Kitplanes article

RVNewsletter · Post by **RVNewsletter** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 7:40 am

Just closing the door on a thread of a couple of months ago, the Kitplanes article is out; the one I penned in response to Checkoway's "Get real!" article.

I hope this link works. It's the pdf version.

Brantel · Post by **Brantel** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 8:29 am

Bob,

Two words: Great article!

cjensen · Post by **cjensen** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 8:38 am

I second Brian's two words!

I thoroughly enjoyed the article Bob!

BTW...nice letter to the editor Brian...

Brantel · Post by **Brantel** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 9:36 am

cjensen wrote:I second Brian's two words!

I thoroughly enjoyed the article Bob!

BTW...nice letter to the editor Brian...

Did they publish my letter to Marc? I don't subscribe so I cannot see it if they did. Send me a screen shot or something.

I have respect for Dan and the good things he has done for the RV community but that article really rubbed me the wrong way. I most likely over reacted but anyway, Bob put it all down much more eliquently than I did.

Post by **Spike** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 9:42 am

Bob,

I am truly blessed to consider you a friend. You nailed it, hit it on the head, and drove it home. This article will be hung in my shop, all over my shop actually.

I am currently in a building slump, because of life. Your comments of fitting the project into your life and not allowing it to become your life are correct and inspiring.

Thanks.

Spike

cjensen · Post by **cjensen** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 9:45 am

Brantel wrote:Did they publish my letter to Marc? I don't subscribe so I cannot see it if they did. Send me a screen shot or something.

Yep. I'll see if I can find it online...someone else have access to it before me, post it...

painless · Post by **painless** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 11:04 am

Bob, I felt is if I had written that article myself (not that I have your literary gift).

Many of the things you highlighted were the very reasons why N782P took 10 years to complete.

Thankyou for reminding me.

Best Regards

dons · Post by **dons** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 11:16 am

Bob, you are a true master of the written word. I started down this road almost two years ago and will likely take even longer than you to finish my pay as I go project. I take a lot of friendly ribbing about the care and attention to detail of my work, but like you have so eloquently wrote on many occasions, we have to build these great machines in a way that makes us comfortable, satisfied, and most importantly proud of how we done the work while living our lives.

weezbad · Post by **weezbad** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 1:19 pm

excellent article Bob, anyone with a real life would easily share your views. even with unlimited funds it still takes timeshares

a quote from dans site http://www.rvproject.com/20031212.html
"Tonight I went to EAA Chapter 448's Christmas dinner. That was ok. I'm not much of a socialite, even in the company of aviators. Everybody wants to talk and tell their stories, and we've all been there, done that. Well, at least I feel like I have, in terms of the stuff weenies tend to brag about. People don't think of a 20-something dude as somebody with much flight experience, so I end up hearing all these boring ass stories about flying to places I've been zillions of times. Inverted. With my tail on fire. Anyway, when they passed out the words to Christmas carrols and were about to start singing, I made my exit quick-style. No thanks. Aviation and religion have nothing to do with each other in my book. In fact, I despise organized religion as a whole. Why am I talking about this here? The real question may be: Why are you still reading?"

you know it was quite funny to me that he was so bitter about spending a little time with some older wiser folks who obviously have a great human spirit. then when he got back to his shop he was complaining of the cold, it so happened the temperature in the shop was 44.8 degrees. The Christmas dinner he had just left was chapter 448......things that make you go hmmmmm.

Post by **Spike** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 1:39 pm

I had not read that entry. Actually, I have not read much of his site at all. Amazing...

spikescopilot · Post by **spikescopilot** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 1:43 pm

Just wow.

One of my favorite topics for our chapter's annual dinner is flying stories from those who have gone before us. They have so much knowledge and experience to share! Last year's guest speaker was Mary Feik. If you don't know who she is, look her up on the web. I could listen to her for hours. I don't recall the name of this year's speaker, but we heard all about the recreation of the Wrights' first flights.

Great article, btw, Bob! You completely described our ... er... Spike's building experience!

svanarts · Post by **svanarts** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 2:51 pm

You know, I don't know how Dan can stand the boredom of life, it must be just awful having nothing left to live for. I mean if I'd been everyone and done everthing inverted with my tail on fire, life would lose all meaning. I'm sure he was exaggerating for effect but still.

He has nothing to live for, and nothing to look forward to when he dies. What a miserable existence. I truly pity him.

Edit: Oh, and Bob, I really enjoyed your article too. God bless.

svanarts · Post by **svanarts** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 3:01 pm

Brian,
I just sent you a PDF. Very well said.

svanarts · Post by **svanarts** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 3:05 pm

Oh and if you haven't read Dan's article in Kitplanes this month, do. It's a hoot.

papakeith · Post by **papakeith** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 3:11 pm

what a great article. Thanks for penning it.

aparchment · Post by **aparchment** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 4:48 pm

You know whose stories I really hate listening to? Chuck Yeager's.

I mean geez, who in the world hasn't been in an inverted flat spin in an F104 after losing hydraulic pressure due to a tail slide back into the atmosphere from 75,000 feet. And I mean really, who hasn't ejected from a plane when the descent rate matched the ascent rate from the ejection. And like, what's the big deal about having the rocket motor in your seat set your face mask on fire.

Been there, done that --- twice!

Whatever. You all bore me.

So guys, who is the best pilot you've ever seen? You're readin' his words baby.

--------------------------------------------------------

By the way Bob, very nicely written article. This hobby allows us all to do things at our own pace. I would do well to take advice from you.

Antony

rob · Post by **rob** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 6:08 pm

Any chance someone could send me Brian's reponse? I don't subscribe to Kitplanes either, but I was disgusted seeing Dan's article. Bob, you did a wonderful job in your response!

JohnR · Post by **JohnR** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 7:00 pm

Bob, thanks for speaking your piece, it needed said.

For those who haven't seen it here is Brian's response as published:

Dan is an RV builder of one airplane
and before he did this, he was as green
as a gourd in the world of homebuilding.
How does building one airplane
elevate a man to the level of esteemed
RV builder? Th is man is getting way too
big for his pants.
I suggest that you do some research
on what the Experimental community
really thinks about this man before you
allow him space in your magazine. He
is a knowledgeable person, but his attitude
is that of some sort of elitist, and
his comments typically have a condescending
attitude about them. We do
not need this type of arrogance in the
homebuilding world.
BRIAN CHESTEEN

spikescopilot · Post by **spikescopilot** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 7:53 pm

JohnR wrote:He is a knowledgeable person, but his attitude is that of some sort of elitist, and his comments typically have a condescending attitude about them. We do not need this type of arrogance in the homebuilding world.

BRIAN CHESTEEN

Oh no he di'nt!!!!!

Post by **bullojm1** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 8:19 pm

I see some Dan bashing in this thread and I don't particularly care for it. How do you think he feels about the RB crowd if he was a member here? If someone wrote some of these words about another active RB member, do you think one of the moderators would delete it? I really like visiting this board and reading the thread. I don't get heated over anything that is said. I enjoy contributing my knowledge and poking fun at Chad (in good humor)

. However, I did not like reading this thread.

I have met Dan once. I emailed him about two weeks before I was going on vacation to see if he wouldn't mind a visit. When I visited, not only did he invite me for a ride, but he also invited my two other friends for a ride. All in all, we each got 30 minutes in his beautiful RV. Without Checkoway, I would not be building an RV now. I remember someone emailing me his website, and after going through his entire web log, I knew homebuilding was for me.

When I read his article that spawned all of this madness, I took it to heart and evaluated my own plane to see if I was being foolish in any manor. I respect his opinions because he has completed something I have not and has hindsight of the liking I could only hope for. Sure, I have a few extravagant items on my RV that I don't need, and I am happy with the decisions I made. But I also want to get in the air as fast as possible for as few bucks out of my pocket as possible.

I have never seen Dan make a personal attack on someone. He can be harsh at times, but the underlying message he is trying to convey is positive. Lastly, if you don't care for what he has to say, don't read his articles, don't visit his web log and don't say "Hi" to him if you see him.

And not to be causing more of a ruckus, but I read on Bob's blog (which I do enjoy reading) where the latest panel layout doesn't even have the Vertical Power component in it! How could you let him win?!!? (Just kidding, Bob's panel is very nice and has great bang for the buck!).

RivetBangers.com

Kitplanes article

Kitplanes article

boring old stories