And Daddy Makes Three...

We arrived in Oshkosh, WI, mecca for pilots and air afficianados, for AirVenture 2009. What an experience! With an expected crowd of 500,000, the campgrounds alone were a sight to behold. We arrived on day two of the show and were still put out on “the back forty”-an open field and sandwiched between fifth-wheel trailers, tents and camping vehicles of every kind. We were lucky to have neighbors that we really enjoyed-five couples who frequently travel in a fifth-wheel caravan. Veteran campers, these folks imparted wisdom to both David and myself on everything from cooking to more efficient distribution of propane. My dad, Gary, flew up to Milwaukee the next day and David and I drove down to pick him up. He had his choice of sleeping on the pull-out couch or in the tent, which we had packed just in case. He was as excited as a kid in a candy store. Dad had been in the Air Force as a flight engineer, so it was a special treat to see the airplanes, especially the “warbirds.” Because our trailer was about a mile and a half from the air show, we walked a lot the first day and that tired us all out. Fortunately, we remembered the bikes and they became our main mode of transportation. There was so much to see at the air show; vendors selling equipment and airplane parts, airplane manufacturers with swanky tent showrooms offering the latest aircraft models and airplanes everywhere. From the Air Bus which holds over 800 people down to the smallest one-seater experimental ultra lights—I think during our four days, we must have seen them all. As amazing as all the aircraft were, the variety of campers could rival them. We saw everything from the million-dollar motor coaches to homecafted plywood boex set into the bed of a pick-up. One could certainly appreciate the resourcefulness reflected in some of these creations.