Flying and Running

Apparently spring has arrived. But, given we had a dumping of snow from a bad storm sweeping across this week and the temperature continues to hover around 0 C and not get over 10 C each day, it’s NOT spring. The weather has been very disruptive to our flying lessons and not helping with the running motivation. The day after the snow storm, we arrived at 8am for our flying lesson, unsure what the routine was. Normally they plough the runway but sadly it wasn’t done so we couldn’t get off the ground. I was disappointed as I’d love to have flown above the snow and taken some photos. I’m currently at 10 hours of flying and improving slowly. I’m improving on my turns and takeoffs but getting everything together for landing is taking time, a LOT of time. This is quite challenging. At the moment, I seem to struggle on the final descent and keeping the plane straight and not dipping too low. I gave the trees a shave today I think. I’m enjoying the lessons more and more now and hoping warmer weather will bring more flying opportunities. I asked my instructor to take a few photos today for me. The one under the wing is of the Maryland Chesapeake Bay bridge in the background. Deb and I ran across this in 2016 (10k race) so the bridge holds some special memories to me. Check out my blog post here Chesa Bay Bridge

 

This weekend I also finished the 1775 Marine Corp race (17.75k) which celebrates the Marine Corp foundation year. It’s open to only 3100 entries and I entered quickly last month in the 7 mins it took for rego to sell out online – this was an exercise in typing quickly! I wanted to do this race because you get automatic entry to the Marine Corp Marathon in October which I hope to run. The marathon is very popular and you enter in a lottery so you may or may not get an entry. So this 1775 race is a great way to get ‘Access Granted’ as they say. It was bloody cold, around zero celcius I think and I had to get up at 4am to get ready. It was an hour drive away to Quantico (Marine and FBI district) and the race started at 7am. Deb came too thankfully so she could hold bags and coats while I ran. It was great as I kepy my big coat on until minutes before the start line crush began and I was warm when I started running. But with two layers on, my beanie and gloves I stayed warm and was dripping sweat fairly soon.

My goal was to finish and get that MCM entry but I did think a lot about the Marines and other service people in uniform. The race was through a national park, had some sucky hills in there and lots of signs along the way with Marine motivational words. I kept a steady pace to ensure I survived the hills and was very glad to cross the finish line. Marines greeted finishers and put the medal around your neck. It was quite special to me. He congratulated me and I said 'thank you for everything you do'. I was quite a bag of emotions with finishing and getting my medal that I suddenly found myself close to tears as I said thank you and shook his hand. Oorah to the Marines !! I soon found Deb on the sideline and she took some finishers grin photos of me. She’s enjoying her new camera and taking some artistic shots whenever she can. Next up...I do the 10mile (16k) Cherry Blossom run around DC city in two weeks and then it’s the 200 mile Odyssey team relay in April again from Gettysburg to DC.

I had a crack at cinnamon buns last week. Made the dough in the breadmaker and after some rising and smothering in butter, sugar, sultanas and cinnamon, they baked into wonderful little sweet scrolls. They are better hot straight out of the oven - a very easy treat to make. 

Batman made a special appearance at work too. It was Security Week and there was a bit of competitive spirit amongst the other work places to hold a morning tea and get as many people in a photo as they could. Deb inspired a competitive spirit and I think took the lead with 54 people but also with the masked superhero standing stealthily in the back row. Nobody knew until the photo was displayed and there were those black pointed ears standing out. It was excellent and I'm sure it will make the DC photo unbeatable.

As mentioned earlier, this week a big snow storm swept up and across the county to the North and blanketed quite deep snow. The dogs are ok with the snow but not keen on the toilet business - unless in the forest because it's different there for some reason? However, they enjoy walking and playing it. I am now quite good at shovelling snow and wait until it stops and just before night time, I shovel the steps and driveway to avoid the re-freeze which ices over and makes things quite slippery. Oh yeah, and chuck on some pet-friendly salt to help it melt quicker. Yeah, I'm all over it !!

 

The 'kids' March for our Lives was on in DC and around the country this weekend. I would really like to have gone and marched to support them. Sensible gun reform is desperately needed here and with so many kids getting shot in school shootings, the younger generation have finally had enough and are standing up to the politicians forcing something to change. It was inspiring to watch those kids speak at the march and like all young ones, they call bullshit when they see it and have put the politicians on notice. Lots are turning 18 this year and they are determined to vote and hold the politicians accountable. It is mid-term elections at the end of the year and I think there will be quite a few rethinking their donations from the NRA (National Rifle Association) and what their stand is on guns. I'm sensing the tide might just be turning in this country for some gun law changes. I can only hope so.

Not much else to report. Easter is approaching and we have quiet plans. Hopefully the weather will start to improve and get warm. Here's some random photos of the past few weeks.

 

 

The PM Visits

I’m writing this update as we watch the Oscars – feeling very American tonight. It’s been a horrendous weekend of strong winds and cold weather. Lots of trees have come down around the streets and workers have been out all day cutting, chopping and carting them away.

So the past few weeks have been busy, as always I guess. The embassy hosted a huge event where the Prime Minister and four state premiers came here to meet all the USA governors (equivalent to our premiers). We are not phased by the political players at the moment but Deb was able to get a nice picture with the PM at Blair House. Blair House is opposite the white house, and is where heads of state stay when invited by the President. PM Turnbull and wife Lucy stayed there and Deb worked a few days there managing the office.  

On the last day there was a photo opportunity. I worked the big cocktail function one night as a food watier which was another good opportunity to see canapés from an Aussie leading chef and also mingle with some of the political leaders. I did take the time to say hello to ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr and QLD Premier Anastasia Palaszczuk. Both were friendly and shared a few words. 

I also worked a few other receptions at the Amb residence in the kitchen as I normally do. Again, it was great experience and I always learn new things, new skills and hang out with some fun people.

 

So you are all wondering how Captain Batman is progressing. Very well I am pleased to say. I’ve flown about 6 hours now and the last two lessons have been most enjoyable as I feel like I’ve got a better idea of the basics now and actually enjoying ‘flying’. I’ve had some windy days which have been interesting as it adds a level of challenge to my coordination effort. I am able to turn better, fly level and doing more of the takeoff. It shouldn’t be long before I’m doing that by myself. Landing is a whole new trick and will take more time. I have now got my own headset and have fuelled the plane twice which is bit of a buzz – crawling up to put the nozzle in on top of the wing. The weather has been hit and miss  which is annoying to say the least. Anyway, 6 hours has gone and my next lessons will be learning how to handle stalls !!! Shitting myself but, gotta know what to do when things go a little pear shaped up there. Standby for that blog post.

We finally took a drive to the nearby Shenandoah National Park, a little over an hour away. We didn't think though as we should have checked the website first. It was the day after the strong winds and there were trees down everywhere. There is a long scenic drive through the mountains called Skyline Drive. It was closed. So we drove a longer way around to make the day worthwhile. We ended up at Harpers Ferry which is right in the bottom corner of West Virginia. This is the 'psychological' mid point of the famous Appalachian Trail. It's a tiny little civil war town and we grabbed some late lunch (very average burger I might add) before heading home. It was bloody cold but would be a pretty place in summer. I'm in no hurry to go back though. We'll check out Skyline drive another day and plan to rent a cabin up in Shenandoah in the summer.

I've also had a sharp haircut and feeling the cold weather a bit more around my ears!! I feel sorry for bald people now. But I like the short style and it will be better in a few days when the sides get a little length. I have a cool hair stylist and he can do magic with his hands. Thanks Enders at The Burrow.    The Burrow DC

   

First flying lesson

Today the weather finally cleared for my friend AH and I to take our FIRST flying lesson at the wonderful Freeway Airport. (We couldn’t fly on the weekend because the weather was terrible with very low cloud ceiling). The afternoon grew clearer and sunny and it was a lovely day to look down from above. I was a little nervous and my fear of flying was certainly kicking in. The first hour was spent doing a flight plan and learning how to do a preflight check of the aircraft. I managed to avoid bumping my head on anything so that was definitely a good start. The last time I crawled around a plane was many many years ago during my air force days when it was a much sleeker FA-18 jet. But, today it was a much smaller plane and I enjoyed looking over the rivets, surfaces, probes, prongs and points. I did note that it was pretty small in the back and might be difficult to fit a mountain bike (thinking ahead).

Despite this being a small aircraft (Cessna 172), would you believe I need a booster seat !! I didn’t use it today but in future I will use a booster seater to raise me higher and help reach the pedals a little better. After an intro to all the dials and switches, I turned the key and started the engine. I have to say, it was a sexy feeling hearing that throaty engine sound and seeing those propellers turn around in front of me. Let’s do this Batman.

We taxi’d to the end of the runway and waited for others to land so we could get on our way. Blood pressure rising a bit more at this stage. After some ssshhkk Whiskey Zero Zero, Freeway …sshkkkk and a few more words on the radio that I’m still yet to master, the instructor said we need to get up to 80 knots and then pull back and climb. I can’t even remember if it was 80 so I could be wrong. I was a bit overwhelmed as we raced down the runway. Off we went and I totally couldn’t remember how fast, or when….but thankfully he had the stick and off we went, up and the horizon disappeared in front of me. After I took a deep breath, I nervously said…what now? Take over and keep climbing and then level off shortly the instructor said.

The lesson was great. It was a very smooth flight. I flew almost an hour and over the water with some huge ships below. As soon as we leveled off I practiced turns to learn how each control worked. I have to say, this was a pretty cool feeling. I was turning left, right, left, right and thought that was enough as my gonna-be-sick warning light was flashing. I have been studying the theory but it takes practice to fully understand how things work and today certainly helped. I needed to learn how the controls felt and how much pressure I needed to use for things to move. So the instructor said ‘take your hands off, let go’. I stopped breathing, stomach dropped. You want what? He said it’s not like the movies where the plane dives out of control the second you let go. So I took my hands away and we stayed on course, steady and smooth. It veered a little after a while but yeah he was right, as an instructor would be !!  

We then practiced increasing and dropping engine speed. When the instructor dropped the engine power, my stomach dropped again!!  The nose starts to drop too so I had to ask the instructor – how low can the engine power be before we drop….or words to that effect. He reassured me of the engine power needed and I calmed down once I saw we were totally fine. These are the things that I’m keen to learn and understand as it’s one of my flying fears – those sudden drops in engine power. Anyway, I learnt lots of things and we headed back to the airfield to land. I gently held onto the controls but just so I could feel what moves the instructor was making. It’s certainly going to take some practice and skill to get this mastered. The instructor let me taxi and I soon realized that you steer with your pedals, not the stick in your hands. Very rookie mistake and I guess my mountain bike mode kicked in. We parked the plane, did final checks, tied it down and took my momento photo. It was a very relieved feeling.

I felt mentally drained after the flight. It had been over 2 hours of heavy concentration with some fear thrown in there to keep the blood flowing fast. I waited for my friend to return and he had similar experiences as me – good, nervous and feeling like a complete gumby. But, it’s only the first lesson and we will both improve with more practice. It takes a minimum 20 hours, but more likely 30 hours to be able to fly solo and then another 15 hours at least to get the final license. So we have some hours ahead of us. I watched in awe as those little planes took off and landed with their solo pilots doing their training. Hopefully that will be me in a few months.

I always thought it was a bit corny when people say how ‘a-mazing’ it is to fly a plane. Today, I guess I had my moment when we up there and I was doing the turns over the water. But I think I can now see why it is amazing to fly as I’m sure there will be more of those fabulous moments in the future.

I’ll update you on my progress in future blogs. We plan to fly 1-2 times each week and I can’t wait to take off and land on my own.  

  

California sunshine

It was a long 2 weeks in LA living in a hotel. Eating out every meal loses its appeal quickly and the food in America is not good for the health conscious. I don’t think much of LA – too big, too fake, too much money. The highlight after Batman, was having breakfast twice at a fabulous café called Ruby's Cafe down in Santa Monica. This is an Australian style café, the menu was wonderful, the food was superb and service was great AND the coffee was excellent. Here’s a link to it and I would recommend it to anyone wanting a good meal.

Ruby's Cafe

The pics below are of Venice Beach boardwalk and the famous Muscle Beach Gym. This is a heavy duty mans outdoor gym. I believe Arnold Schwarzenegger used to work out here.

 

After a week of work in LA, we took a few days to visit San Diego which is almost on the Mexican border. Well, everyone said it was a fabulous place and I was very excited to go but I have to say, it’s not as good as San Francisco which is kind of what I was expecting. The weather was lovely and there was the USS Midway ship museum  (which I didn’t go to anyway), but I didn’t find anything else there really worth recommending to anyone. 

We hired a car (not this one in the pic) and drove down from LA, along the coast road which was a pretty drive and not much more time than the freeway running parallel to us. Check out the car that we passed on the way - I did a double take in the mirror when I saw that behind us !!  

There seemed to be ocean on one side and industrial, oil rigs and energy/gas plants on the left so fairly ugly contrast really. We stopped at La Jolla which was close to San Diego as this is the place to watch seals. They are always gorgeous and these guys were huge, maybe sealions, and they were sunbaking on the beach and rocks. This little beach used to be a childrens beach but the seals took over and now is closed for access – except to the seals.

We arrived into San Diego late afternoon and decided to have a late lunch/early dinner. I was hanging out for good Mexican food and around the corner was a good spot apparently. I ordered a Margarita and it blew my head off. It was pure alcohol and I needed food pretty quick but too late, it went to my head. Yes, I’m a lightweight when it comes to drinking. I ordered something different – deep fried pork belly tacos – and it was very very oily which I paid for later that night over the porcelain bus, so to speak. Sadly we didn’t enjoy much else of the traditional Mexican fare. We took a walk along the waterfront and there were plenty of old and new ships to look at. Lots of people were out and about but again, it was nice to be in the sun but not much else to rave about.

There was a new ship, USS Omaha, in dock which was commissioned the weekend we were there. I was quite impressed to see this as it is an LCS (Littoral Combat Ship) which is very stealthy and the look of future ships.

 

The next day we enjoyed a sleep in and then headed out for breakfast to a place with good reviews. Interesting menu but we stuck to eggs bene as my stomach was not up for much fun after the night before. I ordered a cup of tea and seriously, it was ridiculous. The cup weighed about 2kg and it was like drinking out of a beer mug. I didn’t even attempt to drink it. I know coffee is not the common drink in the US but honestly, you wouldn’t serve beer in a tea cup, so why would you serve tea in a beer mug? I wouldn’t recommend this place anyway, wasn’t worth the high reviews in my opinion.

We jumped on the light rail train thing and went to Oldtown where there are markets. Hmmm, it was ok but we may as well have been in Mexico. Deb was interested in some small colourful potplants and a blanket so we checked them out and decided to come back the next day when the arts and craft markets would be open for the Saturday crowd. We spent the afternoon at Coronado Island. There is a huge bridge that links San Diego to the Island and it’s a nice view. The island is home to the North Island Naval Air Station and has a beautiful beach. We took the ferry over and walked the streets a bit but again, not much to see. Yes there were shops and a beach but better suited for the summer beach tourist.

That night we went to Little Italy which was close to our hotel. It was full of great Italian restaurants and I had lobster ravioli which is the 2^nd best pasta I’ve ever eaten. God it was bloody nice. The best pasta I’ve ever had was in Italy at Finale Ligure where I did my Solo 24 hour race back in 2012. It was a small town, they didn’t speak much English, but the food was fantastic. Anyway, it was a great meal.

Our last day was spent on the hop on/off trolley which was a good way to see San Diego. There is a park called Balboa Park which was beautiful and if we went back, we would spend some time there. However, we ended up back at the Oldtown markets to get a few things and then started the drive back to LA where we stayed the night – had an early flight home in the morning. It was nice to get home after 2 weeks away and the dogs were excited as always to see us.

Deb has been doing an online photography course for her iPhone. So far the pictures have been super impressive. I've included some in this post. However, check out the picture of me 'shooting myself'. Deb asks me to help with a photo. Stand there, hands up. Then run around behind me and stand there as if pointing a gun. After 3 attempts and even more strange looks by passers by, here is the outcome. I wish I had my Batman cape on !!