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The value of the RV Community

Dgamble

Well Known Member
I have given a lot of people rides in both my RV-6 and now in my RV-12, and I always enjoy it as least as much as they do. Having been blessed with owning a Van's RV for what, nine or ten years now, it's easy to forget what wonderful little airplanes they are. Just as humans can get used to just about anything, there is a similar risk of getting so used to things that they start to be taken for granted - flying with people that have never been in a small plane before, or pilots that have never experienced the physical freedom of a nimble little sport plane, tends to remind the owner of what a special privilege it is to have one of these things.

I have to be honest, though: I don't remember everyone I've given a ride to, but they sure remember me! There's one guy at the airport that has had to remind me twice now that he took a ride with me. And now I realize that I've forgotten his name. Again.

On the other hand, there are some that are very memorable. There was a 50-something guy that had never flown in an airplane of any type, despite a life-long interest. And, or course, many of the very pretty young women are easily recalled.

And then there was Phil.

Phil called me one day last May to introduce himself as a fellow RV-12 builder in search of a ride. Naturally I told him that I'd be happy to give him one, and all he had to do was let me know when he wanted to come to the airport. There was a pause.... then he somewhat reluctantly told me that doing so would be a three hour round trip. "No problem," I told him, "I'll fly out to Zanesville and you can meet me there." That's less than a half hour trip in the 12, so it was no big deal at all.

The ride was memorable mostly because of how ebullient he was. I've seen that in younger people, and sometimes in 50-somethings as mentioned above, but seldom in the late-60s to 70-something group. That's not to say that they don't enjoy or appreciate it, because they do, but this guy was almost giddy. When we landed, we went through the obligatory "can I give you same gas money" dance, wherein they offer a couple of times and I respectfully decline.

Besides the fact that accepting money flies right in the face of FAA regulations, I really don't think it's necessary. I enjoy the flying, and the hourly costs of flying an RV-12 are so low that my out-of-pocket cost is nearly insignificant. And besides, I'm really just re-paying the debts incurred from when it was I that was asking for/receiving rides in RVs.

It's really just part and parcel with the mores of the RV Community.

What I have failed to consider is that what I consider to be a small favor may very well be of a far higher worth to the recipient of my minimal largess.

Obviously Phil had been one of those. When I got back to home base and picked up my phone to close my domestic flight plan (the text I send home to tell my spouse that I had cheated fate once again), I had a text from Phil telling me to make sure to look over to the passenger side - he had left something in the plane.

I did so, and found two wadded up $50 bills.

Sigh.

I had to do something with them, so one of them now rides in the map box, just waiting for the next time I find myself out somewhere and short of cash. The other rides in the glove box of my car, awaiting the same type of situation.

Late last December I received a message from Phil's wife telling me that he had passed away in November.

She told me that she thought I would want to know how much that ride had meant to Phil. She was right.

I took a day to absorb the news of his passing, then remembered that I had taken a couple of pictures of him during the flight, which I try to do with everyone that rides with me. I was able to dig those out of my picture repository and send the better of the two to her, for which she was very grateful.

Then I had a thought.

I never know how to approach these things, so I cautiously composed another message to her that went something like "I apologize if this is inappropriate, but if you need help selling the kit, please let me know and I'll be happy to assist."

She took me up on the offer this weekend, so I drove out to the very nice heated garage where he had been building the plane to assess the situation. As it turns out, it's in extremely good condition, very well organized, and should be very easy to sell. In fact, I may have already sold it.

I also suggested that she would have no trouble selling the specialty tools as well. As I was winnowing them out from the more day-to-day tools, I came across one that I need myself, so I told her I would be making an offer on it.

When I had all of the airplane parts separated out from lawnmower parts and the like, I asked her how much she wanted for the tool, based on the price I found on Aircraft Spruce.

She paused, clearly thinking it through, then finally said, "Well, I guess I need to know what your fee is going to be first."

I have to confess to being momentarily stunned by the question; I can't imagine anyone in the RV community would even consider charging a fee for what I had done for her.

I told her that there would be no fee - in fact, it was a nice opportunity to use the knowledge that I spent three years building, only to never need again. Happy to do it!

She thought for a few minutes, then said "How about $100 for the tool?"

Perfect! I had half of it right there in the car, and the other half sitting in the map box of the plane!!

Thanks, Phil!

Oh, and she also asked if I had known he was ill at the time we went flying together. I had not, but as it was cancer, he probably did.

He very likely knew that our shared flight would be the only flight he would ever have in an RV-12 - I'm tearing up just writing this.

Now I better understand the worth people may be putting on those rides that I consider to be just another chance to fly my airplane.

It can be quite high.


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

There are some pictures of the tools on my blog: http://www.schmetterlingaviation.com/2016/01/the-rv-community.html

I'd like to sell them as a set - thinking $750 obo.
 
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Dave--that is an awesome story. WE never know the circumstances of the people, whose paths we cross. You gave a ride to a nice gentleman that meant the world to him, AND his wife,
We all run across people like that, maybe not in person like this case, but through email, or text, of phone calls. Its really something special to have a small part in someones life like that. Kudos to you my friend!
Tom
 
Giving RV rides

Dave,
Thanks for your story. You are so right about sharing flying with dreamers in our community. They never forget those moments with you in the air. I purchased my first airplane in 1972 and have been giving rides ever since. I'm not sure who enjoys the flights more. I have always enjoyed giving them.

I first flew my RV-8 July 12th 2000, so I approaching sixteen years of RV grins. I can honestly say the excitement of pushing the throttle forward, and beginning a takeoff roll, has not diminished over the years. These aircraft are "magic carpets"! A formation of the usual suspects at 52F were flying back from a day at the beach on the Texas coast a while back when Ross "Scorch" Burgess transmitted from his beautiful RV-6: "We don't have a normal hobby". So true. How lucky we are!
 
What an incredible story, and so well told! Indeed, this is one of the reasons I'm so glad to be here, on VAF, to read such great stories. And, one of the major reasons why I hope to be a -14A builder very soon (the wife hasn't fully warmed up to the idea). I remember when I was a young pilot getting my ratings and how much I enjoyed giving people their first ride in a small airplane. Everyone's name went in my logbook. Now, for the past 35 years, corporate flying has been my profession. It is still something I enjoy very much and I am so very pleased when someone tells me that I've just given them their first flight in a "small" airplane (Learjet 45XR currently) and how much they enjoyed it. However, since about 1980, no one's name has gone into my logbook even though some were first rides given in a 172 or Cherokee Archer, some even quite memorable.

Now, retirement (perhaps just partial) looms within the next few years. I dearly hope, whether in a -14A or our club Archer, I'm actively adding names and memories to that remarks section which has been so under-utilized for too long!
 
Fantastic writeup....This is why I have been pounding rivits in -4 for many years, main goal is to be able to give rides again , and get back in air regularly ! !
 
Good stuff!

Points up what I hate most about losing my pilot logs (and all those hundreds of Young Eagles' and friends' names) in the fire last spring. :(

-Stormy
 
Thanks for writing!!!

Your story sums up why so many of us love aviation...generally great people!
Thank you for all the rides you have given and for taking the time to write such a moving story.
 
Dave thanks for posting this and more important thanks for representing the RV community. I am sure it meant a lot to fly in your 12!
 
Like all before me mentioned, thank you for sharing your wonderful experience. Without a doubt, one of the best I've read here.
 
Wonderful story made even better by your gift with words, Sir.
Worthy of being submitted for publication in major magazines both aviation-related and others where human interest stories are enjoyed!
 
Thank you for sharing in the multiple ways.

Thank you for sharing in the multiple ways. Anybody that gets to fly these wonderful machines is truly blessed.
 
Dave did it again...

Dave Gamble can wrap words around the story like no other and this is one of his finest. I first met Dave at the Ohio Valley RVators 4th Annual Formation Clinic in the Spring of 2007. I don't recall much about the clinic but Dave did and wrote an article about his experiences at the clinic which I have encouraged all fledgling formation pilots to read. Dave took his first formation flight in the back seat of my RV-8 and I think that was the start of something big for Dave. I'm happy to see that Dave is still paying it forward.
 
Dave Gamble can wrap words around the story like no other and this is one of his finest. I first met Dave at the Ohio Valley RVators 4th Annual Formation Clinic in the Spring of 2007. I don't recall much about the clinic but Dave did and wrote an article about his experiences at the clinic which I have encouraged all fledgling formation pilots to read. Dave took his first formation flight in the back seat of my RV-8 and I think that was the start of something big for Dave. I'm happy to see that Dave is still paying it forward.

That was indeed a memorable ride!

2a8f7tz.jpg
 
Dave,

Thanks so much for sharing such a great story. I think you've touched a cord in many of us, both as those blessed to give such a ride, and thoughts of those we've received.

Dale
 
That was one nice, nice story. Thank you for that.

I gave a similar ride in my Rocket a few years back to an old WWII vet at a local fly-in, but I couldn't tell the story nearly as nice as you did.
 
I've read this twice and had a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes both times. Quite moving to say the least... I can only imagine what it meant to him.

Thank you for sharing
 
Thanks for sharing Dave.

I guess I haven?t thought about giving rides much. I don?t give many rides. However I did give my father-in-law a ride last week.

My 78 year old father-in-law, Don, lives in Ohio and I live in Texas. He drives down and visits us in Texas about once a year. I really hadn?t thought about it much but he was involved in my building an RV since the beginning. In 2009, when I decided to buy a kit, he drove with me 3,333 miles from Dallas to 500 miles north of Toronto and back in four days to pick up an RV-9 kit. (Insanity and obsessions come in all forms. Don?t judge.) I couldn?t have bought that kit without him.

Since he visits once a year, or so, he has seen my plane in various stage of the build process. He was visiting last week and I mentioned taking a flight. He jumped on the chance to fly in my plane, "like a chicken on a June bug". We went up for about 1.5 hours last week and just puttered around the north Texas, Southern Oklahoma area. Nice day and nice flight. Didn?t give it much thought.

He left last Sunday and a few days later he called my wife from Florida and asked if I?d text a picture I took of him and my plane to a friend of his.

I really didn?t think much about the flight until your article. Thanks again Dave. I think the flight meant a lot to Don and again I hadn?t really given it much thought. I needed to.

f2kdnb.jpg


Here's Don
 
Ride shares

A great deed you did, and sharing it with us is icing on the cake. Wonderful.
I need to get more creative in finding riders.
 
Ray Sage

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Mannie Sage Bemis photo

I just saw this photo for the first time today when a friend posted it on FB. This is Ray Sage who lived in Las Cruces, NM until his death in 2014 at the age of 93. He practiced law until his retirement at the age of 88.

Ray flew P-51s in Europe and as a civilian was a long time flight instructor. Ray's daughter's post on FB has the following quote. "Daddy, a former P-51 pilot, WW2 vet, and independent flight instructor, said the RV-6 flew more like the P-51 than any other plane he ever flew. It was the last time he would ever man a cockpit."

I knew that I enjoyed that day very much but never thought about the fact that that was the last flight this great man made from this world.
 
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Sharing...

Larry, enjoyed your post. My WWII vet passed before I finished the RV. Right up 'til the end he would ask about project progress and showed a deep interest. Wish there were a picture of him smiling in front of Wild Blue. (I do cherish the memory of the last Cessna flight, he would have loved the RV ride...) Thanks for the reminder to be generous in sharing our special flight gifts with others.
- Roger
 
Thanks for sharing Dave

Like Roger,my WWII Vet went west before I finished my RV. He was with me on
my first ride ( tri-pacer ) in 1964, encouraged me into a career in aviation and
was excited watching my slow build 6 progress. I can feel his presence on every
flight, especially when introducing someone new to RV flying and the RV GRIN.
Let us not forget those who gave so much for our freedom!
Doug
 
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