The Bogart of Yellow Dog

Nearly four years ago we lost a fuzzy member of our family, a Golden Retriever named Daisy. That heart break was soon healed when a new addition came on the scene in the form of a Golden called Bogart or as we like to call him Bogie. He's a gentle soul who, believe it or not, smiles and  never seems to have a bad day. 

Flight Simulator's Computer Generated Images

It's amazing what your desktop computer is capable of considering how small it really is. Here's a sample of Flight Simulator 2004's capabilities regarding it's CGI ability with an add-on aircraft from the aircraft software company PMDG. In this case it's a 737-600 in the Shamu livery of Southwest Airlines landing out of a GPS approach to Livingston, Montana's Mission Field. Oh yes, if it looks a little rough there was a 30 knot crosswind at the airport with me hand flying it. The outside view comes through add-on software called Active Camera.

The C-123K Provider

During my flying career there were some thin years in between flying jobs until I struck the mother lode in the form of a scheduled airline position. Filling in one of those employment gaps was the Air Force Reserve at Greater Pittsburgh International Airport where I was given the opportunity to fly the Fairchild C-123K Provider affectionately known as 'Thunder Pig'. This Vietnam era transport was powered by two Pratt-Whitney R-2800 reciprocating engines and also two General Electric J-85 turbo jets. The sound of a radial engine as it starts is magical (at least to me) accompanied by the perfumed exhaust of high octane aviation fuel and the soft beating of props in flat pitch. To expedite the following video toggle forward to about the 2:20 mark and start from there.

Yellowdog on the Yellowstone

Our home here in Montana has a name, 'Yellow Dog'. The name has it's source in the fact that we have two Golden Retrievers named Bogart and Eunice. The nearly ten acres that comprise 'Yellow Dog' are the puppies play ground which they explore daily. Here's a short video tour of the Helwick compound in Livingston, Montana.

Dinner on the Deck

Last night Lillian and I took advantage of a relatively calm evening to enjoy our evening meal on our backyard deck. We savored a tasty stew accompanied by a glass or two of wine, also in attendance were our puppies Eunice and Bogie.

PC Flight Simulation

 With this post I will have featured each of my favorite topics at least once. About the time I retired from the airlines my daughter Sarah gave me as Christmas gift Microsoft's Century of Flight 2004. Little did she know what a monster she would create, to validate that statement just ask my wife. What was an innocent gift turned into a passion that eats up large chunks of time not to mention portions of my life during any given day.What I soon discovered was that there is a world wide community of pc simulator enthusiasts many of whom have never been at the controls of a real airplane but have learned the basic flying skills via their computers. The levels of complexity range from simple to operate aircraft to jetliners with glass cockpits with all the attendant procedures and systems to manage. For me it provides an outlet for the things I miss most about airline flying, the sights, sounds, and the hands on control of flying an airplane. Here's a Microsoft ad for their Flight Simulator X.

Trout

One of the reasons I moved from the Atlanta area to Montana was to afford myself the opportunity to fish the best trout water in the country. The gin clear waters along with unmatched scenic beauty provides the fisherman with an unmatched fishing experience.

The Northrup T-38 Talon

Back in 1968-69 I had the distinct privilege of being an Air Force pilot trainee. That year of 53 weeks (one week over a year) included flying three different aircraft at various phases of training. The last aircraft was the T-38 which was a supersonic high performance two seat trainer which was later used in Vietnam as a fighter bomber aircraft. Needless to say flying this bird was a major rush especially when they let us take it out on solo flights. This short video gives you an idea of the simple beauty of this incredible aircraft.
  John G. Magee whose poem "High Flight" is read during the video was a Royal Canadian Air Force pilot during the Battle of Britain. An American, who turned down a Yale scholarship to enlist in the Canadian Air Force in order to get in the war, was only 19 years old when left to fly Spitfires in England. The poem was written during his service tour.

Great Moments in Baseball Movies

Tom Hanks is one of my favorite actors especially when he goes to his comedic abilities. In the film  "A League of Their Own" he plays the sometimes sober manager of the Rockford Peaches. This is the now famous 'No Crying in Baseball' scene,  a true classic.............enjoy!

The Hogan Way

Ever since I saw Ben Hogan play in the 1964 PGA Championship at Columbus Country Club in Columbus, Ohio I have been intrigued by his golf swing and it's incredible efficiency. Here's a sample of  'The Hawk' and his memorizing swing action, Stevie Ray Vaughn provides the musical accompaniment.

Overland Golf Course, Big Timber, Montana

New Kid on the Blog

Hi Everyone,
  My name is Tom and I'm a 67 year old retired airline pilot living and playing in Livingston, Montana. Aside from enjoying all the free time retirement affords you my main interests are PC flight simulation, golf, baseball, and fly fishing hence the blog title of Flyballgame. Those will be the primary topics that will be covered therein and if you like anything about this let me know and even the stuff you don't particularly care for, so here it goes and wish me luck.

                               Tom