Sun 'n Fun 2023

Half Fast said:
Just wear your ANR headset while sleeping. Problem solved.
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oooorrr.....enough Glenlivet will help as well.

I really want to go as well since i'm a new pilot but I do have concerns. Just wondering how does one leave the place?? Just get in the plane and go? Or do they have departure times? I would imagine they park you so you can get out.
 
francisco collazos said:
oooorrr.....enough Glenlivet will help as well.

I really want to go as well since i'm a new pilot but I do have concerns. Just wondering how does one leave the place?? Just get in the plane and go? Or do they have departure times? I would imagine they park you so you can get out.
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IMO departure is more dangerous than arrival. You can't leave until after the airshow ends, and there are hundreds of planes lined up to leave from parallel runways off in every direction. You definitely want to read the NOTAM well.

I recommend having another pilot with you for your first time.
 
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francisco collazos said:
oooorrr.....enough Glenlivet will help as well.

I really want to go as well since i'm a new pilot but I do have concerns. Just wondering how does one leave the place?? Just get in the plane and go? Or do they have departure times? I would imagine they park you so you can get out.
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The NOTAM spells out all of the procedures, but in general there’s arrival/departure windows that are before and after the airshow. They will marshal you to parking and marshal you out. IMO, like Osh, the ground part is not difficult. It’s in the air that it can get squirrelly, but that’s usually more of an inbound issue, if it happens at all, than an outbound one.
 
tsts4 said:
The Amazon facility is on the North side of the airport, and SNF occupies the South side-- there is zero encroachment by Amazon into SNF space that I'm aware of.
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Actually, I think a bigger issue than sharing space on the ground is the fact that Amazon's departures and arrivals have to be worked into/around the airshow and other Sun 'n Fun flying activities. Every few hours they interrupt Sun 'n Fun to let a few Prime jets in and out. It can't be fun for Amazon to be restricted to a few daily windows of operations.

I guess a lot depends on how much they grow (read: how much revenue they present to the airport). It's not too far fetched to think that one day the airport’s biggest revenue generator will tell the airport that it's either them or Sun 'n Fun.

- Martin
 
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OK. I'll share my ignorance here.. I was looking at the SnF website and couldn't find any mention of EAA. Have I been wrong in thinking that SnF is an EAA event all these years?

Maybe because of all of the comparisons to OSH over the years, I just assumed that SnF was "OSH-south".
 
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CJones said:
OK. I'll share my ignorance here.. I was looking at the SnF website and couldn't find any mention of EAA. Have I been wrong in thinking that SnF is an EAA event all these years?

Maybe because of all of the comparisons to OSH over the years, I just assumed that SnF was like "OSH-south".
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It’s not an EAA event. But it has pretty much all the same things, if at a slightly smaller scale.
 
CJones said:
OK. I'll share my ignorance here.. I was looking at the SnF website and couldn't find any mention of EAA. Have I been wrong in thinking that SnF is an EAA event all these years?

Maybe because of all of the comparisons to OSH over the years, I just assumed that SnF was like "OSH-south".
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IIRC it used to be (or at least more than it is now especially from a sponsorship perspective) but around 20 or so years ago there was a split. EAA is there but as a participant and they aren’t running the show like at Osh.
 
tsts4 said:
IIRC it used to be (or at least more than it is now especially from a sponsorship perspective) but around 20 or so years ago there was a split. EAA is there but as a participant and they aren’t running the show like at Osh.
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According to wikipedia,
"The first weekend fly-in, called Mid-Winter Sun 'n Fun, was held in January 1975 at the Lakeland Municipal Airport and was limited to pilots and Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA), SESAC and FSAACA members. A total of 1,980 guests and 365 aircraft were present. The following year the fly-in was expanded to a full week and the City of Lakeland approved a lease for the convention site to be moved to the southwest quadrant of the airport. The public was invited on a limited basis."​
 
Hey everyone! Looking for some Sun N Fun 2023 info and can’t find it on their website (nor can I get anyone to return a phone call or email).

My father in law is flying down and I’m driving from nearby. Does anyone know if I’m allowed to drive my car to his plane camp site? I’ll be bringing all the gear and camping supplies for 4 people.

Thanks everyone!
 
tsts4 said:
IIRC it used to be (or at least more than it is now especially from a sponsorship perspective) but around 20 or so years ago there was a split. EAA is there but as a participant and they aren’t running the show like at Osh.
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I remember back then... was it 20 years ago??..... EAA (and/or maybe Sun N Fun) made a big campaign to make it clear that sun n fun was NOT an EAA event. It was in your face everywhere for a couple years
 
Have been going for years ,have both flown in and now drive in. The food is definitely better than OSH. Overall it’s a good show with plenty of exhibitors on site. The prime jets coming and going are an added feature.
 
Looking forward to attending this year. I hope to meet and network with POA members.
 
SixPapaCharlie said:
Alright then.
Looks like me and Eren are going to go to Sun n Fun for the first time.
We are just going to go for the weekend Fri, Sat, Sun
I mentioned it to her and she said "can I go?" which means it is happening.

So we have SnF, Rough River, and Airventure on the calendar!
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I have always thought of SnF as “Spring Break for Pilots”.

Depending on your schedule, you can see most everything in Two days, or just one if you have something specific you want to see. Many vendors are the same you will find in Oshkosh, but you can spend more time with them going into specifics because of the smaller crowd.

I stay at a hotel in Brandon, only about a 30 minute drive to LAL, and I like to watch the air show from the other side of the field because it gives a completely different perspective, especially after attending your first 60-70 shows.

I always plan for three days, as I include a meet up with non-flying friends on St. Pete Beach or dinner at The Hangar, at Whitted Airport.Allows some weather flexibility as well. If I have more time, lunch at The Downwind on Spruce Creek is a must.
 
BTW, regarding wx, a rain day can be good if you use it right.

Last year we had one rainy day (Thur, IIRC) and I made it my shopping day. The crowd was much smaller that day and it made for shorter lines at the vendors. I went by myself that day and did all the browsing and shopping that would have bored my wife to tears. I also took in a couple of seminars I wanted to attend.

The next day was clear and sunny (but windy), and I went with my wife and @SkyChaser and @2-Bit Speed . I didn't need to spend a lot of time in the vendor areas, so we did little shopping that day (just some souveniers) and were able to spend time walking our legs off, looking at shiny airplanes, and watching the air show.

Worked out pretty well.
 
Martin Pauly said:
I'll be there all week. It's a nice excuse to go somewhere warm and nice after months of cold weather at home.

SNF is much smaller than Oshkosh but has many of the same ingredients. Exhibitors, airshow, lots of airplanes to drool over, educational sessions, and - most importantly - lots of like-minded people.

- Martin
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--And a few famous YouTubers.. :)
 
I'm mostly a lurker here and I attended SnF for the first time last year. It felt pretty lonely on my own, I tried making new friends but it's difficult when you're an introvert.
I will definitely go again, but I would love some advice on planning to meet with others.
 
I have been there the past 2 years. Will be there again this year. I go on Friday and Saturday. Two days is enough to experience everything! Hope weather is fair enough to fly this year.
 
I've been going every year since 2016 exception for 2020. But I usually ride my bike. If you live within driving distance, and have to work all week, buy a ticket Saturday. It includes Sunday entrance. Never felt like I missed out on something from the weekdays.
 
Arnold said:
Giving serious consideration to attending. Would fly Lady Luscombe and camp. Any other POA ers going? Any comments or suggestions based on prior experience. Should I just say no and go to Belize?
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Belize! better looking women there to look at than SNF

If there were no snow birds there would be no SNF they try to get them and $ before the the purge North begins, ever notice how the dates are earlier,
 
OneCharlieTango said:
If OSH is Disney World, SNF is a state fair: smaller, a little less expensive, greasier food, not as clean. It’s still lots of fun.

The forums are much smaller. Most are air conditioned.
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SNF is more like the county fair just no carnies running the rides
 
AndyRoo said:
Hey everyone! Looking for some Sun N Fun 2023 info and can’t find it on their website (nor can I get anyone to return a phone call or email).

My father in law is flying down and I’m driving from nearby. Does anyone know if I’m allowed to drive my car to his plane camp site? I’ll be bringing all the gear and camping supplies for 4 people.

Thanks everyone!
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The last time I flew to Sun-N-Fun and camped, no outside cars were allowed access to the airplane camping area. Some folks pulled cars up to the fence on the SW Side of runway 10 (Kelvin Howard Rd) and threw gear over the fence to pilots on the other side. That only works if you are camped in the certified/recent aircraft area. Folks that park/camp in the homebuilt or vintage aircraft areas of the SNF site are out of luck. You can see that fence line behind the next row of planes just to the right of my wing. The shade canopy tent and some kitchen stuff was handed over the fence to the pilots of the low wing plane behind the tail of my Maule. They made breakfast for any other pilots that were interested.
ON0RUuIl.jpg
 
I was looking at going one day and camping overnight. Do they sell one day aircraft camping tickets or only the week ones? I only was able to find the week ones. Also, for $180 it includes one ticket but what if 2 other people come with, do you just buy event tickets?
 
francisco collazos said:
I was looking at going one day and camping overnight. Do they sell one day aircraft camping tickets or only the week ones? I only was able to find the week ones. Also, for $180 it includes one ticket but what if 2 other people come with, do you just buy event tickets?
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IIRC, they do have daily camping, you just can’t order/reserve it online.
 
Brad W said:
I remember back then... was it 20 years ago??..... EAA (and/or maybe Sun N Fun) made a big campaign to make it clear that sun n fun was NOT an EAA event. It was in your face everywhere for a couple years
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There was an unfortunate (gust lock related) crash at an EAA affiliate fly-in on the West Coast. The airshow and EAA and probably others got sued. Following that, EAA cut ties from all non Oshventure fly-in's because they don't want to be the deep pockets organization when lawyers come calling.
 
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