Overnight Open Thread - 12/31/2024
[Roger Ball]

Where would we be with the interwebs, HORDE? I think I personally would be in better shape. But that’s beside the point. It is a great way to not-to-do yard work, no?

Searching “extreme flight” or “extreme flying” interestingly brings up the radio-controlled model airplane “hobby”. I use quotes there because the folks that are involved in that activity are very serious players and spend shocking amounts of bongo bucks in the pursuit of wearing the mantle “most extreme”.

EXTREMEFLIGHTRC brings you directly into their world of really big models and featured products. For example, you can get an entry level jet powered model for a reduced price of only $3299.99! It doesn’t stop there, of course, because there are servos, tools, radios, controllers and other stuff to add. I have to admit, watching the experienced guys employ their skills makes for good viewing.

Then there’s “ludicrous scale” like this 55% scale Stearman. This is a 12-minute video, but you don’t have to listen long to get an idea of how realistic these things are to their full-scale inspiration.

Then there are the guys who reproduce the military airplanes with incredible attention to detail. Some of the models are so good I think they could be used to create movie scenes from other times. There are budget models available from various retail outlets like MOTIONRC and TOWER HOBBIES.

Mentioning the “bongo bucks” at the start, one can easily imagine that this could become very expensive very quickly. I’m not sure how much this poor guy had sunk into his beautiful 1:2 scale SAAB GRIPEN, but he obviously needs to rethink some engineering and fabrication processes.

Ouch! Back to the bench for you!

Talking about “extreme flying” should include “wingsuits”. I’ve never seen these guys in person, but watching the videos makes me think less of flying and more of insanity…but that’s just me. Jokke Sommer is a Norwegian skydiver and blogger who posts some extreme stuff.

Actually, I should have typed “posted” because his last you tube video was posted four years ago. I don’t know for sure, but an event like this would surely dampen my enthusiasm: Three Killed In Wingsuit Flying Accident.

Dan Vicary, Ludovic Woerth, and Brian Drake had jumped from a helicopter for a flight in the Lüetschental valley in Switzerland, but soon after, crashed into a field. While Vicary and Woerth were found dead, Drake passed away four days later… According to a 2012 study by Omer Mei-Dan, a stuntman-turned-surgeon, 72% of jumpers have witnessed the death or serious injury of other participants, 43% have suffered a significant BASE jump injury, and 76% have had at least one near-miss incident.

Uh…did you get that? “Stuntman-turned-surgeon,”. Okay. There’s a whole lot in that brain that I don’t understand. I’ll admit those guys have a true sense of commitment to the hobby. That stuff makes landing on the pitching deck of an aircraft carrier on a pitch-black night seem mundane, eh?

If none of that floats your boat…uh, launches your jet…there’s always Extreme Flight Simulation.

Our simulator exactly reproduces the flight deck of the 737 NG. The seats, throttles, switches, pedals and yokes are original parts of the real aircraft…This simulator is classified as a FBS (Fixed Based Simulator) type that when paired with the unique High Definition 220˚ wraparound screen creates the 'as real as it gets' feeling.”

Speaking of extreme, does this strike anyone as extremely dumb?

A little more than an hour after Yagi's arrival, Hainan saw power outages that affected 830,000 households in the province, the official news agency Xinhua said… By Friday night, power to 260,000 households had been restored.

Still speaking of extreme, a new book by Kirk Spradley just came out, War Junkie-A cautionary tale. The author has a unique story and an amazingly diverse career as a war fighter. There are many great books by many great veterans, but Kirk has made his book unique in a way seldom seen. After the book cleared the government vetting and censoring, Kirk decided to retain all the redactions in the text. Seeing that blacked out text seems to add to the story, not detract. The language is salty, and the story will take you from humor to horror. It’s a fast and instructive read. (Full disclosure: Kirk is a friend and brother.)

Finally, “yard pron”. I think they grossed out the Hummingbirds because I haven’t seen any little birds since this sketchy couple set up housekeeping.

Stay frosty, HORDE!

posted by Open Blogger at 10:00 PM

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