MCRCS Family Picnic

2008 Family Picnic

Hot! Hot! Hot!

With the mercury at 97, the tent seemed a good place to be.

Shade tree
The tree wasn't bad either.

First wife
Ann Breuninger was the first of five wives to arrive.

Prospective member Claudio Lopez took an Intro Flight.

The Siedleckis seemed content with a leisurely flight.

The Dawn Patrol can always be counted on for mischief.

And Mischief has a familiar face.

Chasing planes
A cool chase is a good way to beat the heat.

Food
Food is always a hit, regardless of the air temperature.

We hold our annual family picnic in June each year, relatively early in the summer before it gets uncomfortably hot. Of course, the weather doesn't always conform to our planning and this year the temperature got a little high. Well, actually it got a lot high. The forecast was for 97° and it seemed pretty accurate. Attendance was a bit less than in years past. No one actually took a count, but the hamburger and hotdog inventory would suggest about two dozen people were there.

And five of them were wives. Ann Breuninger, Judy D'Amico, Janet Hunter, Carolyn Vale, and Janet Zimmerly all braved the heat to see their husbands fly. Or, in some cases, just to be with them. Wives are good. Wives that support their husbands' passion for RC are great.

To be honest, there wasn't a lot of flying going on. There was a lot of talk about flying while sitting in the shade of a tent or under a big tree enjoying the gentle breeze. And there were several airplanes sitting around reflecting the sun. But only the determined few actually made it into the air.

The determined few included a potential applicant who took the opportunity to take an Intro Flight as part of our new Introductory Pilot Program. It included two generations of Siedlecki's, who rarely miss the opportunity to fly on a weekend, regardless of the weather. It also included a webmaster who flew despite the rumors that he spends more time with his computer than with his transmitter.

And of course there was the Dawn Patrol. Back in the early 20th century, the pilots of WWI lived to fly and to prove who was the best pilot around. The spirit is allive at Warren Kruse Field. Regardless of the temperature or the weather, it seems, when one pilot starts a biplane, others will follow. Sometimes it's just to fly in formation. But other times what happens looks more like -- could it be -- a dogfight.

Of course, what would a picnic be without food. With some help from Pat Monacelli and Russ Breuninger, the meat patties became hamburgers and the weiners became hotdogs. And Judy D'Amico and Dave Vale brought desserts. The grand potluck idea didn't really come together, but it was a start. Maybe next year.