by skimmerone » Fri Nov 19, 2010 5:25 pm
Sorry to keep you all "up in the air". I have been occupied with a few other chores. N6595K is alive and well, although she is tucked away in a hangar in Florida awaiting our annual "Lakeathon" next February 20th. I have been promising for the last three years that she would be at our annual fly-in at River Ranch Resort on Route 60, Lake Wales, Florida (right at the base of Lake Kissimmee). Rather than bear the cold trip (no heater) in February I decided to fly her south early. I left on a cold, blustery November morning and almost turned around due to the turbulence and winds. However, since those winds were directly on the tail, I persevered. Also, once I got through the New York City Hudson River corridor (piece of cake), things smoothed out as I went down the Jersey and Delaware Coasts. I stayed over at Accomack, VA after the 3 hours midday flight. The next day another 3 hours got me just south of Myrtle Beach, for lunch and fuel between 1 and 2 PM. I elected to fly a couple of more hours until I got tired, but the next thing I knew I was in Florida and landed at my destination after 3 1/2 hours just as the sun set. The tailwind lasted the whole trip, with the borrowed GPS showing 110 kts most of the time, and the airspeed showing 110 mph. Fuel consumption at 24/24 and slightly leaned was an amazing 7.8 gph. There is no doubt that if my bladder would hold out, I could safely do a 4 hour flight with reserve. Everything worked (well, the hydraulic accumulator went flat, but I knew it was low before leaving), even the avionics which I wired myself were right on the money, tested over Norfolk VA as I passed overhead at 1500 feet. She flew like she was happy to be in the air again.
I miss her, but I know she is in good hands with Bill and his son Skip. They have owned Lakes since 1964, having had one of each model. Bill is now 93 and sharp as a tack, still flying with Skip in the right seat and a son that also flies their Renegade. We will go down by airline in February to the fly-in and I will leave her again until the end of March where she will make an appearance at the Sun-n-fun seaplane "do" and then back home to New England.