kentuckynet Posted October 17, 2016 Report Share Posted October 17, 2016 Left out at day break, unusually windy for page, flew direct to santafe at 12,000 hit some bumps in places there should not have been bumps....managed to stay in aircraft.(only due to having cutome hooker harness system, purchased from previous experience from this trip) Got around mountain made a huge mistake landing it las vegas new mexico, took a huge beating during the decent , landed with 30 plus knot winds at 10am, could not make myself go back up.....(would be home right now if i had) went back to airport this morning before daybreak only to leave plane tied down and sit in it and blow all over, compleltly dark outside 22 knots winds, airport was saying clear skies ...but no stars??? every once in a while you could barely make out the moon, sat in plane for an hour got out of plane stood out on the runway watching the sunrise wondering why i made this trip....... Called hotel back got another ride to the hardware store bought chains to chain the plane to the ground, winds today up tp 65mph...............rented a car drove around las vegas now back at hotel, being away after tommorow will cost me........................leaving in the morning going to fly straight through..... these are great people and sights you will never see back east but not for the faint of heart or anyone that has to work for a living. this was my 4th trip out if i survive this one.............. well i have said enough. anyone having any open prayer slots throw me one in........................ mack crofton ky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtk Posted October 17, 2016 Report Share Posted October 17, 2016 You know the saying, "I would rather be on the ground wishing I was in the air than be in the air wishing I was on the ground." Sounds like you are using good judgment. Live to fly another day (tomorrow). This. Absolutely this. Sorry to hear of the winds and self-grounding. I agree with AirplanePilot that your decision was a good one - stay on the ground until winds improve. Hopefully daybreak tomorrow will greet you with calm winds and blue skies. I have my fingers crossed for a good WX tomrrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olav Posted October 18, 2016 Report Share Posted October 18, 2016 You are right Mack. These are VERY unusual wind conditions for New Mexico and the Southwest in general for this time of the year. Sorry you are having such an "adventure" getting home. Lisa and I had a quick flight home yesterday with strong tailwinds but the downside was a lot of really rough turbulence and long period mountain wave up and downdrafts. Hope the wind and delay this trip won't discourage you from coming to next year's 10th anniversary fly-in! It was good seeing you again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlyingMonkey Posted October 18, 2016 Report Share Posted October 18, 2016 I feel your pain. Last year Bill Ince and I spent seven days on our "two day" trip home. Huge line of storms across the country, poor visibility, winds, scud running, and a diversion south that got us into Victoria, TX literally as Hurricane Patricia hit. October makes for beautiful flying at Page, but the rest of the country is challenging that time of year. Best of luck and stay safe! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CT4ME Posted October 19, 2016 Report Share Posted October 19, 2016 And yet, two days before the fly-in, Roger went from Tucson to Norther Indiana in a day-and-a-half. Ya never know.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kentuckynet Posted October 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2016 Well we left klvs at 630am too dark to fly but kept going.....went direct to cushing oklahoma kcuh went to sonic ate fueled plane flew the rest of the day and landed at home at 4pm cst 850 miles one fuel stop, was never lower than 10,500 almost complete cloud cover the last 400 miles found one small hole near barkly dam dove under and flw the last 9 miles.....was really getting nervous..... like i said not for the faint of heart or the empoyed...... thanks for your thoughts and prayers.....something worked out... mack brame Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kentuckynet Posted October 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted October 19, 2016 It was really nice seeing old friends......think in the future they may have to come and see me..........my winds aloft for the trip home was the only positive.....we were never slower than 137 to 141 knots ground speed ....we ate up the midwest! you may see me again if youre within a 4 hour trip of crofton ky.........thats my new limit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Jefts Posted October 19, 2016 Report Share Posted October 19, 2016 Good to hear you made it back safe and sound. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Posted October 20, 2016 Report Share Posted October 20, 2016 Hi All, Really good to meet you all at Page. Mary and I had an absolutely great time. Got many great pictures and some really great videos. Our trip totals back to PA are as follows: Page to Santa Rosa Rt. 66 (SXU) 3:04-----386.1 NM SXU to Clinton Regional, Oklahoma (CLK) 2:10----292 NM CLK to Crawford County, Robinson, Illinois (RSV) 4:10---599.2 NM RSV to Wayne County, Wooster, Ohio ((BJJ) 2:08---293.4 NM BJJ to Cherry Ridge NE PA (N30) 2:10---309.5 NM Totals 11:41---1880.2 NM 162.08 NMPH Compared to 19 hours getting to Page, what a fast ride. But, along with the fast ride comes the landing and departure phase. Landings were good and two departures tested the x-wind limits of myself and the airplane. A great experience which enables me to move my limitations to a higher level. Many thanks to John and Tim for the time they spent making this a memorable event. And also, many thanks to the flight leaders, John and Ron, for their knowledge of the area and leading us through this fantastic part of the country. Rich Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olav Posted October 20, 2016 Report Share Posted October 20, 2016 Clicking on each photo in the shared album will bring up the description or names in the upper right corner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbigs Posted October 20, 2016 Report Share Posted October 20, 2016 Las Vegas (KHND, KLAS, KVGT) has major wind which can come up during the day and last for days. It is no place for a CT to be parked on a ramp. We nearly lost our CT on one of those nights and literally had to hold the plane down for two hours or the sand and wind would have flipped it into the shade hangars. The next day we bought a hangar at KVGT and never flew it to where we suspected wind would be a factor on an overnight tie-down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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