Some Glamped, Some Camped

The weather was just about perfect in the Santa Ynez valley as 13 DAFers descended into the Flying Flags RV Resort in Buellton for the June 9-11 weekend. Six DAFers stayed in fully-tricked-out Safari Tents, Mitch and Jan stayed in a vintage Airstream trailer, and the remaining DAFers pitched their own tents at the resort's campground.

There seemed to be a contest as to how many wineries could be visited during the weekend. As far as this reporter could tell, it was a neck-to-neck race between Team Frugal Campers (the pitch-your-own tent people) and Team Sedey/Sappington. The Campers went straight from landing at KIZA and drove to a couple of local wineries (not even taking time to set up camp - something they may have regretted later). Team Sedey/Sappington also visited a tasting room or two before getting to their Safari Tents (their only regret was missing the daily Safari Tent turn-down service).

On Friday evening, we had Happy Hour at the Safari campground fire pit followed by a great BBQ dinner, and a second Happy Hour back at the fire pit. On Saturday, most people drove into Santa Ynez to walk around the annual western-themed "Old Santa Ynez Days" street fair. The teams then formed back up and set off for an afternoon of more wine tasting. An early group dinner was held on the patio of the beautiful Vineyard House restaurant in Santa Ynez, followed by the mandatory Happy Hour meetup back at the fire pit.

It was a fun weekend attended by an enthusatic group of DAFers. Thanks to Larry and Jodie for setting everything up.

Endorsed by Earhart

Author/historian Barbara Schultz presented a slideshow of the many products Amelia endorsed while she was alive. Her endorsements included airlines, automobilies, fashion, collector cards, the Longines watch, chocolate bars, malted milk, tomato juice, etc.  Afterwards, Barbara made herself available for questions and many DAFer's purchased signed copies of her book "Endorsed by Earhart"!

High Water at Kern Valley

It was great weather for the Kern Valley Fly-in, which was a good thing as we had plenty of time to enjoy it! Due to scheduling confusion on the part of the organizer, the cafe was not well prepared for the onslaught of 17 DAFers showing up for lunch. The food was good once it arrived, though, and the deck was a nice place to hang out for the afternoon. Eric and Sally braved the elements and camped out Friday night, and reported that the renovated campground is very nice.

It was nice to see the lake so full, with lots of trees half underwater by the airport. The stream by the airport was going strong for the first time in years! Thanks to Jim Pavlick for setting the trip up.

Water Water Everywhere!

Alan Black entertained DAFers with the story of a unique prom date named "Mistress Water" and her cousins O'Rime and O'Clear...in story telling tones reminiscent of Garrison Keller he told of the astonishing properties they danced at various high and low altitudes and in a form called triple point too...The theme of this dance was Science Can Be Entertaining and we learned more about Margaritas then we thought possible...and clearly too many can result in three interesting prom dates! Thank you Alan for an educational evening!

Angel Flight

At the April dinner meeting we learned about the rewards and satisfaction of using your pilot skills to help someone reach treatment and care. The nonprofit, volunteer-driven Angel Flight West organization presented a short video showing their unique community service of public benefit flying and then followed up with an overview of the need they fill, the passengers they serve and the opportunities available. The “Life of an Angel Flight Mission” was discussed and questions were answered. If anyone has further questions please do not hesitate to contact: Ivan Martinez, Director of Outreach and Wing Operations (310.390.2958).

SLO Speed Pass

San Luis Obispo welcomed 19 DAFers with blue skies and warm weather for the April Fly-in. After some mild bumps on the way up, it was smooth going for the cocktail hour out by the pool. Complinmentary wine and beer from the hotel and our own snacks and appetizers; all a Flyer could ask for! Afterward, the group split up for dinner to try some of the many great restaruants in SLO.

Saturday, we met up at Wolff Winery for a picnic lunch and wine tasting. Clint Grubb was our knowledgable and gracious host, and provided not only information on the wines and the winery, but spoke about the Edna Valley, other local wineries, and the California wine industry. Jean-Pierre Wolff, the owner and winemaker, joined us as well, and explained their techniques of dry-farming as well as their habitat restoration and aquifer recharging programs. Clint poured a great selection of wines; all were well received by the Flyers, and some quick weight and balance recalculations were needed as the purchases added up!

After exploring the town, we met up again for dinner at Cafe Roma. Good food, good wine, good company, and at the end we were joined by our host, Marco Rizzo. A pilot and owner of a B36 Bonanza, he had just flown back from Bermuda Dunes. He joined the conversation for a while, then gave us some of his own Zinfandel Port as a gift. All in all, a lovelyt day.

After breakfast Sunday morning, the group split up for departure. Some headed up to Morro Bay for lunch, while others headed straight back to Torrance. The weather continued clear and warm, and there were even tailwinds on the way back. Special thanks to Clint Grubb at Wolff Vineyards and Marko Rizzo at Cafe Romo for their help!