This past weekend I made the longest flight I've made so far in my Ultrastar. Although the 160 mile round trip pales in length compared to trips others have made (and to trips I've made in "real" airplanes), it was a thoroughly enjoyable trip. This was an overnight trip to the ultralight fly-in at Tanner-Hiller Airport (8B5) in Barre, MA, about 80 miles from my home base in Chester, CT (SNC). The event was put on by the Silver Wings Ultralight Club that was formerly based in Palmer, MA, until that airport closed.
The weather was forecast to be good for both days, with a 20% chance of showers on Saturday afternoon that never materialized beyond about 30 seconds of sprinkle near sunset on Saturday. The first challenge was packing the camping gear onto the plane, in the cargo area under my legs where the original fuel tanks used to reside (I have a new fuel tank behind the seat instead). Sleeping bag, bivy sack, ground pad, enough 2-stroke oil for the trip, flask of Scotch whisky for the Saturday night festivities... that's it. The flight up was uneventful if long, with a halfway stop at Ellington, CT, where the kids at the FBO were no doubt amused by the massive 3.6 gallons of fuel I bought (good thing I upgraded from the Ultrastar's stock 3.5 gallon tanks!). A very thermic day though... sometimes I was climbing hard to maintain altitude, while at other times I was at idle and diving to maintain altitude.
About a dozen planes, mostly ultralights, flew in for the event, with about the same amount of powered paragliders driving in, most of whom I recognized from the PPG Boogies that a friend and I used to host at the old Griswold Airport in CT. There was food all day, hot dogs and sausage for lunch, barbecued chicken and corn on the cob for dinner, and bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches for breakfast on Sunday. Live band in the hangar on Saturday night, and the party went on well into the night (which is probably breakfast was so late on Sunday!) Fortunately nobody, not even the PPGers who are usually up early, started any engines before about 8am.
The rain never bothered us, but it was visible nearby (with rainbow!) on a Saturday evening flight:
There was a pine forest on the edge of the airport, but I opted for tradition and camped under the wing:
Present were a Mitchell Wing, two Quicksilvers (a single and a two place, which was busy giving rides all weekend), a Hurricane, a North Wing trie, two Challengers, a CGS Hawk, my Ultrastar, a Kolb Firestar, a Weedhopper, a Vector, a Kitfox, a CH701, a Monerai, a Hummel Ultracruiser, the aforementioned PPGs, plus the hang gliders based on the field were towing all day long behind a Dragonfly towplane. Probably a few more I missed, too. Here are some of them:
No fuel on the airport, but the organizers provided fuel in cans for those who needed it.
The flight home was chilly but nice and smooth. I had to fly around a few small rainstorms but it was no trouble. Again a fuel stop in Ellington, and back home by early afternoon.
All in all a great weekend.
-Dana
Exceeding the legal fun limit on a regular basis!
The weather was forecast to be good for both days, with a 20% chance of showers on Saturday afternoon that never materialized beyond about 30 seconds of sprinkle near sunset on Saturday. The first challenge was packing the camping gear onto the plane, in the cargo area under my legs where the original fuel tanks used to reside (I have a new fuel tank behind the seat instead). Sleeping bag, bivy sack, ground pad, enough 2-stroke oil for the trip, flask of Scotch whisky for the Saturday night festivities... that's it. The flight up was uneventful if long, with a halfway stop at Ellington, CT, where the kids at the FBO were no doubt amused by the massive 3.6 gallons of fuel I bought (good thing I upgraded from the Ultrastar's stock 3.5 gallon tanks!). A very thermic day though... sometimes I was climbing hard to maintain altitude, while at other times I was at idle and diving to maintain altitude.
About a dozen planes, mostly ultralights, flew in for the event, with about the same amount of powered paragliders driving in, most of whom I recognized from the PPG Boogies that a friend and I used to host at the old Griswold Airport in CT. There was food all day, hot dogs and sausage for lunch, barbecued chicken and corn on the cob for dinner, and bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches for breakfast on Sunday. Live band in the hangar on Saturday night, and the party went on well into the night (which is probably breakfast was so late on Sunday!) Fortunately nobody, not even the PPGers who are usually up early, started any engines before about 8am.
The rain never bothered us, but it was visible nearby (with rainbow!) on a Saturday evening flight:
There was a pine forest on the edge of the airport, but I opted for tradition and camped under the wing:
Present were a Mitchell Wing, two Quicksilvers (a single and a two place, which was busy giving rides all weekend), a Hurricane, a North Wing trie, two Challengers, a CGS Hawk, my Ultrastar, a Kolb Firestar, a Weedhopper, a Vector, a Kitfox, a CH701, a Monerai, a Hummel Ultracruiser, the aforementioned PPGs, plus the hang gliders based on the field were towing all day long behind a Dragonfly towplane. Probably a few more I missed, too. Here are some of them:
No fuel on the airport, but the organizers provided fuel in cans for those who needed it.
The flight home was chilly but nice and smooth. I had to fly around a few small rainstorms but it was no trouble. Again a fuel stop in Ellington, and back home by early afternoon.
All in all a great weekend.
-Dana
Exceeding the legal fun limit on a regular basis!
