The problem with Gastons

Ken Ibold

Ken Ibold

Final Approach
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Ken Ibold
OK, now that the love-fest is over, it's time to talk about the shortcomings. I'll go first.

A weekend isn't long enough. Had a great time, folks, but there were so many people I didn't really get a chance to talk to. In a way, it's becoming a victim of its own success.

Actually, I could see expanding on it and having 2-3 per year at different locations around the country to accommodate folks who don't have the time and/or money to travel to northern Arkansas, and to allow those who like to travel an opportunity to say something besides "see ya next year!"

Anyone know of other resorts that fulfill the basic mission -- a resort with an airstrip where we can hang out with the airplanes?
 
"Klaatu barada nikto"

Tooooooo early to talk about shortcomings!! But meeting elsewhere so others could enjoy sounds like fun.

Heck, Diana and some others just got home.

Best,

Dave
 
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Ken Ibold said:
Actually, I could see expanding on it and having 2-3 per year at different locations around the country to accommodate folks who don't have the time and/or money to travel to northern Arkansas, and to allow those who like to travel an opportunity to say something besides "see ya next year!"
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Ocracoke in October or November?
 
Ken -

We've got Wings in May, which is starting to turn into a weekend thing.
We've got Gaston's in June.
Oshkosh kind of screws up July and August. Can't interfere with OSH - Noooooo.
And then mine will be Labor Day weekend from here on out. Granted, it's not a resort, but if you don't mind camping, we've got everything you need.

All of us north of Kentucky are pretty much screwed October -> March because of icing and weather which only leaves us with an April possibility.

But

http://www.airnav.com/airport/WV62

is a possibility.
 
Ken Ibold said:
OK, now that the love-fest is over, it's time to talk about the shortcomings. I'll go first.

A weekend isn't long enough. Had a great time, folks, but there were so many people I didn't really get a chance to talk to. In a way, it's becoming a victim of its own success.

Actually, I could see expanding on it and having 2-3 per year at different locations around the country to accommodate folks who don't have the time and/or money to travel to northern Arkansas, and to allow those who like to travel an opportunity to say something besides "see ya next year!"

Anyone know of other resorts that fulfill the basic mission -- a resort with an airstrip where we can hang out with the airplanes?
Click to expand...

Well, I know Nick is thinking about putting together a western fly-in and has been discussing possible locations. It would be great to see the country broken down into thirds. Western, Central, and Eastern.
 
The biggest probelm I've had with Gastons is that I haven't been able to go as the times just haven't worked out and it is a bit of a haul from PA on a slow Cherokee!! Hopefully it won't become a victim of it's own success.

I do like the idea of Ocracoke in the fall, wonderful place!!

Gary
 
The problem with Gastons for me is ...... I ALWAYS HAVE TO WORK WHEN IT'S GOING ON!!! :mad:

Anywho... This isn't a fly-in resort, but it's a neat little town with a decent grass runway withing 100 yds of the 'strip' of town. Amana Colonies (http://www.amanacolonies.com) in east central Iowa. The airport is C11 (http://www.airnav.com/airport/c11 ). There is a 'landing fee' listed on AirNav, but when I've been there I've never seen anyone around to asses the fee. When working with the crop duster a few years ago, we spent about a week working out of the grass strip there.

I think Diana landed there in her adventure around the country, so she can give better info as far as being a 'visitor' there as opposed to a 'worker'.

Just another option to throw into the mix.
 
CJones said:
...
Anywho... This isn't a fly-in resort, but it's a neat little town with a decent grass runway withing 100 yds of the 'strip' of town. Amana Colonies (http://www.amanacolonies.com) in east central Iowa. The airport is C11 (http://www.airnav.com/airport/c11 ). There is a 'landing fee' listed on AirNav, but when I've been there I've never seen anyone around to asses the fee. When working with the crop duster a few years ago, we spent about a week working out of the grass strip there.

I think Diana landed there in her adventure around the country, so she can give better info as far as being a 'visitor' there as opposed to a 'worker'.

Just another option to throw into the mix.
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There's an honor box on a post for your $5 landing fee, Mr. Man of Honor. :rolleyes:

The only problem I can think of is there is no ground transportation and there are no hotel/motels. AFAIK, The rooms are all in Bed and Breakfasts.

Every time I've been to Amana, around July, it was ungodly HOT. The last time we walked about a mile and half to the theater. We managed to beg a ride back. Otherwise I think we wouldn't have survived.
 
mikea said:
There's an honor box on a post for your $5 landing fee, Mr. Man of Honor. :rolleyes:
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Ahh.. That's what that little box mounted on the gate post was for. I think it was directly under the sign that said "NO ENTRANCE EXCEPT FOR AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL" to which I said "huh" and removed the padlock and drove the truck onto the 'ramp'. :D

The only problem I can think of is there is no ground transportation and there are no hotel/motels. AFAIK, The rooms are all in Bed and Breakfasts.

Every time I've been to Amana, around July, it was ungodly HOT. The last time we walked about a mile and half to the theater. We managed to beg a ride back. Otherwise I think we wouldn't have survived.
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That's was I was curious about -- visitor friendly, or not. Like I said - the only time I have been there was when we were using the airport as a reload area for spraying. I basically sat at the airport all day reloading airplanes and we went into town a few times for lunch. Wasn't sure about lodging access, etc.

Oh well.. I'm open to suggestions. My post-not-making-it-to-Gastons-again plans are to make it to 6Y9 for EdFred's major bash on Labor Day! :D :yes:
 
CJones said:
The problem with Gastons for me is ...... I ALWAYS HAVE TO WORK WHEN IT'S GOING ON!!! :mad:
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oh yea, at the job you were going to quit in JANUARY

got that new guy trained yet? ;)
 
tonycondon said:
oh yea, at the job you were going to quit in JANUARY

got that new guy trained yet? ;)
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Hardy har har... Well, some of us have to WORK to afford to fly, not everyone gets PAID to fly, tony. ;)

Actually, I told the boss today that June 30 will be my last day.. officially.. Told the cropdusters I would start with them July 1. We've got >100,000 acres ready to go the first week of July and hopefully another bug run in August, then back to school shortly thereafter.

Sooo... Maybe I'll have a NORMAL job next year and have a reasonable chance of actually making it to G-V.
 
EdFred said:
Ken -

We've got Wings in May, which is starting to turn into a weekend thing.
We've got Gaston's in June.
Oshkosh kind of screws up July and August. Can't interfere with OSH - Noooooo.
And then mine will be Labor Day weekend from here on out. Granted, it's not a resort, but if you don't mind camping, we've got everything you need.

All of us north of Kentucky are pretty much screwed October -> March because of icing and weather which only leaves us with an April possibility.

But

http://www.airnav.com/airport/WV62

is a possibility.
Click to expand...

Agreed! I'm not missing Gaston's, Wings is easy for me, and this year I plan on 6Y9. If we're doing around the country, we're missing the West....maybe the south.

Nick???? Ken????
 
Ken Ibold said:
OK, now that the love-fest is over, it's time to talk about the shortcomings.
Click to expand...

Since you asked. This was my first trip to Gastons and I really enjoyed everything except the restaurant food. The reason I came to Gastons was to meet people, not to have conversation around the dinner table talking about how bad the food/service was. I felt it was priced high for what you were eating. Frankly the food just didn't taste good. I don't mind paying a premium when the food/service is exceptional but it was far from that. My solution for next year will be reserving a room with a kitchen.
 
Ken Ibold said:
Anyone know of other resorts that fulfill the basic mission -- a resort with an airstrip where we can hang out with the airplanes?
Click to expand...

For a dead of the winter thing, do you know of any coastal FL airstrips than can combine airstrip, lodging, food, and beach?
 
How about something further west?

Denver is centrally located and the area is quite fantastic.

We had a great time at G-IV but now I'm convinced I need a faster plane or more time for the trip, flying that far in one day was tough.

Joe
 
We all say something similiar to that, too...

10 years ago, it wouldn't have bothered ANY of us! :eek: :p


Areeda said:
How about something further west?

Denver is centrally located and the area is quite fantastic.

We had a great time at G-IV but now I'm convinced I need a faster plane or more time for the trip, flying that far in one day was tough.

Joe
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​
 
The food was nasty. Thankfully I had brunch yesterday as that was the ONLY meal I had. I was starving this morning when I got home.
 
HPNFlyGirl said:
The food was nasty.
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Nasty? Hmmmm, I had steak three nights in a row and it was really tasty and tender. I enjoyed the brunch, too. The Reuben and French Dip sandwiches that I had weren't bad either. Maybe I was just lucky.
 
Diana said:
Nasty? Hmmmm, I had steak three nights in a row and it was really tasty and tender. I enjoyed the brunch, too. The Reuben and French Dip sandwiches that I had weren't bad either. Maybe I was just lucky.
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Ive been trying to stay away from red meat so I had the fish...at least the lettuce from the salad bar tastes normal. :rofl:
 
hey, its a resort, its gonna be overpriced. oh well.
 
I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that most anywhere that has both the words "Fly" and "Resort" in the facility's title will probably be on the higher end of the price scale for just about everything.
 
Well, while I think the prices are nothing you'd call "cheap," they are scarcely out of line for a resort-like place, and as good as you're ever likely to find with a runway attached.

As for the food's quality, everything I got was much better this year than last, including (as Diana mentioned) the steak; mine was actually quite tasty, in marked contrast to last year's. Cannot comment on the fish, although the salmon Dr. Bruce ordered looked tasty enough that I was second-guessing my choice of steak.

Now the service, on the other hand, was slow... but through no lack of effort on the part of the staff, who appeared to be hustling.

I did notice a significant increase in the attention paid to our merry band, in (for example) the ice deliveries, etc. They seem to want the business.

I agree that, next time, I am going to make a Harp's run the first priority, and stock up in the kitchen; the money saved will pay for the extra night I intend to spend there. And I sure enjoyed the cookout night; thanks for organizing that, Nick.

===

All of that said, you'll find few places with G's combination of central-ish location and available facilities. But I am always open to ideas, and I certainly intend to try to make it to 6Y9 one of these years.
 
my take on things:
  • The staff took very good care of us.
  • The cabin was very nice.
  • The prices were what I expected. Kind of high but appropriate for a resort.
  • The food was OK. We were spoiled as Chip took us to a place called Doe's in Bentonville the night before (and paid, thank you Chip!). The steaks there put the food at Gaston's to shame. The seafood salad I had for lunch Saturday was pretty good.
  • The PEOPLE and the area were fantastic.
Overall, I can't think of anything to complain about.

Joe
 
My problem with Gastons is I live about 1.0 flight hours away. I have in-laws 20 minutes away. And yet, I still get screwed out of coming! Next year, I will have to save up vacation for it specifically.
 
Just to make it clear...I was referring to the poor restaurant service. The restaurant staff appeared to be hustling but they could have used a few more people. The service everywhere else was great. From having a van pick me up at the plane after landing to clean rooms and a great staff working the check out counter.
 
My impressions: (Other than those I do for my kids...)

Great location for the gathering; Could do with other thirds of the country so others could more easily participate. I felt guilty for being so close.

Great facility; pool, tennis, pet friendly, trails, river with boats/fishing, game room, restaurant, nice cabins.... and.... a RUNWAY. Expected the pricing to be commensurate. We did go to Harp's, but chose to eat in the restaurant twice to visit with the company :cheerswine: . Retrospectively, the right decision. The hamburgers and steaks we had were actually very good.

The Weather; We got there Thursday and left Saturday. Couldn't have asked for better. Don't know what ya'lls deal was...:rolleyes: :D (....JK)
 
CJones said:
I think Diana landed there in her adventure around the country, so she can give better info as far as being a 'visitor' there as opposed to a 'worker'.
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Amana has a nice runway and the B&B was pleasant. I walked only a block to the restaurant from the B&B. The airport is unattended, and there is no fuel and no bathroom. Might be tough for trying to hang out there. I need to add fuel in small quantities for aerobatics, so it would be more challenging to give rides all day at that airport.
 
OK everyone, Lissen up. :)

The heart and soul of Gaston's isn't Denny Gaston. It's our "Momma", Ms Diana. It someone else wants to host the details somewhere else, speak right on up. It's a job.

Hearing none, I think it'll be................Gastons again!

"I dunnow but it's been said, Go NORTH in summer, silly haid!" It was a real pick us through job to get to STL. Remember the summer when Diana went 350 miles to get from Twin Oaks to Gastons?

I'll meet youse guys anyplace....but the pickins are tough.
 
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roger that bruce, and I for one really like the second week in June. first week in june is family birthdays (both sisters) and 3rd is fathers day. its perfect.
 
Ken Ibold said:
OK,
Actually, I could see expanding on it and having 2-3 per year at different locations around the country to accommodate folks who don't have the time and/or money to travel to northern Arkansas, and to allow those who like to travel an opportunity to say something besides "see ya next year!"
Click to expand...

Ken as Ed said we do have those events already

-Wings FlyBQ ( becoming a weekend event) Inexpensive rooms w/ breakfast included.

-Gastons of course

-6Y9er FlyIn Labor day weekend

-Perhaps the POA Glide-a-thon will become annual as well.

[qoute=Ken Ibold;195070]
Anyone know of other resorts that fulfill the basic mission -- a resort with an airstrip where we can hang out with the airplanes?[/quote]

Well yes I do. Windwood Resort in WV MUCH less expensive than Gastons. I found it last year and chatted with Ed and Bruce about it. The place has potential but Gaston's is well its just Gastons. Yea its a bear from the east coast or west coast but it is centerally located. Perhaps adding a fall destination may be a good idea as long as it dosen't dilute the other three. I bet the hills of WV would be gorgeous in the fall. Interestingly These exact same comments were made last year. As others have said At Gastons the service is slow and food is pricey but thats not why I'd go. I'd go to see all of you fine folks. Not one of the posts raving about Gastons talked about the food they talk about the experience.
 
We learned this from prior visits. This time the first errand after landing was a run to Harp's in Bull Shoals and pull together breakfast items for the stay. That alone saved a night's stay. Maybe in the future more interpersonal planning for a community breakfast in several cabins with kitchens might be arranged. The restaurant is a good venue for at least one social exchange, though, imho. Many guests at Gaston's make full use of the kitchens and never eat in the restaurant. Others rather not have to deal with food preparation at all during their stay. We only had 3 meals in the restaurant, including the brunch and we arrived around noontime on Wednesday.

I think Nick's cookouts were a great success! I hope he is named permanent "Cookout Czar" as the food was all you'd want for a fly-in, both Friday evening and Saturday noon. He did a great job coordinating the food contributions...:)

Mary and I held an "early bird" pizza dinner at our cabin on Thursday night that went well. Having a couple pizzas left over to knosh on when people got the munchies helped, I think.

Gaston's is a convenient location for us, I won't deny that. I think it would be a great idea to come up with some other regional activities, too. I do have a limited avgas budget, though, and could only make a couple beyond the Gaston's event.

It's unrealistic to expect everyone to be completely satisfied with all aspects of an activity like this, though, no matter how hard we try to accomodate everyone's tastes.

bjohnson said:
Since you asked. This was my first trip to Gastons and I really enjoyed everything except the restaurant food. The reason I came to Gastons was to meet people, not to have conversation around the dinner table talking about how bad the food/service was. I felt it was priced high for what you were eating. Frankly the food just didn't taste good. I don't mind paying a premium when the food/service is exceptional but it was far from that. My solution for next year will be reserving a room with a kitchen.
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I agree with many of the comments. The food isn't anything to rave about, but it was better this year than last. I found last year that I wasn't too thrilled with the fish in the restaurant, so went with the steak, which was pretty good. Leslie and I only had three meals in the restaurant. Sunday brunch is a must. It's actually a good value. Lunch is overpriced, and dinner is alright.

Also, it is the chance to see people that I come. Next year I might actually try the fishing, though I think I will need to extend the stay a little. I also think that I might be able to get my flying club to come down with a few planes; they expressed an interest when I was telling them about the time I had this year.

I also think that we could really make a case for the house there. Yeah, it's a thousand a night, but it would make a perfect place to get together for those breakfasts. But it would be a hassle to try to coordinate it. I'm not sure I'm up for it, but will think about it.

BTW, Thanks to Chip for the T-Shirts! You did a great job of organizing that, and I know you took a risk, since there was no guarantee that the people who ordered would be able to show up. I'm really glad that you were able to find takers for all the shirts!

And now it's time to head home. I'll write up my LifeLine Pilots and commercial XC trip in another thread. Suffice it to say that I landed in five states, did my first Compassion Flight (complete with the Compassion call-sign), and got five airports for the ConUS Challenge!) Been going since 8:00 this morning, and I'm still in South Bend!
 
bbchien said:
The heart and soul of Gaston's isn't Denny Gaston. It's our "Momma", Ms Diana.
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Now THAT's well said! Only been once, but I can tell, Diana IS Gaston's. The friendliness (of the place and the people that come) gave delightful mimicry of Diana's wonderfully sweet persona :blowingkisses:​


Anywhere else could/would be another fly-in and therefore grand, but it wouldn't be Gaston's.

Thank YOU again, Diana!
​
 
My only problem with Gastons is that I keep bringing my fishing pole, but never go fishing!!!

Actually, I think the cookout thing was a good idea. I still ate in the restaurant 3 times - once for lunch, once for Dinner (with most everyone) and the Sunday brunch. The Sunday Brunch is expensive, but its really, really good. Don't be shy and eat your fill (I'm fat, so I can do that well :D), and its a decent value!

Steve said:
I think Nick's cookouts were a great success! I hope he is named permanent "Cookout Czar" as the food was all you'd want for a fly-in, both Friday evening and Saturday noon. He did a great job coordinating the food contributions...
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Don't give me all the credit. Lots of people pitched on the food (I had to stop accepting contributions so I wouldn't wind up making money on the BBQ), and in fact, the lunch BBQ the second day was Bill and Kevin's doing really, I just ate the food!

We had beef hot dogs and Mike's awesome sausages. Next year, maybe we can do some hamburgers and other BBQ stuff. I would be proud to be the BBQ Czar from now on, though, if y'all'll have me. If I actually know I'm in charge before hand, I can probably do a better job (I found out I was in charge of the BBQ when I landed).
 
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