Trying to avoid the bizarrely high heat and humidity during the first days of the airshow, I look for things to do that will keep me cool and out of the sun. I start out on a walk through the tree lined streets of the RV park, Camp Scholler, to search for my friends Jim and Sandy who are camping there. On their way up, they had engine problems with their RV and I want to see if they need any more assistance with that problem. A broken alternator case sending fluctuating voltage to the coach’s electrical system caused the temp sensor to de-rate the engine and shut down because the sensor thought they were overheating. A new alternator solved the problem.
As I walked out the airshow gate, a gentleman in a 6 seat gator stopped and asked me where I was going. When I told him which intersection I was headed to, he assured me that I definitely needed a ride. He turned out to be Bill the Vice Chairman of the Volunteers and he was right about the ride. If I had been recently training for a marathon I may have made it without his assistance. We rode what seemed like 26 miles before finding Jim’s coach.
On my next tram ride, I meet a tram guide who has 4 generations of her family at the show including her 101 year old father who owns an airplane that is on display in the EAA Museum.
While working our way back to the car, a man asked me if I knew the best way to the Orange parking lot. I did and I promised to tell him if he would let me photograph him for my blog. Zoom in to see the kiss on his cheek of which he was incredibly proud – he received it that morning and was giddy to show it off.
Still trying to prevent a meltdown, I wander over to the Ford building to hitch a free ride on the Model T’s there. Since I am all alone, I score a ride in the Model TT1 (one ton) truck with Jack. Since Jack completely restored this vehicle himself, he shares all the important mechanical info with me during the ride. I speed text Storm after my ride and insist that he hurry over and ride with Jack as I know he will love all that tech info and I only understand about half of it!
I spend the rest of my visit looking for people whose picture help tell the story of Oshkosh. Here are some of my favorites:
