The Writer’s Predicament
My predicament last Friday was this:
“Am I really flying this plane? If I am, how in the heck am I going to get it to do what I want it to do? Like land in one piece?”
My wife, Kristy, was in the back seat of a single-engine Piper Warrior. Beverly Barnett, a legendary local trainer of pilots, was in the seat next to me, and I was rolling along at about eighty knots thirty-five hundred feet above the earth with my knuckles as white as bleached bone and a look of horror on my face.
Beverly had sent me an email and asked me if Kristy and I would like to take a little spin with her. I’m always up for stuff like that, and Kristy has been feeling pretty good lately, so I said, “Sure, let’s go.” I thought I’d ride along casually in the passenger seat and look out the window, take some photos, and just sort of chill while Beverly flew us around.
But no…
Just as we were walking out to the tarmac, Beverly mentioned that I would be flying the plane. My stomach tightened a bit and I thought about crying, but I bucked up like a tough little soldier and said, “No problem.” She took me through the pre-flight, let me start the engine, told me how the airplane worked, all that. Before I knew it, we were lifting off the ground and gliding through the air. What a rush!
Okay, I’m lying. Of course I didn’t fly the plane. Beverly flew the plane, but she did let me take control of it a couple of times for a few minutes. It was great fun. What was even more fun was when I discovered that we were going to stop by Beverly’s house for a few minutes and realized that she actually has a runway in her neighborhood. She lives in what is known as an “air park.” Everybody in the subdivision is a licensed pilot and owns a plane. They all have hangars attached to their houses. They land on the runway and taxi to their homes. It was outrageously cool. Once we landed at Hensley Air Park, Kristy and I climbed out of the plane and were met by Beverly’s husband, Jack Kiehna, who gave us a tour of their fantastic collection of antiques and their beautiful home. We took a little ride through the country, got back onto the plane, and flew back to Tri-Cities Regional Airport. Along the way, we buzzed the Bristol race track.
I dropped a little gift basket by Tri-City Aviation a little while ago, but I also just wanted to thank Beverly Barnett and Jack Kiehna publicly for a simply splendid morning. They’re wonderful folks and gave Kristy and I an experience we won’t ever forget.
This writing thing has its perks. I’m loving it.
