Oshkosh post-trip report

Well, I am back and finally into my normal routine after making the trek to and from Oshkosh. It was an awesome experience!

I arrived mid-morning Thursday at Appleton, where I was picked up by another volunteer for the show, Justin Lamb. It's about a 30-minute drive to Oshkosh from Appleton, so we were there in no time. I could tell that we were getting close when planes starting appearing in all directions.

Upon getting all checked into the hotel (which was *right* on the west end of runway 9/27), we headed over to the booth. It was very crowded, and I jumped right into the act of helping people out and answering questions. There's no telling just how many folks stopped by, but they came in droves!

That night, we all enjoyed a great dinner in Appleton at Vince Lombardi's Steakhouse in the company of many great folks including but not limited to: Fr. Bill Leaming, Ron Hamilton, Bob & Tom, Jim Campbell from Aero-News.net, and the booth team. If you're in Appleton for any length of time, this is a great place to dine!

The next several days were pretty much a blur consisting of helping people with machines that locked up (due to the intense heat), answering questions, watching airplanes take off and land atop the Hilton's sky deck, riding around in golf carts (which is the ultimate way to experience Oshkosh), and dodging intense thunderstorms.

Hat's off to the Microsoft team for really making this a first-class trip! It's certainly something I will not forget! Thanks guys!

A few pictures from the trip courtesy of Ron (click for larger shots):


Most common pose for me at the booth, ready to hit that darn "s" key!


Ron Hamilton and I.


Ron, myself, and Howard Bloom.


Standing next to Barrington Irving's Columbia 400.


Brian Adams of Eclipse Aviation and I.