mooneygirl

I did post on a general thread. The Caravan was a blast. 51 of us. Got a little rain on the way, but all landed safely. I was able to arrange for an announcer/photog. plus EAA radio covered.

I thought I would start a thread and hopefully other Caravaners will join in. What a fricken blast. 51 of us descended into OSH with Ride of the Valkyries on EAA radio and we had a commentator, Mike Jesch [also my CFII] and a photographer and videographer. Mike told about the history of the Mooney Caravan as well as formation flight and the mass arrivals. At the last minute I was able to get to land in formation on 36L [big runway] which was the thrill of a lifetime. My professional photographer friend Jim Koepnick snapped some great photos. Thank you to the Caravan and all the volunteers who help make this even happen safely every year.

The last time I was in there, I checked out the "Cabins" on the field that they are renting out. Did you see those? I thought $100 per night was a bit steep for being sort of smack dab in the middle of nowhere. They sleep 4 but still...

Great photos! Look forward to seeing everyone at MSN! #MooneyZoom

I have a GREAT idea... My IFR checkride is coming up soon. How about I wear my unicorn jammies. It would take a cruel DE to fail a unicorn! PS: Don't forget that I will have a display with merchandise at the Mooney booth all week. So some, at least a little of the stuff is from that. I did ship a 41 pound box to OSH today. For me it is more a problem of what to wear for all the four seasons we might get there. #HaveMooneyWillParty

Yup, that's why I don't fly with heavy passengers! HA. Just me and my BFF Cat

Hmmm. I have this super cool Amelia string doll. They are a fair-trade item from Thailand. "Amelia inspires you to follow your dreams because the sky's the limit" But... 11 months is pretty young, don't want to have any problems with small parts. Male or female child?

Yes I plan on being at C77 on Friday. Bugging out early in the morning for Madison/Mooney Caravan !

The Struggle Is Real. [Is there room in the airplane for my Unicorn Onesie?] #MooneyZoom #HaveMooneyWillParty

Well I have worked hard, but you are right I am very lucky to have so many friends in aviation. It is a small world you know.

Here is my July installment for AOPA Opinion Leaders: https://blog.aopa.org/aopa/2017/07/16/out-of-this-world-request-an-invitation-for-a-different-view/ It was fun to get this unusual request and to go get to see my home airport in a new light. Getting packed for Oshkosh and arriving in style with the Mooney Caravan! Hope to see a lot my Mooney Family. I will be part of the Mooney International booth as well as some duties at AOPA.

I will be there through Sunday. Might be fun to do something on Saturday before the night airshow or?

Just so you know, three Mooney Caravan participants will be playing in the EAA Concert Band at Oshkosh. Don Kaye [Professor], Buttercup and John Baker [yet to be named!] Afternoon airshow on Tuesday July 25th [1:45 p.m.] and full concert on Wednesday night, July 26th at 5:00 p.m. Theatre in the Woods. I am practicing music and getting ready. Would mean a lot to have our fellow Mooney lovers come if possible!

Come see me at Mooney International #OSH17 #MooneyGirls #MooneyZoom Learn about Mooney Legacy, Community and Education.

i thought I was using Don Maxwell's technique but I guess not. I have an IO360: Throttle full in, mixture full out, no fuel pump. When it fires mixture in and throttle out to idle. Starts EVERY time, first time. Hmmm. Maybe it falls into Rod Machado's "So What" factor. As a female pilot and maybe a bit lazy, I don't like to have to pull my plane to or from the fuel pit, so I have become accustomed to hot starts.

Hey Brandon, shoot me an email MooneyAmbassadors@charter.net Thanks

I am not sure Greg, about MAPA. I just know that we will have some great activities and will be flying the Mooney flag.

Hi All Wow cannot believe that we depart next week for OSH17. I am thinking of flying the northern route again, CA, NV, UT, WY first day and hitting a snag trying to find lodging [Torrington, WY Guernsey, WY]. I don't know if just small towns [we have stayed there before] or what. ALL FULL. No rooms. Of course I will be checking weather to see if going northern or southern route, but DANG. Any other California Mooneys working on their route? How many of us are also figuring out how to pack it all in the Mooney? Camping in the North 40 with the Caravan yields new challenges in packing. Shipping many items for my booth at Mooney. Let's all have safe journeys to OSH and get together once there. Fun awaits.

Here are some of Joker's photos!! Bob Velker, Puddles, Hoser, Joker and Buttercup

Hey Paul, thanks for the shout out. You might not be aware of this but MooneyMitch is not associated in any way with me or the with Friends of Oceano Airport, or its events since 2014. But the board and our volunteers continue to work hard to show off our airport to visitors. Next up is August 5th Fly-In Movie Night! All welcome.

So I had a little impromptu camping and movie night last night. Pretty exhausting after a day of formation training, then a day of IFR training. My son asks "Can we go camping at Oceano Airport?" Well okay! Anyway, it was a lot of fun. One thing I forgot to mention is that you will need to turn off the irrigation system. It is located near the Stearman hangar. Just pop the door open and slide the lever to off. We showed Harry Potter last night and slept at VERY FOGGY [and kind of cool] Oceano Airport. The local newspaper was out to do a story on Oceano Airport last week for their "Living Here" annual edition. It was fun to show off our little airport.

What a blast. I wonder WHY I waited so long to fly formation. We met in Paso Robles CA this morning and planned to fly to Camarillo. We briefed a pretty straightforward flight to Santa Maria to avoid the fire TFR and then on to San Marcos VOR then Camarillo direct. Well the towering plume of smoke threw a wrench our plan. We flew in formation to Santa Maria, then out over the ocean and climbed to 9500. The top of the smoke was right about 9000-9500. We maneuvered all the way down to Camarillo. We did welded wing turns, echelon turns, and of course did a lot of climbing in 3-ship formation. Coming in to Camarillo we were in a left echelon on right downwind. It was fun to see Robert break for the right base, count to four, then Richard swooped into right base, then me and Maggie followed. It was 92 degrees when we left Paso Robles and about the same when we landed Camarillo. Went to the Waypoint cafe, debriefed and had great food. Then Bob, Dallas, and Larry showed up from SoCal. We decided to do a 5-ship formation on the way back down to SoCal. That was super fun. We were called as traffic to about three other planes. Someone exclaimed, "Love seeing all those Mooneys in formation." I really love flying formation. I love the math, the geometry and the precision required. Both my leads said that I did a great job. Robert and Larry broke off and went to practice, then a few minutes later I left the formation to head to Fullerton [for IFR test prep]. Bob peeled off for Chino and Dallas headed to San Diego. I am told there are some good photos available. Here's hoping I can see how Ms. Maggie looked. Look forward to the Caravan arrival on Sunday the 23rd.

Hi there 1. & 2. No reservations, first come first served. There is NEVER a problem with space though you might not be near a fire pit. 3. If it is hot in the Valley we typically have a marine layer. Make sure to use the webcams: oceanoairport.com/webcams.html Our AWOS is being installed which will be a big help. 4. There is the Rock n Roll Diner, a Mexican Restaurant and Beach Burger all within walking distance, but why not borrow one of our bikes? The unicom unlocks the lock. There are three bikes in the storage shed. If you can donate a few bucks in the bucket that is great. Pointers.... 2325 on the runway length. Fly your numbers. There is an RV storage lot at the end of 29. This means you are all set up like a rockstar thinking "This is gonna be SO sweet" then you get the heat off the roofs and it burbles you around. Call me if you need anything else. Though I will be in OSH...

Don and Jan Maxwell are taking a year off to enjoy their new granddaughter. MAPA will not be coming to OSH this year. Mooney will have one airplane on display and I believe the M10 mock up. One of the Ultras will also be delivered to a customer.

Just thinking out loud here... is there anyone NOT flying in the Caravan that would like to go to the announcer's stand and be interviewed about the Caravan? You would need to have knowledge of the Mooney Caravan and some fun facts, and be an all-around great person.