Plains

Plains, Texas is not the site of a famous RV fly-in but I had a good time there today. The annual event, held on Labor Day Weekend is called the Watermelon Roundup. Considering that Plains is a village of about 1,400 people and considering it is located in a sparsely populated rural area, they put on a real good party. I believe I counted 14 RVs which was maybe a third of the total number of airplanes that showed up for the warmly presented free breakfast.

Russ Daves TT-10


Black Bottom along with Jeff Church's RV-7

Judy Stocks' traveling companion Hairy the Bear? She said she hasn't named it.

The highlight of the free breakfast is the deer sausage.

After breakfast there is the opportunity to visit the party in town which is a walk or bicycle ride away, although most people will get a ride from a local or someone that drove to the festivities.

Several downtown blocks are blocked off for craft vending, fried food, barbeque, kiddy rides, contests, climbing wall, live music, a car show and other entertainments.

There is a lot of free food, including candy, peanuts and quite a few varieties of watermelon in unlimited quantities. Back at the airport, free whole watermelons are available to take home.

Barbershop Quartet

It's scary up this high!

I noticed a very nice old Porsche owned by Blake Oliver, who is the FBO at the Lovington, NM airport, with the cheapest avgas price around. I don't know why I didn't get a picture of the car. Blake owned one of the rarest aircraft ever but I can't remember the name of it. It was a stainless steel amphibian. After he sold it, it was lost in a fire.

At last it has been resolved as to what the perfect ELT antenna location is!

I managed to resist all the curly fries, Kettle Corn, funnel cakes, hamburgers, tacos, burritos, corn, foot-long corn dogs and turkey legs but then comes along homemade ice cream turned by pulleys from an old John Deere engine. I challenge any RV builder to pass that up. It was real real good.

I'll put this kind of deal up against something like Oshkosh, any day. A good group of RV people and other aviation enthusiasts, good food and conversation. Then you go into town where people are just having a nice time. No big whee or anything but nobody seems to be annoyed or in a bad mood. Lots of very old people and very young people from an unjaded and solid part of the country wandering around and enjoying the day. It almost seems to be too good and too simple for this century.