Waking up this morning was bittersweet because the show wasn't over, but I needed to be heading home because I had to be at work on Monday. I walked to the bathrooms to brush my teeth and finally stopped to look closely at an airplane I had walked past numerous times throughout the week, but never bothered to slow down and really look at it. It was the Rutan Grizzly and just from looking at it, one might not think twice about it being just another taildragger, but it's the landing gear legs that instantly tell you that this is a unique airplane, and then once you get closer you can see this is a canard-style aircraft with flaps on all the wings.
Something really strange about this airplane was the landing gear in that it looked like a papier-mâché process had been used to attach the axles to the gear legs. I've never seen this before. If anyone can provide some insight on this, please leave a comment below.
Upon returning to my campsite, a retired airline pilot was looking at my Tailwind and he began asking me questions about it before snapping a few pix of me and my bird.
At 7:15AM, the marshals were directing me out of the grass and onto the taxiway toward runway 18.
At 7:25AM I lifted off and by 7:30AM I was at a cruise that should have been much faster for my power setting. 2600 RPM was netting about 135 MPH at 1800' MSL with an OAT of about 65°. The numerous folks I spoke to throughout the week said my Tailwind should at minimum be making 150 MPH IAS at 2500 RPM and they all attributed my sub-150 MPH speed to the propeller.
The weather began to get crummy and I needed fuel anyway so I landed at the first airport after the rain began to get heavy which happened to be Baraboo -- a place where the Tailwind pilots used to gather before flying in to Airventure.
After fueling up, I waited out the weather in the FBO's lounge and during that time some other pilots began asking me about my airplane. Imagine their surprise when I said I was flying a Tailwind that was built nearby in 1965 and imagine my surprise when they said this was Jim Clement's home airport and he was on the field right now!
When the rain eased up, he made his way out to my Tailwind and began looking it over. At one point he asked me what kind of speeds I'm getting and after telling him the numbers, he said that the top speed was too slow for that RPM and suspected it was a propeller issue. He then looked at the propeller and asked me if I had a Lycoming O-235 or O-290. I told him it was a Continental O-200 and he said that the propeller was not a Continental propeller and looked like a Lycoming propeller.
Say what?
First off, I had no idea that different engine manufacturers required props that were so significantly different that they could be identified by appearance alone. And second, this bit of info coming from Jim Clement -- JIM CLEMENT of all people -- confirmed what all the other pilots had told me all week. This Whirlwind propeller was not the correct propeller for a Wittman Tailwind with a Continental O-200!
The weather cleared and after a fuel stop in Brookings, SD (KBKX), I made it to Baker, MT (KBHK) landing just before 5pm to some disappointment. In the seven days that I had been away, they tore out the entire field where I camped last week!
This is where I slept last week.
And this is what it looks like now.
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