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<\/a>How you more or less pronounce the town’s name<\/p><\/div>\n
Hawley Bowlus helped build the Spirit of St. Louis and later taught the Lindberghs to fly sailplanes, with some lessons taking place in the high desert air above Tehachapi.\u00a0 Today, the once bare hills are covered with over 5,000 wind turbines, their giant rotors pointed into the prevailing westerlies.\u00a0 At the base of these hills, Mountain Valley Soaring has a base, and Jeff Byard has a hangar that hosts the annual meeting of the Experimental Soaring Association<\/a>. Members gather to hear talks on the history, technology, and joy of soaring \u2013 and get in some flying between \u2013 or instead of \u2013 lectures .<\/p>\n Jeff Byard, bringing his Baby Bowlus in for a landing in front of Tehachapi’s huge wind farm<\/p><\/div>\n This year, the Labor Day weekend centered on small sailplanes, with much about craft designed by Irv Culver, a Lockheed aeronautical engineer as famous for his work on P-38s and SR-71s as for his design of soaring vehicles.\u00a0 One of his early sailplane designs was the \u201cScreaming Weiner,<\/a>\u201d a design that aside from its elliptical wing planform and \u00a0rounded wingtips, would look at home on a modern flight line.\u00a0 The Soaring Society of America\u2019s sailplane directory highlights its design and \u00a0contest career.\u00a0 \u201cThe Screaming Wiener, designed in 1938 had its size determined by the length of the garage workshop in which it was built. The result was a maneuverable ship that could circle in tight thermals and have enough penetration to speed to the next one. Ray Parker flew the Wiener to second place in the 1946 U.S. Nationals. Paul MacCready placed second with it in the 1947 U.S. Nationals and set a world Out & Return record in the process. It was subsequently acquired by Wally Wiberg who made a number of detail performance improvements to it and renamed it \u2018li\u2019l Dogie\u2019.\u201d \u00a0Its 36-foot span would have made it an early Sparrowhawk.<\/p>\n Screaming Weiner, renamed Li’l Dogie by its last pilot owner, drew crowds of admirers<\/p><\/div>\n Another element that showed some promise for readers of this blog was the display, discussion and flight of a Silent Electro 2, its nose-mounted motor and folding propeller performing well even in the high density altitude of Mountain Valley Airport.\u00a0 Gary Osoba told of flying this Italian\/Slovenian vehicle and recharging it at an average cost of 56 cents.\u00a0 For those used to $100 tows to altitude, the high initial cost of the Electro suddenly seemed less daunting.<\/p>\n Gary Osoba showing off the folding propeller on the Silent Electro 2. He reports getting 600 feet per minute climb on one meter blades<\/p><\/div>\n Peter Buck told of his work on the Monnett Sonex Waiex, testing the electric motor that Monnet and company<\/a> designed, and resolving problems involved in developing these new powerplants.\u00a0 Buck has embarked on defining and eliminating those issues, and is working toward having his own aerobatic craft that plays well with electric power\u2019s limitations.\u00a0 He wants a tossable airplane that can take him for a 20-minute aerial exercise every morning, land, taxi to the hangar, and recharge for the following day\u2019s enjoyment.<\/p>\n Peter Buck giving a hint of his current project<\/p><\/div>\n Other speakers gave great talks on soaring history, aerodynamic design (with outstanding presentations by Phil Barnes and Al Bowers).<\/p>\n Taras Kiceniuk, Jr. shows off his concept for a roadable car, with wings folding on top like surfboards for road trips<\/p><\/div>\n<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a>