It's a New Year...

Happy lil' halloween pumpkin. (just fed the rotting corpse to some pigs up the road)

Lia and I at Desoto Falls state park on our third anniversary

after landing on the west coast from Mt. Tamalpias just north of San Francisco

Almost forgot my password it's been so long since i've gotten over here. Kinda lost the feel for where all these letters on the keyboard are placed, not that I ever really new where they were to start with. So hows it going? was 2010 a good year for you? Well I had a great time last year! It started on the first day of the year with an awesome flight to the point and back in below freezeing temps. with Eric and James!!! Then we went to Disney World with Lia's mother Sondra and her husband Gary. In again, freezeing temps. Then my beautiful wife started her Hoop Dance buisiness HOOPTONIC and started makeing hulahoops (for adult bodies) and giving lessons at several different studios around the area. Plus working her HOT lil' body into an even more finely tuned instrument of Mother Nature!!! (anyone need a hoop?) I painted a cool nose pod for Mike at Skycycle Trikes. We worked the Shriners Circus. I went to N.Cali. for a bit o' work, flew alot, played a bunch, drove across the country with Eric to FLY YOSEMITE!!! and other amazing sites! Incredible Trip!!! Had a record year doing the fall fairs! Hung out with friends and family, painted a bunch of folks for Halloween. and a couple pumkins... Thanksgiving, with my family. White Christmas with Lia's. New Years Eve with friends. It rained almost all day for the New Year. Carl was the only pilot to go fly when the conditions cleared up just before dark. Then the 2nd day of the year it was blowin' in!!! Perfect day for a flight to the point! Lia said "go, have fun" So I did!!! Eric and I made a plan to fly to the point, then continue over the river past the mental health facility, towards a golf course I had not even noticed before this day. Eric talked to "tree Dale" about driving for us, and he was happy to, thanks Dale! Many gliders in the sky and lots of flights to the point and back. Kieth Bien for his birthday!!! Don and Stacy Murdock on a tandem didn't quite make it back. Newer pilot Jonathan Cocker had his first out and back!!! Congrats!!! and after a less than comfortable launch, (right wing dropped to close to the streamer on launch) I was on the way. Eric and his wing are fast fliers so I didn't wait around for him, I just went. Slowed in some strong lift and hauled butt in some strong sink. got to 1300 over at one point and arrived at the point with about 800 ft. lost some of that waiting on Eric but still high enough for the jump when he showed up. It was his plan and he had a couple hundred feet on me so I was happy to let him lead the way. It was strong on the ground and at one point Eric got scared and thought maybe we should turn back and land in the giant field next to the river back at the hospital. I didn't notice his signals and since I was lower I just kept going. Once over the golf course I studied our options, looked for power lines, fences,and golfers, then picked what looked like the safest line and went for it. (I was a bit nervous myself, but new we had this) I dove in over a tree into this little slot across a fairway, over a tee box, past passed a cart path towards a flag on a green straight ahead for a sweet two step landing!!! I new Eric was gonna be right behind me so just started running the glider out of his way. He took the same approach as me but with a bit more glide. As his glider started slowing down he found himself over a sandtrap full of water, streched it just a few more feet for a great no step landing on the green just before hitting the flag pole!!! With both of us safe on the ground we congratulated each other and waited for someone to come and ask what the heck we were doing there. No body came, except for Dale. He was there before we got the wings packed away. (good drivers are worth a mexican dinner at least) Got home after dark and floated on the excitment till bed time. Life is Good! Now Lia and I are getting ready to head south to see her Father in Tallahasee, go to the Dali museum in St. petersburg, then get on a cruise ship to Cozumel for a few days!!! Maybe since I,ve gotten back on this I can write about the trip when we get back home. Till then I can't belive you read all this. Should it have been more than one paragraph? Yea Lia thought so as well. ( if I include any pics. they are just randome from last year)

FLEW YOSEMITE

YEP, I'm still here. Maybe I didn't have anything to say. Or, maybe I thought the world was gonna fill up with explosive fumes from the oil spill and someone was gonna blow us all to pieces when lighting a cigarette. Or maybe I just didn't care for a while. WHATEVER, I'm sitting here now one finger punching keys to let ALL OF YOU know that it ain't over yet. The last time I was here Lia and I were doing the Shriners Circus. We survived another year. Then I went to California to do some work for my brother in law. I love northern Cali... someday maybe we'll get stuck back out there for a while again, or maybe not. Then I was really busy kicking a hacky sack and standing around with my friends. Then... Lucas, Eric, and I started talking about a trip we had thought of after we filmed the "Avatar" video. We wanted to head out west and fly some sites on the way and then fly Yosemite!!! We talked about a date, checked out the Yosemite hang glide site and signed up for a weekend. It was already full. So we signed up for the next weekend. We got a spot! Then Lucas found out about a job that needed to be done during the time of the drive. Unfortunatly for Lucas he is more responsible then either Eric or myself, so we told him to bugger off and got a rental car and left. Sorry Lucas.:-( We ended up flying 7 sites in 13 days and put over 6000 miles on the rental! Eric made a really awesome video of the trip and then had to cut about 5 min. of it out so it would fit on the WORLD WIDE WEB. it's still a cool video, just makes him look way cooler than me. and maybe I just have to be OK with the fact that he probley is anyway. Check it out on his site. Link over to the right somewhere. So I didn't get a video of my flight at Yosemite, which was INCREDIBLE!!! But some folks were there taking pictures so here are a couple they sent to us.




I hope to make a cool video of some of the footage I did get from other sites I flew and more of the story about the trip. But I don't know how yet. Till then... Peace

nothing exciting here

So it's been a couple weeks since i posted anything, well that's because there ain,t been much to write about. The Eagle Head nose cone spent a week in Florida with Mike and his trikes. He said it got a lot of attention and bunches of pictures taken of it, but I don't belive it won him anything, he did that just with his awesome trikes the way they are! I belive he won two catagories (can't remember what they are) this makes his forth year in a row of taking home at least one or more trophes!!! (spell trofee for me) Congrats Mike!!! You can look him up at Sky Cycle Trikes (try, flyhardtrikes.com) and check out his site. I'd put a link but Eric ain't here to show me (again) how to do it. That's because he and Lucas are down in Florida at the Flytec Race and Rally trying to fly home to Ga. or where ever the daily winds dictate the course line. I have BIG HOPES for them as i'm one of their biggest fans and like to live through their youthful adventures without all the work or money it takes, and we know they won't get lost because they have retreive driver extrodinaire TREE DALE following them everyday. GOOD LUCK boys!!! Oh, me. Yeah... Lia and I are outside Atlanta at the largest Shrine Circus in the country (that's what i'm told, maybe the longest running) and we are just having a great time. (sarcasume) if that's how it spelled) Remember all the bad weather around the south last saturday? Well Lia got to experiance her first ever $0.00 saturday at a fair! I've been doing this so long it wasn't my first, but it still doesn't feel good. Yesterday was better but a Saturday can be up to 25% of this spot as the week days are just that, WEAK DAYS. Whatever, it's allgood and maybe i'll take a picture or two of our booth and all the Clowns that hang around it all afternoon. Many of them are in makeup. Till then... find something more interesting to look at or read.

COOL PAINT JOB, finally done!

A friend of mine, Mike Theeke, has a buissness building ultralights and teaching people how to fly them. Sky Cycle Trikes is what they are called, and last year at the largest ultralight festival in the world (i think), Sun & Fun, Mike took the Grand Champion prize! He has won awards the last few years and has a reputation to keep up, so along with his hard work he has started adding art work to them. His father in-law is a painter and has done some beautiful flip-flop paint jobs (paint changes color with light) and some flame jobs that really grab the eye. But Mike wanted something else, something different than anything he has done or seen on a trike. So he brought me a couple pieces of fiberglass that were just made. A front fender and a nose cone. Raw fiberglass, Hmmm... I don't paint on raw stuff. I don't have a paint booth, or a large paint gun, or hundreds of dollors of auto paint, or quality clear coat to protect my artwork when I'm done. Plus it was a really cold and wet winter. So after much thought and some research I decided I didn't want to take on the prep or finish work so I took the pieces to a paint and body shop and paid to have the work done right. $350.00 later I had a nice smooth primed, painted and cleared canvas to start working on. I had the guy clear the paint so I could sand it down some to give the surface some "tooth" so my paint could have a good area to stick to. It was a pain in my butt. Trying to take a rounded shape and try and turn it into an Eagle head. A bunch of thought, tape, more thought and paint. Sandpaper and more thinking. Some more paint, then paint thinner on a rag to take it all off. Disrupted sleep, aggitated wife because of my mood swings, more taping and painting. Then it started to happen, an image that I might be able to work with. The paint I use is an old time sign painters paint and a favorite for pinstripers of the "oldschool" days. It is great paint but takes hours to dry. The work was long and painful to my simple little brain (I would venture to guess no less than 5000 strokes with the airbrush in the "texture" areas) overlays, repairs, analness) but after 30 or so hours my work was done and all I had to do was have the paint guy add a few more coats of clear. We decided to throw a bit of pearl finish in the clear to give it a shimmer in the sun that really looks great! Mike came by to pick it up, he loved the work but was caught off guard with the invoice. I HATE the buissness part of working, so after a bit of discussion and some thought on future work all was good. He will just have to get the next buyer to pay for an all original, one of a kind trike. Here are some pictures before the pieces get installed on the trike. Hope to get some after it is all put together. This first pic. is looking straight at it from the front. This is a pic. of the pieces after I paid to have them primed, painted, and cleared. Ready to start!

This is them after my paint and final clearcoats were done.

Right side, I had a small accident with my airhose and some wet paint on the bottom bit of the mouth/beak, perfect place for me to sign and date it. Like I said, it was tricky to try and make a rounded object try to take on a Eagle head shape. Think it turned out OK.?

Left side. You can see a little of the pearl effect in this pic. but it really POPPED when seen in person. Mike is going to add a little windshield, and whatever else he can and have it on display at the Sun & Fun next week. I'm not sure he will be able to put it all together as a whole trike by then, but I'm guessing it will still get alot of attention. Will have some more pictures later. This is why my lil' sight here is called Paint2fly. I can go flying now, and buy some beers after!!!

If you see this and think you want me to paint something for you, I ain't cheap! and me Wife does not enjoy my creative moods, so she may add a "put up with me fee". Or you can get it done at the flea market. Won't hurt my feelings and it will probley be cheaper, both ways, in price and quality.
(or maybe not)

LEFTOVERS

It's starting to get warmer and maybe it'll start drying out also. Hints of spring are showing themselves. Lia is busy making more Hoops and dancing with Lauren and Jen and Angela and Kelly and Eli and Doris and Roxy and ... whoever happens to stop by while ABBA is filling the LZ with thier happy sounds. Lia is rockin' the hoops at least 2 - 4 hours everyday. I try for ten minutes and start sweating and breathing hard. It really is a great workout, and fun to watch the girls learn some pretty cool tricks! (not sure how to make a new paragraph, so this is a subject change.) I got a chance to run my paraglider off the side of the mtn. the other evening. It had been a soarable day blowing a bit west with some strong thermals coming through. Maybe a dozen pilots flew. As the sun started getting lower in the sky I could tell conditions were mellowing out, so I ran home and had Lia drive me up top with the bag. It was PERFECT! I laid my wing out, got in my harness, hooked in, preflight, and with my first attempt of the year (on the paraglider) was up and off into the sky! Everyone went out and landed leaving me all alone for a 50 min. flight into the sunset!!! It was awesome. None of these pictures are from that flight, nor do they have anything to do with that flight. This first pic. is a leftover from last halloween. It is one of the CRAZIES that help keep this place what it is. He showed up at my house already a bit strange, and with a few shots of tequila and a bit of paint we were able to calm him down and send him off into the night a more happy, carefree, sort of fellow. WHY SO SERIOUS? These are the pumpkins I painted for the holiday celebration during the same time. Yep, you've already seen the snotty nose one, and then there is the swine flu guy, and the lil' eye guy. This is one of the things I try to do every year for halloween. It gives me a creative outlet and makes people smile. Or wonder whats wrong with me. Either way they are kinda fun.

This last picture was taken on one of the last days of winter. It was cold and beautiful, and as the last hint of sun left us I thought maybe i could capture the elusive (spelling?) GREEN FLASH. I didn't. I'm told that it happens more on the water than over land. Don't know what it is? Me neither, look it up and leave me a comment. Until something more exciting happens, see ya.

HoopTonic Takeover

It's everywhere I try to walk in the house! There's tape all over our table and plastic tubeing spread around like we are gonna irrigate the landing field. I think my wife has gone crazy!!! The reality is that she is diggin' the HOOP DANCE. We all played with hula hoops when we were kids, right? Well this aint yo' momma's hula hoop. Lia took a Hoop Dance class last year when we were living in California and started swingin' her hips and shaking her booty. She would go each week and learn a new move then come home and show us what to do. or at least how to try. Her sister Jessica was catching on but Chip and myself would struggle for a few minutes, start sweating and fall off to the side and let the girls do their thing. Lia ended up buying herself a couple different styles of hoops, and one for Jessica, and stayed at it everyday till we left. We drove home and got caught up in work and play and the hoops sat around for a little bit till one day Lia grabed 'em and remembered how good she was feeling when hooping everyday. So she got our friend Lauren to come out and start dancing with her, then Jen stopped by and started hooping. Then other folks would want to try but we only have two hoops. Hmmm... seems like people might enjoy this and get exercise without even knowing it because their having too much fun. We could make these things and turn other folks on to this, so we are. Lia did some research, found some materials, and started learning why they cost what they do. They aint cheap to put together and then the time it takes to wrap them in tape real pretty like is an art form that will be a great test of patience and creativity. So here she goes. She took another class last weekend down in Atlanta and is starting the process of teaching others the tricks she is learning. Already sold two Hoops and has others ready for anyone interested in a fun workout! Here are some of the colors and designs so far, and Lia will be happy to make you one to your specifications if you would like. Most of them are 42 inch hoops which move a little slower and make the learning process a little easier at the start. Lia and Lauren are using 36 inch hoops because they are getting good at it!!!

It would be really great if YOU, whoever you are that reads this, would come by and pick yourself out one that makes you feel good, so I can have some room in my house and feel good as well. Because tripping over hoops in the night when trying to use the facilities is starting to be tricky. They are only $25.00 and are made with Love. Plus it is a great workout! I belive Lia will include the first lesson with your purchase, after that it's $10.00 a lesson, plus tips. What, I'm trying to help her be a succcess.

I'm serious, they are everywhere. You can see a leg and foot with a hand holding a roll of tape at the edge of this picture. Thats my girl wraping a green and Hot pink one. Looks really cool!

St. Patricks day at Jen and Keiths. Lia and Jen and acouple from N. Carolina, Mary and Richard, Hoopin' it up around the fire warding off the rain with their Happy Dance. Lia hooped for about four hours that afternoon. She has had type 1 diabetes since childhood and with all the excercise she is getting has lowered her daily intake of insulin by half! Plus she has lost 15 pounds in the last 6 weeks!!! (workout plus watching whats she eats) Ready for that Hoop now?

Past Life screechin' to the scrapyard

It was a Dark and Gray day that they came and took her away. The mold clung to her sides like my memories of cross country travels we had made together for ten years in the early '90's to the 2000's. She had almost 50,000 miles under her when she came into my life. I more than doubled that in our time together. I could write a book, should write a book, about our adventures across and around this great nation. She took me into S. Florida down to the Keys. Up through New York where we crossed over into Canada. Across I-20 into Arizona down through Yuma where she took me into the Baja of Mexico for 15 weeks in '97. Countless states and county fairs. Illegally camped in parking lots, rest areas, dirt roads that went nowhere. Getting escourted off daytona beach while cooking dinner because the tide was coming in. Sleeping on a giant incline on Lovers lane in West Virginia till the parts store opened the next morning. Throwing parties in downtown Atlanta outside the clubs my friends bands were playing at. The stories are almost endless and very entertaining, maybe I will write them down someday. Till then, these pictures will have to help keep them alive in my head. I thought the tow truck was gonna be a little bigger than what showed up. Did the job though.

The right rear wheels were locked up, so the driver just dragged her away hoping that that they would break free once on the road. We have a real nice trench in the yard now.

The wheels did not break free right away. The driver kept draggin' her while I sat and listened to the scream coming off her smoking tire. I'm not sure she wanted to leave but after about a quarter of a mile she went silent. The driver picked up some speed and a part of my past life disappeared around the corner leaving me with my memories and a open spot to put something else! Anyone have a big boat that doesn't work? Lia would really love that!

I forgot to watch the local news and see if there was any stories about a motorhome falling apart on the roads to Alabama. Hope it went OK for the guy. NOT MY PROBLEM ANYMORE!!!