Sunday 28 Mar 21 Need to Fly
28 Mar 21
I woke up around 7:30. After I took the dogs on their potty break I went inside Walmart for mine. Back in aRTy I fixed oats for breakfast, fed the dogs and gave Pete his morning shot.
After securing everything I drove about a mile to a Petsmart to buy food for Pete. If I would have only been gone for the 6 weeks I had I would have had just enough of his food.
After get his food I drove back to a farmers market I noticed earlier. I found a nice place to park in the shade and went and checked out the market. There was no produce so I'm not sure farmers market is the correct term. I purchased a lemon donut that was made from rice and took it back to aRTy for breakfast dessert. It was definitely different, kind of rubbery. It tasted okay but I'm not sure I would buy one again. After the market I found a gas station close by and fuel up.
It has come to my attention that while I had a dirt bike, a snowboard and kayak on aRTy I didn't have an airplane. I have always wanted a personal helicopter. I almost purchased a partially completed kit helicopter several years ago but backed out. A year or so ago Zack had sent me a youtube video from a channel by a guy named Tucker who flew a Paramotor. A Paramotor seemed like a good solution to my desire to own and fly a helicopter. They have an extremely short take off run. Literally you run with the motor and prop strapped to your back with a nylon fabric airfoil attached to it.
Lately I have gotten more serious about possibly purchasing one. My concern is if I could actually pack it away on aRTy. I need to see one in person, so I got on line to see where I could purchase one. What luck, the number one manufacturer Blackhawk Paramotors is located in Valley Springs just 30 miles northeast of Modesto. I plotted a course and headed out.
Once I got to Valley Springs the navigator took me to a very rural hilly area. I was about to think that it was a bogus address when I came to a field where there were a couple of Paramotors. One of the operator/pilots was within earshot so I verified I was at the right place. I walked through the gate and to another man who the first man said I should talk to. His name was Mike and he was a flight instructor. I told him I was interested in getting into the sport and want to know more about it. He took me to a shed where several Paramotors were stored. He said that it would be possible to stow one on back of aRTy. That the prop cage actually comes apart but most people just stow the assembly on their RVs. In my situation I would need to have some type of cover to protect it from the weather when I'm traveling.
Mike said that a backpack version of their Paramotor cost around $8500. The training was seven days for $2500. He said it actually worked better if there were two people in a class. He said he thought that another trainer would be available next week.
He said I was welcome to stick around and watch while he was training a young couple there. He even said I could camp there overnight. Wow! I went and got aRTy and drove to where he had directed me to camp.
I put the dogs out on leash and went back to the first man I had talked to. His name was Gene and he was setting up his PowerMorto Trike for a flight. I asked if I could film his take off and he agreed only if I promised to delete it if he crashed, what! I walked back to where the shed was and sat at a picnic table until he fired up the engine and then started filming. He seemed to have a little difficulty but finally got airborne and flew off out of sight. I stayed at the picnic table watching Mike's training session. This was the couples first day and they were practicing pre takeoff taxi runs. Their Paramotor Quad, which resembles a go-cart with a Paramotor attached, was tied to a cable from a portable winch. Mike would fire up the winch and they would be pulled along as if the Paramotor engine was pushing them. From my observations it became obvious that there is a learning curve. They continued to practice until after sunset to take advantage of the low to no wind.
After a while Gene came flying by then turned into the wind to land. His landing was beautiful. After he got his airfoil squared away he drove the trike up to his trailer and loaded everything up. I talked to him a bit and told him I would send him the video.
After Mike was done for the day I went in aRTy and fed the dogs. I text Zack and told him where I was and that he should come here next week and take the class with me.
After a bit I got dogs situated for the night and got myself in my sleeping bag and called it a day.