I am not proud

steingar

Taxi to Parking
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steingar
I went to see John and Martha King at Oshkosh. I didn't even know what they were going to say, didn't care, just wanted to see the Alpha monkeys like a good low-ranking monkey (the relevant research is summarized here).

I've known about John and Martha King for 20 years and never saw them in person, so I went. They're a really cute couple. They said they've been doing their thing since 1969, and they've got the schtick down pat. They must be doing a really good job, as their aircraft burns kerosene and goes really, really fast. They had some fun stories about their various aircraft purchases.

Their talk was of course aviation safety, material I've heard in one form or another out of more mouths than I could easily count. Lots and lots of acronyms, plenty of jokes and folksy wisdom. I was rescued in the middle of it by my phone, at that point I had seen and heard enough.

They were sitting right in front of me before their spiel, I could have walked up and said hello. But I never bought a thing from them, I go the IFR course from Sporty's. So I didn't.
 
Jason Schappert and his “lovely lady Magda” were very much the same. His teeth are brilliantly white, she is stunningly beautiful, and they both convinced me they were thoroughly thrilled to meet me in person “after interacting on social media!”. It was smooth and fulfilling and took 0:45s. Jason even gave me a sticker

They have it absolutely figured out.

7a05b9c4481ac3779b9906fdddcf6715.jpg



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I have a picture of me next to their Falcon 10 that went through our FBO back when I was a line guy. Didn't even know they were hangared overnight until I walked through and stopped in my tracks!
 
I'm just gonna be a contrarian and say that I'm glad there are some people in aviation who can pull in more people to flying and keep the volume up.

Whether you like a player or not, more volume makes it easier for all of us to fly, and for that we can be grateful.
 
I'm just gonna be a contrarian and say that I'm glad there are some people in aviation who can pull in more people to flying and keep the volume up.

Absolutely.


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I didn't mean to demean the Kings in any way shape or form. More demeaning myself for acting like a monkey. I have no doubt they've done more for GA than my sorry self. Their talk was a welcome respite from my enervation.
 
So uh, what’s the story here? Ramp check from an armed FSDO dude?
There was a mixup that caused law enforcement to believe that the plane had been involved in some sort of law breaking. Whether it was believed to be stolen or involved in drug running, I don't recall.
 
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I went to see John and Martha King at Oshkosh. I didn't even know what they were going to say, didn't care, just wanted to see the Alpha monkeys like a good low-ranking monkey (the relevant research is summarized here).

I've known about John and Martha King for 20 years and never saw them in person, so I went. They're a really cute couple. They said they've been doing their thing since 1969, and they've got the schtick down pat. They must be doing a really good job, as their aircraft burns kerosene and goes really, really fast. They had some fun stories about their various aircraft purchases.

Their talk was of course aviation safety, material I've heard in one form or another out of more mouths than I could easily count. Lots and lots of acronyms, plenty of jokes and folksy wisdom. I was rescued in the middle of it by my phone, at that point I had seen and heard enough.

They were sitting right in front of me before their spiel, I could have walked up and said hello. But I never bought a thing from them, I go the IFR course from Sporty's. So I didn't.
Nice folks, dedicated to aviation instruction.

I have yet to talk to anybody about their videos that didn’t find something distracting, such as Martha’s hair, or whatever. She probably sticks with that ‘do because that means more people talk about their product, resulting in more sales. Free advertisement is a good thing.:happydance:

And speaking of being distracted…what white teeth?:dunno:
Jason Schappert and his “lovely lady Magda” were very much the same. His teeth are brilliantly white, she is stunningly beautiful, and they both convinced me they were thoroughly thrilled to meet me in person “after interacting on social media!”. It was smooth and fulfilling and took 0:45s. Jason even gave me a sticker

They have it absolutely figured out.

7a05b9c4481ac3779b9906fdddcf6715.jpg



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
So up close, does Martha’s hair helmet have a chin strap?


I’m kidding, I’m kidding. :)
 
I went to see John and Martha King at Oshkosh. I didn't even know what they were going to say, didn't care, just wanted to see the Alpha monkeys like a good low-ranking monkey (the relevant research is summarized here).

I've known about John and Martha King for 20 years and never saw them in person, so I went. They're a really cute couple. They said they've been doing their thing since 1969, and they've got the schtick down pat. They must be doing a really good job, as their aircraft burns kerosene and goes really, really fast. They had some fun stories about their various aircraft purchases.

Their talk was of course aviation safety, material I've heard in one form or another out of more mouths than I could easily count. Lots and lots of acronyms, plenty of jokes and folksy wisdom. I was rescued in the middle of it by my phone, at that point I had seen and heard enough.

They were sitting right in front of me before their spiel, I could have walked up and said hello. But I never bought a thing from them, I go the IFR course from Sporty's. So I didn't.

This one was with me with John & Martha in 2004. They look young (me too). Their videos may be corny and repetitive, but they are great folks who love aviation.

PIC_004.jpg
 
I wish I could have met the Kings, they are legendary if nothing else. And I did stop my the booth and meet Jason, his wife wasn't there or maybe I would have stuck around a little longer......
 
I wish I could have met the Kings, they are legendary if nothing else.

I could have. I had the opportunity, and could have even done the selfie thing. But I didn't and I'm glad. Bad enough that I showed up.
 
Saw them at OSH briefly. I called out, "Good morning John & Martha! Thank you for...so MANY things."
Martha smiled and returned a "Thank YOU!"
John said, "Well, it sure has been our pleasure to be a part of YOUR life!" As he gestured with an outstretched hand as if filming another training segment.

They both had a twinkle in their eyes and it was a neat, short little chance meeting that I'll remember for the rest of my career.

Have had great success using their training materials. And you've got to admit: they've crafted such a unique, classic brand of aviation lore that we'll all remember forever.

Pleated khakis, loafers, and polos. Corny jokes and through-the-roof exuberance. None of that ever hurt anybody!
 
Does anyone else think she has this “pleeease get me out of this marriage” look on her face? For those looking at her face……
Not sure if it’s the marriage or the other guy in the pic she wants to getaway from…:rolleyes:

but yes.
 
She has the "look at how big my bank account is" look
 
My John and Martha King story.

I volunteer at Sun N Fun Radio. I am an on-air host, and interview guests and that kind of thing. I wasn't on the air this time, but was prepping upcoming guests for their interview. Up walks John and Marta. I say something like "Hi, welcome to Sun N Fun Radio", to which John responds, totally humbly and cheerfully, "Hi, I'm John King!" My first thought was "yeah, no kidding. Does anybody in aviation not know who you are? For a while there I was getting mail from you, with your picture on it, about once a week it seemed!" But it was actually really cool that he didn't automatically assume I knew who he was. Very down-to-earth people and we had a nice (but short) chat.
 
As I was refueling at the Apple Valley (APV) self-service pump, a guy in a beautiful sporty-looking airplane taxied up behind me, with his cockpit bubble open. I commented "nice plane." When I finished refueling, I pulled my plane out of the way as expeditiously as possible. Then he called over to me, asking if I wanted my receipt. When I went over to retrieve it, he said, "My name's Richard, too." I said "Good name."

Afterwards, the locals who had invited me to have some food with them told me that it was Dick Rutan.
 
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As I was refueling at the Apple Valley (APV) self-service pump, a guy in a beautiful sporty-looking airplane taxied up behind me, with his cockpit bubble open. I commented "nice plane." When I finished refueling, I pulled my plane out of the way as expeditiously as possible. Then he called over to me, asking if I wanted my receipt. When I went over to retrieve it, he said, "My name's Richard, too." I said "Good name."

Afterwards, the locals who had invited me to have some food with them told me that it was Dick Rutan.
Did his plane look like this?
919498.jpg
 
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