Saturday Dec. 3rd, 2011 Bayou City Flyers Monthly Meeting and Christmas Party

The Meeting & Party will be held at the Hacienda Guanajuato Mexican Restaurant from 1-3p.m. New officers for next year will be voted upon and besides good food cash door prizes will be given away.

An Email will be sent to those with email and a form will be posted on the tall cabinet inside the clubhouse for those with out email. This is open for Significant Others & Your Children Only. Please respond to the email with the total number of people including yourself that will be attending and include your full name, for those using the form in the clubhouse do the same and 'Print' your name please.

RSVP as soon as you can, we will not be able to take last minute arrivals as we 'Have' to let the restaurant how many people will attend.

Guanajuato Mexican Restaurant

1420 S. Mason Road

Katy, Tx.

(281) 693-2299

Ken Bailes Oct. 11, 1922 - Oct. 15, 2011

Ken passed away due to complications from COPD and Cancer. He is survived by his Wife Betty, Daughter Cathy, Son-in-law Larry and Grand Daughter Laurel. Ken had a variety of hobbies and the most recent was building and flying RC Airplanes. He will be missed by his fellow flyer's.

Memorial Services will be held on Wednesday October 19, 2001 at 10a.m. in the Second Baptist Church Chapel at Woodway and Voss.

Summer Heat Safety

By Ralph Grisaffe

   The woods at the North end of the runway is no place to play in the summer time; I lost a Falcon in there about two months ago and decided it was best to wait until the winter and let the foliage and leaves die, then finding it would be easy. However, this was plane number two a LT-40 on its maiden flight. It had been misbehaving on previous flights but was starting to settle down. Then out of nowhere, it took a death spiral into the woods about a hundred yards in and I knew I had to go in and get it right then. It was an extremely hot day around 105 degrees F. I went into the clubhouse, put on the snake boots, grabbed a machete for the vines and snakes, tanked up on water, and took off to find my plane. The under growth was thick and the briars were tugging at my feet at every step. The vines were thick as ropes and I had to change direction every 10 to 20 feet to avoid the thick growths of trees. I had been in the woods for about an hour and had moved about 75 yards when I grew tired, my legs had moved past the point of burn from fighting the briars and I realized I had stopped sweating, so I made my way to a clearing and sat down to rest. The heat was intense, no air was moving, and it was hot.

   It was when I went to get up after about 30 minutes of rest that I knew something was very wrong. My legs would not support me and I tumbled to the ground. I tried several more times without any luck. I considered my options. I knew I was dehydrated, but not the severity of it, I knew I couldn’t get out on my own power and I knew I wasn’t far from the field or the road.

  I had my cell phone but didn’t know anyone’s number that was flying that day. I dialed 911. I told them of my plight gave them directions to Scobee field. I told them to go to the field, ask for Ron and he would tell them where I went into the woods. Not 2 minutes later a deputy was on the phone and asking me where I was. I gave him my GPS coordinates of my cell phone. I told him I could see the R/C planes making their turns to the approach and hear the gunshots from the range across the road. A search and rescue effort had begun. It took about an hour and a half for them to find me, but finally a deputy came walking out of the forest, I was never so glad to see someone. He tried to help me to my feet but my legs were too weak to stand so he called for a green monster and a paramedic. A green monster is a small 4 wheel drive all terrain vehicle. The paramedic checked me over and confirmed that I was severely dehydrated, and my organs had begun to shut down. Three paramedics helped me into the green monster and hauled me about 50 yards out of the woods to a waiting ambulance. I spent another day in the hospital being probed and punctured, injected and re hydrated before they sent me home. The lesson here, no matter how prepared you think you are, when the thermometer gets above a hundred, stay out of the woods, or have a plan and a buddy that can come get you. I survived the ordeal with no permanent damage, but it was a very well learned lesson.

Keith's advice.

1. Give your Cell Phone Number to at least two other flyers or people that are at the field, or call a friend and tell them exactly where you are, i.e. Scobee Flying Field in George Bush Park and have them check on you every 10-minutes.

2. Drink lot's of fluids before you venture out to find your plane, we have a cooler of water in the club house and cups, also take water with you if you have a container for it or can borrow one or just go buy one.

3. Use the Rubber Boots or the Shin Guards we have in the clubhouse and take one of the Machetes we have near the boots. There are Dangerous Snakes, Wild Boar, Deer and Dangerous Spiders in the woods.

4. Don't push your luck, if your getting exhausted, disoriented or anything that may stop you from getting out of the woods call someone and rest for a few minutes, if you think you can't make it out call for help 911 and if you have the option with your phone give them your GPS coordinates.

5. Your life is worth more than your plane, remember that.

Also we have a new GPS unit that can be taken with you if your phone does not have one.

 

Earl just returned from 3 weeks at AMA HQ in Muncie where he worked as tech director for the 2011 F3A (Pattern) World Championship. The event was attended by 82 pilots from 31 countries. The US won the team trophy and bronze individual medal, with team members placing 3rd, 4th, & 11th. World Championship. Following the WC, Earl competed in the Pattern Nats, flying in the F3A class with the ZN Axial in the photo. NatsNews.