EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2015: First Weekend Setup

Fred Harl and Carmelo Turdo

The Aero Experience continues the coverage of our arrival and first weekend setup activities at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2015.  In our previous feature, we gave some views of our accommodations and the general layout of the airport grounds we would have to navigate over the next week.  Following the storm that blew through on Saturday morning, final setup preparations continued throughout the first weekend.  During the previous weeks, virtually everything that was not a permanent building had to be rebuilt and made ready for the exhibitors and staff use.  Yes, the photos of flashy airshow performers and aircraft of every type will pervade aviation media for some time to come, but a chronicle of the gritty grounds crew work is necessary before the fun can begin.  We have a few views of the first weekend setup activities here below, and we will add more as we feature the exhibitors later in this series.  

      



 

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2015: The Aero Experience Team Gets Started at the Greatest Show Off Earth

Fred Harl and Carmelo Turdo

The Aero Experience Team is now well into the process of sorting and cataloging the many thousands of pieces of media we collected during our visit to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2015, with much more work to be done.  We are fortunate to have such great sponsors, Air Associates of Missouri and Air Associates of Kansas, who support our efforts to report on the biggest aviation event of the year.  Over the last three seasons, we have made new friends in the aviation and media industries and established a reputation for providing year-round coverage of EAA AirVenture Oshkosh in a way that reinforces the progress of the Midwest aviation community.  Our offerings in the coming year will promise to be our most comprehensive, and we hope most engaging, to date.

In this early feature, we will begin at the beginning - getting to our lodging and seeing the first signs of the grounds on the weekend prior to the week of activity.  We spent our third year at Sleepy Hollow Farms Campground, just west of the main airport grounds entrance.  As with any national event, finding accommodations can be challenging, especially the first time around.  We also needed a place to stay for 10 days that provided an affordable, secure and comfortable environment to do some media work on the mass of material we would collect.  The helpful staff at Sleepy Hollow Farms Campground worked with us to find a solution - a Camping Cabin Plus with bathroom and air-conditioning!  It has worked well for two adults, providing a great place to stage our excursions and return to clean up and get ready for another day of great aero experiences.  We would like to thank the Bartel family for their great customer service and old-fashioned, hard-working family business ethics.  Here are some views of the accommodations available.  Contact Sleepy Hollow Farms Campground early for next year's EAA AirVenture Oshkosh reservations.


      


 

Following our arrival, we were introduced to a traditional Oshkosh storm.  The weather always plays a unique role in the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh activities: 2013 was cold, 2014 was rainy, and 2015 was greeted with a significant storm on Saturday morning, with lots of wind, rain and humidity.  We would find out later that this year would be warmer than the two previous years, with the humidity remaining throughout our visit.  It was still 8-10 degrees cooler than it was in Missouri, with periodic storm fronts that seemed to bypass the main grounds, so altogether a reasonably good weather report.  Below are the effects of the Saturday morning storm, that thankfully was the worst weather of the week.

 

The main grounds were a short walk away (or even shorter cart ride) from the camp.  Visitors to EAA AirVenture Oshkosh learn one tip very quickly once they arrive: orient yourself with the control tower and navigate from that reference point.  The only object visible from almost any line of sight from your location is the tower, so get your map, find the tower, and start your journey.  The tower seems to grow from a tree as we approach from the west.

 

The next waypoint for navigating the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh grounds is the Bus Park.  If you would like to get a ride to a portion of the far-flung territories, the buses and "trams" will take you to most areas.  Buses go to the EAA AirVenture Museum and Seaplane Base, while the John Deere-powered "trams" take you along the main roads to the tower, Warbirds, Vintage Aircraft, Ultralights, Forums and Workshops.  Of course, EAA staff have a plethora of golf carts buzzing about as well!

 

 

We have just scratched the surface of the scope of the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2015 experience.  Check back often for our year-long coverage!

St. Louis Area Native Set to Dazzle the Crowds at the Airshow of Warsaw Next Weekend

St. Louis area native and Extreme Flight

By Carmelo Turdo

Pitts Special pilot, Patrick McAlee, will be performing his latest high-energy aerobatic show and participate in a Pitts Pass in Review at the Airshow of Warsaw next weekend. The devilishly handsome Pitts S-1 "Blue Demon" will tear up the skies over Warsaw, IN and McAlee will show the crowds why he is on his way to becoming a household name as he builds an impressive record of airshow performances around the Midwest.  Once back on the ground, however, he will reveal his congenial nature and demonstrate his willingness to visit with the airshow audience.  Be sure to be there for this great Midwest Aviation event and look for the "Blue Demon" overhead!