A couple weeks ago we had yet another snow storm. This time it was followed by a beautiful, sunny weekend. I had flown to Hagerstown, Maryland with my pilot friend Garret Hooper and wanted to show my wife the great restaurant we found on the field there. I had also promised to give our neighbor and good friend Carol Laclair a ride. It was the perfect day for both, so we met out at the airport at 11:30 to make the 100 mile trip for lunch. In the Velocity, that meant only 30 minutes each way.
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Waiting for landing traffic before taking off. There is still a lot of snow.
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....and we're off in the first third of the runway on this cold day.
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Some shots on the flight down. Visibility is almost unlimited and the ride is very smooth.
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| Carol flying the plane |
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| She does a great job |
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| Who needs me? |
Carol takes a turn flying the plane on the way there and does a great job.
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Here are some more shots of the trip down.
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| Crossing the frozen Susquehannah |
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| Snowy farm fields in York county |
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| Bracing for bumps as we cross the river |
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| There's Hagerstown |
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| Final for Hagerstown |
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| Short final |
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We taxi over to the Rider Jet Center and park, then walk into the restaurant. I love being able to park right at the door of the restaurant. We'll have a nice view of the Velocity and the runway from our table.
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The restaurant is great, with nice ambiance, good food and good service.
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| Predictably, the girls have some wine. |
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| Nancy tries their signature buffalo chicken wrap. |
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| Carol ready to dive in. |
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| Hey, it's Maryland. I get the crab cake. |
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Here are some other shots of the airport. It is really nice.
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| The hostess desk is aircraft style |
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| View of the ramp |
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| View of restaurant entrance |
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| View of front entrance to street |
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After lunch we head out to the plane to go home. The wind has picked up and it is cold.
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| A quick window selfie before we head out to the plane |
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| There she is on the ramp |
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| Love this plane. Looks ready to take me anywhere. |
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A few minutes later we are off and on our way home. Here are some shots of the departure.
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Here are some shots of the EFIS screens on the way home. We are doing over 200 knots/ 234 mph!
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| 70 miles to go in only 20 minutes. |
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| 201 knots |
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| Even faster |
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Almost home and almost sorry the trip is over.
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| Back over the river. Always better with a winglet. |
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| View from the front office |
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| Our airport comes in view. |
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| In the pattern about to turn base. Very snowy. |
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| Turning base to final |
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| Final for runway 29 Chester County |
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| Touchdown |
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It was a great $100 hamburger flight. Carol enjoyed her first flight, we had great weather, great scenery and a delicious lunch. The plane did the 200 mile round trip in under an hour.
Many people complain about the heater in their Velocities, but my plane seems to be toasty all winter. I had to take my jacket off for the trip home. The trick is to get all the air leaks sealed up as best you can.
Looking forward to the next adventure.
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