Nuuumannn's quick trip to Reno!

[Sisu]

As far as I know there is no such animal. A Gruman or Schweizer looks like this, a'67 A model, the smallest type. PAX
View attachment 747341

There was a demonstration Ag Cat race at one of the Mojave races back in the 1970s that was great fun to watch.

And yes, this has been a great thread. A thread like this is a great deal of work to do right -- you're not done with the shoot when the event ends.

When the event ends, the fun is over and the work begins, for the working photographer...

Thank you for this, Grant.

 

[echo1]

Somewhere in my photo heap I've got a picture of my son, at 6 or 7 sitting on the wing with Bill Destefani, of the freshly airworthy Strega at Merced, before she was red or Strega. Over the decades of air shows we met Bob Hoover, Art Scholl, Jimmy Franklin, "Buster" B Throttlebottom, Julie Clark, Patty Wagstaff and many others including the Thunderbird, Blue Angel & Snowbird drivers. PAX

 

[nuuumannn]

Ag Cat is a biplane more akin to a Stearman or N3N. Sorry I'm late to the party.

Really great pictures Grant. I've only been to Reno twice. The first time in '84 my buddy who lived in Carson City, had a friend that was a paramedic in Reno. He gave my son and I go anywhere do anything wrist bands. Being airshow junkies, we were there 12 hours. The second time in '86, I was there on a Press Pass shooting video for my production company. It was the climax event of the air show season, having shot 6 shows starting at Shafter, Madera, Merced, Stockton, Rancho Murietta and Reno. I got to Reno on Wednesday, and stated shooting Thursday morning, I was rack focusing the front of a Sea Fury, emulating the sunrise through the prop, when I realized I burned a tube out of my 3-tube camera. I had to pack up my gear and head home 300 miles to get my back up rig (rookie), stopping off in Sac to drop of my primary camera at the techs. The next 3 days the weather was really crappy for any good photo work, especially after 10. But I was able to salvage some decent footage of the T6s. I shot out at the pylon, can't recall the number, the last one before the straight. As you say it's tough to get the close shot at the pylon. What I did was follow focus the birds inbound, widening the shot until the pylon was in view, then let the fly out. The next lap I would catch them coming into view going away (not following), coming into view over my shoulder. Then in post I edited the sound to carry the shot. I also used other footage of Lefty Gardner's P38. At Madera I had a camera mounted over his left shoulder pointing forward one day, then aft the next. At Reno I got a great shot of him approaching the pylon in a bank and edited that all together as part of my demo reel, combined with Carlos Santana in the City (SF) at Carnival. Got me a few gigs. Sad to see Reno end but glad I was there, PAX

Cheers man, everywhere I have been where there has been mention of Reno I get people recounting their experiences at the air races over the years. It's amazing to hear and I'm kinda sad that it took me so long to get there, as hearing everyone's stories has been real exciting. It impacts everyone like no other event. Thanks for sharing.

 

[nuuumannn]

There was a demonstration Ag Cat race at one of the Mojave races back in the 1970s that was great fun to watch.

And yes, this has been a great thread. A thread like this is a great deal of work to do right -- you're not done with the shoot when the event ends.

When the event ends, the fun is over and the work begins, for the working photographer...

Thank you for this, Grant.

You're welcome Sisu. Oh yeah, the end of the shoot is only the beginning of the work. It takes hours to edit photos. I'm still going through my Reno shots and I'm nowhere near done yet! I got another airshow to cover in a couple of weeks, so that'll be even more editing and stuff, plus numerous car events as I go and photograph the local vehicle days that the car museum here holds. Friends of mine are volunteer drivers, so I always go along in support.

_DSC0463

 

[Wurger]

 

[echo1]

nuuumannnn, I'm one of the last Brit car guys around these days, having had Anglia, Hillman Husky, Sunbeam Alpine and Tigers. I still have a RHD Tiger, one of 550 built and one of 6 or 7 in the states. PAX

 

[manta22]

As far as I know there is no such animal. A Gruman or Schweizer looks like this, a'67 A model, the smallest type. PAX
View attachment 747341

I've seen one.

 

[manta22]

You're welcome Sisu. Oh yeah, the end of the shoot is only the beginning of the work. It takes hours to edit photos. I'm still going through my Reno shots and I'm nowhere near done yet! I got another airshow to cover in a couple of weeks, so that'll be even more editing and stuff, plus numerous car events as I go and photograph the local vehicle days that the car museum here holds. Friends of mine are volunteer drivers, so I always go along in support.

View attachment 747355_DSC0463

Put a trip to Bonneville on your bucket list. Next event: Speed Week in August. It is a lot like Reno.

 

[echo1]

I've seen one.

Got a link or picture? Has to be a different airframe than a Gruman. PAX

 

[manta22]

Got a link or picture? Has to be a different airframe than a Gruman. PAX

I wish I had a picture. It was a crop duster I saw at an airport years ago.

 

[GrauGeist]

I wish I had a picture. It was a crop duster I saw at an airport years ago.

Could it have been an AT-802, perhaps?

 

[echo1]

Could it have been an AT-802, perhaps?

An 802 is a jet (not radial) with a pointy nose and a 5 bladed prop, might have been a Call Air or Weatherly but all-American Cats are biplanes with N struts, cabanes, flyin wires and sprung steel gear. PAX

 

[Sisu]

Cheers man, everywhere I have been where there has been mention of Reno I get people recounting their experiences at the air races over the years. It's amazing to hear and I'm kinda sad that it took me so long to get there, as hearing everyone's stories has been real exciting. It impacts everyone like no other event. Thanks for sharing.

Then you must be careful not to get me started on the joys and rewards of the Reno experience over the years. I could go on for hours about photographing Reno in the 1970s. This was at my very first Reno, in 1976, before I ever had a press pass. Talk about a field of dreams...

 

[GrauGeist]

An 802 is a jet (not radial) with a pointy nose and a 5 bladed prop, might have been a Call Air or Weatherly but all-American Cats are biplanes with N struts, cabanes, flyin wires and sprung steel gear. PAX

Yeah, the Air Tractor is a turbo-prop, yes, but it's short fuselage and pronounved canopy does look somewhat similar.

I suppose the Thrush 660 would look more like the Grumman with it's Wright R-1300 but the 802 came to mind at the time of writing, the 660 occured to me as I was driving to the hardware store...

 

[echo1]

No matter what the mis-identification may be, Reno is/was the bomb with all that occurs, multi tractor trailer rigs with full blown machine shop & spares, the smoke oil BBQ with everybody talking loud because they're all deaf as a mud stick, talking with their hands as if they're flying. My boy tried to stop Delbert Willaims for an autograph on his way to a race start, DW kinda brushed him aside when my boy said: "We don't eat anything if it don't get sprayed", stopped Del in his tracks, he came over and signed my boy's program right then right now. Was so cool for my boy, total ag junkie kid. PAX

 

[GrauGeist]

I wish I had a picture. It was a crop duster I saw at an airport years ago.

Does this look like the rig you saw by any chance?

 

[manta22]

Does this look like the rig you saw by any chance?

View attachment 747385

Well, generally, but it was long ago. I do remember that the fuselage had small lettering "Ag Cat" and at that time I had never heard of it.

 

[echo1]

Then you must be careful not to get me started on the joys and rewards of the Reno experience over the years. I could go on for hours about photographing Reno in the 1970s. This was at my very first Reno, in 1976, before I ever had a press pass. Talk about a field of dreams...

Yes, it is a tragedy of epic proportions for Reno's demise. I should have gone more often, it was only a few hunnered miles from me. Most all of the air shows were killed off too, by insurance costs. About the only shows left are at military bases. I started in ag shortly after Bud Fountain augured in his Bearcat, "Hawk Dusters". His operation was just across the valley from us. We traded them a C210 for a helicopter nurse truck and a boom rig. One year we ran a dry Stearman off Livermore. It was just a strip then, an uncontrolled field (I soloed there in '68). We just happen to be workin by Bob Love's hanger, when he showed up and opened his door, and there was his race ship "Bernie's Bo". So cool, spent the morning talking to him. He said he got his first P51 just after WWII for $1500 bucks and picked up as many engines and spare as he could. He passed soon after that and Russ Francis (49er fame) picked up his P51. My sons and I ran across Russ at Tracy fuelin up his black Stearman one time while airport bummin, and I interviewed him at Merced when he took the trophy for best warbird, a Fury. Sorry to go sideways but this thread touched an exposed nerve. 911 destroyed airport bummin. PAX

 

[special ed]

Just for reference, a Grumman G-164A at Fantasy of Flight, post 274, AvPix Unlimited.

 

[echo1]

Just for reference, a Grumman G-164A at Fantasy of Flight, post 274, AvPix Unlimited.

At our strip, Ag Cat in fore ground, Air Tractor 602 by hanger. See post #140, PAX

B model 600HP P&W Cats at my spring gig in Westly CA, Valley Ag. Right after this picture was taken this ship had a wire strike, the pilot Saun, cut himself out of the rig and crawled away just as it burst into flames. We could see the smoke from the strip, but we didn't know what happened. We're across from the volunteer fire department, crews started to show up and scramble.