PW_Plack
10-10-2004, 01:40 PM
Todd's probably to tired too post today, so here are a few pictures. On the 1,400-mile drive back from El Mirage to Spokane, Washington, we fried a wheel bearing on Todd's trailer, and cracked a pod bracket on the Dominator. So, his Dominator had been staying in Gary Kaminski's hangar in Newberg, OR, and the trailer, once fixed, in my garage.
Todd drove down Friday, stayed at my place overnight, and the idea was to met Gary Saturday morning, fix the Dominator, fly with to the PRA Chapter 73 meeting in Scappoose while I drove with the trailer, let Jim Vanek look over and fly his Dominator, get a ride in Jim's two-place, and then tow the Dominator back home. Not much of that happened!
By the time the Dominator was ready to have the blades slung, it was 55 degrees F (13 C) and pouring rain. After I left with Todd's tools and trailer for the hour-plus drive to Scappoose, he found the Rotax 532 wouldn't make more than 4,500 RPM. (Possibly due to an air filter full of El Mirage dust turned to mud by the rain.) I was a half-hour out when I got the cell phone call from Todd, and headed back. All three of us missed the meeting, but at least we shared an awesome pizza in Newberg afterward getting packed up, and I assume Todd made it home last night about midnight.
Thanks to Ron Awad, who called Todd from ROC, and passed his cell phone around the campfire so everyone could say hello. It gave Todd a boost, despite rubbing it in about the weather, and it sounds like ROC was a who's who of southeast gyroplane luminaries! No wonder the forum's been so quiet the last few days.
With all the time we spent riding in the truck, the conversation yielded plans for what might be the first decent-sized gyroplane fly-in in the Pacific Northwest in several years. I'll let Todd spill the details when he's ready!
Anyway, the pictures, sorry they didn't post in chronological order: (3) Gary Kaminski fuels Todd's Dominator while Todd assembles rotorblades outside in the rain; (4) Todd warms up the 532 for the blade-slinging, again in the rain; (1) 90 minutes later, Dominator ready for the haul back to Spokane, still in the rain; (2) Rainbow over Scappoose Industrial Airport, Mother Nature trying to cheer us up after raining on us all day.
Todd drove down Friday, stayed at my place overnight, and the idea was to met Gary Saturday morning, fix the Dominator, fly with to the PRA Chapter 73 meeting in Scappoose while I drove with the trailer, let Jim Vanek look over and fly his Dominator, get a ride in Jim's two-place, and then tow the Dominator back home. Not much of that happened!
By the time the Dominator was ready to have the blades slung, it was 55 degrees F (13 C) and pouring rain. After I left with Todd's tools and trailer for the hour-plus drive to Scappoose, he found the Rotax 532 wouldn't make more than 4,500 RPM. (Possibly due to an air filter full of El Mirage dust turned to mud by the rain.) I was a half-hour out when I got the cell phone call from Todd, and headed back. All three of us missed the meeting, but at least we shared an awesome pizza in Newberg afterward getting packed up, and I assume Todd made it home last night about midnight.
Thanks to Ron Awad, who called Todd from ROC, and passed his cell phone around the campfire so everyone could say hello. It gave Todd a boost, despite rubbing it in about the weather, and it sounds like ROC was a who's who of southeast gyroplane luminaries! No wonder the forum's been so quiet the last few days.
With all the time we spent riding in the truck, the conversation yielded plans for what might be the first decent-sized gyroplane fly-in in the Pacific Northwest in several years. I'll let Todd spill the details when he's ready!
Anyway, the pictures, sorry they didn't post in chronological order: (3) Gary Kaminski fuels Todd's Dominator while Todd assembles rotorblades outside in the rain; (4) Todd warms up the 532 for the blade-slinging, again in the rain; (1) 90 minutes later, Dominator ready for the haul back to Spokane, still in the rain; (2) Rainbow over Scappoose Industrial Airport, Mother Nature trying to cheer us up after raining on us all day.