Sun ‘N Fun 2007

April 15 – 23, 2007
Article by Mike Whaley

Sunday, April 15
Setting Up and Getting Ready for a Great Week!

The tent and campsite are (mostly) set up, and everyone’s getting one final little bit of rest before the last-minute tasks like setting up the displays. The Yellowbird Skybolt and Barrett’s Pitts S1-C will be there and we’ll have a customer’s Skybolt on display inside the tent. Early Tuesday morning, the flood of Sun ‘N Fun attendees will begin to arrive, and the days will be filled with a week-long frenzy of talking to friends old and new, showing our products, answering questions and taking orders, looking around at the many exciting new items from other companies, admiring the sheer variety of aircraft that come in, watching the airshow, meeting other vendors, and just generally absorbing all the best that aviation has to offer. It’s a lot of hard work, but it’s also a lot of fun as well… you never know what kind of fascinating things might happen. We look forward to seeing many of our friends during the week, and expect to see a lot of interesting new “stuff”.
We will be posting photos and updates throughout the week, so if you aren’t fortunate enough to be able to join us in Lakeland (or if you just can’t stay for the whole time) then stay tuned for more!

Monday, April 16
Setup Day

Monday was a very nice day, and the final setup went very smoothly. More planes and people arrived steadily throughout the day, it looks like the show is going to be well attended. We’re looking forward to a great show!

Tuesday, April 17
Opening Day

Opening day was really busy, as we expected. The day started out a little chilly but it was really nice for the rest of the day. The attendance was strong and many folks came by the tent. It looks like a promising start to the week!

Wednesday, April 18

Opening day was really busy, as we expected. The day started out a little chilly but it was really nice for the rest of the day. The attendance was strong and many folks came by the tent. It looks like a promising start to the week!

Wednesday was a very busy day, with excellent attendance and more great weather. Many folks came by the tent, looking at the various products on display… the Piloti Shoes are selling like hotcakes. Quite a few performers have started wearing Pilotis this year, including Randy Harris (Bearfeat Aerobatics Skybolt), Eric Tucker (Tucker upset training), Elaine Larsen (driver of the Embry-Riddle “Miss Ta Fire” jet dragster), Jacquie B (Pitts performer). Other well-known pilots who have already been wearing Pilotis include Sean D. Tucker, Steve and Suzanne Oliver, wingwalker Theresa Stokes, and several others.

Thursday, April 19

Thursday was REALLY busy for Steen, as folks came in throughout the day to check out the display… the shoes are continuing to be very, very popular. The airshows have been excellent (as always) and the weather remains nice. It’s been a GREAT show so far in all respects!

Friday, April 20

Thursday was the day for the annual Biplane cookout… it was the biggest party we’ve had yet, with about 100 folks attending. Jeff cooked up lots of burgers, chicken and side dishes and everyone really enjoyed it all. The party went on into the night and we even showed the movie “Airplane!” to an appreciative crowd. It was a great chance to catch up with everyone and just have a great time talking about biplanes and such. The night airshow was a lot of fun too… all in all a great day throughout.

Saturday, April 21 (Part 1)
Hot-Air Balloon Race

Early Saturday morning (7am) the annual SNF ballooon race got off the ground. The object is to follow the lead balloon and try to land as close to their landing spot as possible. Since everyone’s at the mercy of the wind, you cannot usually “overtake” another balloon as in other kinds of racing… although a quick launching process is part of the strategy. The real object of course isn’t as much to win as to have a lot of fun enjoying this unique and beautiful sport. Our friend Ed Lamiere and his balloon “Wild Goose” were in the race this year, and Paul (also a balloon pilot) and Rick went along for a ride. The weather was nice and many balloons launched and recovered after flying a ways to the southwest.

Of course, there was the traditional champaign toast after landing. Here’s an interesting bit of history you may not have known… the tradition of having champaign after a balloon flight dates all the way back to the sport’s beginnings in 17th century France. Early balloonists, like those today, never knew where they would land until they got there. After a few incidents of irate, scared (and often superstitious) farmers and villagers coming out with pitchforks, torches, and who knows what else trying to attack these strange invaders from the heavens, the aeronauts hit upon the idea of bringing bottles of wine on each flight both to serve as a “peace offering” as well as to demonstrate that they were not extraterrestrials from another planet, but rather Monseur Pierre from the next village down the road. This helped the situation immensely (not to mention probably helped to induce folks to lend a hand in helping to gather up the balloon). Even though most people nowadays think it’s really neat and exciting to have a balloon land in their field, and the welcoming committee is generally armed with sandwiches and picture phones rather than sharpened farm implements, the champagne toast at the conclusion of a successful flight remains an important ballooning tradition!

Saturday, April 21 (Part 2)

Saturday is usually a big day at Sun ‘N Fun, and this year was no exception. Adding to the crowds was half-price admission ($15) for Florida residents during the weekend. We were very busy with visitors to the tent, and other vendors noticed a lot more folks as well. The weather was nice, though we did get a brief sprinkle in the afternoon, it didn’t stop the airshow. The B-2 flyby brought a bit of the surreal to the event.

Sunday, April 22

The keyword for Sunday was BUSY. Lots and lots of customers came by. The crowds in general seemed to be strong, not quite as strong as Saturday perhaps but a lot of folks seemed focused on the airplanes. The weather remained warm and generally very pleasant. Sunday is the last “real” day of the airshow… Mondays are always very slow. It’s been a long week, but an exciting one and a very successful event.

Monday, April 23
Final Day

As expected, Monday was a very, very light day for visitors… there was probably not more than 500 attendees on the grounds the whole day. Our tent only had about 4 or 5 visitors before noon (although we did sell some more shoes) and even that was more than many other vendors saw. Mondays are generally known as “Vendor Appreciation Day” because all the exhibitors take the time to visit with other vendors and check out the stuff that they missed when the place was busy with attendees. Less than ten homebuilts were still in the homebuilt parking area, so seeing airplanes was basically pointless unless they were located in a vendor display area. About noon, everyone begins to break down their displays. With the help of our crew from Melbourne (aka the Cavalry), we were able to get our entire display (including a large, heavy wooden floor, two large tents, and everything else in the display area as well as all the stuff from the campsite) loaded into the truck and get on the road before sunset. As we all drove home, we were dog-tired but we were also satisfied with the knowledge that it was a good show. We did more business than ever before, and some of our vendor friends said that they did very well this year as well.

It is nice to see all the positive energy and good attitudes pervading the world of aviation, especially at a time when General Aviation is in a fight for it’s very existence against the FAA’s scheme to institute user fees… something that has absolutely destroyed recreational aviation throughout the world in every place they have been instituted. We didn’t hear of anyone who had anything good to say about the FAA’s funding proposal, and a great many folks feel that this was a huge stab in the back of the very folks the FAA is supposed to be watching out for. The FAA’s positive attitude and help in getting the SP/LSA rules established just a short time ago makes the current proposal sting even more, as it would clearly kill off exactly the kind of flying that Sport Pilot is starting to rejuvenate. However, with the growing strength of general aviation and GA’s far-reaching impact on so many areas of our nation and it’s economy, and the fact that AOPA is one of the most powerful and effective lobbying groups in Washington history, it looks likely that general aviation can be saved from the FAA… but we still can’t assume it’s a done deal.

Regardless of your level of involvement in aviation, whether you’re a high-time pilot, a manufacturer, a student, or just an airplane enthusiast, we encourage you to take a serious interest in the current situation and do something to help stop the current user fee proposal… the AOPA has a lot of info about this topic. Remember, there’s a reason that general aviation thrives in the USA in a way unlike anywhere else in the world… and we’re one of the few places left in the world where every takeoff, landing, flight plan, missed approach, and call to ATC doesn’t cost a small fortune. Contrary to what the current FAA leadership would have us believe, just because everyone else does it doesn’t mean it’s a good idea!

On to happier thoughts… Oshkosh is not far away, and it looks like it’s gonna be a really great time. EAA will be celebrating the 60th anniversary of the USAF with some great displays like the F-22 and a U-2, and we suspect that more great stuff will be announced soon. See you there!

Bonus – In-Flight Photos and More

Here’s a quick “bonus feature” to wrap up our Sun ‘N Fun coverage… Aaron took some neat photos while he rode along during one of the showcase fly-by sessions and Mike Jones got some good shots of Jacquie B. and Elaine Larsen.