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I managed to wake up before sunrise to another perfect Wisconsin day. Unfortunately today I'm headed out of here. Taking the RV further west than she's ever been before - COLORADO!  Another RV'er snapped this pic of sunrise today and sent it to me. I wish I could wake up to this view every day.  A lot of people were tearing down camp. Mitch was out early bumming a ride back to Plymouth Mass in a Cirrus.  Jerry Fischer flagged me down at HBC HQ (in his own Jerry way). I ran into EAA'a Charlie Becker the other day and he said he'd be dropping something special off to Jerry for me - Thanks for the limited edition of 2018 Homebuilders Hefe, Charlie!!!! Oh, and thank you Van's for the free t-shirt!!!  Getting out of Oshkosh was relatively painless this year. I don't think I've ever had any issues getting out. There were a couple of stuck mic's causing a hold up on the tower frequency, but that's about it. I was able to catch my friend Bob Leffler departing in his RV-10.  Somewhat sad to leave Oshkosh, this was such a fun year. But excited for new adventures to new places.  After 3.1 hours in the air, it's time to get some fuel and stretch out. Wayne Municipal Airport (LCG) was right along my route and had cheap fuel.  Another GREAT airport to land out. They had a plethora of free sandwiches for us Oshkosh'ers.  Next stop, KFNL in Loveland, CO. I was a little intimidated to fly so far west. Not so much the distance from home, but the unknown about weather, high altitude, etc..  There was a line of storms along my direct route from KLCG to KFNL. It looked like there was a nice hole to weave through.  I can't complain too much about a little 13 kts headwind at 8,500'/  The clouds started building the closer I got to the line of storms, as expected.  Light rain was all around me, but it was clear sailing through the hole in the line of rain I was going through.        Sweet, I made it through. I should be in the clear for a run to FNL!  Well, the airplane did need a wash to get the Oshkosh dust off of her.  I rode just south of the line of storms. I was on autopilot, and I noticed something didn't seem right. I was bookin' at 172kts airspeed. All of the sudden, I encountered some of the worst turbulence I've ever experienced, I flicked off the autopilot and immediately diverted south and climbed from 6,500' to 8,500'. It was terrifying. I should of known something was awry when my airspeed was 172 kts - I was in an updraft and my autopilot was compensating for it by putting me in a decent. I definitely flew too close to this line of storms and learned a good valuable lesson.  With my heard beating at a normal rate again, I enjoyed the scenic views eastern Colorado had to offer.  I dropped back down to 6,500' to fend off some headwinds and try to get to KFNL as quickly as possible. Some storms were quickly headed to the same destination I was aimed for.  Those look like some Rocky Mountains ahead!  This is what I had been concerned about for the past 30 minutes or so - a storm cell moving over KFNL. Garmin Pilot and my GRT ADS-B painted the weather picture as somewhat grim.  In actuality, this is what I was dealing with as I was downwind for runway 15. This is the highest airport I've ever landed at by over 3,000' MSL. My first mistake was fully enriching my mixture on downwind as part of my pre-landing checklist. My engine let me know right away that wasn't a good idea!  I've always wanted this pic of my RV with the Rocky Mountains behind it.  The RV snugged down for a few nights in Ft Collins.  It's hard to believe I went from Oshkosh, WI to Fort Collins, CO today and am currently riding back from a micro brewery with my good friend Kara on bicycles.  Meanwhile back at Oshkosh, my friends sent me this awesome time-lapse of the postponed night airshow. 
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Last Modified: August 13, 2023 |