Hey wait, I did that this last summer! (1900 miles each way to Illinois just me in my little 'ol coupe.) Are you telling me I picked the wrong year to do it in! <grin>
I have to agree with the "it's pretty easy" assessment. It isn't any harder then flying around the patch, although I sure paid close attention to my fuel burn rates around the mountains! -Tom -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Behalf Of V. Childs Sent: Wednesday, October 20, 1999 2:38 PM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: A 2000 mi Trip I think everyone who has a Ercoupe should go on a 2000 mi trip in the year 2000. Out 2000 and back 2000. "YES" a 4000 mi. trip. "OH" what stories we could tell are kids and grandkids. " In the year 2000 I went on a 2000 mi trip by myself and my Ercoupe". I would like you to go alone. Just you and your airplane. (your plane needs a trip like this once in awhile, it gets tired of the same old hanger and airports). Go real light, one little bag. I want you to navigate by going down the super highways. Use your radios as little as possible. Get a good tape player and headsets and listen to the songs you like. "Paint your wagon" is a good tape. Remember the song "Where are we going I don't know, when will we get there I'm not certain, ALL I KNOW IS I AM ON MY WAY" Thats it!!! You got it!!! Just you and your airplane crossing the country, stopping in small towns and airports. Take time to talk & listen to people, that way you won't get to lonely. If you hit bad weather just sit it out. One day two days, who cares, you have nowhere to be. Alot of you will say "But I don't have the money" Get the money!!! Borrow it, try begging, sell your MicoSoft stock, work, marry someone with money, put it on a credit card, "oh my god take it out of the bank". Just get it!!! A lot of you will say "But I don't have that much time". ( it will take a whole week or two ). Get the time!!! Make the time, trade the time, quit your job, get a new wife or husband. Just make sure you "GO". Some of you may think "but I'm not that good of a pilot" You are WRONG!!! I have over 10,000 hours in a small airplanes, over 7000 in Ercoupes and have flown all over this great country. You are ALL better pilots than me!! I am not that good of pilot. Most of my flying time is flying down roads till the weather gets bad and landing. You all have better training than me, can do dead recking better, ADF, VOR, and that new "thing of a majigger" you guys are always talking about. "OH" GPS. I don't even have radios in my planes. And you ALL have better airplanes than me. Don't be afraid of the mountains out West. Just cross them when you have good weather. Fly down the super highways, they go where the passes are anyway and make good strips in you need one. On clear days out West you have over 150 mi visibilty out there!! When I fly from IL to Las Vegas I go down old Rt.66, the highest I have to go is 9500' at Flagstaff, AZ. When I go to Reno, NV I fly down Rt. 80, the highest I have to go is 11,500 just east of Salt Lake City. Plan your gas stops every two to two and a half hours. (that way if you have higher head winds you'll have lots of fuel). I think I'm going to go to that Burningman fly-in Aug. 30- Sept 7, 2000. (www.burningman.com) It's 70 mi North of Reno, NV. They mark out for a 100' X 4000' airstrip on the clay desert (its as smooth as pavement). You can land there and camp right by your plane. They get like 20,000 people from all over the world to build a 40' wooden man and than they burn it!!! "WHY" do they get 20,000 from all over the world to build a 40' wooden man in the middle of nowhere and burn it? Beats the heck out of me!!! I just thought it was somewhere to go!!! gene
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