First Thoughts: OSH 2016

First time to Oshkosh this year, flying in to Chicago on the Tuesday, drive up staying at the uni, and at the show until Friday, fly back via Chicago on the Saturday.. Can't wait.. Oh, and booked a B17 flight. be good to experience the flight after being in Sally B (during prop change) at duxford..

Be good to meet anyone while I'm over - see my other posts..

Cheers Mike
 
I'm thinking HBC this year. It's the 30th anniversary of the RV-6 and Candy is just getting back from new prop / new panel / new interior. She wants to show off to all her cousins.
 
I have never camped nor visited the north 40 at Oshkosh so these may be dumb questions. A, what time do they close the gates and lock you in for the night? I like going to the movies and presentations they have at camp scholler and to the beer tent at night. If they close the gates at 9-10 that will make doing those things a little more tricky. I also hear a lot about food vendors near the North 40, are there people set up in the camping area or is everyone referring to the ones set up near the experimental manufacturers row?
 
You can always get into the north 40. You can either enter at the gate near the registration building (by warbirds) or by the one next to the Hilton. In fact, with your wristband you can get in anywhere on the grounds after hours (HBC, Vintage, etc...). You just need to know where the gates are and when they close up. Since we work until 8PM most nights in Vintage, we typically go into town for a late dinner and return just before 11. We've gone to Jay's campsite for his party and stay there until after the Wednesday night airshow and never had a problem going back.

The past few years (post-Zaugs), there's been a Major Goolsby tent about halfway down the road in the North 40, right in the camping area. Foods pretty good and the breakfasts are huge. Of course, you can go out the fence on the north side to Friar Tucks, or LaSure's, or a few other places up off the field in walking distance.
 
You can wander anywhere via north-south travel at night with your wristband. Entering N40 or the main grounds from the N40 end or the Scholler end is never really closed.

The main gate is probably closed, but you don't need it. There's other open gates all over the place.

If they really want somewhere totally closed they cordon it off, or in the case of certain military jets in the Square, post some kids with M-16s nearby and run big lights all night so the kids can see you well enough to shoot you. :)
 
If push comes to shove, you can always go through the HUGE 4-lane wide auto gate on Stits Avenue into Scholler and then wander into the field just a little below Exposition Square (or whoever bought the naming rights this year). No gates, no fences between you and the field on the east end of Scholler.
 
FreqFlyrJr said:
Speaking of volunteers, has anyone stayed the week and volunteered one or two days? What was it like?
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I've been teaching in the craft tent the last few years. I get free admission for the days I volunteer, a nifty T-shirt (where's the sarcasm smiley when you need it?) and coupon for a discount for wonderful EAA merchandise (did I mention the sarcasm smiley?). Still, it is fun and a highlight of the trip.
 
Vintage will allow you to volunteer at your leisure. There's pretty much always something that needs doing. Vintage flight line runs daily training sessions at 9 AM and 1 PM. Complete one and you can come and work whatever. Crowd support during the airshow is pretty easy work. You sit ten feet in front of the crowd line and get free water/gatorade and snacks and your main job is to make sure people don't rush out and get in the way of the emergency vehicles. It's rare that something happens where you have to do that. But crowds are stupid. I saw people jump off moving trams and try to rush the crowd line when one-eyed jack crashed a few years back.
 
For anybody needing a meeting place in the first part of the week, my forum this year is going to be Tuesday morning at 10 am in forum tent #11. You all are welcome to either meet and leave or stick around for an hour listening to my drivel. I don't have the foggiest idea what I'm going to be talking about yet, but I'm sure by July the muse will strike.

How to recognize one another? Oh, shucks, I dunno. Anybody got any ideas? jw
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weirdjim said:
For anybody needing a meeting place in the first part of the week, my forum this year is going to be Tuesday morning at 10 am in forum tent #11. You all are welcome to either meet and leave or stick around for an hour listening to my drivel. I don't have the foggiest idea what I'm going to be talking about yet, but I'm sure by July the muse will strike.

How to recognize one another? Oh, shucks, I dunno. Anybody got any ideas? jw
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Look for the sunburnt white guys wearing floppy hats and sandals. lol

Perhaps if you handed out free t-shirts, every year there would be more and more of us wearing them. Our HOPS Party t-shirts have taken on cult status, and I see them in the weirdest places.

Heck, we spotted one of our Amelia's Landing Hotel coffee mugs in Florida last month. But I digress...

On another front, I notice you always schedule your forums before noon, so that we can't comfortably bring beer. I've also noticed you never provide coffee, which would at least double your attendance. Heck, I don't even get up till 10, most days!

You need to name Margy Natalie as your director of show marketing. No one organizes a group picture like Margy, and she could drive people to your forum by the hundred, like lemmings to the sea...
 
Jay Honeck said:
Look for the sunburnt white guys wearing floppy hats and sandals. lol

Or maybe we could just look for anybody wearing a colored wristband. That would work about as well.

Perhaps if you handed out free t-shirts, every year there would be more and more of us wearing them. Our HOPS Party t-shirts have taken on cult status, and I see them in the weirdest places.

Perhaps with the Ohm's law wheel on the back?

Heck, we spotted one of our Amelia's Landing Hotel coffee mugs in Florida last month. But I digress ...

I'd like to digress, but at my age, just gressing is all I can do.

On another front, I notice you always schedule your forums before noon, so that we can't comfortably bring beer. I've also noticed you never provide coffee, which would at least double your attendance. Heck, I don't even get up till 10, most days!

I don't schedule them; the gnomes in the puzzle palace on Poberezny Road get that privilege. Hey, beer, it's not just for breakfast any more.

You need to name Margy Natalie as your director of show marketing. No one organizes a group picture like Margy, and she could drive people to your forum by the hundred, like lemmings to the sea...

Amen to that. By the time I get through bamboozling the folks at the forum, the lemmings are making a mad dash for the door.

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.....
 
Ah.. that's a bummer.. I'll be mid Atlantic until 2pm not getting to oshkosh until 8pm on tuesday by my wishful thinking..
 
I'll be happy to post a password protected POA name/location/cellphone/text directory if any of you are interested. My website will be hot all the days while I'm back in OSH, but I won't have access to modify the list if you aren't on by the 19th of July. email me direct for the info I need jim@rstengineering.com

Thanks,

Jim
 
Looks like I will be making my first ever trip to OSH, planning to camp in vintage.

I won't know what to look for, but I am planning to come to the Tuesday morning session. :)
 
This will be my first year attending. Well technically my second, but I can't remember the first since I was only 2 years old. I'll be arriving with the Mooney Caravan on Sunday and staying until my buddy and I have had enough. Even got my plane some fresh color just in time!

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I think this will be my 15th consecutive OSH trip. I'll be camping in the N40 with my Archer. I keep letting marginal weather scare me off, waiting too long, and arriving to find the place full. By mid week you can usually get in but I would like to start out in OSH this year, not Fond du Loc or anywhere else. So I'm hoping to get an IPC very soon and leave as early as possible this year!
 
StinkBug said:
This will be my first year attending. Well technically my second, but I can't remember the first since I was only 2 years old. I'll be arriving with the Mooney Caravan on Sunday and staying until my buddy and I have had enough. Even got my plane some fresh color just in time!

13512093_10209800368756085_3311546836660958469_n.jpg
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Might help to paint on the tail number there.
 
steingar said:
Might help to paint on the tail number there.
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Waiting on the FAA to give me the go-ahead on my new tail number. The old one is on there in 2" letters for the time being. They cashed my check, so I assume the paperwork should be on the way shortly.
 
Ok, so I know Jay's party on Wed and Grant and Leslie's fantastic jambalaya dinner on Tuesday.

What other unofficial events are happening? Group landings? What am I missing that I don't even know about?
 
bflynn said:
Ok, so I know Jay's party on Wed and Grant and Leslie's fantastic jambalaya dinner on Tuesday.

What other unofficial events are happening? Group landings? What am I missing that I don't even know about?
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Jim's forum on Tuesday morning at 10 in forum tent #11.
 
Haven't been tents for a while...sort of more like pole barns.
 
flyingron said:
Haven't been tents for a while...sort of more like pole barns.
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Been doing it for 40 years. They will always be "tents" to me, especially when I did a full hour forum on on the top of a collapsed tent in a major thunderstorm twenty years ago.

Jim
 
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I don't know about the rest of y'all, but I am looking forward to Oshkosh more than ever, just to get away from the depressing news cycle day after day.

I need 10 days in aviation fantasy land to recharge my batteries!
 
Just a reminder ... the "Oshkosh Bound '16" artwork pdf file is up on the www.rstengineering.com Oshkosh page for your download pleasure. It is formatted for you to print on a regular sheet of copy paper, but you can make it 11x17 at Staples or other print shop.

Jim
 
Counting down the days... This year the entire family is coming with me. Have to ship the luggage separately!
 
Most likely I'll be there with my student. We're flying in an SR22 and his dad is bringing about 4 T-34 Mentors with his friends. It's my first time going! We are going IFR from NY. Any tips or is it pretty straight forward coming in IFR?
 
jordane93 said:
Most likely I'll be there with my student. We're flying in an SR22 and his dad is bringing about 4 T-34 Mentors with his friends. It's my first time going! We are going IFR from NY. Any tips or is it pretty straight forward coming in IFR?
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All published how to do it in the NOTAM. :) I believe you still need a slot time/reservation. Simple if the NOTAM rules are followed.

I used one to get OUT of OSH one year when the morning overcast hadn't burnt off yet and wasn't forecast to... (It did). Put in the reservation via iPad the night before and cranked at the appropriate time the next morning. First airplane off of 27 that morning.

The flaggers figured nobody was going anywhere that morning and weren't in place yet, and when the controller told us to "follow flagmen to 27" after copying our clearance we literally were following the car with people jumping out at each intersection and waving us to follow the car. Haha.
 
Local weathermen are saying hot temps next week, 8 degrees above average. Not sure how long it will last, but those coming in early may be miserable.
 
JB1842 said:
Local weathermen are saying hot temps next week, 8 degrees above average. Not sure how long it will last, but those coming in early may be miserable.
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If you're miserable at OSH, you're doing it wrong. ;)
 
I've been to Sloshkosh, and Frykosh in the last few years. A couple of days of hot-n-muggy isn't going to bother me.
Much...
 
This will be my first year going. Are bicycles a good idea? Was planning on bringing one.
 
Another question: Do I need to buy a separate camping ticket if I'm camping with my plane?
 
jordane93 said:
Most likely I'll be there with my student. We're flying in an SR22 and his dad is bringing about 4 T-34 Mentors with his friends. It's my first time going! We are going IFR from NY. Any tips or is it pretty straight forward coming in IFR?
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I prefer the fast arrival.....done that twice vs once in the slow Conga line.
 
UngaWunga said:
This will be my first year going. Are bicycles a good idea? Was planning on bringing one.
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Lots of people bring them. It probably has its ups and downs. You can't bring them with you onto the grounds, but they are a great way to get from your camping spot to the gates or around the camping areas.
 
denverpilot said:
All published how to do it in the NOTAM. :) I believe you still need a slot time/reservation. Simple if the NOTAM rules are followed.

I used one to get OUT of OSH one year when the morning overcast hadn't burnt off yet and wasn't forecast to... (It did). Put in the reservation via iPad the night before and cranked at the appropriate time the next morning. First airplane off of 27 that morning.

The flaggers figured nobody was going anywhere that morning and weren't in place yet, and when the controller told us to "follow flagmen to 27" after copying our clearance we literally were following the car with people jumping out at each intersection and waving us to follow the car. Haha.
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We plan on leaving this Wednesday or Thursday so it doesn't look like we'll need a slot.
 
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