Tuesday, May 28, 2019

National Museum of the United States Air Force (May 27, 2019)

Being Memorial Day, went to the National Museum of the United States Air Force to see the museum to pay tribute to the men and women who paid the ultimate price in the wars which the country has fought in.
These are 1930's era planes and in fact are the real deal as most of the planes in the Early Years gallery are.
Sadly as I write this the day after, the area of Dayton got pounded by tornadoes and one of the areas pounded was the Early Years Gallery of the Museum. No reports of the extent of the damage at this time. 
I also went to see the Space Suit exhibit. They had some from the Mercury, Gemini, Apollo (space ship and also the moon walking suits), and the space shuttle suits (orange suit at right in left photo) and space walking suit which is seen in photo at left.
Amazing display though these were not the actual suits used, but it was of these types. I assume these were spare suits or left over from flights. At any case a real nice display and enjoyed seeing these.
I am a big fan of space and flight and the museum has a very nice display of spacecraft. There is a Mercury and Gemini spacecraft as well as the actual command module from Apollo 15. Sure that can be seen in previous pages. Though I have not been in Ohio all that long, I have been here a number of times. It is close to the house and just a wonderful place to visit. Made a few trips to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum(s) in Washington, and this is on a par with those.     
Lots of interesting aircraft there. This is one of the Bell X-1's (the improved B model) which was used for research and development. Most of the X-Planes are there including the amazing X-15 and all inbetween as well as some beyond. It is just an amazing place to visit and always look forward to going there. It is one of the great treasures in the Dayton area.
I made a motorcycle ride to get there, and have put some photos from the ride on my "Ohio and Me" page which is part of this site.
Thank you for visiting my pages! 

Monday, May 20, 2019

Ride to the Bike Shop (May 18, 2019)

Got up Saturday morning to a beautiful day and decided to get the bike out for a ride. Kind of a purpose to the ride as I am looking for a motorcycle shop to take care of the maintenance things on it that I either don't know how to do or don't want to do. Don't know how things would be such as valve adjustments. Don't want to do things would be such as tire changes. Now before you think I am a complete moron on the previous motorcycles I did such things as brake pads, battery changes, spark plug replacement and I do all my own oil changes. In fact just a few miles away from the oil change on the Triumph and this was the next to last ride before doing that.
In fact talked with the parts lady at Joe's Cycle Shop and she mentioned Triumph parts they still have in stock. That included crush washers and I got a new one. Usually did not change them on the Kawasaki Vulcan but for the Triumph figured might as well get one.   
Joe's Cycle Shop is located in Dayton, Ohio. Nice ride to get there and a nice shop. They USED to be a Triumph dealer but no longer are, but I was told they still have the knowledge to work on them, as they quit in 2016. By luck my bike is also a 2016.
Don't think the bike at right is for sale, but they do have some zero mile 2016 Triumph's on hand there. I have sure been happy with mine and have no problems to report as I close in on three years of ownership. It's a fun motorcycle to ride and looking forward to many more. 


 
I made a few more stops while out. Debbie and I had driven by this cemetery in the car, as it was in the area, I made a stop and explored it. It is a very nice one, but not a whole lot of history there. Did not see any Union soldier graves in the Union Section of Willow View Cemetery in Dayton, Ohio. Still it was a nice short walk.
It was a wonderful 39 mile ride on Saturday. I love riding on the early morning days of the weekend. Traffic is normally very light and it is fun to explore in the new light of the day. It was a lot of fun and looking forward to the next ride very soon! 

Wednesday, May 8, 2019

Spring by the lake (May 8, 2019)

Spring is upon us here in Ohio and its a time of new life. The flowers are colorful, the trees are blooming (sadly the pollen is flying) and yes...duck families are crossing the street. It is a wonderful time of year and have been enjoying many sights such as these around the area. 
Geese are also raising their babies as seen in the photo at left. While the ducks due not seem overly concerned with people taking photos, the geese are amazingly protective of their young.
Geese in the area usually start honking when someone is nearby while the mother and father for lack of a better term...bark at me.
I give them a good distance and stand well clear. Got a good camera with a good zoom and was able to get this photo.
I find all of this amazing and really enjoy the early morning and evening walks around the area to get photos and to just enjoy the wonders of nature and all it has to offer 
As I have said, its blooming around here. Fun to just check out the sights, the sounds and the smells that can be experienced here.
This is my first Spring living in Ohio and I am enjoying it a great deal. Fun both to ride the motorcycle and to check out the neighborhood I live in.
It is all still a new adventure and having a wonderful time here.

Late Winter Update (February 18, 2024)

February has been an interesting month here in Central Ohio. Seen some visiting birds, and some fantastic regular residents here at the lake...