Well, I know I'm late but here are the pics I promised of my trip to Columbus Ohio.
As everyone knows, I drove my nephew from San Diego to Columbus and had great weather for the whole trip until we got past Cincinnati. Only then did the storm that was chasing us across the country get caught up. Still it was only light rain and fog at least and the temps remained well above freezing.
On the way out there, I got the opportunity to meet up with PaulW in Tulsa OK and spend about an hour or so with him. He is an incredible host and a great modeler. I love his cave! He also has something that I don't know that I'll ever get myself: a 3-D printer:
Just wait awhile before you ask him to print something for you guys! He's still learning the ropes on this beastie!
We had a great talk and he showed me a number of his most recent purchases as well as his current project. There's some great stuff gonna be coming off his workbench! Speaking of his workbench, I got a shot of the two of us next to where all the magic happens:
I'm on the left, looking pretty ragged after a six hour drive...
Paul, thanks again for the great hospitality. I hope your wife wasn't too upset....
Moving on, we drove again for two more days and a night; finally ending up in Columbus. We had just enough time to unload and get inside because about two hours later it began to snow.
The next morning I got to wake up to this:
Here's my brother's house; if you look closely you can see where his kids had started an Igloo in the front yard. I so wanted to see that finished, but it didn't happen:
This is his backyard the day after we arrived:
And yes, I did help to shovel snow! Here's the proof:
The next day, one of my (seven) nephews had his eighth birthday so we all went to a trampoline house:
That is my nephew Nicholas in front with Andrew; the birthday boy, bouncing on the right.
Those trampolines were next to a foam block pit that you could bounce straight into. This thing nearly ate me alive; it had already taken one of my socks:
Andrew is front and center.
A couple days later we had to take advantage of the snow and go sledding. Yes, I also sledded down the hill but nobody took my camera to get pics of it. I do have some shots of my brother Tom with his son Joseph...
...His wife with their daughter Julianna:
...and Julianna going down by herself:
It's amazing how great those cement-mixing tubs work as sleds!
A few days later, I went to my brother's workplace. He works at COSI. For those outside of Ohio that don't know what that is, it stands for 'Center of Science and Industry'. It is a huge museum/theater that is almost four city blocks long. My brother works there as the head of all IT in the building. I went to go see their latest exhibit on dinosaurs:
I think that is the only pic I got from inside that place, at least on my camera. If I can figure out how to get pics off my phone to here, I'll see about posting more....
Moving on; before I left, I was invited by the president of IPMS USA to attend their IPMS Eddie Rickenbacker meeting. They hold their meetings in a conference room in the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) Aviation Division building. It was a great meeting with a lot of incredible models on the tables. I was pleased with the turnout, given that the temperatures at the time were hovering around the single digits that night:
Here's a shot of the model tables showing most of the models on display. In the previous pic, you can see some guys still working on models as well. The IPMS USA president; Ron Bell is in the striped shirt in the center:
After the meeting, one of the members who is a member of ODOT invited me to stay for a bit. He took me back into the hanger where a number of the aircraft used by ODOT are kept. Pictures were encouraged:
This is one of the helicopters used by the Highway Patrol for surveying and monitoring traffic, as well as follow suspects trying to evade law enforcement:
Here is one of the aircraft used by ODOT for surveying the ground for future and existing road placement and improvement. It carries a LIDAR and other sophisticated imaging equipment:
I'm told this piece of equipment costs more than the plane carrying it:
This is another plane very similar to the first one used for the same thing. This one has been adapted for better visibility. It was designed and built by Heinkel, can you see the family resemblance?
You can also see it is down for maintenance...
Finally, here is the Ohio governor's plane; used to fly him all over Ohio and other distant points:
The propellers used on the turbojets on this plane can reverse pitch so far that the plane can actually be backed up for short distances! My guide was even willing to open this plane up for me. The governor flies in style indeed:
My apologies for the blurry pic there I didn't know it had been that blurry. I guess I was just so excited about being on that plane!
During this trip, I also spent time with my nephew and Godson Paul for a day and got to watch my nephews Andrew and Joseph play basketball. Joseph did exceptionally in the Third Grade Division, doing two steals and getting a basket.
Well that's all the pics I have for now. Once I sort through the rest of them I may post some more.
Thanks all for looking in, comments are welcome.
