I couldn’t have asked for better weather Friday April 11th. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky the whole day, it wasn’t too hot, it was very nice.

My purpose for going to the fly-in is mainly to just bask in the glory of aviation. I am not particularly more interested in one thing than another. I try to see everything if at all possible. It was basically the same this year as in previous years. The airshow seemed to go ON and ON and ON and ON. It lasted some 5 hours this year. The star of the show was the US AirForce Thunderbird Team and they certainly were entertaining, but after 20 or 30 minutes of their 75 minute show, I was looking to get on with it.

The exhibits were basically the same, although I didn’t see Rod Machado’s booth anywhere this year. I heard to the grapevine there was some disagreement between his team and Sun N Fun a few years back and at that time he had decided to not attend anymore, but still had his troop plugging and selling his books. (Hey, even Sun N Fun money is green). But, this year, perhaps he has pulled out completely. I’ve always been a fan of Rod’s stuff and recommend his private pilot book to all of my new students.

I am always in awe at the skill and dedication of many of the pilots there at the fly-in. Every year, no matter how big my ego is in the morning, I always walk away from Sun N Fun humbled. I’m a pretty good pilot and my passion for aviation rivals anyone’s, but I can’t hold a stick to some of these guys. Of course, I am only 26 years old and have my whole life ahead to keep trying :).

My wife and I stayed for the night show as well. There is only one night show per year and it usually falls on the Friday. It was basically the same as previous years except that they added a Twin Beech 18 act and deleted the “Gyro Pyro” act (A gyrocopter loaded with pyro usually flies around and blows roman candles out and things). The Beech 18 act didn’t go as planned, however. Apparently one of the generators (or alternator, not sure which it has) blew out and it wasn’t able to light all the fancy lights, so they ended that act as soon as it started. Manfred Radius did his usual glider routine and it all ended with a fireworks finally.

All in all, 2008 did not disappoint. It was a great day out in the sun immersed in aviation. However, after 12 hours of it, I felt satisfied and am ready to hit the ground running during this next year. I am already looking forward to 2009. I’ll be there as usual!

Well, I’ve done it again, I’ve wasted another 21 minutes of your valuable time.

This is just an update on where I am, what has gone on in the last week, etc.

I realize that just talking about myself and all of my endeavors gets boring. So next podcast I am going to give a brief update on my aviation life, but otherwise talk about things that are interesting out there in the field.

Edit: My wife made it known to me how much I say “you know” in this podcast. I’ve got to work on that for next time. Oh well.

Here is the 2nd podcast that I’ve done for the site. It is about 40 minutes long and describes a good bit about myself, where I have come from, where I am, and where I am going as regards to aviation.

I realize that just listening to my story is of limited value at first glance. However, I think for those who are in a similar position, it will ring a bell close to home. Here is my story. I’ve condensed it down for the sake of both yours and my sanity.

Thanks for listening.

This is my first attempt at a podcast. Warning: There isn’t much content here.