Monday
Monday dawned just as hot as Sunday, but everyone
on the field knew that big storms were brewing out west. The usual
thunderstorm/hail/high winds of OSH were coming -- it was just a matter of
when.
In the meantime, however, we made hay while the
sun shone, and hit the Fly Market -- hard. Anything that even remotely
looked like hotel decorations went in the cart, and we spent the entire day
cleaning out the vendors. With friends driving their van back on
Wednesday, we knew we had to shop for the big stuff quickly -- and we did.
Cool stuff for the upcoming "Oshkosh Suite",
"Piper Cub Suite", and "Apollo Suite" were all found -- what an amazing
cache of aviation memorabilia! Over the last three years the Fly
Market has truly become one of our main sources for suite decor.
The air was hot and heavy, but the storms held
off long enough for the afternoon airshow, which was fabulous.
White Knight and SpaceShipOne -- the first private space craft in the world
-- performed a series of stunning fly-bys, wowing the standing-room-only
crowd.
That night a bunch of us hiked to the nearby
Charcoal Pit for Wisconsin Lake Perch (Canadian now, actually), keeping a
wary eye on the sky as a "tornado watch" had been issued for the area.
After a marvelous meal and an evening of relaxation, we decided to head back
to the tent. Immediately after deciding that we could make it back
before the storm hit, it dumped in all its fury, instantly soaking all of
us.
The rain was being flung horizontally, and our
umbrellas and rain-suits weren't up to the task. The wind and rain
were so loud that we could only communicate by shouting into each others
ears. Luckily it was a very warm rain, at first -- but it was a
long, soggy hike back to the tent.
That night over 3 inches of rain fell on Wittman
Field -- an almost unbelievable deluge. No tent in the world could
withstand that kind of gully-washer, and it rained so hard that our new tent
actually leaked from the BOTTOM. Luckily, Mary and I were high and dry
on a queen-sized air bed, but our poor kids were sleeping in puddles "down
in the valleys" on either side of us.
It was a miserable
night for them, and the very next day we bought them two twin-sized air
beds, thus ensuring that it never rained that hard again...
Here are some pix from that day:.
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The view from my wing, first thing in the morning...
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Aircraft, aircraft, everywhere...
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...as far as the eye could see....
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First morning wake-up call...
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Joe emerging from the tent...
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Our traditional Oshkosh family photo...
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Jay & Mary with the world's busiest control tower...
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Joe & Bec with the tower...
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White Knight (with SpaceShipOne) does some fly-overs...
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What an amazing thing to see!
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The gang at the Charcoal Pit while the storm builds outside...
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Go to Tuesday Pix |