By Randy Grossmann
It's good that we stayed an extra day at the Ft Sage rally. Here's why. Someone flew over our area on Saturday and noticed our silver. He contacted his friend who is looking to buy a new 19' Airstream. That person and his wife then found our rally on the Internet and came from Susanville on Sunday afternoon to talk with us about Airstreams. Their names are Bruce and Kathy. Vicki and I provided these very nice people with plenty of Airstream information. They will undoubtedly be attending one of our rallies in the near future when we will all have the opportunity to meet them and share, as we like to do, Airstream information with them. Bruce owns an award winning Cessna 170. He was invited to have it on display at the Reno Air Races.
Update
Bruce says “Kathy and I have our hearts set on a 19’ Flying Cloud Bambi Airstream, and have seen a number available used. We have not ruled out purchasing a new one, as the slightly-used ones seem to hold a high resale value.” So if you happen across this type of Airstream let us know and we'll pass the info along to Bruce and Kathy. Weather permitting, Bruce and Kathy may fly out to visit us at the Sweetwater rally.
May 24, 2011 – Eamil from Bruce
Hello, Diane:
How nice of you to take the time to respond, and
to include us in your next gathering! Kathy and I are indeed in the
process of looking for the right Airstream; we enjoyed meeting Randy
and Vicki last weekend. They couldn't have been nicer or more
helpful, even allowing us to tour their 25' Safari.
We have to get out the door in a few minutes for an appointment in Reno, so I haven't time to look into the airstrip which will be near your next gathering spot. I'll see if I could fly our 1954 Cessna 170B into there, which would make our attendance easier, and more fun too. I'll stay in touch, and thanks again,
Bruce and Kathy Rhymes Susanville, CA
By Bruce and Kathy Rhymes Susanville, CA
Kathy and I brought the “Best Classic Aircraft” Award home to Susanville from the Rolls-Royce National Aviation Heritage Invitational, held at the Reno Air Races this Sept. 14th-16th. There were about 39 beautifully-restored airplanes and a couple of helicopters in the Heritage Invitational display area. Morning coffee and snacks, cold drinks, hot lunch and VIP digs were provided by the Heritage Trophy organizers and volunteers, as well as a beautiful descriptive placard to display with the plane. We had front row seats to the Races, which provided a view of the awful crash we’d rather have missed. The event came to an abrupt end at that point, but the Heritage Trophy folks completed their judging and held an abbreviated awards ceremony on Sunday, Sept. 18th. Dick Rutan and Bud Anderson were there to present the trophies to the five winners, and the judges from the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum said nice things about our airplanes. Wow. Six Five Charlie has won six trophies in two and a half years, including at Oshkosh. We do fly her frequently as well, logging over 250 hours in the past 20 months. We feel fortunate to be the current caretakers of such a beautiful plane, and I suppose we’ll just have to keep on flying... and polishing!
Bruce and Kathy Rhymes -Susanville, CA
Kathy and I had another nice outing in our new little 19' Flying Cloud Bambi; about five trips now, since taking delivery in late June. We were invited to fly our 1954 Cessna 170B in to the Reno Air Races for display at the Nat'l. Aviation Heritage Invitational for the second year, and this year we were allowed to park our 2013 Airstream just across the Promenade from our plane! What a different experience this was for us, compared to leaving Stead Airport each evening last year to stay with friends about six miles away. This year, we lingered late under our wings, talking to all the wonderful pilots, veterans and aviation folks who were stopping by. We strolled the now-quiet main Promenade, being in no hurry to get anywhere, as our little silver cabin was waiting for us whenever we returned. A gathering in a friend's hangar could be enjoyed to the fullest (yes, that means with a beer or two!) as we only needed to walk a short way back “home”. We look forward to meeting up with you all, and to learning more about our cool new Airstream in the years to come!
Update – Bruce says “Six Five Charlie made the cover of the Quarterly 170 News! The photo was taken at Longmont, Colorado where Kathy and I flew this summer for the Annual Cessna 170 Assoc. Convention.”