No More Rice Paddies
January 31st, 2008
Back to Colorado and six inches of snow. At least it is not a rice paddy. The weather was very cold and the warmth of California seems but a faint memory now.
Rat-Coop Trophy
January 29th, 2008
Can you imagine having to walk around a golf course looking up at that statement at every hole? I think it is essential that I reclaim the trophy next time Rick and I meet. I shall select the golf course and void the rice paddy advantage. Better yet I shall try and get Rick up to Colorado where we are a mile high, then suggest we walk the course and carry our own clubs.
He should be on his knees by the ninth hole!! All is fair when it comes to the Rat-Coop Trophy!
Ball Cap
January 29th, 2008
Here is the ball cap from the USS Abraham Lincoln. It is distinctive and I shall wear it with pride. Actually I am not sure that I should wear it for the time being for in a moment of pure genius I asked the Lieutenant escorting us around the ship if she could have one made up for the Rat-Coop Trophy holder. This means that technically Rick should have the hat. But possession is nine tenths of the law and I have the hat. I have a moral conundrum. To wear or not to wear, that is the question.
Rat Coop Golf Trophy
January 28th, 2008
As you may remember “Rat” is Rick Willard the other half of the “Rat Coop” Golf Trophy. I am the holder, but whenever Rick and I meet we compete. It is with great sadness that I announce that this year Rick beat me at Golf. Of course he picked a golf course that resembled a rice paddy. There was so much water around, but he beat me fair and square. Here I am handing over the trophy. It was a sad ending to an otherwise wonderful visit.
Honorary Naval Aviators
January 26th, 2008At the end of the visit we were made “Honorary Naval Aviators” because we have hooked a landing and been catapulted in to space. Here is Sandy getting her award from Captain Thomas E. Nosenzo, who is the Executive Officer of the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72).
The Hanger Decks
January 26th, 2008
The hanger decks have two large openings to the sea so you can hear and see the ocean pounding by. The planes get 24 hours of maintenance for every one hour of flying. So when they land, they are taken below and immediate are checked out and repairs made. The ship is a constant hum of activity. It never stops. The ship shudders when the planes land and you can feel the jolt of the catapult as it hurls the plane out into the sky.
The Hook
January 26th, 2008This is a close-up of the hook that stops a 44,000 lb plane landing at 190 mph on the deck! It doesn’t look like much but if this thing fails bad things happen.
The Wings
January 26th, 2008The wings of all the planes fold up and when you think of all the pressure those wings must take when they are flying it is quite a feat of engineering. Here is a shot of the inner workings of a wing.
Friends with an F18
January 26th, 2008
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Here I am making friends with an F18. We were allowed freedom of the vessel. The Only place we were not allowed to go was the Nuclear Department where the reactors were working. The power of those reactors is startling. I looked out at the ocean and it was racing by. I asked what speed we were doing and was told 30 knots. The ship is so large you don’t think how fast that is…but it is really fast and it can go a lot, lot faster. How fast is classified.
