May 16th - in and around Muncie, IN

We left the comfort of our Flying J campsite and drove the 30 miles to Muncie, IN. We drove around areas of Muncie looking for a breakfast restaurant. Many of the ones listed in our GPS were vacant. Finally, in frustration, we stopped at a McDonalds. Well, we tried.

Our first stop is the National Model Aviation Museum. This place will make anybody feel like a kid again. The history of model airplanes from control line thru radio control is presented thru text and flying models. Every model airplane on display, except one, has been flown. The craftsmanship shown in these models is outstanding. They are nothing like the models I built as a teenager. Wingspans ranged from about 8-inches to over 12 feet.

Hundreds of engines are on display. I didn’t realize some airplanes were diesel powered. One display cabinet had Cox engines. These were the ones that I remember.

An old model shop, circa 1950, was setup. I can remember spending my $1 weekly allowance at a shop just like this one.

A bank of flight simulators was setup in one room where you can try flying airplanes and helicopters. I did ok on the airplanes but definitely need to work on trying to keep the helicopters from becoming a pile of rubble. Thankfully the flight simulators are computer based so a tube of glue isn’t required after each flight attempt.

Our next stop was the Wilber Wright Birthplace. This site has both the house Wilber was born in and a large museum building. Both buidings display memorabilia of the entire Wright family.

A reconstruction of the first Wright flier is housed in the museum. You can’t touch the flier but are within inches of most control surfaces. I found the linkage between the rudder and the wind warping mechanism interesting. This is the type of detail you just can't see in pictures.

We checked into Grandpa’s Farm RV Park in the early afternoon. This is a comfortable park with free WiFi, god site spaces, and good facilities. I may try my hand at a few of the video games they have in the game area.

Tomorrow, it’s on to Dayton and the Air Force Museum. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday is the Amateur Radio Convention. We have reservations at the Dayton KOA and will have WiFi.