KSGF News
January 2001

President’s Message - Snow – Bill Cheek

Record snowfall with record cold gets in the way of all sorts of things. Snow and cold get in the way of gatherings. I was disappointed, as were others, that the annual Christmas party with the Ozarks Chapter had to be canceled. It was a tough call for Ozarks Chapter President, Mike Ramirez, but looking back, it was the wise thing to do. We'll just have to make next year's event that much more festive to help make up for this year's loss.

Winter weather makes it more difficult to do much flying. I mentioned in the December newsletter that, while the cold and snow was with us, I was going to try to catch up on some reading and maybe play with my flight simulator. Scratch the simulator, but I did read several articles that had been set aside for a quiet day. Maret and I drove to Madison, WI, between Christmas and her family (Okay, more correctly, our grandson and his parents). Going north certainly didn't get us away from snow and cold. We have been making winter visits to the northland for several years, but this is the first time there was snow cover over the entire 600+ miles between SGF and MSN and there was a lot of it. I toyed with the thought of renting a plane and trying some truly cold weather flying while in Madison, but 500 foot ceilings all but one day, along with the cold, made reading a better option for filling time between playing with grandson Lucas and taking naps. We decided on the trip back that late December is really a dumb time to go north.

The snow and cold has made it more difficult to fly but I've been able to get into the air more than I anticipated. I have been making not-so-subtle hints for two or three years that I really "needed" a GPS. Maret rewarded my hints (she might say "nagging" is more accurate) with a Christmas gift (and, as I understand, birthday, father's day, anniversary, and any other gift for several years). Mike Quint and I tried out the Garmin 195 during a flight to Springdale on a recent sunny Saturday. And, if I can ever learn how to use more than the HSI and moving map, the GPS will be helpful to have along. There were also a couple of days pretty enough for Earl Holmer to check me out for this year's WINGS program. The Missouri Pilots Association is in another "contest" through March with our fellow pilots in Kansas. I challenge all in the SGF Chapter to help not only the state to win the trophy this year, but also to see that we have the highest percentage of members completing WINGS for all Missouri Chapters.

Even when we can't fly as much as we would like, we do have the opportunity to gather with fellow pilots and talk about flying. We have excellent programs scheduled for our January 16 and February 20 meetings. I'll see you there. In the meantime -- Think Spring!

January Meeting

This month's meeting is on Tuesday, January 16th, at the Café SGF. Springfield Branson/Regional Airport, Buffet is at 7:00 P.M. Cost is $10.00 per person. Social Hour is at 6:30 P.M. Program: Missouri Pilots Association president and SGF Chapter member, Jerry McClure, will present opportunities and challenges facing Missouri general aviation in 2001.

Calendar of Events

1/14 MPA Board Meeting, 12 Noon Lunch at Bledsoe's Restaurant, Columbia Regional Airport,
Columbia, MO., Board Meets at 1:00 P.M. All MPA Members Welcome!

1/18 FAA Aviation Safety Seminar, Cox Hospital N. Fountain Plaza Room, 1423 N Jefferson Ave.
7:00-9:00p.m. Program: NOS Charts.

for our January Aviation Safety Corner
for our January Flying Journal
to return to our Main Page

Roger Ferguson, your editor wishes you and yours a ...




Return to the MPA Home Page

  Visit the new web site for EAA Chapter 821