Dream big.. what do you think?

[gyroplanes]

"Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood and probably themselves will not be realized. Make big plans; aim high in hope and work, remembering that a noble, logical diagram once recorded will not die, but long after we are gone be a living thing, asserting itself with ever-growing insistence."
-Daniel Burnham, 1910

I'm envisioning a large modular classroom, located just east of the PRA Mentone airport hangars. It would have central air, tables & chairs, PA system w/ wireless mic, large movie screen, DVD and VCR, Video projector, big screen TV & Wifi access and a storage room for some of these items.

We could present about anything with this set-up.

Heck, we all need goals.

It would be amazing if each chapter could donate $1,000. I doubt many of the chapters have the ability.

Perhaps we could find a corporate sponsor?

The local Indiana business that can build us this classroom and match the other airport buildings has a finance plan for non-profit corps that has a very low interest rate.

If the PRA were fiscally sound, we could take the $1,000. rent we used to pay and roll it into this project.

Personally, I'd rather this be a grass roots effort without the PRA's financial involvement. (We caught enough flak from the airport purchase).

I felt it was time to record this logical and noble diagram.

What say you? :der::noidea:

[All_In]

Glad you announced this Tom as you know I'm all for it. But for the public; Way to go!!!!
I'll list it on the donation page tonight!!!

Heads up:
Dean found us a new volunteer, well new to me he helped PRA years ago and he's an action man. A knowledge person I have just approached to be our department head for obtaining grants. (Also Dean's idea)

He hasn't accepted yet!!! I only sent it last night.

But the next announcement may be looking for volunteers to be taught how to fill out forms for various grants he finds available to us.

This could be the first PRA project we try the technique to partially fund it at least?

PS:
As to the quote, is there any other way?

[PW_Plack]

...I'm envisioning a large modular classroom, located just east of the PRA Mentone airport hangars. It would have central air, tables & chairs, PA system w/ wireless mic, large movie screen, DVD and VCR, Video projector, big screen TV & Wifi access and a storage room for some of these items.

We could present about anything with this set-up...

Tom, I admire the vision, and I hate to be a stick in the spokes of anyone's enthusiasm, but if PRA needs to motivate members outside a close radius of Mentone, putting more investment into the airport facilities is going to be a yawner out here in the hinterlands, or even open old wounds.

It would be great to have access to such a space during convention week, but buildings are not an efficient use of money and maintenance effort unless they're used often. This probably would not be, and when it was, it would be a very small group benefitting compared to the number of contributors.

If, on the other hand, that same amount of money was put into presentation materials which could be used by anyone who could get temporary, donated access to a decently equipped meeting room, anywhere in the country, the bang-for-buck would be much greater.

This is just my opinion, but if PRA keeps focusing its available resources on physical infrastructure in Mentone, it's moving further toward benefitting the few at the expense of the many, which is already a criticism of the leadership, fair or not.

Once an FBO is in place which can also utilize the space, or we have a shot at attracting type clubs and other organizations to use the airport? Now, you may have a viable proposition.

[gyroplanes]

Hi Paul,
I thought I was very careful to say that I didn't want this to be a PRA project or to be funded by the PRA. I realize the danger in alienation. I also realize that a convention that has little to offer will have a hard time attracting visitors from across the country.

I'm working on a new chapters project with Dave Bacon, our new PRA Chapter coordinator.... keep watching. Great things are happening. maybe Dave will post about it here. I don't want to steal his thunder.

Our office manager, Jennifer, said the PRA has had numerous requests for just such a meeting room at the airport. Talks are underway with at least one FBO prospect.

John,
Writing for grants is an art form, but a highly sucessful one. I just read today, that Ducks Unlimited just received a government grant for $100,000 + because their regular contributions are down.
PRA receiving a grant for education and safety should be an easy goal. I bet the FAA or the DOT gives out grants like this. Maybe even the Indiana DOT?

[gyroplanes]

Paul,
My impetus for this project occured at Mentone. I was about to take a picture of the dias at the general members meeting. The meeting was in the T hangar used for seminars.

The picture would have shown a hangar interior, with plastic sheet insulation hanging down, normal hangar junk strewn around, birds flying by and replenishing the wall covering they have been providing for years.

The dais was an old banquet table nearly covered in laptop computers, cables, and a video projector.

The hangar door was open only enough to prevent heat prostation and closed enough to somewhat stifle the gyro noise.

The fellow I was seated next to must have sensed my pain as he made a comment about the bird poop. I replied "Paul Poberezney wouldn't have his picture taken here"

It was people I love in a place I love, but "come on" we have to start looking professional if we want to be treated as professionals.

[gyro-3xio]

I like your idea Tom.

As I was at the convention last month,... a thought crossed my mind with respect to the area to the north.

There was a DJ playing music each night by the museum, which by the way was a lot of fun to have.

How many attendees were there each day? Could we see some numbers from the PRA for this?

Here's an idea,... and only that...

How about bringing in a band with a two level scafolded stage (setp up at the north end,) and let the locals, (i.e. Warsaw, Rochester, etc) know and open it up as a concert event as well.
The real estate is there for this,..... and paid for.
Perhaps using what we already have (land and parking) to generate more revenue at an already impressive event.

Probably just for one night,.. Friday.

On another note,

I had brought my laptop to Mentone. I want to say a big thank-you to Tim O'Connor for the wifi.
That really helped.

I had made a Skype conference and "panned around the convention. The guys here loved it. Some would say,.."stop,... what was that gyro ... right there?"

Unfortunately I could only bring up 6 people at a time.
And yes,... my equipment,..i.e web cam is not a high end device, but they enjoyed it.


Is there any way to provide live feeds to a PRA website, for far away members who would have loved to come and still watch some live footage. I could help.

Jim.

[Dean_Dolph]

Tom, I agree that the class room should be the next Mentone project. The air conditioned temporary portable building that was there a few years ago spoiled me! It certainly wasn't ideal but was better than the hanger.

Now, the question becomes where does Mentone expansion place on the project priority list. Not that it matters since I'm just happy to see a list started! We can't get there, or anywhere, from here without that list as a starting point.

[gyroplanes]

Jim,
I thought I saw a remotely operated web cam for sale quite reasonably. It would be cool to have one mounted in the tower during Mentone events.

Dean, I'm sure the PRA has a wants list, but the classroom is the only one that I'm interested in right now (other than membership increase) that's why all I want from the PRA is permission to move ahead, no help or money, just approval to go ahead and make this happen.

[Steve McGowan]

would be cool Tom..

Then the FAA would confiscate the thing as they did at ROC a few years ago..

Or maybe we could all run around neked and turn it into a "Nudist Colony"

Naw..On Second Thought..

[animal]

would be cool Tom..

Then the FAA would confiscate the thing as they did at ROC a few years ago..

Or maybe we could all run around neked and turn it into a "Nudist Colony"

Naw..On Second Thought..

Steve, if you are referring to the crash Video at ROC I had, it was not the FAA that took it from me, it was the local sheriff,and they were not playing with me when they took it.

It was basically I give it to them or I got to jail,they litterly took it straight out of my VCR.

John magnun was the person that blabbed to them that I had a tape,pissed me off I wanted to sell the footage to the local news.

instead I get my tape back like 3 months later, so worn out I could barely use it. would you beleive that tape traveled from s.c. to n.c. and how knows all where else, and why they could not make their own copy and not wear mine out I will never know.

and what did I get out of all this? I get blamed for getting ROC run off from aiken, when in fact Aiken airport already had plans to build new hangers at the end of the feild where we all set up.

getting blamed for that, about turned me off to PRA and fly-ins for alone time. I did not go to another PRA event until I went with Ron to mentone.

but as far as a live feed, unless it is being recorded, the FAA could not take the web cam,as it would not show anything.

I think a live web cam feed from the tower would be cool.,but you would need someone to aim it around at stuff,just aimed at the runway would get boring.

now if you had something like an older Video camera on a platform that could be aimed and zoomed in using a joy stick,where,someone could track the aircraft flying and zoom in, now that would be really cool.

use something like an old RCA or what ever VHS camcorder that could plug into a video input and mount it on a rotating frame with elevation controls and you could get a cool web broadcast going.

[gyroplanes]

about turned me off to PRA and fly-ins for alone time. I did not go to another PRA event until I went with Ron to mentone.



I think a live web cam feed from the tower would be cool.,but you would need someone to aim it around at stuff,just aimed at the runway would get boring.



Animal,
The ROC fly-in was never a PRA event. Poor PRA gets blamed for everything.

The web cam I had in mind can be controlled by anyone at home with their computer. You just have to take turns

[Sir Real]

How about one of those travel trailers set up as a classroom/theater to haul around to various aviation events & flyins around the country. I don't think Muhammad is going to take the time to head for the mountain...

[freebird]

A good friend of mine has been the communications/safety director for the Texas Water Safari for years. They have a great webcam that is set up at the finish line that certain internet viewers can actually control remotely.

If we had the same setup, volunteers who couldn't make the event could still help by remotely operating the camera. Also, the feed can be recorded in multiple locations thereby eliminating a "one tape" issue.

I will be seeing him soon. I will get the specs on their setup.

[animal]

A good friend of mine has been the communications/safety director for the Texas Water Safari for years. They have a great webcam that is set up at the finish line that certain internet viewers can actually control remotely.

If we had the same setup, volunteers who couldn't make the event could still help by remotely operating the camera. Also, the feed can be recorded in multiple locations thereby eliminating a "one tape" issue.

I will be seeing him soon. I will get the specs on their setup. Now that would be cool.

[gyroplanes]

I wanted to re-open this thread because a new possibility has been presented.

Former Pres Rick Marshall suggested we use the west end of the PRA museum building as a classroom. Rick has a student that said he could build the walls and make us a reasonably soundproof classroom for under a thousand $

Does this sound like a possible interim meeting room location? I don't know the possible size, I have to go by there one day.

[WHY]

HI Tom

This brings up a lot of questions, first, I did not make it to Mentone last year so I don't know if the museum is still laid out like I last saw it, but if it is then the West end stores a lot of material used in the convention, power tools and hardware, all of which are used during the convention and at other times, also some various gyro components of some craft.

These would need to find a new place to be relocated, yet accesable, the most practicable would be a expansion of the muesum North through the big garage door. This of course is back to MONEY.

Finally the question of sound is very important, even at the East end of the hangar where classes are usually held, noise was a problem and I am not sure that it would be possible to sufficiently sound insulate a room that close to the runway so it could be used as desired, although I like the idea of utilizing the muesum more, I am afraid that as a class room it might not pan out well.



Tony