May 14th, 2009
The gopher snake is decorated with brown, cream and yellow markings.
A group of county workers discovered big gopher snake at Baylands today. It was a beautiful individual, about 4 1/2 feet long, glistening in the warm sunshine.
I spotted it at a distance, a distinctly serpentine form being held by a woman in a blue dress.
After I fetched a camera, I walked over and introduced myself.
Her name was Candy, a teacher. She came to the park Wednesday with two other women and a group of about 10 lively children. The kids were outfitted in bright orange vests so the women could keep track of them.
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Tags:
Baylands,
People,
Snakes.
Posted in Baylands | 2 Comments »
May 8th, 2009
Mario Alanis holds his handcrafted pusher jet.
Mario Alanis has built a big foam jet-like plane which flies like a dream.
His planes look like folk art, I thought the other day, admiring Mario’s fleet.
They’re colorful, imaginative, cheerful and bold. They look hand-crafted.
With its bulbous nose, this one slightly resembles a Predator, but it has a different wing shape with more fins and vanes going on. Contrasting with a bright red nose, the camouflage paint job is its own work of art.
When I asked Mario what this plane is modeled after, he shrugged. Its closest reference point is a blue-core foam plane Mario built last year, but he modified the wings and ailerons for his latest design.
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Tags:
Baylands,
Flying,
People.
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April 27th, 2009
Flanked by her team, Emily pilots the helicopter toward the volcano.
Remember the team of young women who intended to
learn to fly a radio-controlled helicopter in one month?
Saturday was their day of reckoning, when they had to guide a payload of six ping pong balls to a target inside a model volcano 20 feet away.
It was Tech Challenge 2009, sponsored by the Tech Museum.
More than 1,000 students in grades 5 through 12 competed, 250 teams from around the Bay Area and as far away as San Diego and even New York.
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Tags:
Gallery,
Helicopters,
Life,
People.
Posted in Elsewhere | 5 Comments »
April 26th, 2009
Dennis says this remote controlled vehicle can hit 30 mph.
Ever the inventor, Dennis Castleman is working on a speedy launching vehicle for one of his big gliders.
Conventional launching solutions include bungie cords, airplanes with cradles for gliders, launching ramps, towing planes and high cliffs.
Dennis’ solution is based on a remote-control toy he spotted at Fry’s, a model off-road vehicle that claims a top speed of 30 mph.
He chopped the top off and added right-angle brackets with padding to cradle his giant airplane.
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Tags:
Baylands,
Flying,
People.
Posted in Baylands | 3 Comments »
April 18th, 2009
A wing circles the pylon as pilots on the flying line vie for position.
Kasra was excited.
He and a group of wing flyers staged an impromptu pylon race last weekend.
“You have to come Saturday,” he insisted. “We’ll do it again, with more people.”
I don’t normally visit Baylands on weekends. It’s crowded and I generally enjoy a two-day break from flying, as fun as it is. It’s a chance to do some repairs, maybe build something new, or just read a book.
But Kasra was insistent, as was Mike Bowns, whose tall Battle Wing banners served as course markers for the pylon race.
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Tags:
Airplanes,
Baylands,
Flying,
Wings.
Posted in Baylands | 3 Comments »
