Aileron Bellcrank Installation

Here is a view of the pilot's side installation of the aileron push tube, bracket and bell crank for a cut down keel installation. The instructions were a little confusion, but I found a picture of an installation and it helped a lot. When you see it laid out like this it is pretty simple. Make sure you trial fit everything in place before you permanently mount anything. Clamp everything in place as you go so that it doesn't shift. If one part changes, the relationship of everything else changes.

Clamp the bracket in place first, centering the torque tube in the hole in the wing root. Then, set up a 90 degree approach angle with the push tube to the bell crank. Fabricate the strap to hold the push tube and trial mount it. Then attach the pull tube to the strap and trial fit again. If you are a little off on the 90 degree approach angle, you can adjust it by moving the bracket a little fore and aft, the strap fore and aft, or even the bracket inboard and outboard.

Moving each a little will allow you to get it just so. Once you do, start drilling and mounting permanently.

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Here is the copilot's side. I got 2 1/2 inches up and down travel at the trailing edge of each aileron. I also got a lot of skinned knuckles. This is one of those deals where you have to reach up and around corners through lots of sharp and pointy stuff. Again, this will teach you patience (and refresh your repertoire of profanity).

The Airbox

This is an airbox from a Piper Arrow. With minimal modifications, it fits an IO540 engine on a Velocity mount. It takes 4 inch SCAT tubing from the plenum runner and connects with it to the big 4 inch mount on the fuel servo. It also takes a standard automotive air filter and opens with 3 quarter turn fasteners to change out the filter. Pretty neat.

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Here is the alternate air door. This is where I really like going with metal and factory made. After a 200 knot cruise descent into Myrtle Beach in the first Velocity with my home made fiberglass airbox and door, We went to take off only to find we could get only 1800 rpm. We pulled back to the ramp and removed the cowl, finding the door pulled off and sucked almost into the fuel servo. Yikes. This one is very sturdy.

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Here is a view from underneath showing the 90 degree scat coupling to the fuel servo.

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It is looking very full in the engine compartment! Tomorrow, I'll install the rudder cable pulleys and adjusters. This weekend, I will install the elevator push pull tube. I can then officially sit in the plane and move all of the control surfaces with the flight controls. Good stuff.

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Day 35

This morning I was very relieved for the rain. At least, I'm told that it was raining, but I never really saw it for myself. When the alarm went off at 5:30 am, Zdenek got out of bed and returned 30 seconds later, telling me that it was "dark and rainy and we're going back to sleep for another hour. No cycling." I didn't argue.

Saturday mornings, forever my "long run" time, are now dedicated to a "long cycle," at least while the weather cooperates. Last Saturday, however, Zdenek and I were forced to turn back early on our ride to Nyack, because another cyclist had been in a serious accident on the road ahead of us and the police had shut down the 9W highway. I almost regret putting this into my blog, because I know that, if my mother is reading this, I am going to get a lecture on the perils of taking to the roads on two wheels. Mom, no need: that accident actually scared me sufficiently such that, this past Saturday, I opted for running over cycling. Or at least I considered running instead of cycling, but soon decided that I simply love my little red Giant too much and couldn't bear letting her sit idle on such a beautiful, sunny Saturday morning. So Zdenek and I headed out that morning with two new cycling buddies, Adam and Jen, and we enjoyed a moderately challenging and very talkative 50 miles together. In fact, when we returned to the UWS around 1 pm, the weather was still so beautiful and my legs were feeling so good, I decided to "brick it."

Learning to be a "biathlete" -- if I can call myself that -- can be pretty tough. Thus far, I've managed to head out cycling on the non-rainy days and reserve running for the times that my schedule calls for a bit more flexibility. At last count, I have either run or cycled 32 times in the last 34 days. I have occasionally run and cycled on the same day, usually 10 to 12 hours apart, but until Saturday, I have never stacked a run directly on top of a 50 mile ride. In considering whether I should immediately lace up my running shoes and head back out, I realized that, in an Ironman race, one is expected to complete an entire marathon after a 112-mile bike ride (and, of course, a 2.4 mile swim). So then what's a 4 mile run following a 50 mile ride? It's a cool-down, right?

Truth be told, the run didn't feel too bad. I ran the relatively flat roads of Riverside Park for a change, and though I'm not sure exactly how fast I went, my legs fell into a somewhat normal rhythm after about 10 minutes. I returned home to my already-rested husband, pleased with myself for completing my first brick workout. (It also helped to lessen the guilt that evening when we indulged in a full tasting menu with wine pairings, though I'm not sure how many bites of dessert those four miles really bought me.) On Sunday morning, I was still feeling good enough to run another 10 miles or so. Perhaps I had become an Ironwoman (or maybe a half or quarter of one) without even trying to?

But this morning dashed any dreams I might have of making it to Kona anytime soon. I was relieved to forgo a bike ride for another hour of sleep, and just lying in bed, my legs felt heavy and lead-like. I'm probably not the first aspiring multi-sport athlete to surmise that the "brick" refers not to the sequence of workouts, but to the state of one's muscles following said workouts. This morning was a very welcome rain day indeed.

Burning!

Last night I dreamt about a professional, although fictional, bicycle race. In my dream, this race was two weeks long, though it wasn't clear in which European country it was taking place. What was clear, however, was the daily play-by-play of all the cyclists and their strategies. The first week of my dream race was all mountain stages, and the second week was mostly flat with a few time trials (inexplicably, Fabian wasn't there). It was all very exciting -- like having my own little sports channel playing in my brain. Lance Armstrong was competing, and he adopted an unusual strategy of riding as hard as possible, burning up the course on every single stage until he had nothing left. This would probably be a poor tactic in a real race, though it would no doubt make for exciting spectating. In my dream, after one of the mountain stages, I interviewed Lance Armstrong, who only wanted to talk about one thing -- Lance Armstrong (likely an accurate representation). In any event, I'm not sure what all of this means, and I don't know why I'm mentioning it here, except for the fact that it affirms one thing: I have officially become one of the cycling-obsessed.

Zdenek and I have been burning up the roads ourselves lately, and if I owned more cycling attire, we might actually be out there every single day. It's been burning hot in New York, too, so the breeze experienced during riding is far preferable to the hot soup sensation during running. I'm enjoying drafting off Zdenek as much as possible, since this provides both of us with a challenging workout. But try as I might, I've been known to get dropped from time to time, especially on the hills. I don't like having to holler at him to slow down, since that makes me look like a bit of a lightweight in front of the Central Park riding elite. But Zdenek and I have now come up with a secret code word that I can yell out from behind whenever I notice that the gap between his rear wheel and my front one is increasing at an alarming rate: burning. (And nobody needs to know that this refers to the fact that my legs are on fire and I cannot possibly push any harder to catch up.)

Yesterday it was another scorcher in New York, but Zdenek and I rushed home in time for a five mile run in the Park. We tried to stick to the soft surface and cooler shade of the bridle path, but it was still an extremely difficult, uncomfortable 40 minutes. With about one mile to go, on the last big hill of our route, I looked over my shoulder at my hot and sweaty husband. It was obvious that he was enjoying this run very little and would not be happy to pick it up a notch. But then I just decided to go for it. I shifted to a higher gear. It was very Lance-esque of me. And from behind me came a sound: "Burning!"

Rodeo Drive!

After some quite time spent waiting anxiously for it, BeStyle new "little" brother, Rodeo Drive, is open! You can reach it following this limousine.



But what is Rodeo Drive? Let's see Elettra Gausman's sum up of RL Rodeo Drive story, on the latest issue of BeStyle Magazine:

"The Beverly Hills Shopping District, as we see it today, was developed in the 1970s. The area extending from Wilshire to Santa Monica Boulevard is also a major tourists attraction. You can find here some of the most famous retailers including Armani, Bally, Bulgari, Cartier, Chanel, Dior, DeBeers, Zegna, Fendi, Gucci, Ferrè, Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Cavalli, Ferragamo, Yves Saint Laurent, Versace, Valentino and many others. Now you can discover the glamour of the real Rodeo Drive also in SL in-world at the new sim of Annemarie Perenti.
The Beverly Wilshire Hotel located on the east side of South Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills was built in 1928 in an Italian Reinassance acrhitectural style. Luxurious and glamorous since the beginning, The Beverly Wilshire has been the filming location for many movies, including the 1990 movie Pretty Woman and the HBO's Entourage Television Series."



Built just like the original Rodeo Drive in real life, in Second Life Annemarie Perenti's new sim you can find as well some of the finest SL shops: we can mention, for example, ORA TREI DESIGNS, YOUR SKIN YOUR SHAPE, BLISS COUTURE, SMOOCHIES, ALBA FASHION, *OC*, NIVEN, THE GRACEFULLY, FANNY'S DREAM, INSOLENCE, V-FASHION, AYIKI, LA DULCE VIDA, PETAL MEG, FELLINI COUTURE, @DESIGN.



There will also be a huge fashion show in September celebrating the opening of this sim, so stay tuned...

And now, what are you waiting for? Feel like a diva, grab your shopping bags, wear your best sunglasses and hat and explore this ravishing sim with all its amazing shops!

Limousine: http://slurl.com/secondlife/RODEO%20DRIVE/112/128/23

Oshkosh 2009 - Bigger Than Ever

Oshkosh 2009. I looked forward to this for most of the year. I'd hoped to fly in but didn't quite complete the plane in time. I flew in commercial and arrived just in time for the annual Velocity Cook Out hosted by Andy and Theresa Millin.



Jerry Brainerd mans the grill.
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The obligatory "Eagle One" pose.
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Ken Baker in Brat attack mode. Note the "Zone of Denial" maintained around him for safety sake.

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Duane and Bonnie center court.

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Darrell and Nora Kufalk flew their Velocity to the show for the first time. Congratulations on a great achievement. This one will be hard to beat.

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Sad but true.
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Duane Swing and Bob Buls.

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Rutan's latest and greatest - the carrier for Spaceship 2.

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Artwork under the fuselage.

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The Virgin Galactic Mothership Eve in flight. Pretty grandiose. I took this from the fried chicken tent - a personal show hilight. The old lady next to me looked up, watched it go by and said "I don't get it."
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The A380 was ginormous. Its tail was 80 feet tall and towered over everything. The takeoff was impressive. Take a look at the dust storm it kicked up on takeoff using the above measurement for scale.

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Ken Baker pointed out this gorgeous Lancair Legacy. This is by far the most beautiful paint job I have ever seen. The colors, the scheme and most of all the carbon fiber stripe. Look at the closeup. I have no idea how they achieved this effect, but I'd bet it wasn't easy or cheap. If this guy doesn't win an award, he was robbed.


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The new PiperJet. Nice.

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Talk about fully equipped! Here is a Breezy with missiles and an "air male" box. (his spelling)

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This is the new Subsonex. It is a single seat, single engine jet (!?!?) from Sonex. Neat ship, but it does remind me of the German V1 buzz bomb.

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This is the Piaggio Avanti. It's my "if I won the lottery" choice. Just gorgeous.

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The last night out at Kelly's with my friends, the Keighans. This weather is unheard of for Oshkosh in the summer. Note the jackets. It sure was comfortable sleeping in the dorms this year.

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Saturday morning. I had to catch the bus to Appleton airport at 10:00, but didn't want to just sit in the dorm and waste even a little time in Oshkosh, so I got to the grounds at 6:45. It was COLD and windy. Note the long pants and jacket. This was the weirdest weather ever at Oshkosh. It was cold, hot, wet, sunny, humid and dry, often in one day. The grounds were changed and improved (new walkways, more space, flush toilets, new tower, etc.)

There were huge numbers of aircraft and big crowds. The Virgin Galactic ship was a crowd pleaser as was the A380. Above all, the spirit of the show was alive and well. There was that upbeat cameraderie - the feeling that you were among friends again, being around what we all love.

For me, Oshkosh remains a hilight of my year. More than ever, I look forward to flying into the show next year in my new XL and sharing my love of this place with my kids. It was great seeing all of my fellow Velocity builders, pilots and wannabe's at the show. Keep at it and we'll see you there next show!

Below is a video of the A380 for those of you who missed. it.

Be Inspired...

The Sartorialist's first book: regular edition is left and bespoke edition, right.

The Sartorialist, aka Scott Schuman, is finally releasing a book collection of his work. This coffee table style book will contain all of Schuman's hand-picked favorites. Expect to see famous fashion icons as well as innately fashionable passers-by off the streets. From Stockholm to Milan, London to New York, this book will showcase the most inspiring everyday fashionistas ever caught on film. The release date is scheduled for August 12th but you can pre-order the "Bespoke" edition at Amazon.com now.