biplane_dude

Hey Ron... Good luck with this. I used to do the inverted Pitts (or biplane) drops from my S2A at Couch Freaks (and others) and wanted to be able to practice the jumps (and just aerobatics) at a local uncontrolled public field not far from my home. Same deal. The local airport board wouldn't approve it even with the blessing of the dropzone and other tenants on the field. To be honest they weren't to happy with the dz anyway at the time and were actively trying to get them off the field except they weren't going to be able to justify further FED funds without their takeoff/landings in their annual activity audits. Long story short, I gave up trying to do it on that field or one nearby. Believe it or not, the new FAA guidelines "require" the Ops Inspector to have some sort of approval from at least one of the land owners below the box as part of an environmental noise impact review. Luckily, we had a small private field owner that was all to happy to allow us to practice over his property and gave us written permission. The FED's accepted this for their approval policy (regardless of the fact, 90 percent of the box was over a farmers field and not the principal land owner). You CAN get approval without the airport authorities blessing, but good luck. The route you have to take is the big stick approach. Threaten their federal funding supply. If the field is federally supported (eg. tax dollars that fund runway improvement, etc), they are required to support any FAA legally authorized aviation activity. The problem with this route is that it may backfire on you. They may "approve" the activity, but require that you have 5 mill (or more) of liability insurance. If noise is the primary concern, you can use the formula's approved in the Volpe Report as noted[url] in the FAA's Memorandum regarding Aerobatic Noise (Link at bottom) to combat any argument the airport (or anyone else) might have. Good luck and blue skies. Mark https://www.faa.gov/about/office_org/headquarters_offices/apl/environ_policy_guidance/guidance/media/Approval_for_APA_Equivalent_Methodology.pdf

Triumph electrical systems are made by Lucas. There's a reason the British drink warm beer. Their slogan is NOT... Reliability by Lucas TR6 = purist car aficionado Miata = Cute convertible car driver. It's kinda like buying a Suzuki Boulevard when you really want a Norton Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

Been watching this thread and I have to admit the answers have been extremely accurate and I understand those who have a cop/phobic or cop/dislike mentality. Unfortunately law enforcement is the parental unit of society and no one likes being told to go to the adult analogous of their room (jail). Just to throw another variable into the mix.... The department I work for has a new video camera/computer system. The system has four cameras posted on the corners of the squad that search the surrounding enviornment and looks specifically for license plates. When the cam finds one, it sends the info to the computer and runs it through the registration, warrants, etc. If a "hit" pops, it alerts the officer who can make a traffic stop. The system is fast enough that it can check a lines of vehicles parked along the roadway and in traffic while the officer drives by. The system is extremely expensive and the department wasn't interested in buying any until the manufacturer allowed them to borrow it for a couple of months. In the first month it found enough stolen vehicles (from virtually every state in the lower 48), suspended drivers, expired registrations, etc to virtually pay for the unit in about 2 months. Needless to say the department bought one and is working on the financing for 2 more. I can't say this is the end all of crime fighting though. This unit is extremely expensive and I don't see a small town making it worth their while. Our department happens to be in one of the top ten most dangerous cities in the US. Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

Hey John... You are right.. this is not a cure all for ALL conditions associated with vertigo but is a "quick" cure for a common problem associated with skydiving and aerobatics, thus my comment, "if it's the semi circular canals, this should clear it". I am familiar with the test you were talking about (Electronystagmography). I had this test done about 8 years ago when I first started flying acro and thought I had a horrible balance problem that was acute AND chronic (lasted for several months). The electronnystamography is an excellent test for further investigation of balance problems and it DOES work (can you say projectile vomiting?). My comments regarding the Eply technique and the nystagmus test were to assist Morav in determining that 1) he had a problem and 2) to provide a quick possible cure as an alternative to taking various medications. I did not intend to assert that I am a medical professional or that I had the "cure all" to all things vertigo. Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

FOUND IT... Amazing how things come around when you need them. My acro buddies were discussing this again and the "Eply Manuever" was the positioning technique I was telling you about. Here's the website for it.... http://www.acroflyer.com/wobblies.htm Also.. I called it the "leans" but some apparently call it the "wobblies. If it is the semi circular canals... this should clear it. Give it a try. Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

Btw... let me know what comes out of your doc appointment. I'd like to add the info to my background of knowledge.... not only for my law enforcement work but for aviation as well. Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

Fantastic. Glad to hear you are on a track to get it dealt with. Sounds like something is going on between the ears...haha... Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

There's a tecnique called the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus test that will tell you alot about what is going on. Yes, this test is the same one cops use to tell if you are drunk. Essentially the test is a check of your eyes ability to track a stimulus. What happens is that your eyes muscles are semi controlled by the semi circular canals. The ears send false signals to the brain and the brain thinks the body is moving and sends incorrect signals to the eyes to keep up with the believed movement. What happens is a disparity between what the brain "thinks" is happening and what the eyes are really seeing causing an involuntary movement of the eyes or "twitching". Try this site: http://www.nhtsa.gov/people/injury/enforce/nystagmus/hgntxt.html If you are able to have someone give you the test... and find you are suffering from some sort of nystagmus... you probably still have some sort of issue going on within the inner ear that needs further investigation. The technique mentioned in the earlier post is almost correct. I'm still searching for the exact tecnique. I'll let you know if I find it. BTW... my background... Pitts biplane driver (couchfreaks, skyfest, summerfest, etc), aerobatic competitor, skydiver driver and yeah.. I'm the po po... LOL. So I have a bit of actual experience with all of this. I did some casual testing of my aerobatic students that endured spin training. I would give them the HGN test after training and ALL suffered from some sort of nystagmus issues. If you are somewhere near IL drop me a line and I can give yah the HGN test in person or if you have a cop friend, ask them to do it for yah. My bet is... you are still suffering from some sort of inner ear issue however your brain/eyes have learned to deal with it much like a habitual drunk deals with it. The body has just corrected itself for the false signals coming from the ears. Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

I suspect the condition you are suffering from is a form of a balance problem aerobatic pilots suffer from. If you are still suffering from the swelling, you need to see a doctor. We call the balance problem, "the leans". If you are still suffering from the balance issue there is a procedure that we use to help us cure it. Essentially it is nothing more than laying flat on the bed and turning our head every few minutes in different directions. The problem is a result of the tiny calcium deposits in the semi-circular canals brushing against the hairs in the canals. This causes sensory inputs from the ear to be sent to the brain indicating the body is moving in a particular direction when in fact it is not. If this is what you are suffering from, send me a note and I can get the procedure from one of the other guys on my acro exploder page. I know it sounds stupid but it works. The best way to determine if this is the possible problem is to see if you have Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus. (I can explain that as well if you are interested). Just let me know. Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

2005 Big Dog Pitbull.... I am SOOO ready to get back riding this summer. Snow has finally melted last week but it rained all weekend and it's still wet on the ground today. Polishing chrome and billet aluminum is a full time job.

Great game tonight...!!!!! Uhm... do I recall the Hawks won in overtime 4-3???????? Do I recall the Hawks have beat the Sharks at home the twice now? I'll say it again... HAWKS RULE...!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

Wow... you guys are missing out on some good hockey... Blackhawks lead every category except nice place to live. Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

I think you are all wrong. The Blackhawks RULE...!!!!!!

Actually... it may have been a Lear 25. They are identifying the airplane as owned by Royal Air charter out of the Detroit area. Royal operates a whole fleet of different aircraft, Convairs, Falcons, Lears, 310 Cessna's and more. I was up there about 6 months ago and they had at least 4 Lear 24 or 25's (not sure which they were) sitting against the fence. They are a charter company that specializes in On Time Freight delivery specifically for the automotive manufacturing industry. Life's the Pitts then you jump one.

Yeah... I have to admit... I really missed not having anything to do this summer. The Pitts just made it out of the hangar yesterday...and it's on it's way to Florida. I'll have to tell yah the whole story on that one sometime soon. I was working on a deal for a Stearman but it fell through for a variety of reasons. Miss you to dear. I saw Dave just made his first jump since the hospital. GOOD FOR HIM...!!!! Damn.. tough deal but I'm glad to hear he's coming back. Life's the Pitts then you jump one.