It’s still pretty
quiet, Friday afternoon, in the first half-dozen rows of the North 40
airplane camping area. The first few rows are filled in, and the choice
spots on the next few rows, closest to Runway 9/27, are taken.
The trickle of incoming
airplanes, landing on Runway 9, is punctuated by a Learjet arrival and
the takeoff of the bright red Oracle biplane.
A comfortable breeze has
cooled things off today, and these early arrivers are sitting by their
planes, renewing acquaintances, and watching the runway.
Bill Walbeck flew into EAA
AirVenture Oshkosh this year in his homebuilt RV-6, and his friend, Ross
Seabrooke, came in his Bellanca Super Viking. They’re parked next to
each other in the second row of the North 40.
Bill is from Kalamazoo,
Michigan, and Ross from Clarksville, which is near Grand Rapids.
They’ve been friends
for 30 years.
"Bill taught me to
fly back in 1976," says Ross, "and we’ve been in touch ever
since."
This is Ross’s 22nd
consecutive year coming to AirVenture.
He remembers his first
few visits to the fly-in: "I came over with Bill. We all came over
in a Baron together. The next year we had a DC-3 we brought over. Bill
and another guy flew the DC-3. We put a bunch of people from the local
airport in it and flew over here."
Over the years Ross has
come to Oshkosh in a wide variety of planes. "I’ve had my 150
here, I’ve had my Cherokee, a 172, I had this [Bellanca] here, I’ve
been here in an Aztec. A little bit of everything."
Ross and Bill do a lot of
flying together throughout the year.
"We’ve had
adventures," says Ross. "We’ve had both our airplanes up to
Alaska, north of the Arctic Circle. And we go to British Columbia with
them, up to Canada, Lake of the Woods, fishing. Into the back country of
Idaho, we do something every year."
"I think north of
the Artic Circle, to Coldfoot, Alaska, was a favorite for me," says
Bill. "It’s the northernmost truck stop in the whole world. Very
rugged."
"There must have
been 50, 60 trucks there," says Bill. "They have a makeshift
motel for the truckers, and they have a makeshift restaurant. It serves
one meal. You be there at 7:30, and you eat what they serve. There’s
no menu."
Bill has been flying his
RV-6 since he finished it in 1993. It took him two and a half years to
complete.
When asked what part of
AirVenture he likes best, Bill can’t pick one thing.
"They’re all
exciting to me. The camping part. The camaraderie. The aerial shows. The
displays. The food. It’s all good."
"I like watching the
arrivals," says Ross. "I think that’s one of my favorites,
just sitting out here. That’s even better than the air show for me,
watching everybody come in."
Bill’s home airport is
Newman Field, near Kalamazoo, and Ross flies out of his 1,700-foot
personal strip at his home in Clarksville.
Bill was a commercial
pilot for 50 years and flew corporate jets until a few years ago. He
doesn’t remember the name of his first instructor.
"I soloed in 1946. I’ve
had a lot of people teach me to fly. You know you never stop learning to
fly."
Dennis and Marilyn Lieske are from
New Berlin, Wisconsin. On Friday afternoon, they’re sitting next to
their plane watching the arrivals on Runway 9. This year, they arrived
on Wednesday. They’ve been coming to the fly-in for 20 years.
A couple of the
highlights for them over the years were the visit by Voyager and the
visits by the Concorde.
"The Concorde,"
says Marilyn. "It’s just an awesome plane to just stand next to;
it was such an eye-opening experience to be around, so
overwhelming."
They have an especially
fond memory of how, while Voyager was on display on the flightline, Dick
Rutan took the time to chat with their children, who at the time were
all under 10.
"Dick talked
personally to our kids. And had his picture take with them. We still
have those pictures."
They’re big fans of the
AirVenture forums programs. Even though she’s not a pilot, Marilyn
enjoys attending sessions to learn more about flying. She particularly
enjoys Rod Machado and the FAA forum sessions.
Dennis is a certificated
flight instructor who’s been flying since the mid ’60s.
"He learned how to
fly at Rainbow Airport," says Marilyn, "which is near
Milwaukee. Way back!"
Dennis’ first
instructor was Bob Booth.
"Oh, he’s a great
guy. He was only a part-time instructor, but he was great. He ended up
being a designated examiner for quite a few years. He’s in his 80s
now."
Marilyn and Dennis say
that even after 20 years they still feel like there are things they
haven’t seen.
"We’ve come here
every year, and we still have yet to see everything. It’s one of our
goals every year, and there’s just not enough time."
You can e-mail Jack at atf2006@aroundthefield.net.
