MyTampaLife » Air, Sea and Land

Sun N Fun: Spring Break for Pilots, Picture Opportunity for Me

Denis Baldwin — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 14:58:00 +0000

I love a good airshow. I kick myself for not having gone to Sun N Fun before, considering I used to live in Lakeland where it is hosted every year.

This Sun N Fun featured every facet of flight that I person could be interested in. Billed as “Spring Break for Pilots”, hundreds of small aircraft fly in from all over the world. You’ll see Cessnas, small private prop planes, warbirds and jets all converge onto this site for five days of fun, aerial acrobatics and exhibition.

For non-pilots like me, there are a few hurdles to enjoying the show. Firstly, the organizers don’t make it apparent where to park or what to do. I drove around the Lakeland Linder airport a dozen times, asking various people posted at gates what to do. No one seemed to know. I finally ended up parking in the only place I could find, walking a half mile to the ticket booth, walking another half mile or so to the tarmack and taking my spot next to the runway.

Secondly, the way the exhibits are laid out are different than most festivals. There were a couple of small food/drink shops set up but they were all clustered together. Usually, they are spread apart for easy access no matter where the crowd is. Thirdly, the bathrooms were all at the very back of the show instead of being strategically placed. None of these are deal breakers, but it did make tasks that are normally integrated difficult if you planned on being at the show all day.

The airshow itself was quite nice. As I got there, a series of four Aeroshell acrobat planes took to the skies and performed a number of maneuvers.

Next, the Navy’s F-18 came out and performed a series of high speed and low speed tricks. Here you can see a slow pass at less than 100MPH. It amazes me how they can keep such a heavy plane aloft at such low speeds, but it’s just one of the many features of this jet.

Just watching it take off at near vertical was incredible.

The fact that it could turn upside down in almost zero time was incredible too. At one point, the pilot continued to barrel roll across the staging area.

But slow isn’t what these jets are known for. I’ve seen jets in afterburner before as they pass Mach 1.1, but this one had an exceptionally long vapor trail. I was really hoping he would create a sonic boom, but no such luck.

Talk about control! Here you see the burners as he turned hard left and banked on the axis. This whole maneuver took less than a second and he was going the other direction.

At the end of the jet show, a jet and a warbird did a banana pass together, showing off their underbellies.

The staging area was filled with warbirds from the WW2 and post-WW2 era. Every time I get near one of these beauties, I’m amazed by how impressive they really are. It’s like standing next to a bomb, or a drag racer. So much innovation went into something the designs 50 to 70 years ago. Even though we have planes that are faster and better in every way now, it’s amazing to me how much they got done with the technology available at the time.

The crowd was attentive, even between shows. Here you see the lawn by the tarmac, filled with people video taping and grabbing photos.

Sun-N-Fun returns to Lakeland next spring. I’m hoping I can spend the whole weekend there, as just have one day isn’t enough to take in even a fraction of the whole experience.

For the complete photo set, see the gallery:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/denisbaldwin/sets/72157617268438305/

Sun N Fun Flies into Lakeland this weekend

Denis Baldwin — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:05:00 +0000

The yearly festival of flight, Sun N Fun, flies into Lakeland this weekend.

From the Sun-N-Fun Website:

Welcome to Sun ‘n Fun! We’re often asked “what is Sun ‘n Fun”? That’s not an easy question to answer, because the truth is, it depends on who you ask. Like the old proverb about the blind men who offered widely different descriptions of an elephant, it depends on how you experience it!

Most people refer to us as a “fly-in” and that’s certainly an important component, as Lakeland Linder Regional Airport becomes the busiest airport in the world during our event, with over 40,000 recorded aircraft movements! That’s busier than Atlanta or Chicago!

We are also host to one of the largest aviation tradeshow/conventions in the world with more than 500 commercial exhibitors showcasing the newest products in the industry. From multi-million dollar aircraft to aviation art and avionics, our vendors have something for just about everyone. Plus, our education corridor is filled with more than 400 hands-on workshops and forums, all taking place during the six-day event known around the world as “Sun ‘n Fun”.

And, don’t forget the daily airshow, Friday “night” airshow, Saturday morning balloon race, kids activities, aviation lectures at the Florida Air Musuem, and numerous food vendors and daily entertainment that goes well into the evening. Thousands of guests who just can’t get enough Sun ‘n Fun join us in the on-site campground, to awaken every day to the seductive sound of aircraft engines.
We hope the information within this site will give you a glimpse into this event we call “Sun ‘n Fun” and encourage you to visit us and find out for yourself why tens of thousands of aviation enthusiasts travel from around the globe to be here every April for a six-day celebration of all things aviation. There’s someone for everyone at Sun ‘n Fun!

http://www.sun-n-fun.org/

Events start today and run until Sunday the 26th. I’ll be there sometime over the weekend to take photos.

Strawberry Classic Car Show

Denis Baldwin — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 12:42:00 +0000

When Plant City puts on the Strawberry Classic, it puts on a show! At over 800 cars spreading throughout the downtown area, there is something for everyone to see. I spent 3 hours walking around, took over 600 pictures, and I still didn’t see probably half of the show. As the show progressed, all of downtown Plant City was filled bumper-to-bumper with classics, hot rods, muscle cars and more.

I ended up getting there at 4:30 on Saturday, just in time to realize there was no parking left. A drive about 3/4 of a mile away finally revealed a spot, so I parked and made my way back through the collection of cars, shooting photos as I walked.

Some of the cars I saw were obvious collector cars, fully restored to their former glory. Others were modified for racing, such as this bastard frankenstein of ford mustang and chevy engine.

Others were obvious works in progress, ranging from “missing some finish pieces” all the way to “really, really needs body work.” Whatever the condition, it seemed that all of the people out here had the same passion for automobiles that would drive them to spend their savings, bust their knuckles on rusty parts and otherwise obsess over a couple tons of steel on wheels.

The Bucketrods and Ratrods made a big appearance too.

Some of the customs went to extremes, including completely re-sculpting body lines to chop heights, stretch length or otherwise skew a vehicle to a new purpose. Here’s a good example of that in a race application VW Bug.

For those interested in racing, you’d definitely appreciate some of the crazy horsepower these machines build.

For the full photo set, check out this link:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/denisbaldwin/sets/72157616994830883/

Weekly Classic Car Show at Ricks on the River

Denis Baldwin — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 12:03:00 +0000

It seems the Miata guys have some company on Wednesday nights at Ricks on the River (2305 N Willow Ave, Tampa, FL 33607, (813) 251-0369). Throughout the spring and summer, Rick’s is hosting a Hot Rod/Classic Car night on Wednesdays from 7PM to 9PM. This past week was the first week of it and there was a pretty small showing (about 15 cars), but next week looks to be even better.

Here’s some photos of this past week’s event:

12th ANNIVERSARY STRAWBERRY CLASSIC CAR SHOW IN PLANT CITY

Denis Baldwin — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 16:11:00 +0000

The Plant City Strawberry Classic Car Show will celebrate its 12th anniversary this Saturday, April 18 from 4 to 9 p.m. in downtown Plant City with their biggest Strawberry Classic Car Show of the year – all for free.

Cars and trucks from 1984 and older will be on display in and around McCall Park, 100 N. Collins St. Six Sponsor’s Choice plaques will be awarded.

The Tampa Bay Classic Chevy Club will be present with more than a dozen 1955-1972 Chevrolets. Lakeland Region Model A Club will have over ten 1928-1931 Model A Ford Vehicles at the 12th Anniversary Show.

Registration begins at 3 p.m. and is free. Dash plaques will be given to the first 200 registered vehicles.

In addition to the spectacular array of vehicles to browse, there will be vendors of food, auto accessories, crafts and more, with live entertainment by Down Home Sounds, featuring Bluegrass, Country, Traditional and Gospel music. A 50/50 drawing will be held, and local restaurants and shops will remain open for the event.

Admission is free as well as free parking on neighboring streets and area parking lots.

For information on the 12th Anniversary Strawberry Classic Car Show, contact the Greater Plant City Chamber of Commerce at 813-754-3707, toll-free at 800-760-2315 or log on to www.plantcity.org.

Airfest Air Show at Mac Dill Air Force Base

Denis Baldwin — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 18:33:00 +0000

I could probably sum up my entire day at the AirFest air show at Mac Dill Air Force Base in just three words: “America, Fuck Yeah.” Never have I seen such blatant nationalism, mixing the chauvinistic strut and machismo of the modern military industrial complex with the power and beautiful of well engineered aircraft both of current militia and of days gone past.

The crowd was as thick as fleas, packing in even as the gates opened with tens of thousands of spectators hoping to catch a glimpse at a piece of flying history or the boom of a modern fighter going supersonic.

Amongst the standing exhibits were a series of bombers and support planes that the military currently sues. You could stand in line to take a full in-and-out tour of a few of them, though I chose to avoid that mess and wait for the aviary showpieces.

At about 11AM, the first big bomber/refueler made a pass. It was a lot louder than I remember from my previous experience with low flying jets, though it was more than made up for in “cool points” by watching the fuel rail descending far behind the plane. I would have loved to see an actual refueling take place mid-flight, but they would not have had the airspace to do this while being at all practical for those of us on the ground.

Following the bomber’s run, a series of older prop planes made passes. Around noon, the show heated up with an A-10 Thunderbolt and a trio of planes from the last 60 years of flight in formation. It was really a neat sight to behold, especially for a plane enthusiast like myself.

I opted to duck out around 1:00, as I had other things to do. Of course, this would never go as planned. The problem with having thousands of people in one place is that you easily lose your vehicle. After 40 minutes of walking, myself and a band of other lost souls eventually found my car and used it to round up their cars. While this was happening, planes continued to fly overhead and the cheers of the crowd could be hear a quarter mile away.

Leaving the airshow was a challenge as well. The outgoing traffic was at a dead stop for several minutes at a time as military personnel waved up through. This is really something you’ll want to make an all day event of in 2010, as trying to get in or out quickly is impossible.

Additional Photos I took can be found here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/denisbaldwin/sets/72157616125083734/

In addition, here are a few photos taken by my friend, Andrew Cooke SSgt USAF:

Here’s some images of the event from George at BrassBowl.net:

SPRING ANTIQUE CLASSIC AUTO EXPO 2009

Denis Baldwin — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 13:01:00 +0000

When it comes to car shows, particularly antique car shows, more is better. I loved the Lake Mirror Classic in Lakeland. There were literally hundreds of cars of every pedigree and every year on display. I was excited about the Ybor Market’s Spring Antique Classic Auto Expo because it was billed to me as a show along the same scope. I was expecting 100+ cars. I was disappointed to find less than 20 there.

That said, the cars that lined the one single street were impressive, for the most part. There were a few muscle cars and a few old cruiser cars. All were clean and well done. I simply wish that there were more cars to look at. From beginning to end, including taking pictures front and back of each vehicle, I was in and out in less than 20 minutes.

Here’s some select photos from the event.

… and here’s the rest:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/denisbaldwin/sets/72157615262583633/

Tampa Import Car Show @ Advance Auto Parts

Denis Baldwin — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 06:23:00 +0000

When: Wednesday March 25th, 2009 @ 4PM Where: Advance Auto Parts, 16209 North Dale Mabry, Tampa FL What: Car show, Import Contest Free Dinner! Door Prizes! Giveaways! Entertainment! Related posts:12th ANNIVERSARY STRAWBERRY CLASSIC CAR SHOW IN PLANT CITY SPRING ANTIQUE CLASSIC AUTO EXPO 2009 March 19th-21st, “Tampa Bay In The Future” Chalk Walk Art Event [...] Related posts:

Plant City Bike Fest

Denis Baldwin — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 13:44:00 +0000

The thunder of the engines could be heard for miles as they rolled into Plant City’s main street around 5PM on Saturday. Plant City’s Bike Fest brought in hundreds of motorcycles of every variety under the common goal of showing off each owner’s love of riding.

There were a lot of classic and contemporary Harleys, as well as every other iron make and model you can imagine.

The chopper crowd came out in force. Some of the owners spent almost as much on their paint as they did the structure of their bikes. Truly amazing detail is put into many of these rolling works of art.

There were a few Bike-Buggy hybrids as well, including “Boomer”, a trike with rear-mounted engine seen here.

A band played a mix of classic rock behind the wall of trophies, celebrating the winners in the various categories.

Trailer-pulled BBQ was served as well. Sure smelled good.

Going to this show makes me wish I had a motorcycle again. Perhaps in the next year or so, I’ll get back on a hog and back out on the road.