The Rooster
June 2016
THE ROOSTER A monthly update from the Inland Empire Offroad Association
Whats New There hasn't been a whole lot going on in the past month, but it is never too early to think about the dunes. Share what you’ve been up to by sending in articles.
Coral Pink is Next Next month’s newsletter will be our annual Coral Pink Preview Edition, with a look back at over 20 years of dining in Utah as we get close to this year’s trip, which will be from July 6-15, 2016.
Wings of Freedom By Mike Bacon, photos by Mike and AJ Bacon
AJ was to turn 25 in March and I was looking for a unique birthday present for him. I came across the Collings Foundation’s Wings Of Freedom Tour and thought how more unique a present could he get than a ride in a World War II B-17 Bomber!?!?! I was able to make arrangements for the ride when the tour planes came to French Valley Airport in Murrieta at the end of April. The tour consisted of the B-17, a B-25 and B-24 bombers, and a P-51 Mustang fighter.
Flags are Available Both Janice Petersen and Dana Marin (Schellinger) have come through with flags. Read about them and check out the pictures on page 5.
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The Rooster
June 2016
Upcoming Events • June 19th: Father’s Day • July 4-6: Pre-Coral Pink time in Mesquite Nevada • July 6-15: Coral Pink! We’ll be in the state park campground group site. • July 15-16: Post-Coral Pink night in Mesquite Nevada.
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June 2016
We were able to walk around the aircraft parked on the ramp for a while as well as go inside the bombers to look around. It was very interesting how tight the inside of these aircraft were! I don’t know how these young men were able to get around and do their jobs for hours at a time inside these planes. I had a very difficult job getting through the planes, and I didn’t have high altitude cold weather gear on!
Soon it was time to fly! AJ and I, and five other people boarded the plane through the rear hatch. The crew chief explained not to get near the rear hatch while we were flying as it wouldn’t hold weigh and we would fall out, he would tell us when we could get up and move around the airplane, and don’t bother the pilots as they would be very busy flying the plane. That was it for preflight instructions! As soon as we broke ground the crew chief signaled we could get up. AJ and I went all through the airplane. At the radio operator’s section there is a hole in the top of the plane where they used to shoot the stars to get a position fix. We both stuck our heads out in the 140 mph wind to get photos!
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The Rooster
June 2016
Then we worked our way up to the nose where the bombardier would watch the bombsite and drop the bombs. That was great riding right in the nose of the airplane. On our way back to our seats we stopped to look out the top turret as well as the side machine gun positions. Far too soon we got the signal to sit down and strap in. We hit the runway within seconds and taxied back to the terminal. We then had to work our way back out the rear hatch.
This flight was amazing and a great learning experience. AJ and I had a great time. I would recommend it to anyone who has an interest in flying, or the history of WW II!
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The Rooster
June 2016
Flags are Available As we mentioned last month, we have new club flags available. Both Janice Petersen and Dana Marin (Schellinger) have been able to get flags made. Take a look and contact either Mike Bacon and/or Janice Petersen to pick some up.
Dana (Doug and Kris Schellinger’s daughter) has a company that makes the same type of flags for golf courses. They are made from a double layer of heavier nylon(?) fabric, with a blue border and the club logo embroidered on both sides in color, and reinforcing bands all the way around, double stitched. These should last a very long time. They are $30 each. Contact Mike Bacon if you want some of these and he’ll get them to you.
Janice contacted a local business in Riverside and had them sew up double sided flags with multiple rows of stitching. They are quite heavy duty, and are look very similar to what we have had in the past, but the direction is reversed so the red looks like a pennant. These flags are available for $45 each, and Janice has some available now or can get more with a few weeks notice.
Photo Contest How well do you know the different cars in the group? A few years ago we had a photo contest on the club website where we showed obscure close up pictures of different cars in the group and had people try to guess which car they were. It was a lot of fun, and some people got really into it. Since we have some space to fill this month, let’s try a newsletter version of the “Which car is is?” game. The rules are pretty simple: The pictures were all taken this season in the dunes. To make it easier, each car appears in two of the pictures shown. E-mail your guesses (list of picture numbers and which car is in each) to pkastle@msn.com and I will reply with how many you got right. The first to get them all correct will be given special praise in next month’s newsletter and a $5 amazon gift card. Let’s see how this goes: 5
The Rooster
June 2016
Picture 1:
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June 2016
Picture 7:
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Remember, each car appears in two pictures so you can use that to help figure out the hard ones. E-mail your guesses for which car is in which picture to pkastle@msn.com and I will e-mail you back letting you know how many you got right. The first to get them all right will win a $5 Amazon.com gift card courtesy of Melissa. Have fun!
This month we’d like to thank Mike Bacon for writing an article about a cool birthday experience. This is also a perfect example of the type of article that helps make summer newsletter interesting. The next newsletter will be out in late June and will cover lots of Coral Pink stuff as we get ready for the annual trip to Utah. I’m sure everybody would appreciate variety in newsletter articles, so please write something up to send in and share what fun you’ve been up to. -Paul, Melissa, Allie, and Marshall. 7