Planes of Fame

Friday

Well, I didn't exactly get up early...more like 7:45. But I needed the sleep. I had watched Gary's "Out of Africa" DVD on my PowerBook last night, and was spellbound—I wish I had seen this in the theater, because it's a movie that cries out for a big screen and high resolution. I'll have to watch it again when I get home—at least there I have a 53" screen. Gertie's sound system, as usual, did a great job. Both Meryl Streep and Robert Redford gave fine performances; Redford's reminded me a little bit of his Sonny Steele character in "The Electric Horseman": completely self-sufficient and confident; he knows exactly who he is and what he wants. (Are there any people like that in real life? I sure don't feel that way!) And of course seeing Redford at the controls of a Twenties biplane in this film reminded me irresistibly of his performance in "The Great Waldo Pepper."

It's warmish already at 8:30 in the morning, and I have a feeling this will be a hotter day than yesterday...although I have no idea what to expect at the canyon. I checked last night with the National Park Service campground at the south rim and was told that they would have spaces this evening—that's one reason I wasn't in a hurry to get up; I figured I would stay overnight at the canyon and thus be certain of catching at least one sunset and one sunrise. But I'd better get up and moving...

(Later) Before leaving Williams I stopped and checked my propane. To my surprise, the tank is within a pound of being full. Gary said a full tank would last me for a week, but at this rate it could be much longer. On the other hand, the gray water tank fills up distressingly fast. Even though I'm generally using water conservation measures (when I'm not at a campground where I can dump), a mere couple of days seem to bring it to the 3/4 mark. People in the online Lazy Daze club have commented that the 17-gallon gray water tank is the limiting factor when boondocking, and it looks as if they're right. I dumped that tank this morning before leaving, and will see how long I can make it last. Black water is 1/4 full, and that hasn't been dumped since two days ago in Phoenix.

Water conservation

Truth is, I could easily stretch my time and reduce both my fresh-water usage and my gray-water "fillage" by the simple expedient of using disposable cups, plates and flatware. In fact, many RVers do exactly that. But generating mounds of paper and plastic trash just to save water really goes against my grain. Rather than use cheap paper plates and cups once and then throw them away, I'd rather eat from my elegant Melamine dishes with my stainless steel flatware and then wash them afterward. Wiping off the food carefully with paper towels helps to reduce the amount of wash water needed to a minimal rinse —that's my compromise between water saving and paper wasting.

The other thing that many people do to save water is to use campground showers. Since showers—even Navy-style—are probably the single biggest drain on one's water supply, this sounds like the logical thing to do. But taking a shower in my own rig, like cooking in my own rig, is one of the luxuries I enjoy about Gertie. Sure, I could take all my showers elsewhere and save water—just as I could eat all my meals out and save propane. But if I wanted to do that, I could just camp in a tent or stay in a motel, right? Besides, if I'm at a campground with showers, nine times out of ten it's a campground with water hookups and dump stations—and in that case it doesn't matter whether I conserve Gertie's water supply or holding tank capacity.

Speaking of showers, just as soon as I get home I am definitely going to install that rollup shower screen that I spotted in the Camping World catalog. This shower stall seems half the size it really is just because of the flapping curtain. Installing that screen, which rolls up sideways into its housing like a window blind stood on edge, will make the shower feel much more spacious...and in a small rig like this, any improvement in space is a good thing! I also intend to remove or replace the shower window curtain for the same reason. Of course, I could just take it off now—nobody can see through Gertie's heavily tinted windows, and if they saw my bare chest, so what? I think I'll do that. I've already removed the temporary shelf shown in this picture...it's a nuisance to have to stow it elsewhere every time I want to take a shower. When I get home I'll install the fabric-pouched storage unit from IKEA on the wall next to the toilet; that'll give me much more (and better organized!) storage than this shelf.

The drive from Williams up to the Grand Canyon was a very pleasant one. Up here at six or seven thousand feet altitude it's not too warm even in midafternoon, though I did run the A/C much of the way to offset the sun shining on my chest and legs. I did run into one problem: as of this morning the dash air vent seems to be stuck in defrost mode, so no matter what I do with the lever, all the air blows onto the windshield. With the A/C running it still keeps me cool, but if it were really hot—like in Phoenix—I'd want that air blowing in my face. I'll have to look into this and see what I can do.

An unexpected diversion

About halfway to the Grand Canyon I suddenly spotted the unmistakable triple tail of a Lockheed Constellation parked by the highway, such an unusual sight these days that I slowed down...and noticed a MIG-15, an F86 Sabre and various other vintage planes nearby! Quickly pulling over, I found myself at a branch of the "Planes of Fame" air museum...a place that I had read about last year while visiting the Pima Air Museum in Tucson, but never expected to get to. What a treat!

Five bucks and five minutes later I was wandering around photographing to my heart's delight. In addition to the planes mentioned (the Connie, by the way, was General MacArthur's personal transport), there was a cute little De Havilland Vampire—a very early jet fighter—and a Japanese "Ohka" ("cherry blossom") suicide rocket bomb. I was especially interested to see this, as I had built a model of one when I was a boy. This sinister little vehicle resembles a flying torpedo, which is not far from the truth. It was carried to the vicinity of its target by a twin-engined Mitsubishi G4M3 "Betty" bomber, then released. The pilot triggered the Ohka's three-nozzled rocket engine and dived on his target at a maximum speed of about 600 mph. The combination of unheard-of speed (few fighters of the time could exceed 400 mph) and the Ohka's tiny size made it almost impossible to shoot down, and when it struck, its 2,500-pound warhead inflicted devastating damage. Fortunately for all concerned, the Ohka was deployed late in the war and only 50 saw service.

Here's something I'd never seen before: a unique aerobatic plane, the "Double Take." It has a second set of landing gear mounted upside-down on top of the wing, so that it can be landed and taken off inverted! Quoting the placard,

"Double Take was conceived, built and flown by Craig Hosking, the first and only pilot ever admitted to the International Stunt Association (ISA) of Hollywood's top stuntmen. Craig began his flying career at age 8 and became the world's youngest helicopter pilot at age 16. Craig first demonstrated inverted landings in 1984, yet remains the singular [sic] individual to master this still daring—once 'impossible'—dream.

"This custom designed aircraft began as a Pitts S2B, selected for its powerful engine, solid airframe and outstanding performance. Modifications were planned and drawn up with the help of Dan Sorenson, an aerobatic pilot, draftsman, aircraft builder and welder. Problems ranged from ensuring a brake system that would work, to keeping the cylinders free from oil when the plane was parked inverted. But initial test flights went well, and Craig's first inverted landing was on February 27, 1985."

I only wish I could have seen this plane in action...it must have been a wonderful draw at air shows!

In addition to all the aircraft, this absolutely gorgeous cream-white 1940 Ford Tudor (yes, that's how they spelled it) was prominently displayed—to my eye one of the most beautiful cars ever designed. In fact, it was arguably the most streamlined object in the museum!

I'd have to rate this Lockheed T-33 (the trainer version of the P-80 "Shooting Star") a close second for sheer good looks, though. I had always looked down on the P-80. Although it was the US's first jet fighter to see widespread service, it was not a great performer and was easily outclassed by the Republic F-86 "Sabre" that won most of the dogfights in the Korean war.

But seeing this T-33 parked on the field, flaunting its flame-red drop tanks, I had to admit that this was one sexy airplane. This more than any other was the sleek shape that defined the new era of post-WWII aircraft, and that made the words "jet fighter" send a thrill down the spine of every red-blooded American boy in the Fifties.

Perhaps for British kids in that era, the P-80's closest equivalent was the De Havilland "Vampire"—a small but potent jet fighter with a P-38-inspired twin tail. Even by today's standards the Vampire looks rather futuristic!

I only spent a little over an hour at the "Planes of Fame" museum—I was anxious to push on to the Grand Canyon—but I thoroughly enjoyed this unexpected treat. Before leaving, I bought a book about the Northrop experimental flying wings, a subject that's always fascinated me. Then I pushed on toward the Canyon...