Heya Crew!
We're reporting live from Woodstock CT at the 2008 Snap-a-Huckfest! Today was a TON of fun, and pilots are streaming in from all over the NorthEast for our first ever stop to this part of the country. The flying site is killer. It's actually an ACTIVE airport! The field has complete facilities including a restaurant, a 2200' runway, and nonstop action.
Friday started with an early morning wakeup call from Papa Joe Stek. The FG Staff parked it at Elie's house last night. Joe was bummed - for those who know him, he's the dude who's flying at the crack-o-dawn waking up the entire camp. Well this time, he woke up at Elies, no plane, nothing to make noise with, so we sent him out for donuts and coffee. Speaking of Dunkin Donuts (spare me the joke), what's up with these things on every corner out here? ;-)
When we arrived at the field, we were amazingly greeted by a crew of folks already flying and preppin' for an awesome day. The morning brought many sleepy heads coming to, and before we knew it, the sky was full of modelers throwing down and having a blast! As folks continued to stream in, we were greeted by our special guests, and MAJOR SPONSOR of the event, The Academy of Model Aeronautics! Andy Argenio VP of District 1, Les Watson, Barry Schubert, Steve Brim and the crew of friends from Muncie. I'm giddy with excitement - Mr. Dave Matthewson, President of The AMA will be joining us on Saturday! I've written about these guys before - the AMA dudes are modelers and dudes just like us, and it's freakin' AWESOME having these guys come to 3D shows like ours, and enjoy themselves.
Noontime demos brought Justin Chi, the Shank / Plank prodigy kid, and our very own MudSurfer! Man these kids can huck! Note to self - set a 21 year old age limit on pilot registration next time. These kids are really making us old farts look like hacks!
The demos were followed by a 7 plane hovering gaggle that is always a crowd pleaser! Demo flights went on throughout the day, and as of this writing, everyone is still flying and having a great time! The food was great too!
On tomorrow's agenda, flyinging all day, we're ground cooking a pig, and the day will wrap up at the Snap-a-chalet for evening activities!
Here's some shots from today, AMAZING turnout for a Friday, Saturday is looking to be pretty darn big.
Hope you all have a good weekend out there in Internetland, we'll bring the best back to you right here on FlyingGiants.com. If you're on your way, be prepared for a great time.
Best! -- Max