Who is this guy? Just someone who happens to have 175 megs of webspace to do something with.  Aircraft and flying have been an interest of mine since I was a kid growing up in northern Idaho.  I had the opportunity to work at the local airport in Bonners Ferry when I was about 13-14.  The airport operators were also aerial applicators who needed someone to manage the airport while they were spraying.  Pretty good gig for someone that young; it was a very small airport, but hanging around airplanes and pilots was a great job.  When I moved to Oregon in 1978, I began flying again at Evergreen airport in Vancouver.  Back then you could rent a Champ or T-craft for $12 an hour wet, $18 an hour for dual time.  I had a Cessna 152 for a while, however owning a regular aircraft without a writeoff proved to be a little spendy.  When the ultralight emerged on the scene, I thought it was a significant breakthrough; the costs could be significantly reduced and the lack of government meddling is always a plus.  When the opportunity arose to acquire the sweet little example on the photo page, I decided that it was time to get back in the air.  Unlike most of the open, wire braced planes on the market this one is fully enclosed and has the third wheel on the tail where it belongs.

Why is the flag below the menu bar upside down?  The inverted flag symbolizes the egregious and flagrant criminal behaviour that George Bush, John Ashcroft, ant Tom Ridge are engaging in in their ruthless attacks on our Constitution and Bill of Rights.  Our country is under attack, but not from outside.  In maritime operations, it is customary to display an inverted flag to indicate that a vessle is in distress.  Well, it don't get much more distressing now, does it?  Not that I'm adverse to kicking the shit out of a bunch of assholes who have it in for us, but let's drop the pc bullshit and shake down the ones deserving; a bit of racial profiling was in order in WWII, there is a reason that it is effective, innit?

Disreputable pickup.  The '73 Datsun pictured is a cherished family member that I have had since 1990.  It has done a ton of work, and doesn't owe me anything, considering the purchase price was $100.  Discounting insurance, it has been incredibly cheap transportation.  All told, I probably have around $650 invested, tires, batteries, engine parts, etc.  If you have a similar story, please send it over.   Might make this a regular feature.

Here is a neat little feature I found via Ditsy.  Create your own states visited map.  Cool.

 
create your own visited states map or write about it on the open travel guide