Connie and I drove over to Sun & Fun (no plane yet but working on it). We left Tuesday about 4PM and arrived some 1008 miles later on Thurday evening. Total roundtrip and local milage driven was 2350 miles and about 36 hours driving. Man I need a plane!
I will admit that I was a little apprehensive about attending based on some of the criticism I read earlier. I can say that it was a fantastic experience! We were there 3 1/2 days and still could have used more time. They kept the parking lot watered so the dust that someone complained about wasn't an issue. The weather was outstanding, the crowds were big but not overwhelming, the food was expensive but that was expected. Just walking the vendor displays and asking questions could have taken the whole week. Overall, I thought it was a class act and I could tell that a whole ton of money was put into it. I don't know if Sun N Fun made a profit this year, but they did a great job of organizing the event. Everything flowed smoothly and I have no complaints.
We spent some time at the forums listening to presentations about RVs, medical questions, painting and vinyl decals, emergency landings, riveting, auto conversions, and there were still about 6 other programs we would have liked to attend. We spent some time in the hands-on tents learning about riveting techniques and composite construction techniques. The museum was enjoyable and one evening they had a big-bands style band called "over 55" who played and sang a lot of that great 30's and 40's big band music. It was really great! The daily air-shows were fantastic with lots of warbirds and some cool "heritage flights."
We saw lots of RVs and spent some time talking with the folks at the Van's tent. We also spoke to some Subaru flyers and had the opportunity to hear the Eggenfellner in action. I must admit that I was impressed with its quick easy starting and smooth operation throughout its RPM range.
I got my first RV ride in a 7 courtesy of Van's and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. It was a little bumpy and I got a VERY good demonstration of the RV's capabilities so I will admit that I landed feeling a little queezy - impressed, but a little queezy! It was a blast!
All in all we had a fantastic week. Our only real disappointment is that with so many things going on concurrently, it was difficult to see and do everything in the time we had set aside. I think if we had spent 5 days at the show, we could have just about worked in everything. But as it was, we had to leave a few things for next year. I encourage any first time attendees to give yourself plenty of time.
In my opinion, if one can't have a good time at Sun-N-Fun, you ain't trying very hard!
Another S&F Report
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