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From: Alan <nuh-uh@nope.com>
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.advocacy
Subject: Re: What is going on with 2024 the SCCBC season?
Date: Tue, 16 Jul 2024 08:50:53 -0700
Organization: A noiseless patient Spider
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On 2024-07-16 06:10, Tom Elam wrote:
> On 7/15/2024 1:45 PM, Alan wrote:
>> On 2024-07-15 10:37, Tom Elam wrote:
>>> On 7/10/2024 1:22 PM, Alan wrote:
>>>> On 2024-07-10 07:51, Tom Elam wrote:
>>>>> On 7/6/2024 4:42 PM, -hh wrote:
>>>>>> On 7/5/24 2:19 PM, Tom Elam wrote (plus merged posts):
>>>>>>> On 6/28/2024 8:04 PM, -hh wrote:
>>>>>>>> On 6/28/24 11:10 AM, Tom Elam wrote:
>>>>>>>>> On 6/27/2024 3:55 PM, Alan wrote:
>>>>>>>>>> On 2024-06-25 10:34, Tom Elam wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>> Dear Alan,
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Last year, 2023, April-June, there 3 weekends, 9 races at 
>>>>>>>>>>> SBBC. Total unique CW driver entries were 97, OW 37. These 
>>>>>>>>>>> are typical for an entire season for 2021-2023. In April-June 
>>>>>>>>>>> 2024 unique driver entries are 14 OW and 49 CW, about half 
>>>>>>>>>>> prior years.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> These stats are from the SBBC season championship records.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Wow, quite the drop. What's going on, Alan?
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> And, BTW, you entered 11 out of a 71 2021-2024 races. None 
>>>>>>>>>>> last year of course, but also none this year and 11 out of 34 
>>>>>>>>>>> in 2021-22. Have you retired? I thought you were looking 
>>>>>>>>>>> forward to getting back this year. Not so much?
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> So great to see you taking such an interest in my life, Liarboy!
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> I wonder if I might take a little interest in yours.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Done much flying lately?
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Well, yes. Two very different flavors. Full scale last 6 
>>>>>>>>> months, 36 hours logged including 2 family visit trips to 
>>>>>>>>> Georgia, some CAP hours, and just passed a VFR checkride. The 
>>>>>>>>> Christmas return flight from Georgia was IFR all the way home 
>>>>>>>>> and an instrument approach into Indy Metro. 
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Christmas of 2023, of course.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Now good for 2 another years on my BFR, taking me almost to my 
>>>>>>>>> 80th birthday. At this time I am also IFR current and capable, 
>>>>>>>>> but those are perishable skills. I'll be taking an IFR skills 
>>>>>>>>> test checkride before the end of September.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> RC model flying has been active since the weather improved in 
>>>>>>>>> April. Some of that is documented on my YouTube channel 
>>>>>>>>> available at:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcvZXi-36GQkeHr0FdB4cTg
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> My latest YT video is rendering as I write this. That one is on 
>>>>>>>>> programming my 3 meter Fox sailplane for solo hand launch. It 
>>>>>>>>> will be up on the channel by end of today.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Tomorrow I am scheduled to go to the AMA annual Fun Fly in 
>>>>>>>>> Muncie and do some instructing with beginning RC pilots. I also 
>>>>>>>>> just passed my Part 107 Remote Pilot/commercial drone license 
>>>>>>>>> FAA refresher, and good for another 2 on that front years too.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> So yes, done a lot of flying. Some airline flying in the near 
>>>>>>>>> future too!
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Because even 36 hours droning along at a Cessna's 125mph 
>>>>>>>> cruising speed is just 4500 miles: enough to cross the pond 
>>>>>>>> once...but not back.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> We will be flying to Vancouver next month to catch a train to 
>>>>>>>>> Calgary then flying home from there. August takes us to France, 
>>>>>>>>> Luxembourg and a Viking river cruise to Basel. Flying home from 
>>>>>>>>> Zurich. Ten day trip in all. So still traveling too.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Oh, so now its a ten day trip for what previously was a twelve 
>>>>>>>> day Paris-Rhine cruise claimed back in February?  /s
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> How about you, doing any racing lately? I know the answer to 
>>>>>>>>> that, at least for SBBC events. Null, zero, nada since 2022. 
>>>>>>>>> Going anywhere outside Canada this year?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Life invariably takes different turns.  My last travel comment 
>>>>>>>> here was in early 2023, that we were looking (in 2023) to be 
>>>>>>>> making up for our CoVid travel lull, but that doesn't mean that 
>>>>>>>> it all went as had been hoped for: indeed, it could have 
>>>>>>>> changed. Cancelled outright, or even perhaps upgraded to be in 
>>>>>>>> First Class instead of Coach on all of that year's international 
>>>>>>>> flights! /s
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Same applies for 2024 as well, for life invariably throws curve 
>>>>>>>> balls; this is why the advice was to 'do the hard stuff' while 
>>>>>>>> one's body (& finances) are healthy enough to be still able to 
>>>>>>>> do what one wishes. Otherwise, one can be pushing 80 and renting 
>>>>>>>> a car is no longer trivial, so one can get increasingly 
>>>>>>>> constrained to guided tours on cruise ships.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> In any event, a week on the Rocky Mountaineer and the 
>>>>>>>> aforementioned Rhine cruise sounds to be in the rough ballpark 
>>>>>>>> of ($7500+air)/pp, so it does seem like Tommy is perhaps finally 
>>>>>>>> breaking out of his prior fiscal constraint, as I'd long 
>>>>>>>> advised. Yay, you!.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> -hh
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Ten was a wrong number for Europe. It IS 12 days plus 2 for 
>>>>>>> to-from travel that I did not include in a prior post.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> But also plus +3 days pre-tour in Paris, as you've mentioned 
>>>>>> before and mentioned again below.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> The Canada trip is a package tour via a local company. It 
>>>>>>> includes several side trips, most meals, air, and several nights 
>>>>>>> in the Fairmont Banff Springs and others of similar quality prior 
>>>>>>> to Banff Springs. Check the rates on that hotel. $11,990 for 2. 
>>>>>>> Sadly, one of the people, a good friend at that, was scheduled to 
>>>>>>> go but died very suddenly. The wife has to cancel. It may still 
>>>>>>> be an open reservation for two. Interested? Starts July 20.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> We've been meaning to get back to the Canadian Rockies, but that 
>>>>>> start date hits a schedule conflict.  Plus we learned last month 
>>>>>> that we're out of shape for any decent hiking in the Rockies (not 
>>>>>> that this rail journey would really have much), so not enough 
>>>>>> pre-trip prep time either.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> The Europe trip including air is a bit over $10,000 plus 3 nights 
>>>>>>> on our own in a Paris hotel at $300/night, plus meals, local 
>>>>>>> transportation and sundries. Likely to also come to about $12,000.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Figured about that, as a cabin on Viking is ~$3800/pp on its own.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Your $7,500 pp is spot-on but includes airfare.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> As you know, there's several rail journey options to choose from, 
>>>>>> of varying lengths; I'd conservatively parameterized to a higher 
>>>>>> end tour than what you actually chose.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> We also just this week scheduled a trip to Luddington MI to spend 
>>>>>>> a week with some good friends at their cabin. I'll be flying us 
>>>>>>> up there, only about $600 R/T for air plus taking them out to a 
>>>>>>> VERY nice restaurant or two.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> We also have the annual ski trip of course. 2024 is a bit of a 
>>>>>>> splurge but not that different from many prior years.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I've not chatted skiing lately with a colleague who spends 2-3 
>>>>>> weeks in Vail each season to know current rates, but I'd expect 
>>>>>> that the Epic is still just ~$1K/pp and that condo/AirBNB rates 
>>>>>> are quite variable.  Even so, $10K probably covers ~3 weeks when 
>>>>>> driving.  So without the ski trip, ballpark $25K for 2024, 
>>>>>> including the Florida bit (next below):
>>>>>>
>>>>>> {merge}
>>>>>>  >
>>>>>>  > Second reply. I just updated the 2024 travel diary and forgot to
>>>>>>  > include 2 January Florida weeks. We stayed with friends week 1, so
>>>>>>  > that kept the cost down. I think the whole trip was only maybe 
>>>>>> $3-4k
>>>>>>  > all-in.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> {merge}
>>>>>>  >
>>>>>>  > Back again. FYI the club 182 cruises at 160+ mph, not 125.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> So its an 5,760 miles upper limit.  That's still not enough to 
>>>>>> cross the pond & back...and one still can't nap (safely) when at 
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