Day One

At 2:30 PM we wait at Covington Airport with Art and Sandra Norred who are eager to see "our" plane. I think I hear the rumble of radial engines and cut my eyes to Gene who is cutting his to me, so I know I am right. And sure enough, the Detroit appears over the trees and sure enough my eyes tear up as they do everytime I see her flying. She is so magnificent.
Upon landing I see that I know everyone except two new members who had caught a flight to Dallas the day before just to fly back with the plane. So we all have a short reunion and I give the Norreds the tour. Then I load up John Thatcher, the previous pilot of record and a young man who currently flies for American and we head for Hartsfield. The young man, Robby, lives in Cartersville and had left his car at the airport. John is turning the pilot in charge job over to Gene and flying back to Dallas. With pilots in the car, there is never a shortage of conversation. We are soon at the airport and I head for I-85 south and Columbus.
Everything goes wonderfully well, until I am 5 miles from my exit and the signs are forcing us down to one lane and here I am going 5 mph, thinking I will be an hour getting to the exit at this rate. Gene calls and tells me to go to exit 7B where the hotel is. Once we are in a lane, we move up to a whopping 15 mph and a sign announces that this is a Drug Stop. A WHAT??? As I approach the area, there are a lot of vehicles of all types in the median and on the roadside. There are lots and lots and lots of people, many are police. There seems to be activity going on, but I cannot look and drive so I opt for the latter. They do not stop any of us and I see no dogs, but as I approach the end of the area, I see three wreckers being loaded with cars, so obviously they were catching folks, but I never could figure out how.
OK, now, three miles from destination, there goes exit 7 and the next one is 6, Whoa! I call Gene and no answer. I pull off at 6, thinking I will U-turn. The light is red and I notice that in the car next to me a woman has rolled down her window and is waving and smiling. She looks vaguely familiar. Then I notice Gene in the back seat. What a cooincidence! They are also going back. The woman is Peggy Fairchild, a retired flight attendent. I knew she was coming but did not know she was meeting them in Columbus. Northbound, there is a 7B. We are at the largest Holiday Inn I have ever seen. It is only two story but wanders on back forever. Like we are told to drive to entrance E!
And in the air show world everything is hurry up. Gene greets me with the news that we have 30 minutes to leave for a dinner the airport is putting on for us. So we stretch that a little and load up in the new Kias which I guess dealers have loaned the show and head to the airport. Ours had 44 miles on it at the start. There are nine of us so we have two of these cars.
In a hanger at the airport they are serving a great BBQ dinner with ribs and pulled port which has been cooked on site and donated by someone. It was yummy but no one lingers long. Then it is back to the hotel where some of us gather in the bar and renew friendships.
Peggy and her boyfriend, Steve Jacobson are with us for the entire trip so we shall certainly know each other well by the time this is over. She has had a replica made of a 1937 flight attendant's uniform which she will wear tomorrow and Zane has one of a Captains uniform.
We will be up and out tomorrow at 7:45 in order to clean the plane by 9 when we will be served breakfast. Then there is a pilot's briefing at 10, and the rest of us will be at our posts as the doors open at that time. It will be a long hot day, but we are excited to show off the Detroit and this will be a big show with lots of performers and therefore, lots of visitors.