June 21, 2008 is the equinox; the longest day of the year.

What a great day it was in Holdrege, Nebraska for the annual Nebraska State Fly-in and Show 'n Shine. What a great idea...wonderful planes and cool cars all in the same place.

This year, the Nebraska State Fly-in was hosted by the the great folks at Brewster Field in Holdrege, Nebraska. Special effort sure was expended by the airport staff, airport manager Lanny Lambrecht of Lambrecht Aviation, the helpful and energetic folks from EAA chapter 1091 and more.

Ok, we knew it was going to get hot so we started early. I drove on out to Holdrege. (Yes, yes...got my pilot's license in 1981 and I know it is a "fly-in", but I didn't plan ahead much for this ;-) ).

Got to Holdrege and saw that it was also Sommerfest in Holdrege (the ethnic festivals in Nebraska are wonderful!) and easily found Brewster Field.

What a treat. I met the good folks from EAA Chapter 1091 who were a big help at the show. From helping with the Young Eagles "first flight" program to popping pop-corn and cooking burgers, these folks showed that they have the community spirit and know how to do a lot more than build and fly airplanes (which is a wonderful thing).

You all know from my posts that I like history and I learned some interesting history about Brewster Field. I met Sara Brewster Olson who is the Granddaughter of Dr. Donald E. Brewster, for whom Brewster Field is named and who was know in the Holdrege parts as the "flying doctor."

Mrs. Olson related to me some fond memories of her grandpa, including his first medical flight. Apparently, Dr. Brewster was called to help a fellow who had fallen off of an oil rig in Herndon, KS...but there wasn't time to drive so a friend flew him out in a plane..this was early in the 20th century folks. Dr. Brewster flew out with medical kit and operated right in the oil field and saved the derrick worker.

Well, after that, there we many more medical flights to other towns, to farms and ranches. Some of the landing strips were nothing more than pastures marked with a sheet on a fence or windmill to show the doctor where to land. And, he operated on kitchen tables and delivered many a baby at home. Sorta unlike a modern medical experience, heh?

And, apparently, Dr. Brewster was pretty spry. His granddaughter related watching him walk up the stairs in his house at 72 years old....on his hands with his feet in the air!

Wow, now just a commentary, but you don't likely get medical service like that anymore; much of anywhere. It was a good story.

There was a great P-38 flown in by the Fagen Team. Mr. Fagen was proud of this bird, one of only 4 flying P-38's in the world.

And, a lot of big grins from home built owners who explained the "project." Some were six months, some were six years!

Well, it is in the doin' I think.

And, great cars too! Now who thought of that ....great planes and great cars at the same show. Gotta love this.

Watch for some more blog posts about the P-38 and some other great planes and cars, and enjoy the photos.

Some might say that Motortopia is not the place for poetry. I think some of the passion about cars, bikes, boats, and planes here on Motortopia sometimes borders on a poetic understanding.

In any event, I have been to enough shows in the past year to know that a big part of that experience is some good, ole', American fried food. Enjoy this piece, and get ready for some good eatin'

Fried Beauty

Glory be to God for breaded things--
Catfish, steak finger, pork chop, chicken thigh,
Sliced green tomatoes, pots full to the brim
With french fries, fritters, life-float onion rings,
Hushpuppies, okra golden to the eye,
That in all oils, corn or canola, swim

Toward mastication's maw (O molared mouth!);
Whatever browns, is dumped to drain and dry
On paper towels' sleek translucent scrim,
These greasy, battered bounties of the South:
Eat them.

Here are the credits:

American Life in Poetry: Column 166

BY TED KOOSER, U.S. POET LAUREATE, 2004-2006

Texas poet R. S. Gwynn is a master of the light touch. Here he picks up on Gerard Manley Hopkins' sonnet "Pied Beauty," which many of you will remember from school, and offers us a picnic instead of a sermon. I hope you enjoy the feast!

P.S. For those of you interested in receiving updates on American Life and Poetry, head on over to AmericanLifeInPoetry.org.

Have a good one.

"Ready to go? Let's jump and and join the fun!"

With those words Ben Deutschman, aka BenCar, gently instructed me, wife Beverly, sister Rosalie, son Martin, and ever-present-friend Tommy, and the Reverend to find a seat in the 1960 Plymouth Satellite or the 1976 Trans Am 400 for a Memorial Day Parade in Metuchen, NJ.

I was given the seat of honor in the Trans Am; which I later learned was a big part hospitality and a little part devilish gearhead humor as Ben showed me what at 400HP TransAm can do with a little $4.00/gal premium.

It was American and Americana to the max. Small town American, flags, boy scout troops, old soldiers, high school bands, and lots and lots of little children waiving, holding on to their dogs, and trying to eat ice cream before it got to the point of needing "shout it out."

And, what they were shouting was "Hey Ben, you still young enough to drive?" "Haven't been picked up in that thing yet, heh?" There were also a lot of "great car, Ben" comments as we rode through town.

Only 40 minutes outside of New York City by train, I entered a world that I grew up in, small town America. And, upon reflection, I recognized once again that what made a place like New York City possible - with all its deal-makin', finance, and intense ways - are places like Metuchen, NJ and its people and community.

You can't legislate the kind of community that lives in Metuchen and a thousands of other places like that in America. This is the roots and what holds it all together, in my view.

After the parade, I got the first class tour of Ben's garage, his basement workshop, his car projects, Martin's (who is not old enough to drive, but I did think I saw him behind a wheel once or twice ;-) ) own car and train projects.

We sat out back in mother's house (mother has passed away but it is still her house) and had a BBQ..and how good can Key Lime pie be on a Memorial Day holiday! Great.

You can all read about Ben's cars in his Motortopia garage and see some of the pics from the day in his photo album of our day in Metuchen.

Ben was one of the early adopters and supporters of Motortopia and has encouraged me along the way to keep working on things, keep making it better, and keep improving "making it right."

And, those are thoughtful words from someone who takes car of his folks' 1960 Plymouth Slant Six like they were going to ride in it tomorrow; and who has that gleam in his eye as the Trans Am gives that growly rumble as he starts it up for the parade.

I think it is, in large part, what the whole spirit of Motortopia is all about...people who are passionate and focused about their cars, bikes, airplanes, and boats because; well, they know the value of things well done and of sharing those things with others...and not because of the trophies (while those are nice and Ben has a few thousand, I think) because it is the right thing to do.

And, that was a good memory on Memorial Day, as we honored those who did the right thing; many giving their lives for our Freedom because it was the "right thing to do."

Goodness, isn't it refreshing.

Thank you Ben and family for a great day!

It happens every day in the United States, but in Vietnam, not many businesspeople have their own aircraft. But, the times are chaning.

Chinaview reports that "Doan Nguyen Duc, chairman of the Hoang Anh Gia Lai Joint Stock Company, paid 7 million U.S. dollars for the U.S.-made Beechcraft King Air 350, Series FL-417, which has a 12-seat capacity.

The plane is scheduled to reach Tan Son Nhat airport in the southern Ho Chi Minh city on Wednesday, and to be used for business purposes, said the newspaper.

The Law on Aviation in Vietnam allows private ownership of planes. It also requires that the owner have an aviation license, a licensed air crew and pilot, and approval from the Ministry of Defense to fly within the country, Lai Xuan Thanh, deputy director of Vietnam's Civil Aviation Administration was quoted as saying. "

What next? EAA chapters? Let's hope so.

When we look at sleek planes and rockets, you have to think about and admire the folks who designed them.

Well, for one young man, designing flying things is not a dream. The Star Online reports that an 18 year-old, Aditya Singh, has won a prestigious NASA competition for submitting the best essay about building rockets.

Might be an interesting young man to invite to your next EAA meeting. Cool.

You can read the full article here.

I'll bet lots of you have customized plates for your cars. Well, check out this plate from Virginia. Someone was not thinking ahead...or maybe they were :-). [photo from photobucket]

We have all had some very tight landings. The ones the make you tie up the plane, walk to a bar and get the first good stiff drink they had available.

Well, a friend sent this near-crash-landing video to me today about a near-crash-landing in Germany.

Remember that cross-wind training? Not quite as easy sometimes as it seems in the book.

We're looking for year, make, model, and owner. Good Luck!

Simple and effective concepts are the best. The rotary engine is a great example.

Used in airplanes,motorcycles, and cars; the rotary engine was a stable powerplant for vehicles around the world.

The idea is straightforward. No fixed rotating crankshaft as with the radial engine, the crankshaft remains stationary and the entire cylinder block rotates around it.

They are easy to see in old aircraft because the crankshaft is fixed directly to an aircraft frame, and the propeller simply bolted onto the front of the cylinder block.

Basically a big gyroscope, the flywheel effect of the rotating engine mass could produce smooth power.

An interesting fact is that most rotary engines were built with an odd number of pistons.

Early used in aircraft, the rotary engine was used in most aircraft in the early 1900's. The were great air-cooled engines.

Because of the gyroscopic effect, it could sometimes make it more difficult to turn an aircraft. It was easy to go left, not so easy to go right.

This picture isn't from the main vehicle photo, but the tail lights should give it away... we are looking for year, make, model and owner.