RE: ....and there she sits.
I know it isn't funny at the time. Please find hereunder a portion of a letter I sent to my son in the RAAF (Royal Australian Air Force) describing a similar situation.
I can’t remember if I spoke to you about the only tree in the paddock that leapt up and seized the Super Chipmunk when I turned on finals. You would have laughed had you been there! The muffler came loose in flight and I was hastily landing so as not to loose the muffler and was concentrating on the model and throttle control rather than the surroundings. (first mistake). At slow speed (fortunately) the model gently flew into the very top of the very tall oak and sat there suspended some 10 to 12 metres in the air. To compound the problem trucks were arriving carrying horses to a Camp Draft event to be held in the large fenced arena. I had no choice but to leave the model and drive back to the Rocks to secure a ladder.
After much mucking around and moving of cars and trucks at work I returned with a triple extension ladder in the back of a Toyota from work. The ladder is more than three times the length of the one at home. On returning to Gladstone there were about thirty trucks, a similar number of utes and 4x4s together with over a hundred horses, their riders and numerous hangers on. Under the tree looking up at the model were 10 to 15 young children all offering suggestions on how to recover the model. The suggestions ranged from starting the model and flying it out to getting a chain saw and falling the tree.
Anyhow after talking with the kids I extended the ladder, which turned out to be bent *&%*^&#$. I eventually got the ladder extended by attaching one end to the tree and the other end to the winch cable and winched it out. Now I had a ladder one third extended flat on the ground that I had to somehow lean against the tree. After wrestling with the ladder which would have resembled the caber toss in the Highland Games I finally had it against the tree and tried to extend it further by pulling on the rope which promptly broke (&^*($%&#. I solved this little dilemma by climbing part way up the ladder and moving it up one rung at a time. After about 20 minutes I now had the ladder fully extended and it failed to reach the fork in the tree (*&*()%.
I solved this problem by moving the Toyota in to the base of the tree and with great difficulty lifted the ladder into the tray and low and behold the ladder just reached the fork of the tree. By now my antics had started to be covered in the commentary from the announcer at the camp draft and my audience was starting to rival that of the people competing in the event. I tied the ladder to the tree so it wouldn’t slip away on the smooth alloy tray and started to climb with the extended landing net in one hand that had been further extended by taping on a length of plastic conduit and a broom handle for extra reach. I also had the roll of green net cord in my waistband so I could lower the model to the ground as I had little confidence that I could successfully climb back to the ground carrying the model.
No doubt you remember how absolutely fearless your father is when it comes to heights? Slowly I climbed the ladder to the encouragement of the kids and the announcer and finally reached the fork of the tree with both the ladder and myself shaking in unison. I collected my self and started to climb up from the fork into the tree with eyes fixed firmly on the model. Had I looked at the ground I would have frozen. All was going well until on placing one foot on a branch about two metres into the climb and one metre short of being able to reach the model with the much extended landing net the branch broke under my foot. This caused me to drop the landing net and hug the tree like a demented koala. Fortunately the landing net mesh caught on a branch just below me and I was able to climb a little way down and retrieve it. Unfortunately this caused me to look down to the ground and the upturned face of the seemingly tiny children back on the ground, shudder….
I eventually managed to climb high enough to be able to touch the plane. I managed to break off one of the branches holding the model and enmesh the undercarriage in the netting. By now the wind was quite strong and the tree was swaying like a drunken sailor. All of a sudden a second branch holding the plane gave way and the model swung towards me like a hatch closing as part of the branch was still attached to the trunk and acted like a hinge. The model finished up at my level and I caught the propeller in my right hand whilst holding onto the tree with my left. This occasioned loud applause from the now large audience and left me with the dilemma as to how get the model to the ground in one piece, to say nothing of yours truly.
I managed to wedge the propeller into a fork of small branches and practice one handed knot tying. Eventually I had a sling tied around the undercarriage and was able to lower the model onto the ground and very slowly and shakily clamber down the tree to the ladder, and the ladder to the bed of the Toyota and thence to the ground. This brought the largest and loudest applause from the audience and smart comments from the announcer.
Now all I had to do was get the ladder out of the tree, concertina same and return it and the Toyota to work. I solved the first problem by simply undoing the rope holding the base of the ladder to the tree and drove the Toyota away which caused the ladder to slip down the tree to the ground. After much pushing and shoving I managed to get it short enough to fit back into the tray and drove back to Arakoon.
When I got back mum had turned up as I had by now been missing for over three hours in the model recovery phase and she was worried that I may have fallen and been lying unnoticed under the tree with a broken leg. She didn’t know I had a large audience and a smart arse ground announcer watching my every move.
There wasn’t any structural damage to the model but the wing covering was torn both top and bottom. I now have completely removed all the covering from the wing and am waiting for enough $$s to place an order for the Monocoat to recover the wing. Every time I open the shed door there is the naked wing awaiting recovering reminding me of the Chipmunk eating casurina.
Hopefully this made you laugh. I may get to that stage myself in a year or two.
Keep up the great work. Mum and I are looking forward to seeing you at the passing out parade.