NoWingsAttached
08-05-2010, 08:54 AM
This story starts with the title, which is the ending. Some stories are better that way. Now that I have your attention, let's go back to the beginning.
My watch was in the shop for repairs. While it was, I wanted to put a new timepiece on the Blue Bee's instrument panel like I did on the Air Command, so i could gauge available fuel. I didn't see the model I wanted at the auto parts store so I put it off for another Saturday.
Monday was a beautiful, mild, calm evening so I took to flying around the airport for a short 30-minute practice for landings etc. I felt calm, happy and confident, and hopped over the trees to the neighbor's horse pastures and ponds to check out fences, power lines, hills and stuff - just in case I might need to land there in the future. After one circuit around the area, and judging by the number of landings practiced and the height of the sun I decided it was time to climb up and over the trees and take it back to the hanger. (I have no Hobbs meter.)
Just reaching a good altitude over the trees, about 150-200 AGL from where I could make the choice of the runway or turn and glide back to the pastures in the event of a forced landing, the motor went "BLA-A-A-A-A-A....."
Yep, exactly like that. I listened again, just to be sure. "BLA-A-A-A-A-A". Uh huh. No mistaking it. It was definitely a "BLA-A-A-A-A-A". Imagine that. Out of gas. I thought to myself, "THink I'll keep this incident to myself so no one thinks I am stupid." Oh, too late on that one. (So I share with you my stupidity here, once again, for running out of gas, while showcasing the safety and ease of a gyro forced landing, properly executed.)
I smoothly banked hard right, did about a 120* turn, and guided the Bee down to the tall grass of the pasture on the uphill side of a rising slope, between a fence and a horse barn. What a beautiful landing. Almost as if I'd planned it that way from the start. No high flare, no poor choice of landing area, no misreading the rise of the hill and the glide path of the gyro. Zero roll in the tall grass.
A big, black, 4-wheeler ATV came over the hill. The very kind gentleman offered gas, but I decided it was a bit too risky for me to try to take off from the hilly, tall-grass pasture. My wheels are soooooo small.
He fetched his black, Chevy dually and a tandem axle flatbed tagalong. We rolled the Blue Bee up on it together, secured the gyro and the rotor, and drove 10 minutes around to my hangar.
He told me a story about an airplane that wrecked in his pasture last Thanksgiving, on a Sunday night. He said my aircraft did MUCH better on the forced landing than the FW did.
After we unloaded my pristine gyro, I offered him a cold drink. He refused. So I told him to look for a Christmas card from me this year, and asked him how I could repay his great kindness.
He answered, "Next time someone needs help, be sure to help them."
To which I replied,"OK, so 'Pay it forward'? THat's easy. Anything else?"
"Vote Republican in the next election!"
I lied, of course, and said, "That's no problem, I was going to do that anyway!"
He turned to get in his truck and said, "You can land in my pasture any time you want!"
"OK, and I promise to stay away from the horse barn and the house!"
As I watched him drive through the automatic gate, a 30's something fellow walked up and asked if I had any jumper cables. I had none, but I DID have a 2/10/50-amp charger that we used to get this fellow's pickup truck running again.
So, the first part of my deal was easily and quickly taken care of.
Now, what the heck am I going to do when November rolls around??? Dangit.
<Big Gerg-style grin>
See you guys at Mentone.
Got gas? (I picked up my watch from the jeweler's last night, BTW. I have proven, once again, that I am not to be trusted to fly without an easily-read timepiece)
My watch was in the shop for repairs. While it was, I wanted to put a new timepiece on the Blue Bee's instrument panel like I did on the Air Command, so i could gauge available fuel. I didn't see the model I wanted at the auto parts store so I put it off for another Saturday.
Monday was a beautiful, mild, calm evening so I took to flying around the airport for a short 30-minute practice for landings etc. I felt calm, happy and confident, and hopped over the trees to the neighbor's horse pastures and ponds to check out fences, power lines, hills and stuff - just in case I might need to land there in the future. After one circuit around the area, and judging by the number of landings practiced and the height of the sun I decided it was time to climb up and over the trees and take it back to the hanger. (I have no Hobbs meter.)
Just reaching a good altitude over the trees, about 150-200 AGL from where I could make the choice of the runway or turn and glide back to the pastures in the event of a forced landing, the motor went "BLA-A-A-A-A-A....."
Yep, exactly like that. I listened again, just to be sure. "BLA-A-A-A-A-A". Uh huh. No mistaking it. It was definitely a "BLA-A-A-A-A-A". Imagine that. Out of gas. I thought to myself, "THink I'll keep this incident to myself so no one thinks I am stupid." Oh, too late on that one. (So I share with you my stupidity here, once again, for running out of gas, while showcasing the safety and ease of a gyro forced landing, properly executed.)
I smoothly banked hard right, did about a 120* turn, and guided the Bee down to the tall grass of the pasture on the uphill side of a rising slope, between a fence and a horse barn. What a beautiful landing. Almost as if I'd planned it that way from the start. No high flare, no poor choice of landing area, no misreading the rise of the hill and the glide path of the gyro. Zero roll in the tall grass.
A big, black, 4-wheeler ATV came over the hill. The very kind gentleman offered gas, but I decided it was a bit too risky for me to try to take off from the hilly, tall-grass pasture. My wheels are soooooo small.
He fetched his black, Chevy dually and a tandem axle flatbed tagalong. We rolled the Blue Bee up on it together, secured the gyro and the rotor, and drove 10 minutes around to my hangar.
He told me a story about an airplane that wrecked in his pasture last Thanksgiving, on a Sunday night. He said my aircraft did MUCH better on the forced landing than the FW did.
After we unloaded my pristine gyro, I offered him a cold drink. He refused. So I told him to look for a Christmas card from me this year, and asked him how I could repay his great kindness.
He answered, "Next time someone needs help, be sure to help them."
To which I replied,"OK, so 'Pay it forward'? THat's easy. Anything else?"
"Vote Republican in the next election!"
I lied, of course, and said, "That's no problem, I was going to do that anyway!"
He turned to get in his truck and said, "You can land in my pasture any time you want!"
"OK, and I promise to stay away from the horse barn and the house!"
As I watched him drive through the automatic gate, a 30's something fellow walked up and asked if I had any jumper cables. I had none, but I DID have a 2/10/50-amp charger that we used to get this fellow's pickup truck running again.
So, the first part of my deal was easily and quickly taken care of.
Now, what the heck am I going to do when November rolls around??? Dangit.
<Big Gerg-style grin>
See you guys at Mentone.
Got gas? (I picked up my watch from the jeweler's last night, BTW. I have proven, once again, that I am not to be trusted to fly without an easily-read timepiece)