Original Posted By: John Duprey
Subject: Pietenpol-List: solo flight>Finally, I got to fly my GN-1 todayRobert,Congradulations! It is an event youl'll remember for a long time.I was out walking with my wife this evening and looking at the patch ofground that I often imagine as my own grass strip when I heard the sound ofa small plane. I turned to see an aircraft moving very quickly and in theevening light I wasn't sure what it was until it banked and flew past again.I recognized my friend Jim in his brand new RV-8. (The kit arrived inNovember '98)smooth fast and quiet. No Piet, but a real treat to see a newplane in the air. (Jim worked long days to meet his goal of finishing hisplane before spring seeding.) It is possible guys, we can finish our dream and move on to enjoying it.John Mc________________________________________________________________________________
Pietenpol-List: solo flight
Pietenpol-List: solo flight
Original Posted By: jmcnarry(at)techplus.com (John McNarry)
Subject: Pietenpol-List: solo flight>Finally, I got to fly my GN-1 today. The last time I flew it was the>evening that Mike and Jay Teves brought the plane from Chanute Ks, toGarner>Field, Tx. The winds have been terrible all week, until this evening! I>got to the airport early this morning, and pulled the GN out of the old>military hanger. It was already windy and gusty, so I decided to get some>practice taxiing around. This lasted for about 10 minutes, and I had to>quite, it got to cold. (Don't forget that I'm a Texas, and anything less>than 70 degrees means coats and gloves to us here). Actually, it was inthe>37 degree range. Since I didn't want to do my first solo in that kind of>wind and temp, I decided to change the oil and clean the engine some. I>spend several hours playing around with cleaning things up, then decided to>drive out to my woodworking shop and mess around out there until 6:00 or so>this evening. When I got back to the Hanger, the winds were light and>variable, just perfect for a GN solo. After a through preflight, I started>the little cont 65, and hopped in the rear seat. I put my goggles and>headset on over my baseball cap, taxied out to the threshold, and checked>the mags and did my pre takeoff preflight. All seemed fine. I lined up on>the runway (in Uvalde the runway is pretty big, probably 100 ft x 5,100ft.)>and throttled up. First thing that caught me a little off guard was the>engine torque and p-factor. The little GN headed off to the left, but I>quickly corrrected it and as the tail came up, I was pointed right smack>down the center or the runway. I didn't look at the Airspeed, but thestick>came back to nuetual, and I applied a little back pressure, and up I went.>I was surprised at the rate of climb with one person. This is where it got>a tad exciting. I was enjoying the takeoff, and had glanced at the>instruments, then made the mistake of looking skyward for a split second.>Remember the baseball cap earlier? The bill caught the breeze, and yanked>both the cap and my headset off of my head, and it was dangling behing me>about 4 feet, being held by the headset cord, which was across the bridgeof>my nose at that point. It snapped loose, and the first thing that came to>mind was that it was probably caught up in the elevator or something. I>glanced back, but saw no hat or headset. Now, do you guys have any ideahow>noisy a cont. 65 is with no ear protection? Well, I calmly turned upwind,>then down wind, did my base and final approach. The landing was really>nice. I touched down on the mains at about 40 I guess, and held the tail>up as long as I could, then let the tailwheel settle. (these little planes>are really sensitive with all three wheels on the ground at high speed). I>taxied back to the hanger, where Carrie (my wife) was standing, wondering>what had fallen out of the plane. She said that at about 3 or 4 hundred>feet, she say something fall out, but cuoldn't tell what it was. We drove>to the approximate spot, and found the cap, but didn't find the headset.My>good friend Herb Carper, who had been flying his Stearman, went out later>and found all the pieces. Looks like I can get the headset back together>again. When Carrie and I got back to the hander after the search, we found>my Dad, sitting in the front seat of the GN, trying it on for size. Wewere>at the same hanger he flew from in 42, in a PT19. It was good to see him>back in a vintage type of airplane. He's anxious to fly with me after Iget>the feel of the plane a little better. I took the GN up again, and did>about 8 landings (Dad had driven to the end of the runway in his pickup, to>"grade" the landings, he said I passed). I had a blast. The wind was calm>and cool, and that little plane and I got along just fine. What a neatday!>Firends, family, plus a interesting story to remember it with.>>Tomorrow at daybreak, I'll pull the GN back out of the old hanger, and head>off again to the skies. This time I'll make a little cross country, and>visit some friends who have a strip about 20 miles South of Uvalde. The>only thing that will be better than all of this, is when I finally get to>meet some of you, hopefully at Brodhead. Thanks for reading my little>story. I enjoyed sharing it!!>>Robert Hensarling>http://www.mesquite-furniture.com>rhrocker(at)admin.hilconet.com>Uvalde, Texas>>________________________________________________________________________________
Subject: Pietenpol-List: solo flight>Finally, I got to fly my GN-1 today. The last time I flew it was the>evening that Mike and Jay Teves brought the plane from Chanute Ks, toGarner>Field, Tx. The winds have been terrible all week, until this evening! I>got to the airport early this morning, and pulled the GN out of the old>military hanger. It was already windy and gusty, so I decided to get some>practice taxiing around. This lasted for about 10 minutes, and I had to>quite, it got to cold. (Don't forget that I'm a Texas, and anything less>than 70 degrees means coats and gloves to us here). Actually, it was inthe>37 degree range. Since I didn't want to do my first solo in that kind of>wind and temp, I decided to change the oil and clean the engine some. I>spend several hours playing around with cleaning things up, then decided to>drive out to my woodworking shop and mess around out there until 6:00 or so>this evening. When I got back to the Hanger, the winds were light and>variable, just perfect for a GN solo. After a through preflight, I started>the little cont 65, and hopped in the rear seat. I put my goggles and>headset on over my baseball cap, taxied out to the threshold, and checked>the mags and did my pre takeoff preflight. All seemed fine. I lined up on>the runway (in Uvalde the runway is pretty big, probably 100 ft x 5,100ft.)>and throttled up. First thing that caught me a little off guard was the>engine torque and p-factor. The little GN headed off to the left, but I>quickly corrrected it and as the tail came up, I was pointed right smack>down the center or the runway. I didn't look at the Airspeed, but thestick>came back to nuetual, and I applied a little back pressure, and up I went.>I was surprised at the rate of climb with one person. This is where it got>a tad exciting. I was enjoying the takeoff, and had glanced at the>instruments, then made the mistake of looking skyward for a split second.>Remember the baseball cap earlier? The bill caught the breeze, and yanked>both the cap and my headset off of my head, and it was dangling behing me>about 4 feet, being held by the headset cord, which was across the bridgeof>my nose at that point. It snapped loose, and the first thing that came to>mind was that it was probably caught up in the elevator or something. I>glanced back, but saw no hat or headset. Now, do you guys have any ideahow>noisy a cont. 65 is with no ear protection? Well, I calmly turned upwind,>then down wind, did my base and final approach. The landing was really>nice. I touched down on the mains at about 40 I guess, and held the tail>up as long as I could, then let the tailwheel settle. (these little planes>are really sensitive with all three wheels on the ground at high speed). I>taxied back to the hanger, where Carrie (my wife) was standing, wondering>what had fallen out of the plane. She said that at about 3 or 4 hundred>feet, she say something fall out, but cuoldn't tell what it was. We drove>to the approximate spot, and found the cap, but didn't find the headset.My>good friend Herb Carper, who had been flying his Stearman, went out later>and found all the pieces. Looks like I can get the headset back together>again. When Carrie and I got back to the hander after the search, we found>my Dad, sitting in the front seat of the GN, trying it on for size. Wewere>at the same hanger he flew from in 42, in a PT19. It was good to see him>back in a vintage type of airplane. He's anxious to fly with me after Iget>the feel of the plane a little better. I took the GN up again, and did>about 8 landings (Dad had driven to the end of the runway in his pickup, to>"grade" the landings, he said I passed). I had a blast. The wind was calm>and cool, and that little plane and I got along just fine. What a neatday!>Firends, family, plus a interesting story to remember it with.>>Tomorrow at daybreak, I'll pull the GN back out of the old hanger, and head>off again to the skies. This time I'll make a little cross country, and>visit some friends who have a strip about 20 miles South of Uvalde. The>only thing that will be better than all of this, is when I finally get to>meet some of you, hopefully at Brodhead. Thanks for reading my little>story. I enjoyed sharing it!!>>Robert Hensarling>http://www.mesquite-furniture.com>rhrocker(at)admin.hilconet.com>Uvalde, Texas>>________________________________________________________________________________
Pietenpol-List: solo flight
Original Posted By: Bill Talbert
Finally, I got to fly my GN-1 today. The last time I flew it was theevening that Mike and Jay Teves brought the plane from Chanute Ks, to GarnerField, Tx. The winds have been terrible all week, until this evening! Igot to the airport early this morning, and pulled the GN out of the oldmilitary hanger. It was already windy and gusty, so I decided to get somepractice taxiing around. This lasted for about 10 minutes, and I had toquite, it got to cold. (Don't forget that I'm a Texas, and anything lessthan 70 degrees means coats and gloves to us here). Actually, it was in the37 degree range. Since I didn't want to do my first solo in that kind ofwind and temp, I decided to change the oil and clean the engine some. Ispend several hours playing around with cleaning things up, then decided todrive out to my woodworking shop and mess around out there until 6:00 or sothis evening. When I got back to the Hanger, the winds were light andvariable, just perfect for a GN solo. After a through preflight, I startedthe little cont 65, and hopped in the rear seat. I put my goggles andheadset on over my baseball cap, taxied out to the threshold, and checkedthe mags and did my pre takeoff preflight. All seemed fine. I lined up onthe runway (in Uvalde the runway is pretty big, probably 100 ft x 5,100 ft.)and throttled up. First thing that caught me a little off guard was theengine torque and p-factor. The little GN headed off to the left, but Iquickly corrrected it and as the tail came up, I was pointed right smackdown the center or the runway. I didn't look at the Airspeed, but the stickcame back to nuetual, and I applied a little back pressure, and up I went.I was surprised at the rate of climb with one person. This is where it gota tad exciting. I was enjoying the takeoff, and had glanced at theinstruments, then made the mistake of looking skyward for a split second.Remember the baseball cap earlier? The bill caught the breeze, and yankedboth the cap and my headset off of my head, and it was dangling behing meabout 4 feet, being held by the headset cord, which was across the bridge ofmy nose at that point. It snapped loose, and the first thing that came tomind was that it was probably caught up in the elevator or something. Iglanced back, but saw no hat or headset. Now, do you guys have any idea hownoisy a cont. 65 is with no ear protection? Well, I calmly turned upwind,then down wind, did my base and final approach. The landing was reallynice. I touched down on the mains at about 40 I guess, and held the tailup as long as I could, then let the tailwheel settle. (these little planesare really sensitive with all three wheels on the ground at high speed). Itaxied back to the hanger, where Carrie (my wife) was standing, wonderingwhat had fallen out of the plane. She said that at about 3 or 4 hundredfeet, she say something fall out, but cuoldn't tell what it was. We droveto the approximate spot, and found the cap, but didn't find the headset. Mygood friend Herb Carper, who had been flying his Stearman, went out laterand found all the pieces. Looks like I can get the headset back togetheragain. When Carrie and I got back to the hander after the search, we foundmy Dad, sitting in the front seat of the GN, trying it on for size. We wereat the same hanger he flew from in 42, in a PT19. It was good to see himback in a vintage type of airplane. He's anxious to fly with me after I getthe feel of the plane a little better. I took the GN up again, and didabout 8 landings (Dad had driven to the end of the runway in his pickup, to"grade" the landings, he said I passed). I had a blast. The wind was calmand cool, and that little plane and I got along just fine. What a neat day!Firends, family, plus a interesting story to remember it with.Tomorrow at daybreak, I'll pull the GN back out of the old hanger, and headoff again to the skies. This time I'll make a little cross country, andvisit some friends who have a strip about 20 miles South of Uvalde. Theonly thing that will be better than all of this, is when I finally get tomeet some of you, hopefully at Brodhead. Thanks for reading my littlestory. I enjoyed sharing it!!Robert Hensarlinghttp://www.mesquite-furniture.comrhrocker(at)admin.hilconet.comUvalde, Texas________________________________________________________________________________
Finally, I got to fly my GN-1 today. The last time I flew it was theevening that Mike and Jay Teves brought the plane from Chanute Ks, to GarnerField, Tx. The winds have been terrible all week, until this evening! Igot to the airport early this morning, and pulled the GN out of the oldmilitary hanger. It was already windy and gusty, so I decided to get somepractice taxiing around. This lasted for about 10 minutes, and I had toquite, it got to cold. (Don't forget that I'm a Texas, and anything lessthan 70 degrees means coats and gloves to us here). Actually, it was in the37 degree range. Since I didn't want to do my first solo in that kind ofwind and temp, I decided to change the oil and clean the engine some. Ispend several hours playing around with cleaning things up, then decided todrive out to my woodworking shop and mess around out there until 6:00 or sothis evening. When I got back to the Hanger, the winds were light andvariable, just perfect for a GN solo. After a through preflight, I startedthe little cont 65, and hopped in the rear seat. I put my goggles andheadset on over my baseball cap, taxied out to the threshold, and checkedthe mags and did my pre takeoff preflight. All seemed fine. I lined up onthe runway (in Uvalde the runway is pretty big, probably 100 ft x 5,100 ft.)and throttled up. First thing that caught me a little off guard was theengine torque and p-factor. The little GN headed off to the left, but Iquickly corrrected it and as the tail came up, I was pointed right smackdown the center or the runway. I didn't look at the Airspeed, but the stickcame back to nuetual, and I applied a little back pressure, and up I went.I was surprised at the rate of climb with one person. This is where it gota tad exciting. I was enjoying the takeoff, and had glanced at theinstruments, then made the mistake of looking skyward for a split second.Remember the baseball cap earlier? The bill caught the breeze, and yankedboth the cap and my headset off of my head, and it was dangling behing meabout 4 feet, being held by the headset cord, which was across the bridge ofmy nose at that point. It snapped loose, and the first thing that came tomind was that it was probably caught up in the elevator or something. Iglanced back, but saw no hat or headset. Now, do you guys have any idea hownoisy a cont. 65 is with no ear protection? Well, I calmly turned upwind,then down wind, did my base and final approach. The landing was reallynice. I touched down on the mains at about 40 I guess, and held the tailup as long as I could, then let the tailwheel settle. (these little planesare really sensitive with all three wheels on the ground at high speed). Itaxied back to the hanger, where Carrie (my wife) was standing, wonderingwhat had fallen out of the plane. She said that at about 3 or 4 hundredfeet, she say something fall out, but cuoldn't tell what it was. We droveto the approximate spot, and found the cap, but didn't find the headset. Mygood friend Herb Carper, who had been flying his Stearman, went out laterand found all the pieces. Looks like I can get the headset back togetheragain. When Carrie and I got back to the hander after the search, we foundmy Dad, sitting in the front seat of the GN, trying it on for size. We wereat the same hanger he flew from in 42, in a PT19. It was good to see himback in a vintage type of airplane. He's anxious to fly with me after I getthe feel of the plane a little better. I took the GN up again, and didabout 8 landings (Dad had driven to the end of the runway in his pickup, to"grade" the landings, he said I passed). I had a blast. The wind was calmand cool, and that little plane and I got along just fine. What a neat day!Firends, family, plus a interesting story to remember it with.Tomorrow at daybreak, I'll pull the GN back out of the old hanger, and headoff again to the skies. This time I'll make a little cross country, andvisit some friends who have a strip about 20 miles South of Uvalde. Theonly thing that will be better than all of this, is when I finally get tomeet some of you, hopefully at Brodhead. Thanks for reading my littlestory. I enjoyed sharing it!!Robert Hensarlinghttp://www.mesquite-furniture.comrhrocker(at)admin.hilconet.comUvalde, Texas________________________________________________________________________________
Pietenpol-List: Re: solo flight
Original Posted By: Earl Myers
Robert, very well written. Congratulations. Here nearHouston it was calm all day, I figured you ran the tankdry. (our low was only 42=B0). Good luck on the weathertomorrowBill________________________________________________________________________________
Robert, very well written. Congratulations. Here nearHouston it was calm all day, I figured you ran the tankdry. (our low was only 42=B0). Good luck on the weathertomorrowBill________________________________________________________________________________
Pietenpol-List: Re: solo flight
Original Posted By: robert hensarling
IT DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN THAT, NO?-----Original Message-----
IT DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN THAT, NO?-----Original Message-----
Pietenpol-List: Re: solo flight
Original Posted By: robert hensarling
-----Original Message-----
-----Original Message-----
Pietenpol-List: Re: solo flight
Original Posted By: kyle ray
Robert Congrats!! Sounds like a blast. I think this tale would be goodon the Aircamper Org. under "flying stories".robert hensarling wrote:> > Finally, I got to fly my GN-1 today. The last time I flew it was the> evening that Mike and Jay Teves brought the plane from Chanute Ks, to Garner> Field, Tx. The winds have been terrible all week, until this evening! I> got to the airport early this morning, and pulled the GN out of the old> military hanger. It was already windy and gusty, so I decided to get some> practice taxiing around. This lasted for about 10 minutes, and I had to> quite, it got to cold. (Don't forget that I'm a Texas, and anything less> than 70 degrees means coats and gloves to us here). Actually, it was in the> 37 degree range. Since I didn't want to do my first solo in that kind of> wind and temp, I decided to change the oil and clean the engine some. I> spend several hours playing around with cleaning things up, then decided to> drive out to my woodworking shop and mess around out there until 6:00 or so> this evening. When I got back to the Hanger, the winds were light and> variable, just perfect for a GN solo. After a through preflight, I started> the little cont 65, and hopped in the rear seat. I put my goggles and> headset on over my baseball cap, taxied out to the threshold, and checked> the mags and did my pre takeoff preflight. All seemed fine. I lined up on> the runway (in Uvalde the runway is pretty big, probably 100 ft x 5,100 ft.)> and throttled up. First thing that caught me a little off guard was the> engine torque and p-factor. The little GN headed off to the left, but I> quickly corrrected it and as the tail came up, I was pointed right smack> down the center or the runway. I didn't look at the Airspeed, but the stick> came back to nuetual, and I applied a little back pressure, and up I went.> I was surprised at the rate of climb with one person. This is where it got> a tad exciting. I was enjoying the takeoff, and had glanced at the> instruments, then made the mistake of looking skyward for a split second.> Remember the baseball cap earlier? The bill caught the breeze, and yanked> both the cap and my headset off of my head, and it was dangling behing me> about 4 feet, being held by the headset cord, which was across the bridge of> my nose at that point. It snapped loose, and the first thing that came to> mind was that it was probably caught up in the elevator or something. I> glanced back, but saw no hat or headset. Now, do you guys have any idea how> noisy a cont. 65 is with no ear protection? Well, I calmly turned upwind,> then down wind, did my base and final approach. The landing was really> nice. I touched down on the mains at about 40 I guess, and held the tail> up as long as I could, then let the tailwheel settle. (these little planes> are really sensitive with all three wheels on the ground at high speed). I> taxied back to the hanger, where Carrie (my wife) was standing, wondering> what had fallen out of the plane. She said that at about 3 or 4 hundred> feet, she say something fall out, but cuoldn't tell what it was. We drove> to the approximate spot, and found the cap, but didn't find the headset. My> good friend Herb Carper, who had been flying his Stearman, went out later> and found all the pieces. Looks like I can get the headset back together> again. When Carrie and I got back to the hander after the search, we found> my Dad, sitting in the front seat of the GN, trying it on for size. We were> at the same hanger he flew from in 42, in a PT19. It was good to see him> back in a vintage type of airplane. He's anxious to fly with me after I get> the feel of the plane a little better. I took the GN up again, and did> about 8 landings (Dad had driven to the end of the runway in his pickup, to> "grade" the landings, he said I passed). I had a blast. The wind was calm> and cool, and that little plane and I got along just fine. What a neat day!> Firends, family, plus a interesting story to remember it with.> > Tomorrow at daybreak, I'll pull the GN back out of the old hanger, and head> off again to the skies. This time I'll make a little cross country, and> visit some friends who have a strip about 20 miles South of Uvalde. The> only thing that will be better than all of this, is when I finally get to> meet some of you, hopefully at Brodhead. Thanks for reading my little> story. I enjoyed sharing it!!> > Robert Hensarling> http://www.mesquite-furniture.com> rhrocker(at)admin.hilconet.com> Uvalde, Texas________________________________________________________________________________
Robert Congrats!! Sounds like a blast. I think this tale would be goodon the Aircamper Org. under "flying stories".robert hensarling wrote:> > Finally, I got to fly my GN-1 today. The last time I flew it was the> evening that Mike and Jay Teves brought the plane from Chanute Ks, to Garner> Field, Tx. The winds have been terrible all week, until this evening! I> got to the airport early this morning, and pulled the GN out of the old> military hanger. It was already windy and gusty, so I decided to get some> practice taxiing around. This lasted for about 10 minutes, and I had to> quite, it got to cold. (Don't forget that I'm a Texas, and anything less> than 70 degrees means coats and gloves to us here). Actually, it was in the> 37 degree range. Since I didn't want to do my first solo in that kind of> wind and temp, I decided to change the oil and clean the engine some. I> spend several hours playing around with cleaning things up, then decided to> drive out to my woodworking shop and mess around out there until 6:00 or so> this evening. When I got back to the Hanger, the winds were light and> variable, just perfect for a GN solo. After a through preflight, I started> the little cont 65, and hopped in the rear seat. I put my goggles and> headset on over my baseball cap, taxied out to the threshold, and checked> the mags and did my pre takeoff preflight. All seemed fine. I lined up on> the runway (in Uvalde the runway is pretty big, probably 100 ft x 5,100 ft.)> and throttled up. First thing that caught me a little off guard was the> engine torque and p-factor. The little GN headed off to the left, but I> quickly corrrected it and as the tail came up, I was pointed right smack> down the center or the runway. I didn't look at the Airspeed, but the stick> came back to nuetual, and I applied a little back pressure, and up I went.> I was surprised at the rate of climb with one person. This is where it got> a tad exciting. I was enjoying the takeoff, and had glanced at the> instruments, then made the mistake of looking skyward for a split second.> Remember the baseball cap earlier? The bill caught the breeze, and yanked> both the cap and my headset off of my head, and it was dangling behing me> about 4 feet, being held by the headset cord, which was across the bridge of> my nose at that point. It snapped loose, and the first thing that came to> mind was that it was probably caught up in the elevator or something. I> glanced back, but saw no hat or headset. Now, do you guys have any idea how> noisy a cont. 65 is with no ear protection? Well, I calmly turned upwind,> then down wind, did my base and final approach. The landing was really> nice. I touched down on the mains at about 40 I guess, and held the tail> up as long as I could, then let the tailwheel settle. (these little planes> are really sensitive with all three wheels on the ground at high speed). I> taxied back to the hanger, where Carrie (my wife) was standing, wondering> what had fallen out of the plane. She said that at about 3 or 4 hundred> feet, she say something fall out, but cuoldn't tell what it was. We drove> to the approximate spot, and found the cap, but didn't find the headset. My> good friend Herb Carper, who had been flying his Stearman, went out later> and found all the pieces. Looks like I can get the headset back together> again. When Carrie and I got back to the hander after the search, we found> my Dad, sitting in the front seat of the GN, trying it on for size. We were> at the same hanger he flew from in 42, in a PT19. It was good to see him> back in a vintage type of airplane. He's anxious to fly with me after I get> the feel of the plane a little better. I took the GN up again, and did> about 8 landings (Dad had driven to the end of the runway in his pickup, to> "grade" the landings, he said I passed). I had a blast. The wind was calm> and cool, and that little plane and I got along just fine. What a neat day!> Firends, family, plus a interesting story to remember it with.> > Tomorrow at daybreak, I'll pull the GN back out of the old hanger, and head> off again to the skies. This time I'll make a little cross country, and> visit some friends who have a strip about 20 miles South of Uvalde. The> only thing that will be better than all of this, is when I finally get to> meet some of you, hopefully at Brodhead. Thanks for reading my little> story. I enjoyed sharing it!!> > Robert Hensarling> http://www.mesquite-furniture.com> rhrocker(at)admin.hilconet.com> Uvalde, Texas________________________________________________________________________________
Pietenpol-List: Re: solo flight
Original Posted By: Michael Brusilow
Well written Robert. I printed your story and showed it to my wife and kids.They got a kick out of it. Especially since they knew the airplane. I told mywife I should have bought that Piet from Mike but she didn't think so. I wassurprised about the engine torque and p-factor also in your GN-1. I thoughtafter much looking and reading that it maybe better corrected with a re-rigging.Get some pictures and post them on your site. If I can find them I'll email yousome pictures of your GN-1 with me and my kids in Emporia, KS at a fly in.I also know what your talking about with you cap. I lost one at Oshkosh in aPiet. And about six years ago I was flying a Kolb ultralite I had at the time.I was at cruise at about 300 ft agl, when I turned my head to look down and backat something. Just then the air got under my glasses and pulled them off myface and out from under my helmet. Luckily, one ear piece caught in the edge ofthe helmet long enough for me to quickly grab them. I don't think I want to tryto land with out my glasses. That same day I went and bought a rubber cord tohold glasses on and also a face shield cover for my helmet.Good flying !Greg YotzJealous and grounded....robert hensarling wrote:> Finally, I got to fly my GN-1 today. The last time I flew it was the> evening that Mike and Jay Teves brought the plane from Chanute Ks, to Garner> Field, Tx. The winds have been terrible all week, until this evening! I> got to the airport early this morning, and pulled the GN out of the old> military hanger. It was already windy and gusty, so I decided to get some> practice taxiing around. This lasted for about 10 minutes, and I had to> quite, it got to cold. (Don't forget that I'm a Texas, and anything less> than 70 degrees means coats and gloves to us here). Actually, it was in the> 37 degree range. Since I didn't want to do my first solo in that kind of> wind and temp, I decided to change the oil and clean the engine some. I> spend several hours playing around with cleaning things up, then decided to> drive out to my woodworking shop and mess around out there until 6:00 or so> this evening. When I got back to the Hanger, the winds were light and> variable, just perfect for a GN solo. After a through preflight, I started> the little cont 65, and hopped in the rear seat. I put my goggles and> headset on over my baseball cap, taxied out to the threshold, and checked> the mags and did my pre takeoff preflight. All seemed fine. I lined up on> the runway (in Uvalde the runway is pretty big, probably 100 ft x 5,100 ft.)> and throttled up. First thing that caught me a little off guard was the> engine torque and p-factor. The little GN headed off to the left, but I> quickly corrrected it and as the tail came up, I was pointed right smack> down the center or the runway. I didn't look at the Airspeed, but the stick> came back to nuetual, and I applied a little back pressure, and up I went.> I was surprised at the rate of climb with one person. This is where it got> a tad exciting. I was enjoying the takeoff, and had glanced at the> instruments, then made the mistake of looking skyward for a split second.> Remember the baseball cap earlier? The bill caught the breeze, and yanked> both the cap and my headset off of my head, and it was dangling behing me> about 4 feet, being held by the headset cord, which was across the bridge of> my nose at that point. It snapped loose, and the first thing that came to> mind was that it was probably caught up in the elevator or something. I> glanced back, but saw no hat or headset. Now, do you guys have any idea how> noisy a cont. 65 is with no ear protection? Well, I calmly turned upwind,> then down wind, did my base and final approach. The landing was really> nice. I touched down on the mains at about 40 I guess, and held the tail> up as long as I could, then let the tailwheel settle. (these little planes> are really sensitive with all three wheels on the ground at high speed). I> taxied back to the hanger, where Carrie (my wife) was standing, wondering> what had fallen out of the plane. She said that at about 3 or 4 hundred> feet, she say something fall out, but cuoldn't tell what it was. We drove> to the approximate spot, and found the cap, but didn't find the headset. My> good friend Herb Carper, who had been flying his Stearman, went out later> and found all the pieces. Looks like I can get the headset back together> again. When Carrie and I got back to the hander after the search, we found> my Dad, sitting in the front seat of the GN, trying it on for size. We were> at the same hanger he flew from in 42, in a PT19. It was good to see him> back in a vintage type of airplane. He's anxious to fly with me after I get> the feel of the plane a little better. I took the GN up again, and did> about 8 landings (Dad had driven to the end of the runway in his pickup, to> "grade" the landings, he said I passed). I had a blast. The wind was calm> and cool, and that little plane and I got along just fine. What a neat day!> Firends, family, plus a interesting story to remember it with.>> Tomorrow at daybreak, I'll pull the GN back out of the old hanger, and head> off again to the skies. This time I'll make a little cross country, and> visit some friends who have a strip about 20 miles South of Uvalde. The> only thing that will be better than all of this, is when I finally get to> meet some of you, hopefully at Brodhead. Thanks for reading my little> story. I enjoyed sharing it!!>> Robert Hensarling> http://www.mesquite-furniture.com> rhrocker(at)admin.hilconet.com> Uvalde, Texas________________________________________________________________________________
Well written Robert. I printed your story and showed it to my wife and kids.They got a kick out of it. Especially since they knew the airplane. I told mywife I should have bought that Piet from Mike but she didn't think so. I wassurprised about the engine torque and p-factor also in your GN-1. I thoughtafter much looking and reading that it maybe better corrected with a re-rigging.Get some pictures and post them on your site. If I can find them I'll email yousome pictures of your GN-1 with me and my kids in Emporia, KS at a fly in.I also know what your talking about with you cap. I lost one at Oshkosh in aPiet. And about six years ago I was flying a Kolb ultralite I had at the time.I was at cruise at about 300 ft agl, when I turned my head to look down and backat something. Just then the air got under my glasses and pulled them off myface and out from under my helmet. Luckily, one ear piece caught in the edge ofthe helmet long enough for me to quickly grab them. I don't think I want to tryto land with out my glasses. That same day I went and bought a rubber cord tohold glasses on and also a face shield cover for my helmet.Good flying !Greg YotzJealous and grounded....robert hensarling wrote:> Finally, I got to fly my GN-1 today. The last time I flew it was the> evening that Mike and Jay Teves brought the plane from Chanute Ks, to Garner> Field, Tx. The winds have been terrible all week, until this evening! I> got to the airport early this morning, and pulled the GN out of the old> military hanger. It was already windy and gusty, so I decided to get some> practice taxiing around. This lasted for about 10 minutes, and I had to> quite, it got to cold. (Don't forget that I'm a Texas, and anything less> than 70 degrees means coats and gloves to us here). Actually, it was in the> 37 degree range. Since I didn't want to do my first solo in that kind of> wind and temp, I decided to change the oil and clean the engine some. I> spend several hours playing around with cleaning things up, then decided to> drive out to my woodworking shop and mess around out there until 6:00 or so> this evening. When I got back to the Hanger, the winds were light and> variable, just perfect for a GN solo. After a through preflight, I started> the little cont 65, and hopped in the rear seat. I put my goggles and> headset on over my baseball cap, taxied out to the threshold, and checked> the mags and did my pre takeoff preflight. All seemed fine. I lined up on> the runway (in Uvalde the runway is pretty big, probably 100 ft x 5,100 ft.)> and throttled up. First thing that caught me a little off guard was the> engine torque and p-factor. The little GN headed off to the left, but I> quickly corrrected it and as the tail came up, I was pointed right smack> down the center or the runway. I didn't look at the Airspeed, but the stick> came back to nuetual, and I applied a little back pressure, and up I went.> I was surprised at the rate of climb with one person. This is where it got> a tad exciting. I was enjoying the takeoff, and had glanced at the> instruments, then made the mistake of looking skyward for a split second.> Remember the baseball cap earlier? The bill caught the breeze, and yanked> both the cap and my headset off of my head, and it was dangling behing me> about 4 feet, being held by the headset cord, which was across the bridge of> my nose at that point. It snapped loose, and the first thing that came to> mind was that it was probably caught up in the elevator or something. I> glanced back, but saw no hat or headset. Now, do you guys have any idea how> noisy a cont. 65 is with no ear protection? Well, I calmly turned upwind,> then down wind, did my base and final approach. The landing was really> nice. I touched down on the mains at about 40 I guess, and held the tail> up as long as I could, then let the tailwheel settle. (these little planes> are really sensitive with all three wheels on the ground at high speed). I> taxied back to the hanger, where Carrie (my wife) was standing, wondering> what had fallen out of the plane. She said that at about 3 or 4 hundred> feet, she say something fall out, but cuoldn't tell what it was. We drove> to the approximate spot, and found the cap, but didn't find the headset. My> good friend Herb Carper, who had been flying his Stearman, went out later> and found all the pieces. Looks like I can get the headset back together> again. When Carrie and I got back to the hander after the search, we found> my Dad, sitting in the front seat of the GN, trying it on for size. We were> at the same hanger he flew from in 42, in a PT19. It was good to see him> back in a vintage type of airplane. He's anxious to fly with me after I get> the feel of the plane a little better. I took the GN up again, and did> about 8 landings (Dad had driven to the end of the runway in his pickup, to> "grade" the landings, he said I passed). I had a blast. The wind was calm> and cool, and that little plane and I got along just fine. What a neat day!> Firends, family, plus a interesting story to remember it with.>> Tomorrow at daybreak, I'll pull the GN back out of the old hanger, and head> off again to the skies. This time I'll make a little cross country, and> visit some friends who have a strip about 20 miles South of Uvalde. The> only thing that will be better than all of this, is when I finally get to> meet some of you, hopefully at Brodhead. Thanks for reading my little> story. I enjoyed sharing it!!>> Robert Hensarling> http://www.mesquite-furniture.com> rhrocker(at)admin.hilconet.com> Uvalde, Texas________________________________________________________________________________