Luke Duke.

We went to the dog track this morning and I got in a few flights. As we were packing up to leave Luke Emmons came by with a new bike he just put together and wanted to try it out. The tank top is beaten in so he means business. We talked to him for a bit and he just came back from Nashville where he got 2nd in burnout and 4th overall in free style. He has been invited to CA for an event there in a month or so. He gave us his stage name, Luke Duke, and to search utube where there are several videos of his antics. He said he really likes the training area at the bike shop near the dog track but comes to the track because it's so crappy it makes him work harder. The competitions are not held where the track is perfect.
I checked the status of the flight and so far it's going on time. The volcano could really mess things up.

Wheel bearings.

I removed one of the hub bearings from the trailer axle today. It's worn out and needs replacing as does the other one. One of the bearings is readily available but the inner big one isn't. Probably would cost $100.00 to get new bearings and seals. The trailer idea is loosing ground.

Visit from Tennet Tree Services.

A pickup pulled into the yard and the driver knocked at the door. He said he is from Tennet Tree Services and they are putting in a new cable line and they are going to trim the lilac bush a bit. I said go ahead and how's Pep? We chatted a bit and he said you worked for him that summer. He's been with the Co. for 30 years now. I didn't get his name. Pep's still kicking and is 81 years old now.

Light and variable.

I flew the Padre twice and forgot the hourglass maneuver both times. It flew quite well in the other maneuvers. I brought the Vicar for some test flights with longer lines and I like the longer lines better. I did 3 short flights and one full pattern flight.
When I got home I brought out the Primary Force that had the Fox .35 on it. I did some tinkering and drilled and tapped and cut out some wood finally getting an OS .40/.46 installed. The mounting bolt holes are the same. I put a .46 on it as it's a bit lighter and took the tongue muffler off the Fox .25 and installed it on the .46. That put the balance point close to perfect and a bit nose heavy which is good. Hopefully get to fly it tomorrow. I had to put larger wheels on as the 11 inch prop hits the ground in level take off attitude.

Good winds.

We went to the dog track this morning. I got in a flight with the Padre and then took out the OS powered Vicar. The engine that gave me fits in another plane. It ran like a champ. I did 4 short flights to get the handle in neutral and the lap times right. I think I need a foot longer lines to keep the speed and lower the lap times. I have extensions made for that purpose. We went to Canterbury with the El Camino to see if the garden store was open and it wasn't. We took a tour of the back roads finally ending up on Rte. 14 near the junk yard close to the road in Westminster. It's a mile west of the Williams garage. I had to do some welding on the out rigger mower as one of the wheels was ready to break off.

Heavy winds.

The wind was very strong but the temps were in the 60's. I put the problem OS on a modified Primary Force for testing but the wind stopped me. Maybe I can get in a few flights today. I have been towing with the idea of making a trailer to carry one motorcycle. It's still up in the air.

Light winds.

Overcast and the rain stopped early in the morning. I had replaced the OS .40, that very slowly increased in rpm, with the original Fox.40. I got in 3 good flights and several short trimming flights with the Snow Fox. I made even more adjustments when I got home. I measured the engine offset on the Fox and found a bit of left thrust. I added more shims to give it some right thrust. I'll try it today maybe. I also put the problem OS .40 on another plane and will try that too. It runs just perfect on the bench.
I tried fishing as the river is down to it's normal level finally. I put on the shoes with the lug soles to give me some traction on the rocks. The soles are very hard rubber or plastic and were very slippery. I slipped off a rock and got both feet wet in the first 5 minutes. No bites either. The flood must have washed everything to the sea.