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The
Squamidian Report – Oct. 3 / 26
Online Versions Of This And Past Issues (Choose the year and then the date for the online issue you want) Issue
#1271 Carol Doug ****
From Carol
I for one, really enjoyed Doug’s visit to Kitchener. With all five of us siblings in our 70s it could possibly be the last time we come together. I remember that aunt Evelyn orchestrated a reunion with her siblings when all were in their 70s in Nova Scotia. Evelyn was very big on keeping her family in touch with each other. Last weekend reminded me how important that is as we age. I’m sorry all of you couldn’t make the gathering. Beth and family have kept the welcoming atmosphere of the Homestead so while it is definitely their place now it still feels like our childhood home. Today happens to be Beth’s birthday, hard to believe my baby is 56. Our weather has given us one of the nicest Septembers here in Kitchener. I would happily keep these temperatures right up to December. Our tomatoes were late ripening this year but we are still picking a couple each day. A few trees have started to turn but I think the fall colours will also be a little late.
Take care, Carol ****
From Doug
As you know, I did a quick trip back to Ontario. It was great to see everyone although I must say we are all looking our ages and showing the scars that life has bestowed on us. I need to thank Ryan for the flights and for insisting that I do this trip. I need to thank Sherry for putting me up in her quiet rural home. It was very difficult to talk about Sue’s situation and condition but had to be done. It was very strange being in Ontario without her. In some ways this is giving me permission to move on. There was something in the back of my mind when I decided to do this visit. 50 years ago I held a private pilot license and flew out of WW airport. I kept wondering what it would be like to fly a small Cessna 172 again, to sit in the pilot’s sear and do the actual flying. Or at least as much of it as possible, with an instructor sitting beside me to talk me through what needed to be done and to take control when necessary. So, I popped in to the flying club and spoke to the young girl at the counter. At first it didn’t look too promising as they were booked a couple of weeks ahead. I explained the purpose of my desire and the back story and played the seniors card about this being on my bucket list and so on. She asked if I could wait a few minutes while she made some calls. She found an instructor who wasn’t booked for the Tuesday afternoon and he was quite happy to take a flight. My flight was for 1:30 and of course I got there a few minutes early. When the time came the instructor lead me out onto the apron and over to a Cessna 172, the model of plane I flew many years ago. The first thing I noticed was that this plane was old and really beat up, a clunker. After a pre flight briefing it took several attempts before the engine fired up but then it ran fine so we were ready to go. The controls were very stiff and heavy and the attitude instrument (the main flight gauge) didn’t work. But, we were VFR so we’d get by. The instructor dealt with the radio, a good thing because air traffic around there is very busy so it was constant chatter. The seats were so badly worn that I could barely see over the dash board. We taxied way out to the far end of 26 and waited in a line of planes for our turn to take off. Once airborne he told me to continue straight out and climb to 500 ft at which point to turn onto a 360 heading and climb to 3600 ft where I would level off. And that’s what I did. We proceeded to the Elmira area where we could do some manures. I then did some easy rate 1 turns, followed by some much harder 360 steep turns. Cool. I struggle a bit with holding altitude through the turns but part of that was the heavy controls. It didn’t help that the air was extremely turbulent and bumpy, we were being bounced all over the place. I was having too much fun to notice. When it was time to head back to the airport he gave me the heading and I flew that and onto a right downwind for 26. He took over on short base because of some strong gusty crosswinds and the we taxied back to the ramp. Personally, I think I could have landed the plane as well as he did. I was grinning from ear to ear. The instructor took a couple of pics for me so I’ve got those as a reminder. Due to modern electronics and transponders and other equipment, the control tower always knows where you are. No need to call out landmarks. We did use the Maryhill church as our indication that we were reentering controlled airspace just like did years ago. I told the instructor that we also used ‘wiener beacon’ when coming in from the east along the 401. He didn’t know where I meant. When I told him that’s what we called the Shniders Meats sign he burst out laughing and said he’d call it that from now on. I truly and totally enjoyed that adventure and I’m grateful for the chance to do it. I also know that it wouldn’t take a huge amount to get proficient again if I lived near an airport that had training facilities. Maybe that’s a good thing.
Doug ****
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