Viking Flying Club

[MikeB]

For those in the local area, the Viking Flying Club is having their annual pancake breakfast and fly in on June 30th from 8-12 noon. This is at Brion Memorial Field about 18 nm SE of Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Check AIRNAV 3WN9 for airport information. Depending on weather we usually have a good turnout.

Mike

[james gevay]

You guys in the area should check this little grass strip out. It's a beautiful grass strip with pines along the southern edge and is very well maintained. It's a great destination and Mike is a really good guy to meet. It's just a little East of Doug Ward's Log Cabin strip near Mondovi WI.
Just like last year Mike, I wish I had a plane to fly in there, maybe I should just use it as an excuse for a morning drive.

[MikeB]

Jim,
Thanks! This would be our 'normal' weekend for the fly in but decided to postpone until June 30th so as not to interfer with Aviation Day planned at Menonomee. Weatherwise, looks like we lucked out by not having it this weekend as rain is predicted (but of course weather could be bad next weekend too). Hope you get your Champ finished and can make it down sometime. We still have the 'airport loaers' coffee every Saturday morning and several fly in if the weather cooperates.
Mike

[MikeB]

For anyone in the area who wants to burn up some gas..weather looks great for the fly in on Sunday. Lousy today with rain and low ceilings but supposed to clear up late this afternoon and nice tomorrow. 3WN9 and 122.9

Mike

[Dennis]

Mike,

I have been keeping an eye on the weather up there. You have been getting a lot of rain. Any change we are headed to another Sloshkosh? I hope not. I still have nightmares of ducks quacking outside my tent.

Dennis

[MikeB]

Dennis,
We've certainly had plenty of rain. Our field is sand based so it dries up pretty quick. Oshkosh (Sloskosh) I think is a wetter soil and I think the north 40 is kind of low besides in spots. One of my friends had his 5th wheel camper in Audries (??) park a couple of years ago and it was jumping from one puddle to the other.
Friend of mine flew his Skylane in to help set up this morning and couldn't make it back to his farm about 10 miles away but the weather is great now.
Mike

[MikeB]

Well,
Weather was great! Light winds, blue skies and temperature in the high 70's. Had somewhere between 40-50 planes of various types fly in (I lost count....busy parking planes) from 25 different air fields. Pancake breakfast served to about the same number as last year...about 250 .......give or take a few I'm told. Best thing everything came off smoothly and safely for another year .
Mike

[Dennis]

Well done, Mike!

Dennis

[MikeB]

Thanks but Mike doesn't have a lot to do with it other than cutting the grass and helping setting things up. We have a really good group of club members that pitch in when something needs to be done (in this case the fly in). I'm unsure of the exact amount but I think we have somewhere between 25-30 members. After twenty years as club president I wrote term limits into the bylaws (and myself out of a job) I now serve as the 'de facto airport manager' but that amounts to cutting the grass and cleaning the toilet Another team does the breakfast part. This is the first year we haven't offered Young Eagle rides at our breakfast/fly in. It was felt it was just too dangerous tryng to help with the breakfast, coordinate everything and control the masses at the same time so we set up a sign up sheet and will run the Young Eagles rally in two weeks when we have less congestion and more time. I think about 15 signed up but we'll see how many show up.

Mike