Q - American Bonanza Society

fter we decided to fly our Bonanza west to visita daughter in Monterey, California, we foundthe possibilities were endless for other placesto go and friends to see along the way.Geography has always been my weakness. andI was excited to "fly the map" with my pilothusband Lewis Meriwether Walker III- named after hisequally adventuresome ancestor, Meriwether Lewis.At age 65, Lewis is eight years into hi s nying career withmore than 1.000 hours in his logbook. From the right seat, Iassist by reading char1s, noting all ATC communications andkeeping him energized with fluids and food.NORTH CAROLINAOn May 7-loaded with desen clothes, mountain parkas,emergency packs and gifts for family and friends- welaunched our 1994 Bonanza from our home airpon ofDinwiddie, Virgi ni a, on a wo nderful 32-day USA coast-tocoastround-trip adventure.The first day we landed in Asheville. onh Carolina, andtoured the beautiful Biltmore mansion and gardens. Thisstopover gave our three grandChildren in Tennessee time torecuperate from strep throat before our arriva l.~llSSISSIPPIOn Mothers' Day we lifted off over the green. roundtoppedhills surrounding the airpon that were draped withcouony clouds and mists from the Swannanoa River. When welanded at Olive Branch Airpol1 in Mississippi. our grandchildrenmet us at the FBO and clambered aboard for "/lightinstruction" in Grandpa's cockpit. We enjoyed touring theMemphis area with the family.n. ESSn ARK.\NS.\S. \t'\SAS_ COlOR \00The next day we flew out of Mississippi, over Tennesseeand then into Arkansas air space on our way to Wichita,Kansas, our halfway stopping point to Ft. Collins, Colorado.We were scheduled to take some mountain flying trainingfrom Ron Zasadzinski, a BPPP instructor Lewis had met at atwo-day BPPP clinic in Nonh Carolina.Thanks 10 serendipity in Wichita, we happened 10 driveRay theon's FBO crew car right by American Bonanza Societyheadquaners on our return from lunch. After a quick 180 intothe ABS parking lot. we popped in to meet the staff and to uredthe office with Tom Turner, manager of technical services.In the ABS Company Store we bought pewter key chainswith a dangling A36 and John Eckalbar's book, IFR: AStrucTured Approach, which we read on our trip.Flying over Kansas at 10.000 feet, the terrain appearedmostly treeless but beautiful in a patchwork of squares andrectangles, polka-doued with irrigated circles in varyingshades of green and brown. As former irrigation farmers, weappreciated the center pivots. Grain elevators rising out ofevery small community and feedlots with tiny brown specks ofcaule spoke our language, too.As we entered Colorado, the terrain changed to mostlyJoonie Wolker on the seawall 01 the Mississippi River in PrOlre duChien. Wisconsin-her birthplace.Ron Zasadzinski and lewis Walker in Ft. Collins, Colorado, formountain Hying training.Joonie sightseeing In the SedoPage 8744 www.bonanza.org ABS November 2004