked into the Varsity Grill I instantly noted and seriously appreciated that I COULD SEE THROUGH WALLS!!! Not literally of course- where there would normally be a solid wall between the public area of the terminal and the gate area of the terminal, the whole wall was a window. Not only could I enjoy the view of the gate area, the wall between the gate area and the aircraft on the tarmac was also a window. I could see all the way to the runway! Stephanie Gehman later explained to me this was done to maximize the natural light.
Once all of the #MDT324 tweet-up participants arrived, and we received our special event T-shirts, Stephanie escorted us to the basement where we were introduced to the baggage handling system. It was fascinating to learn how this machine was able to sort through the baggage and convey it to the right waiting aircraft.
Stephanie then took us out the the aircraft ramp where we met with ramp workers and observed first hand airport operations on the ramp. We also were able to observe an incoming flight land on the runway.
Thanks to our hosts for their hospitality, the delicious dinner and pleasant company at Bricco in downtown Harrisburg.
After an overnight at HIA, I walked a few miles, toting my luggage, before catching the bus to the Greyhound Station. I called police when a man started making a scene at the ticket counter and seemed to be becoming progressively more violent. I'm ready to get to Sun 'n Fun!!!
SUN 'N FUN March 26 - April 1
One of the first things I did when I arrived at Sun 'n Fun was visit the Sun 'n Fun Radio Porch. I saw many twitter friends there and most were ready and desirous to sign Kyle and Amanda's Card. There was an obvious sense that they were missed during this show. Corkey Fornof helped me get permission to go to the Performer's Tent where many friends and Airshow Family of Kyle and Amanda's signed it. It was from there that I watched Matt fly the Twin Beech. My heart ached for him as he did his routine sans Amanda announcing for him. I watched him fly and didn't take my eyes off the Beech 18 for a second.
Weather was an issue the whole week (also posted in the May Issue of Airplanista Magazine). Thursday morning I awoke to ominous skies. As a volunteer with the Seabirds who hold their annual Splash in at Lake Agnes near Fantasy of Flight and Polk City, I took the shuttle to the Splash-in site to begin setting up. No sooner did I have tables set up, one of the men in charge told me to take shelter as a tornado touched down in Polk City. I walked, watching the sky with a curious fascination, to the Fantasy of Flight Museum, where I and other Splash-in refugees were welcomed in. This was about 8:30am. I remained in the lobby of Fantasy of Flight with the other refugees. At 11am, I asked my boss if I needed to remain at the Splash-in venue. He told me that they'd have a go/no go decision at 1pm. With permission to return to Lakeland Linder Airport, the site of the main fly-in, I boarded the shuttle and decided to visit the Author's corner at the Florida Air Museum. I walked in heavy rain to the FAM and made it inside with less than 15 minutes before the tornado struck. I was in the process of purchasing a book as the winds outside raged. I watched the ceiling and swinging planes suspended from the roof. Their swinging was subtle, not violent.
When the power went out, people gathered to the middle of the room, as water posed hazards at the doorways. While it wasn't pitch black, the emergency lights were dim, and my brand new LoPresti hat given to me by Corkey Fornof yesterday, featured built-in lights. Volunteers needed my lights to look in a dark closet for a mop. Having been grumpy for personal reasons, their need for my lighted hat made me smile. No one else seemed to have flashlights or similarly bright lights.
When were given permission to leave the building, it was raining more heavily, but I was eager to reunite with friends in Hangar E. I had to walk through deep puddles and observed remnants of tents that had been bent into unnatural looking piles of metal. Most of the planes along my path seemed unscathed.
I took shelter in Hangar E for a couple hours, but had no signal to communicate. Most of the folks were calm and business carried on as usual. I was at the PIC Supplies booth, and business for Mike's AvPad was very steady, as for about 2 hours, we were locked inside the hangar.
When we were allowed to leave, I sought shelter on the porch of the Vintage Aircraft building. On the way, I checked on the booth belonging to my friends at LoPresti Aviation. Most of the damage was limited to their tent structures. Mods and aircraft were intact, compared to the pile of Pietenpols and homebuilts, and the stack of AirCams. Both sights. Brought a tear to my eye for the people who had to deal with the aftermath. I wanted to check on the Planes where my friends Greg Koontz and Bill Finagin were working, but law enforcement herded me away, so I went straight to the Vintage Aircraft building. A dozen of us refugees sat on the porch keeping dry from the rain. I was able to charge my phone and report in to several dozen twitter friends checking on my safety. The building itself was closed until one of the members showed up with the key and let us in. He prepared coffee for us once the electricity was restored. More people showed up and we all pitched in to order pizza. We ate the pizza and watched the sad parade of bent-up aircraft being towed away. Just before dark, we saw a crane lift up what appeared o be the inverted Grand Caravan.
At 7:30, the folks at Vintage Aircraft had to close up, so I went to the CFAA building which was set up to be the Red Cross shelter. The mood inside was calm as most people who had lost tents and bedding carried on as if it was business as usual. Other than the air conditioning which was set to fridgid, the over night stay at the shelter was nice.
I lost track of when I went to the party at the Airshow Performer's hangar. I think it was Friday night. If so, it was April 1, LOL. My cellphone battery had been used up. I started out talking to Patty and others at the party. Several people signed Kyle and Amanda's Card, including the host of the hangar and party. I met Sandy, the publisher of World Airshow News. I was very fascinated with her role in preserving airshow history.
When Matt arrived, I gave him a hug and told him I was glad to see him. I was unable to say anything else. He told me he liked my hat. I was wearing the pink LoPresti hat that Corkey had given me this year. LoPresti was one of Matt's sponsors, so I thought that he liked it for that reason. He clarified that he liked it because it was pink. (I forgot he had said the exact same thing last year when I met him for the first time at this same location. De ja vu. I won't forget anymore.) I was able to also talk to Jeff. Jeff gave me a tour of the inside of the Beech 18, I got to sit in the left seat. He showed me how the lights were operated for the night show, allowed me to put the (very noisy) flaps up. Before I left, Jeff said I need to have one of the "Kyle and Amanda Franklin Moonlight Fund" pins. When he told Matt that, Matt began to take the one off of his polo shirt and pinned it on my airshow overshirt that was loaded up with pins. I tried to protest, but Matt insisted, he said he could easily get another one. I won't ever move that pin. His gesture made me cry. I arranged to send the Card to Matt when I finished having people sign it and he would get it to Kyle. I wanted to have a few friends sign it on my way back to California and a few in California as well.
CHATTANOOGA, TENNESSEE April 4 - 5
I think it was Sunday that Marty and I departed for Chattanooga. We overnighted somewhere in North Georgia, south of Atlanta, and arrived in Chattanooga in the morning. Marty had to go to school, so I had him drop me off at the Chattanooga airport. The first thing that caught my eye was a black and red Globe Swift. It was beautiful. Marty introduced me to his friend Andy and I mentioned the Swift to him. He said a guy used to fly it in airshows. That had my attention. I hoped to meet the owner and learn more. In the meantime, I got to help Andy with an annual on an R-44 helicopter. I took panels off, removed seats, took out the spark plugs, and washed the windscreen. So much fun!!!
The next day I continued to help a little while. I then heard the sound of an airplane outside. I looked and someone was taxiing the Globe Swift around. I watched for the airplane to be returned to its tiedown location and when it was, I approached the pilot and asked questions about the plane. I then learned that he, Lowell Sterchi, had belonged to the Swift Magic Aerobatic Team and had flown airshows in the 90's. I asked if he ever flew shows with Bobby Younkin or Jimmy Franklin. He said he did. I then asked if he knew Kyle and Amanda. When he said "I watched them grow up.", for one thing, I wondered at how, of all the places I could have been or people I could have talked to, how was I talking to him right now. He also said that when they were at an airshow, either Athens, TN or Sparta, TN, he and his team threw an engagement party for Kyle and Amanda. I had a few tears brewing in my eyes. He signed the Card, and he also gave me one of his business cards from his airshow days. That's a priceless treasure!
Marty and I went to Athens to visit the Swift Museum where I saw a little more memorabilia from the Swift Magic Aerobatic Team. He also took me to a grass strip where our friend Larry was expected to land on his way back from Sun 'n Fun, and we saw Parkville Reservoir. It was fun hanging out with Marty. He dropped me off at the Greyhound Station and that evening I caught the bus to St. Louis.
NORMAN, OKLAHOMA April 7
So the Norman, Oklahoma Greyhound stop was actually just a convenience store. I walked from it to the airport. It took over and hour and it did begin to rain. The walk was invigorating. I met up with a couple twitter friends and their wives. It was a nice meet up. When it was over, Mike gave me a ride to the Oklahoma City Greyhound station. I chose to backtrack to Springfield, Missouri to meet up with Nathan and Pam Carriker. I'm glad I did.
SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI April 8
Nathan picked me up at the Springfield Greyhound Station. Before driving to his house, he took me for a drive to the local airport. I had dinner with him and his wife Pam, learned more about the book he's written, soon to be published, called "A Silver Ring" with B-24 stories during WWII and airline pilot perspectives from the modern day. He also gave me a spare copy he had of the program for Jimmy Franklin's memorial. It included a photograph also. Certainly a priceless treasure! They signed the Card, and Pam did the art for the cover which said, "With Love, We Miss You, Kyle and Amanda."
DENVER, COLORADO April 9
I was in Denver by late morning. I caught the bus and went to the Wings Over the Rockies Museum where I met up with @supovadea. We spent a little time at the museum, then went to her home and played. I gave her the "Barnstormers" game that I had bought at Athens, to teach her daughter, a budding aviator to play. We had a nice visit. Then I caught the light rail back to the bus station and designated Phoenix, Arizona as my next stop.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA April 11
It is amazing what I was able to do in the space of a day. I arrived in Phoenix at at O-dark-thirty, slept and charged my phone.
When the day dawned I walked to the airport. It took forever for me to get there because I was snapping pictures at every airliner landing at PHX.
As I neared PHX, I called a twitter friend who worked at Cutter Aviation to see if he wanted to sign the Card.
We met up and his hospitality was Bar-None. He showed me the pilots lounge, and a deck where I could watch airplanes to my heart's content, and even gave me access to the old control tower which was now in his company's care.
I also met Derek at that time. He's another twitter friend. He took pictures of me in the tower and we had a nice tweet-up. I really wanted to clean the tower and offered, but they needed a waiver of some kind for that to happen.
Ryan then gave me a ride to the Deer Valley Airport when I hung out for a few hours, half expecting a WWII bomber to make an appearance, but learning this wasn't the right day. I still had fun at that airport. Ryan came to pick me up and took me back to the Greyhound station. It was a beautiful trip to Phoenix.
VACAVILLE, CALIFORNIA April 13 - 15
I arrived in Vacaville after a stop in Fresno, and a glimpse of a plane towing a banner over Oakland. Jerry met me at the station. I cleaned hangars and scrubbed the belly of his Citabria to earn a few dollars that I sent to the Kyle and Amanda's Moonlight Fund. After a few days of work, Jerry flew me to the Rio Linda Airport via Rio Vista where Ralph was there to pick me up. I was so glad to get a flying fix after all that traveling. We flew among some windmills and he also showed me a lion sanctuary from the air.
