Landing at Burning Man

[gsxrpilot]

 

[carusoam]

Thanks for sharing that one, Paul.

Not a lot of familiar traffic pattern sights there.  

Making it a lot easier to not recognize a gear up situation in action.

Best regards,

-a-

[SkyTrekker]

Enjoyed the video!  Thanks for posting.  

Maybe I'll make it to Burning Man one of these days.  A lot more likely now that I have a plane :-), vs. all of the driving.  How long did it take, how many stops, etc. for you to get there from Austin?

[gsxrpilot]

2 hours ago, SkyTrekker said:

Enjoyed the video!  Thanks for posting.  

Maybe I'll make it to Burning Man one of these days.  A lot more likely now that I have a plane :-), vs. all of the driving.  How long did it take, how many stops, etc. for you to get there from Austin?

I always go to the Bay area first and then into Burning Man. So this year I flew from Austin to Napa with just one fuel stop in Flagstaff. The next day, from Napa out to 88NV (Black Rock City - Burning Man) is about 1.5 hours. On the trip back I left 88NV and flew just about 15 minutes to KLOL for fuel. There isn't any fuel out on the playa. Then KLOL to KCCR to drop of my California passengers. I left KCCR at noon Pacific time, stopped for fuel at KSJN, and was home at KHYI by midnight.

If you didn't need to go to California, Reno would be a good jumping off point. And you wouldn't have to cross the big mountains. In my turbo K, I go straight across the Sierra Navada range at something over FL200.

As a side note, one of my reasons for going and taking the plane has been to shuttle a few kids who can't skip the whole first week of school. I flew some in on Sunday and then back on Wed or Thurs and picked others up and brought them out. I really think its a great environment and experience for the kids and I'm glad I can help some of them get there who wouldn't otherwise be able to. 

[Oscar Avalle]

Really cool video thank you


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[OR75]

how did you attach the camera ? I am guessing it is a GoPro ?

 

Edited September 5, 2017 by OR75

[gsxrpilot]

1 hour ago, OR75 said:

how did you attach the camera ? I am guessing it is a GoPro ?

GoPro sticky mount on the vertical stab just above the antennas. GoPro Session 4 camera.

[OR75]

1 hour ago, gsxrpilot said:

GoPro sticky mount on the vertical stab just above the antennas. GoPro Session 4 camera.

i would be afraid of loosing the camera. is it that strong ?

started it using Wifi ?

Great video

 

Edited September 6, 2017 by OR75

[gsxrpilot]

Our planes are not nearly fast enough to peel one of those sticky mounts loose. They're designed to hold onto F1 cars, drag cars, and all kids of vehicles much faster than our little airplanes. I've been using them for three years now and have never lost or come close to losing a camera. 

It's important to use the GoPro branded sticky mount and not the cheap knock offs that are all over Amazon. It's also important to properly clean the surface before attaching. But once on properly, it will not come loose. I typically leave the mounts on the plane for 6 to 8 months and use them whenever I need them. Then I'll change them out for new ones. Removing them is easy with a little dental floss to cut through the sticky pad, then roll the residue off with your thumb. A little heat from a heat gun or hair dryer makes the job even easier.

I typically have one high on the vertical stab, and one on the tip of the horizontal stab. Sometimes I have one on the tail skid as well. When choosing the location, right next to a rivet line will give the most stability and less vibration.

[OR75]

Thanks. Very helpful. 

Agree that these adhesives seem very strong but i always chickened out. Answering my own question, it seems that those sticky mount get stronger after being let sat for a few days.

Of course, i won't go start any controversy about our planes being too slow vs. F1 race cars or drags ...

fly safe always

[N9201A]

Awesome video, thanks for sharing.

Next time you're in SoCal drop a line, Rocket.

[kris_adams]

Very cool. Probably too far for me to get there, but I'm impressed with what I saw people doing to keep sand from getting everywhere. thanks for sharing!

[Oscar Avalle]

really cool, from the East Coast really too fare... Must be hard to gage the altitude during flare...

[ShuRugal]

On 9/5/2017 at 9:28 PM, gsxrpilot said:

GoPro sticky mount on the vertical stab just above the antennas. GoPro Session 4 camera.

I'm more interested in how you keep the battery in your session 4 alive long enough to record landing after a long trip... Mine is good for 2 hours, tops.  I've had it go as quick as 45 minutes in the sun on a hot day.

[gsxrpilot]

7 hours ago, ShuRugal said:

I'm more interested in how you keep the battery in your session 4 alive long enough to record landing after a long trip... Mine is good for 2 hours, tops.  I've had it go as quick as 45 minutes in the sun on a hot day.

The flight was just a bit over two hours. I was just flying into BM from Napa, CA. The solution to the best battery life is never use wifi or bluetooth. Keep those both off, and just let the camera run. It will run about 3 hours pretty consistently for me.

[ShuRugal]

2 hours ago, gsxrpilot said:

The flight was just a bit over two hours. I was just flying into BM from Napa, CA. The solution to the best battery life is never use wifi or bluetooth. Keep those both off, and just let the camera run. It will run about 3 hours pretty consistently for me.

Mine must just have a lemon for a battery, I never turn on WiFi except when I need to use the phone app to clear the card (rarely).

[231MJ]

Paul, have you not been concerned about the corrosive environment at BM?  What do you do to keep the dust out?  How do you clean the plane afterwards?

I've wanted to fly in but have this significant concern.

[gsxrpilot]

1 hour ago, 231MJ said:

Paul, have you not been concerned about the corrosive environment at BM?  What do you do to keep the dust out?  How do you clean the plane afterwards?

I've wanted to fly in but have this significant concern.

Yes and no. The playa dust is corrosive to steel but not aluminum. The steel bits are somewhat easy to clean. Of course the steel cage, not so much. I've always gone back to my mechanic for a full fluids and filter change after returning, and get the plane professionally cleaned as well. While parked on the playa I cover all the openings around the engine, prop, etc with 2" wide painters tape.. I don't worry so much about wings, flaps, ailerons, empennage, etc.

If you want to fly in, I know a great camp looking for a pilot with a plane. I can get you a special deal, if you'd be willing to ferry some kids at the beginning and mid week so they don't have to miss a full week of school.

I've flown in twice and did quite a bit of flying while I was there. I don't think my plane has suffered any effect from it.

[aviatoreb]

8 hours ago, gsxrpilot said:

Yes and no. The playa dust is corrosive to steel but not aluminum. The steel bits are somewhat easy to clean. Of course the steel cage, not so much. I've always gone back to my mechanic for a full fluids and filter change after returning, and get the plane professionally cleaned as well. While parked on the playa I cover all the openings around the engine, prop, etc with 2" wide painters tape.. I don't worry so much about wings, flaps, ailerons, empennage, etc.

If you want to fly in, I know a great camp looking for a pilot with a plane. I can get you a special deal, if you'd be willing to ferry some kids at the beginning and mid week so they don't have to miss a full week of school.

I've flown in twice and did quite a bit of flying while I was there. I don't think my plane has suffered any effect from it.

My impression is there could be a wind-blown sand event that would really sand blast your paint.  Is that just from watching too many Lawrence of Arabia movies or is it relevant?

[gsxrpilot]

4 hours ago, aviatoreb said:

My impression is there could be a wind-blown sand event that would really sand blast your paint.  Is that just from watching too many Lawrence of Arabia movies or is it relevant?

Not relevant in this case. The playa dust is as fine as talcum powder. It's not the least be gritty. You'll know this when it's on the food you're eating and you don't notice it. ;-)

Even wiping off my windows dry, didn't put any scratches in the plexiglass. It's powder.

[gsxrpilot]

I'll mention, if anyone has a plane and wants to fly it to Burning Man this year, let me know and I can hook you up with a great camp. They need a pilot.

[FloridaMan]

@gsxrpilotlooks like I’ll be flying in this year. 

[carusoam]

Let’s see if Paul replies…

We may have to find him at the Caravan site, or somewhere…

Best regards,

-a-

[Will.iam]

Yea I haven’t seen @gsxrpilot post on here in over a year. I wonder how he is doing and a pirep on his converted encore airplane would be nice to hear. 

[kortopates]

13 minutes ago, Will.iam said:

Yea I haven’t seen @gsxrpilot post on here in over a year. I wonder how he is doing and a pirep on his converted encore airplane would be nice to hear. 

Paul is doing great, he was kind enough to come by the MAPA PPP in Denver to say hi. Although not on Mooneyspace, I do see him post quite a bit on Facebook so @FloridaMan should be able to ask him there