Travels to Ohio and Beyond (June 1-June 7, 2018)

Great time during the Ohio Trip, visited a great place to get a hot dog in New Carisle, Ohio, visited Rising Sun, Indiana which is a fun town to explore on the Ohio River. We also on the return trip spent a short bit of time on one of my favorite motorcycle rides: The Blue Ridge Parkway. Got in a motorcycle ride in Ohio (which is on my Racing with the Wind blog site) and also visited the United States Air Force Museum which is the previous post. Had a remarkable time during the visit there...it was a fun filled 8 days!

National Museum of the United States Air Force (June1,2018)

 Always a favorite stop in the Dayton area, and a memorable place to visit. The US Air Force Museum is a hell of a thing to see and in my opinion one of the best aviation museums in the United States.
Actually happened after my visit but made a return stop to the nearby Wright Brothers Memorial.
The Memorial was dedicated in 1924, and present for the dedication was Orville Wright. A number of his flying students were also at the site.
The fields where they perfected their aircraft (the Wright Flyer III which is considered to be the first real practical aircraft are within sight from the hill. The first aircraft which flew at Kitty Hawk, NC flew but was very difficult to control. The III was amazingly better and the brothers set a number of time and distance records in that aircraft.

Here is what I really came to see...the Memphis Belle. It was the first plane (though that is the subject of some debate) to meet the mission numbers required to bring the crew home.
That number was 25 missions. Due to the lack of fighter support to German targets with the limited range of planes at that time, making 25 missions was very difficult. Not till later in the war with the advent of the P-51 Mustang did fighters accompany the bombers all the way into Germany and back.This restoration of this historic aircraft was in a word...remarkable.   

Couple of other favorites here. Above is the Boeing Bird of Prey. It was developed in the 1990's and was used to develop Stealth technology. The fact that it is named after the Klingon warship class from Star Trek is a plus in my book.
Below that is an F-22 Raptor and is one of the most interesting current aircraft of the United States Air Force. I have seen these flying at a number of air shows and they are nothing short of amazing.

Finally a great group photo. The amazing XB-70 which was a prototype bomber (and of the two is the sole surviving one). Also in the photo is an X-15, plus a number of X planes. A Gemini spacecraft (not flown) is in the photo as is Apollo 15. Flown with an all Air Force Crew in 1971 it was the fourth mission to land men on the moon.
The museum covers the entire history of the Air Force from per-World War I to the present day. Before someone says it...yeah was part of the Army until right after World War II. Museum is free and open to the public. 

Visit to Fort Lee (May 27, 2018)

 Debbie and I went on an exploration trip to Fort Lee. I was there a few years ago and once again went to see the US Army Quartermaster Museum. There are a lot of photos at the museum web site and quite a bit to see at this free museum. This is a Civil War supply wagon which is notable in that it carried supplies for one US Grant who commanded Union Forces during the Civil War. Many other interesting things can be found there. 

Lots of interesting items can be seen at the base, such as this T-12 bomb known as The Cloudmaker. It was designed to be used on the B-36 bomber though as far as I can tell it was never actually used in combat. It was in service from 1944-1948 and seems to have been designed to attack underground sites. The total weight of the bomb was a staggering 43,600 pounds. Lots more to see at this amazing military base in Virginia. 

Wedding Trip (May 1-3,2018)

 Headed out for a special trip to Virginia Beach for a three day trip. Took this photo of the beach at sunrise which is always a neat time to see the area.
Sunrises are beautiful on the water and it is really nice to be there. As for the crowds during the week it was not really bad. That is soon to change with summer getting closer and closer but so far it is not real bad.

We made a stop at the Virginia Military Aviation Museum which was a first time trip. Amazing collection of World War 2 aircraft and in addition they have one of the (if not THE) biggest collection of World War 2 Russian aircraft. I saw a number of things I have never seen there, and I have seen a number of aircraft over the years. This plane at left is a replica of the first Navy plane to land and take off on a carrier. 

Most of the World War 1 planes at the Virginia Military Aviation Museum  are replicas. NOT a replica were the F-18s which were flying around Virginia Beach. It was pretty cool seeing them zooming around the area. The base is not far from the hotels of Virginia Beach.
As both Debbie and I are Navy veterans it was fun to enjoy this, and in fact a few months ago we were at the air show held at the base (which is held pretty much every year). I have been there for a few of them. It was a ton of fun and I have some photos on this page.

The main reason to go to the area was that Debbie and I got married. It was a wonderful ceremony and I am very happy to have this wonderful woman as my wife.
I hope that we are going to have a wonderful life together and I am looking very forward to the future.
I love Debbie very, very much!!!

National Museum of the United States Marine Corps (April 14, 2018)

 After tehe visit to the National Air and Space Museum, Debbie and I stopped at the National Museum of the United States Marine Corps. Admission and parking are both free and this museum is truly remarkable giving the full history of the United States Marine Corps. I served in the US Navy and was honored to know a few Marines in the day....tend to be outstanding people.   

Many aircraft to see at the museum such as the Harrier above and many great historical artifacts such as the flag at left that flew at Iwo Jima in World War 2. I was amazed at many of the sights I saw in the museum and if you can find the time to visit you will find a visit to this museum is well worth it.

National Air and Space Museum, Chantilly, VA (April 14, 2018)

 A favorite place to visit and this time brought my soon to be wife Debbie with me. This museum is actually sort of the "annex" as it is the second of the two museums in the Washington, DC area, this one located outside of the actual city. This plane is of note, and is famous for being the last remaining actual plane that was in Pearl Harbor on  December 7, 1941. The damage is from age, not from the attack.

Not so damaged is the Space Shuttle Discovery seen at the museum. They wanted to display it with a "just back from Space look", so NASA delivered it (after removing some of the dangerous chemicals) inside it.
A little more damaged (and like the plane above a little worn) is the guy in front. That's me....and Debbie took this photo.
Always enjoy seeing this remarkable spacecraft. There are a number of bigger aircraft here...the Enola Gay, the SR-71, the Boeing 747 and the Concorde are just a few of the ones you can see.     

Lots of really older planes from World War 1 and even a few older flying machines are at the museum. It is a great place to visit if you are ever in the area. Parking is $15 but admission is free and well worth it. It is one of the many things to see in the Washington, DC region and believe me there are quite a few more. 

Riding the RVA

 March 31 was a nice day to get out and one of the first times in a while to get out on two wheels. It is one of my favorite ways to get out to explore Richmond for a number of reasons.
Went to see a number of things. Those included the baseball stadium (aka "The Diamond" ) and also to the racetrack (aka Richmond International Raceway) which can be seen at left (the track being in the background as it was closed for "Easter Weekend". Ride up saw a number of cherry trees, while not yet blooming in Washington, DC they are in full bloom here.

From that area rode back to Monument Avenue where I got this photo of the Jefferson Davis Memorial. Not debating the wisdom of honoring the man, but this at any case is his monument.
Rode some more around Richmond. Oh while I was out made a short refreshment stop at Hardywood Brewing for a bit of ale. Some pretty tasty beverages there and its a favorite of mine (that and Legend Brewing).
All in all it was a really good ride and a wonderful day to do it. Spring is finally coming to the area after a winter that did not seem to want to end, and that is going to be a fun thing. My two favorite seasons are Spring and Fall and looking forward to making the most of the Spring season. There will be a lot to see and do...and it is my plan to see it, and do it.