Posted 12/14/98

Dear Aeronauts,

I hope that you have a wonderful and safe Holiday season.  This has been a very busy year for us and I look forward to another bustling New Year!

Speaking of which, please join us crazies  as we invite all flyers to our first annual Polar Bear Fly-in.  We will be serving some hot food and  beverages and will betaking pictures of you and your favorite aircraft.  The landing fee is a mere
$10.00

Don't forget to secure your AMA membership right away if you are  planning to fly with us Polar Bears!  It's probably too late to do it via mail, so get ahold of a fax machine and a credit card and you'll be all set.  Be sure to request a fax confirmation in case your card doesn't show up before the end of the year.

I have been in contact with the county regarding the procedure for locking the gate.  I will provide any information I receive at the next meeting or check out our web site for  the latest information.  I am still perplexed how the county can require us to lock the gate (using any procedure) when there are often times no locks to be found -  at all!

Oh well, I am very thankful for the wonderful friends I have made in the club and wish you a Happy Holiday.
 

Mark Stafford

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Posted 11/17/98

Our meetings are held on the fourth Tuesday of each month.  Our next meeting will be November 24th .  Carl Henson will be giving us a demonstration on cutting foam core wings.  We will also be voting in our officers for next year.

We have been asked by the County to change the way we lock the gate during the closed hours.  It will now be necessary to lock the gate with the locks under the protective guard AT ALL TIMES.  Why the change. The Bozo contractors at the new sediment site are constantly leaving the gate completely unlocked.  The county officials believe that if they change a rule and apply it to everyone; perhaps it might stick.  This is the same philosophy my Jr. high  school coach had when a small group of kids went to complain about Fred Swindleís B.O. problem.  He then made everyone start to where deodorant.
It didn't do any good. Fred still stunk. Oh well, we live in a bureaucracy and under the grace of the County management..

Pilot Certification/Review?  We learn to fly by adding skills and
experience gradually.  When certain matters become habitual, we can go on to the next step and add complexity.  Because flying is so complex we must form good habits from the beginning or at some point our deficiencies will show up and hinder progress if not compromise safety.
If we take a hiatus from flying, our skills atrophy as well.  How many
of us have a difficult time making an approach from the west at the
beginning of the year?   In the past the Aeronauts have had a pilot
certification program which gave new pilots a guide to improve their
skills and a goal to become certified.  I am not convinced that all of
us who are now considered experienced pilots could now past these tests which were created as a base line.
The old rating system required a pilot to perform the following:

1. A straight takeoff and roll out.

2.  Fly inverted

3.  Make an Approach from the right and the left.

4.  Fly a box pattern

5.  Fly a circle pattern

6.  Make 3 consecutive landings and takeoffs without killing the engine.

Should we require all pilots to perform a pilot review?  Should we
reinitiate our old pilot rating system with student and certified rated
pilots?  I hope you will attend our next and last meeting of the year to
discuss this important subject.

On January 1st  you are officially invited to attend the Eugene
Aeronauts first annual polar bear flying.  Come celebrate the new year by flying in whatever weather we shall encounter.
We will be giving away prizes from the local hobby shops and rumor has it that we will be dining for lunch on black-eyed peas and corn bread.  Have a  Aeronaut Espresso (served by yours truly) or be adventurous and try some Canadian Army Coffee.  What a great way to start the new year.  Hope to see ya all there!

Mark Stafford

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Posted November 18, 1998 • Locking the Gate

The county has complained to us that the gate we all use is not being locked up properly, or at all.  After a thourough discussion at last months meeting, we came to the conclusion that we were being unfairly blamed.  Nonetheless, as "guests of the county" we must all ensure that our members take proper measures to ensure that the gate gets locked up properly (see below).
    In addition, if you should ever come to the gate and find it unlocked, or locked improperly, please report the following information to either Mark Stafford,. The date, time, and whether you observed any other people or cars in the surrounding area (not limited to our field area).
Proper way to lock gate:
Locks must always be locked under the protective guard (INSIDE of metal box) at ALL times.  Never leave the padlocks on the outside.
 
 

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