Microlighters

4 am this morning the alarm goes off and I jump up to check the weather. Excitement starts creeping thru my veins as it looks like the weather might be ok.

The plan was to meet the Focker at the hanger at 4h15 but the lazy shit negotiated another 30 mins so 4h45 was the meeting time with a 5h30 take-off.

The plan is to fly from Rietfontein to Aliwal North, East London, Up the coast to Margate, Drakensberg and back to Joeys over about 5 days.

So I am on the way to the hanger on time with a now slightly nervous excitement. As I turn in to the field and see the wind-sock hanging like a limp dick (so I am told) the excitement doubles and now I just want to throw everything in the trike and get going.

I open up, pack, get organised, start warming the thing up and still no Focker. Its now 5h10, the bastard is on the nest or something. I phone him and no answer. I think about phoning Mrs Focker at 5h15 and decide I am not that brave.

5h16 it arrives and we are ready to get airborne at 5h45. I lift off, Call lanseria for a routing out of their airspace. The ATC asks for our destination. I reply Aliwal North. He asks again.......is he deaf. I repeat and we are on the way.

I call Zone outbound and switch over to chat to Focker. He does not know where I am. All he had to do was follow. First he is late and then gets lost and we are only 5 miles out. 10 minutes later I find him and now we are really on the way.

We then hear "Straydog" on the radio. He has escaped the brake disc and is coming with.

The first leg was a 160 mile haul to Wesselsbron we planned to stretch the legs, bleed the lizard and transfer fuel from the back seat to the tank. We had a slight tailwind and had a good flight in just under 2 hours. Straydog was waiting for us on the ground.

After take-off the next stop was Tempe airfield in Bloem but Straydog had other ideas. We must go hunt some farmer who he met once and said he had a trike and a strip on his farm. Now straydog did not have the co-ords so we must just wonder around looking. Its just miles and miles of flat farmland. Not ideal scenery but lekka for low flying. We buzzed along at about 40 feet AGL giving the odd farmer a haircut.

Eventually Straydog found the place. It had a sort of strip which looked much the same as the rest of the field. We buzzed the farmhouse and landed to meet a very excited Anton Marks and his son Anton marks. It was by now 30 degrees and F$%#$g hot. After a 20 minute stop and his jack russell get attached to me we were on our way again.

More flat farmland, low flying jumping the power lines and buzzing more farmers. We arrived at Tempe at about 10am. Anton had phoned a few mates in Bloem who were waiting at Tempe to see the Gt450’s. We taxied up to the avgas pumps filled up and drifted over to the office to sort out the paperwork.

More farming and Tempe

10h30 we were off again. It must have been 35 degrees by now and the wind was starting to get up a bit. We snuck around the edge of the Bloem CTR and headed for Tierpoortdam.


The thermals were talking now and as one hit me and I left my seat for a second, I pulled the belt a little tighter. The scenery got much better now and we started drifting off on our own, each flowing our own valleys, rivers and looking for farmers to terrorise. The terrain was no longer flat and the hills made for a bumpier ride.
The Caledon river was awesome and I gave the cops who always sit outside Smithfield (one horse dump) the finger as we passed overhead.

Aliwal North came into view at 12 o clock as we topped a rise and saw the Orange river and the two horse town laying below. Another big bump and I left the seat again, pulled the belt a little tighter and we dropped in over the river and followed it into town.

Big wide runways in a wide clear field made for an easy landing 6 hours after leaving the big smoke.

Pics of arival at Aliwal North

10 minutes after a phone call to Redroman, he was at the field to pick us up. Aliwal may be a little place but the microlighters there are top class dudes. Never met the guy but one call a few days ago after getting his number off the site and this chap has been fantastic to us. He fetched us, got us fuel, lent us his vehicle, organized a braai for us at the hanger with Johan and some of the family. Thanks guys, you chaps are tops.

So we plan a 4h30 wake up. Redroman is picking us up at 5h15 for the departure to EL.
At 2h30 in the morning, Gaylord focker is puking into the white telephone. Straydog and I ignore him and go back to sleep. 4h30 I am up and in the shower. I walk out the bathroom to find the focker sitting on the bed puking into the dustbin. Now he is 2 for 2 in delaying the departure. The boy is sick though. He did not drink so we know it is not alcohol related.
So here I sit nearly 1 and a half hours after intended departure and he is sleeping. Trip to the pharmacy just now and then we will see but will only leave when he is ok to fly. For now the focker is Fockered.

awesome trip, thanks for the progress reports. Wish Gaylord well from me

Sorry Demon, we are heading up the coast the other way.

Here is the thing though. Its 14h30 and we are still stuck in Aliwal with a sick focker. We took him to the Doctor here and he gave him a shot (a real one). We thinh the Focker enjoyed it. Anyway he is in no condition to fly today. He is looking sickly and has been sleeping all day.
So what made him sick you ask. We think we know what happened. Basically he has stuff coming out all orrifeces and the Doc says he ate something funny. But we all ate the same stuff but for “The banana milkshake with fly”

The oke orders a shake and its sitting there when a fly pulls swoops in, does a nice flare and lands in the shake. It paws around and had shake on its face. The focker takes his straw sucks up some shake and blasts it out onto the fly. He then sucks the fly up into the straw and blows it off the balcony. Gaylord then finished his shake. Now he is F%$#@#ed and we sit in Aliwal.

Hopefully he is better and we can depart for EL in the morning.

Awesome. Far two much fun for just 3 okes.

Great stuff - Hope Gaylord feels better

Keep the story and pics coming pls

D

Thatchman wrote:Pics of arival at Aliwal North

What photos?
Straydog het hier uitgesluip soos 'n stink poep en my niks gese nie - seker bang ek wil saamkom

BOER wrote:

Thatchman wrote:Pics of arival at Aliwal North

What photos?
Straydog het hier uitgesluip soos 'n stink poep en my niks gese nie - seker bang ek wil saamkom

OK I SEE THEM NOW!

Great to hear all about your trip. V envious that we have to stay here keeping the economy ticking over.

Shame Gaylord!! It's been doing the rounds in Jhb, there have been a few people man down at Havoc's pad . Beaut.

Fly safe. Hope the good wx continues

Well the alarm went off at 04h15 and I heard the boys were awake and up. I heard Gaylord fart and when the fart wasn't followed by a "oh f%$k, I knew he was better.

The weather was looking good and we were eager to get going after losing a day.

Johan was good enough to pick us up at 5h00 and drive us to the airfield.

After loading the trikes, precheck and warm-uo we were airborne at 05h55. Early for a change.

With the wide runway and no wind, we lined up three trikes next to each other and all took off together, turned, gave Johan a formation flyby and were on our way at last.

The flying was smooth and the landscape was in complete contrast to the freestate. It was green rolling hills and mountains.

The clear sky changed as we hit the mountains and with just the mountain tops sticking out above the clouds, the view was awesome.

We were in our element in the conditions and the trip was filled with fun flying and taking full advantage of the conditions.

We landed in Queenstown for a bladder break and took off again at 07h20 for EL