lupo_lobo

Thanks Bill - all the best to you and the family.

Seasons Greetings, Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas 2014 to any that pass this way ... our somewhat ancient Christmas Cactus timed it right once again.

Thanks Bill.

I see this morning that I should be more careful posting late at night when half asleep. This Red Oak is now just over 1.5 years and is about 24" in height. I originally photographed it on May 8th, 2013 as a sprout for one of the Canon Thursday postings.

Slightly left of center is a Red Oak which I have cultivated since finding it as a single leaf sprouted from an acorn in one of the flower beds. Originally, the I photographed the acorn and sprout in macro with the thought that some day I will enjoy sitting in the shade of this tree when it has grown fully.

After an early freeze last week the trees have decided to start dropping their leaves - rapidly. I am having trouble keeping up and after bagging seventeen - 55 gallon bags of leaves I decided to document my little but mighty oak along with the leaves of its forefathers. Some day far down the road I hope that I have the health to gather leaves from this very tree.

Eurocopter EC-120B departing for last weeks NASCAR race.

This is a Eurocopter EC 120B Colibri helicopter. The pilot and three passengers were just lifting off to spend the afternoon out at the Texas Motor Speedway for the AAA Texas 500 race. The speedway is about 38 miles from where they lifted off, but with a seating capacity of about 191,000 you can bet the traffic will be something you want to avoid. Beats sitting in traffic I suppose.

Love it ...

Thanks Bill, sorry you didn't get to see more of the collection. Their FB page will usually keep you apprised of interesting events and notable visitors. Nov 21 (Friday evening) they will be doing a sunset shoot of the combat veteran B-25 Mitchell that you saw when you walked through the first hanger. They are going to tow it down to the old terminal bldg to catch some golden hour light for the photographers. It will be the first time she has been out of the hanger in almost a decade. I think it is about $30.00 to join the shoot.

Many thanks Bill and Pierre.

A Curtiss Wright P-40K Warhawk in the "Aleutian Tiger" livery of the 343rd Fighter Group. The Aleutian Tigers operated in Alaska from mid 1942 until the fall of 1943 and flew with other USAAF and Canadian units.

The Aleutian Tigers were commanded by Lt. Col.  John “Jack” Chennault, the son of General Claire Chennault who commanded the “Flying Tigers” in China.

This P-40 Warhawk is part of the Texas Flying Legends collection near Houston, Texas.

A 1941 era Curtiss P-40E Warhawk (N2416X) preparing to take an elderly Gent up for a memory.

Thank you Bill and Craig, much appreciated.

We were hoping that there would be a total of seven Warhawks at the event but only managed to get three to attend. There is always next year. In the very back you can see a Navy Corsair with wings folded.

A very nice engaged street portrait Lex. Not sure what that device is to the lads right is, however.

My second visit to Olive Burger and I wasn't disappointed. This time I tried the #12 Ultimate Cheeseburger. Served with 1/2 lb flame broiled beef, triple cheese, lettuce, pickles, tomato, topped with beef bacon, avocado and sauteed mushrooms, jalapenos and onion all between a toasted bakery bun.

In a month or two I will be looking to try some of their grilled chicken offerings and then perhaps the gyros and Turkish Döner.

I posted here about my first visit back in August. 

Mike - this P-51 has been highly modified for the National Championship Unlimited races out in Reno. The wings are a good bit shorter and more trim than a stock P-51. The canopy was lowered and lengthened as well. I don't think he can fit a hitch hiker in there :(

Fortunately the P-51D at this - my local museum - can carry a second, although wealthy passenger. $1995.00 for thirty minutes.

Thanks Bill and Mike!

Had to look up "hanger rash", looks like she took a bump for sure. The guys that maintain these birds are top notch so I imagine she will be patched up in short order.

One of very few "flyable" Japanese Zeros remaining. This is an A6M2 Model 21 Japanese Zero owned by Texas Flying Legends Museum out of Houston, Texas. The white ring around the Hinomaru (rising sun) indicates this naval plane was manufactured by Nakajima. The plane was recovered from the jungles of Ballale island in the Pacific in the late 1960's. Restored by the Blayd Corporation, this Zero is the only one restored in exact detail with the exception of it's DC-3 engine.

Fort Worth never looked so good. So many squares, rectangles and right angles ... nicely broken up by the curvature of the reflection.

Very nice Line ... you really captured the mood of the Texas coast in the very early morning. I miss it dearly though it was the upper Texas coast in my case.

Thanks to each of you for your insightful comments which have given me plenty to think about and consider for the next time I pick up the camera.

I caught up with "Precious Metal" and Pilot/Owner Thom Richard September 04th as they made their way across Texas in route to Reno Nevada for the 2014 National Championship Air Races. They will be competing in the Unlimited Warbird Racing Class (UWRC) during the event which runs September 10-14, 2014.

Here you can see Thom is downloading the flight plan from his laptop to the aircrafts on board computer. (click image for more detail) He will stop in Carlsbad, New Mexico and then Phoenix, Arizona before arriving at his destination in Reno, Nevada.

Good luck to Thom and Precious Metal as they compete for the win this week. For those who may be interested, the races can be streamed live at LiveAirshowTV.com

Precious Metal is a modified P-51 XR powered by a mighty Rolls Royce 3200 horse power Griffon V-12 engine with contra-rotating props, making PM truly a one-of-a-kind aircraft.

Thanks for the feedback, you did a wonderful job.

Very nice Maurizio, it wants to lead me through the gate into the sun and sea with never a look back.

Thanks Bill - I am not sure when it will cool but there are some interesting events coming up at the museum that you might want to look into.