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This is a picture I just had to add. That's me (somewhere around 1966) sitting on top of a Mercury Space Capsule mockup that
was used for drop testing the parachutes used durring recovery (see the black and white image). You see, my Dad was involved with
parachute recovery, and worked on several of the space programs. When they were getting ready to send this
gem to the scrap heep, he brought it home instead. Of course, I spent many hours navigating the
galaxy in this puppy.
BTW - Thats also a real Mercury Space Helmet that had been damaged and was also on it's way to
the scrap yard. |
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| This shot was taken October 4, 1986, when my wife Lisa and I were married. I want to know where that skinny young kid came from ;-). | 
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This is one of my favorite photos of Lisa. I took this shot while we were crewing for some
friends at the Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta. This shot was durring the Balloon Glow. You can see the sunset
over her shoulder. |
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| My Mother took this picture of my wife and I at Crater Lake National
Park in Oregon. This was taken in July, and you can still see snow on
the ground. |
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This self portrait was taken flying a 1-26, serial number 231, over Lake Elsinore, California.
This ship belongs to the Lake Elsinore Soaring Club. You can see that the turtle deck has been
cut away, and replaced with plexiglass behind the cockpit. |
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| My wife shot this picture of my Dad and I while the three of us were fishing
on the Rouge River, down stream from Grants Pass, Oregon. I spent most of my
teenaged years in Oregon. We moved to California when I was 17. My parents
and my bother, Matt moved back to Grants Pass in 1986. You can see why. |
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Speaking of the Rouge River, my Dad loves fishing. Here Dad and his friend
Mike display the morning's catch. Each one of those salmon weighs at least
40 pounds! |
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| Well, back to the aviation archives. This is the day I solo'ed a glider.
That's a Schwiezer SGS 2-33A. It also happens to be the first glider I ever
took a ride in. A photo gallery of mine just wouldn't be complete without
this picture. |
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Here's a photo that Pete Donath took
of me flying the Lake Elsinore Soaring Club's 1-36. He was flying his 1-26 and
we were out taking photo's of each other ( got some nice images too). |
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| Here's another one Pete shot of me flying the club's Blanik L-13. That's my brother in-law in the front
cockpit. You can bareley see me waving from the rear cockpit. |
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Here is a picture that a co worker friend, Cesar, shot when I took him for his first glider ride. Since
then, he's been bitten by the aviation bug himself and is learning to fly these things. |
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| This has got to be my favorite noise maker. My wife got me a ride in it for
my birthday a few years back. That's when I decided, if I ever go back to
flying powered aircraft, it won't be until I can buy a Stearman! |
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Oh yeah, along the way I joined the United States Marine Corps. That's actually where I got my
first taste of radio communications. My MOS was 2841 - Radio Repairman. I spent a year going throught
Electronics and Radio Repair school at MCB Twentynine Palms. The first radio they has us work on
was a Swan 350. From there I spent a year with the 1st Marine Air Wing's Communication Squadron 18
in Okinawa Japan working on HF gear primarily. After that I was transferred back the 1st
Marine Division's 1st Tank Battalion where I primarily worked on VHF equipment. |