kickingfrog

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/sto...Story/National/ Daring aviator risks his life to bring history alive Test pilot will fly replica of the Silver Dart to mark 100th anniversary of the curious flying machine that put Canada in the record books From Wednesday's Globe and Mail February 4, 2009 at 4:32 AM EST A special and ancient-looking airplane sat on the polished floor of a Hamilton airport hangar this week. Surrounded by jet fighters and Second World War bombers, it conjured up the age of Leonardo da Vinci. A skeleton of steel and bamboo, covered with gossamer fabric and strung with silver bracing wires, gave it the look of a flying harpsichord. A few meters away, test pilot Bjarni Tryggvason sat at his laptop computer, running mathematical formulas that predicted how this intimidating machine might fly - and what he would have to do to keep from killing himself. This was no small undertaking. The airplane is a replica of the Silver Dart, a flying machine that put Canada in the aviation history books: In 1909, pilot and designer J. A. D. McCurdy flew the Dart from a frozen Cape Breton lake, capping years of experimentation with a group that included the legendary Alexander Graham Bell. Enlarge Image Bjarni Tryggvason will fly a replica of the Silver Dart within the next few days. He calls it the most challenging test-flight assignment he’s ever taken on. (Peter Cheney/The Globe and Mail) Although Mr. Tryggvason's aviation background includes everything from jet fighters to the space shuttle (he flew on mission STS-85 in 1997), he considers the Dart replica the most challenging test-flight assignment he's ever taken on. "For this airplane, there is no prepared set of responses," said Mr. Tryggvason, who expects to fly the replica within the next few days. "It's a whole new world. Back then, no one really knew how to do this." Like the Wright Flyer, the Silver Dart is a throwback to aviation's risky beginnings. Pilots such as Mr. McCurdy confronted a set of hazards that no one really understood. Many paid the ultimate price. "We've spent the past hundred years figuring things out and improving airplanes," Mr. Tryggvason said. "These guys didn't get the benefit of other people's experiences." The search for information about the Dart's flying qualities has taken Mr. Tryggvason down a number of paths. Mr. McCurdy, who earned the first pilot's licence ever granted in Canada, wrote very little about his flights. Mr. Tryggvason pored over the cursory notes of an RCAF pilot who flew (and crashed) a Dart replica built in 1959 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Mr. McCurdy's achievement. The pilot noted that the Dart was highly unstable, demanding quick yet tempered responses from the pilot. His flight ended when a gust of wind pitched the Dart into a steep climb that he was unable to counter. At the top of the climb, the Dart pitched over and crashed to earth, splintering it. The pilot was injured, but survived. Mr. Tryggvason has also tested models of the Dart replica in a wind tunnel, analyzing how the machine responded to controls. His tests revealed a series of potentially fatal flaws, including pitch and yaw instability, and an incorrect centre of gravity - the critical balance point that determines whether an airplane will fly correctly and recover from a stall. "This is not a typical airplane," Mr. Tryggvason said. "I have to analyze it and think it through." The new Dart replica was built by a group of volunteers who began the project nearly five years ago, working out of a garage in Welland, Ont. Among them is Doug Jermyn, a retired engineer who once built a high-performance aluminum airplane at home, using nothing but blueprints and raw material. But the Dart, he said, made even that look easy. "This was a serious challenge," he said. "There were a lot of things to figure out." Although Mr. Jermyn and his fellow volunteers scrounged up copies of some of the drawings made by Mr. McCurdy, Mr. Bell and their fellow experimenters back in the early 1900s, much was left out. To keep the machine authentic, the builders used tools and techniques from Mr. McCurdy's era. The struts that connect the upper and lower wings, for example, were shaped from planks with a carpenter's jack plane. The project has been given an extra bit of historical resonance by the participation of one of Mr. McCurdy's relatives - grandson Gerald Haddon, now in his mid-60s. Mr. Haddon, who fabricated some of the steel components in the replica, spent a great deal of time with his grandfather before his death in 1961. "He was my hero," Mr. Haddon said. "A truly unique and gifted man." The replica has been given a handful of refinements designed to improve Mr. Tryggvason's comfort, not to mention his chances of survival. Brakes have been added. (The original had none.) The bare plank that Mr. McCurdy sat on has been replaced with a padded seat and a rudimentary instrument panel made out of a cake tin has been attached to the framework. Then there's the fuel system. The original Dart used a simple, but dangerous, setup: the fuel tank sat behind Mr. McCurdy's head, so that gravity could pull gas down to the engine. In a crash, the crude tank would probably rupture, turning it into a Molotov cocktail centimetres from the pilot's head. The replica uses a burst-proof fuel cell from a racing car, mounted far from the engine to reduce the chance of fire. Mr. Tryggvason has overseen the modifications and improvements with the keen eye one gets when one's life is on the line. He hopes to fly the replica within the next few days at the Hamilton airport. After that, the Dart will be disassembled and loaded into a pair of transport trucks for the trip to the lake ice near Baddeck, on Cape Breton, where Mr. Tryggvason hopes to fly it on Feb. 23, exactly 100 years after Mr. McCurdy's flight there. His flight plan is based on survival: "I'm going to fly straight ahead," he said. "If I get to 20 feet, that'll be fine. I want to come back in one piece."

Carefull, that boat is for sale on kiijji or whatever.

I'll take a guess. It looks a bit like a match fishing poll like you would see in Europe. You just tie the line to the end. Not sure though. Neet stuff!

That's because they are too busy out-fishin' & out-huntin' you!

And that is why I stayed way away from the 2nd answer.

Dang! I'll have to put 2 tanks of gas in the car... Glen, bring the shine.

No problem. It's barely out of my way. You will have to be up and ready at 3:47am on Friday morning, I'll call when I'm 5 minutes from your door. Coffee: black... no shine please.

I'll help out since I can't go on Saturday. 1pm Meet, greet and Bleep.

I thought it sounded familiar, I just wanted to up my post count.

Globe and Mail article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/sto...ry=google+earth Google Earth upgrade opens ocean of possibilities MATT HARTLEY TECHNOLOGY REPORTER February 3, 2009 John Davis was a veteran of the Nova Scotia fishing industry when the collapse of the Atlantic Canadian fish stocks in the mid-1990s forced him to abandon his life's work and turn his love of scouring the ocean floor for shipwrecks into a full-time job. Now, Mr. Davis is sharing what was once his hobby with an Internet audience numbering in the millions, after Google Inc. chose the underwater footage filmed by his Halifax-based diving company to showcase the sunken vessels that litter the bottom of the world's oceans as part of its Google Earth service. Yesterday, the search-engine kingpin officially launched Google Earth 5.0, the most ambitious upgrade to its popular satellite imaging and mapping service since its introduction in June, 2005. The centrepiece of the upgrade is a new service called Ocean in Google Earth. Print Edition - Section Front Enlarge Image The service enables users to probe the depths of the bodies of water that cover 70 per cent of the Earth's surface. Contained within Ocean is a feature known as Shipwrecks, where users can venture beneath the waves to find the final resting places of famous lost ships and explore more than 40 wrecks via videos provided by Mr. Davis's company, Eco-Nova Productions. "Mankind has been interacting with the oceans since the first little wooden raft pushed off from shore," Mr. Davis said. "Google has a sense of that. They have this overreaching view of the world and the important components and realize we don't know enough about the oceans." While Google Earth users could see the ocean in older versions of the service, it was limited to low-resolution images. The new expanded edition allows users to go beneath the surface with 20 layers of additional information, including the Shipwrecks layer. Canadian users can also see the rate at which ice is disappearing from the Arctic, track the migrations of satellite-tagged sea life and use the Dead Zone layer to explore areas unable to sustain marine life, such as the St. Lawrence Estuary and Vancouver Island's Saanich Inlet. When Mr. Davis founded Eco-Nova in 1994, he invited European diving crews to explore the shipwrecks off the coast of Nova Scotia. Soon, the company, with the help of the province and Parks Canada, was retraining out-of-work fishing boat captains to become diving boat captains. It wasn't long before Eco-Nova was helping to produce a pair of documentary series, Oceans of Mystery and The Sea Hunters; the latter contributed to the company's involvement with Google. Mr. Davis's team of Canadian divers has been instrumental in helping to locate some of the most famous lost vessels in history, including: the RMS Carpathia, which rescued survivors from the RMS Titanic; U-215, the only German U-boat to be found in Canadian waters; and the famous ghost ship Mary Celeste, discovered off the coast of Haiti. For the past six years, Mr. Davis has been working on a second business, Shipwreck Central, that would use the company's shipwreck dive footage for a website where nautical enthusiasts could pay a subscription fee to follow along with his crew's past and future underwater adventures. He hopes that Shipwreck Central's connection to Google Earth will help steer the firm closer to that goal. "Hopefully we'll get a chance to be an overnight success," he said. "You struggle and struggle and struggle and then you get an opportunity like this." In addition to the wonders of the deep, Google Earth users will also now be able to view the evolution of certain locations through history. Using the "historical imagery" option, it is possible to view the development of cities, such as London and Las Vegas, over time through the use of archival satellite footage. ***** Google Earth unveiled its newest frontier yesterday, a complete mapping of the world's oceans featuring National Geographic content, animal tracking, marine protected areas and the census of marine life to name a few. OCEAN FEATURES Viewers can browse the ocean bathymetry, zooming in, and selecting areas of interest. SHIPWRECKS A Canadian company called Eco-Nova Productions has provided videos of sunken vessels, many off the coast of Nova Scotia. Included is RMS Carpathia, which rescued survivors of the Titanic disaster. Content providers upload diagrams or animations, such as this simulated passage through the Marianas Trench created by the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Clicking on the content links in Google Earth can take you to related websites such as Shipwreck Central.com, a catalogue of information, photos and dive footage of the world's shipwrecks. TONIA COWAN/THE GLOBE AND MAIL; SOURCE: GOOGLE EARTH, SHIPWRECKS.COM, YOUTUBE AND NOAA

Globe and mail article: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/sto...ry/Science/home More species may endanger Great Lakes Article Comments (1) JOHN FLESHER The Associated Press January 8, 2009 at 10:52 AM EST TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. — Dozens of foreign species could spread across the Great Lakes in coming years despite policies designed to keep them out, causing significant environmental and economic damage, a federal report says. The U.S. National Center for Environmental Assessment issued the warning in a study released this week. It identified 30 nonnative species that pose a medium or high risk of reaching the lakes and 28 others that already have a foothold and could disperse widely. Among the fish that scientists fear could cause environmental damage are the monkey goby, the blueback herring and the tench, also known as the “doctor fish.” The report described some of the region's busiest ports as strong potential targets for invaders, including Toledo, Ohio; Gary, Ind.; Duluth, Minn.; Superior, Wis.; Chicago and Milwaukee. Internet Links National Center for Environmental Assessment Canadian Aquatic Invasive Species Network Great Lakes United “These findings support the need for detection and monitoring efforts at those ports believed to be at greatest risk,” the report said. Exotic species are one of the biggest environmental threats to North America's largest surface freshwater system. At least 185 are known to have a presence in the Great Lakes, although the report says only 13 have done extensive harm to the aquatic environment and the regional economy. Perhaps the most notorious are the fish-killing sea lamprey and the zebra mussel, which has clogged intake pipes of power plants, industrial facilities and public water systems on both sides of the lakes, costing hundreds of millions on cleanup and repairs. Roughly two-thirds of the new arrivals since 1960 are believed to have arrived in ballast tanks of cargo ships from overseas ports. For nearly two decades, U.S. and Canadian agencies have required oceangoing freighters to exchange their fresh ballast water with salty ocean water before entering the Great Lakes system. Both nations also recently have ordered them to rinse empty tanks with seawater in hopes of killing organisms lurking in residual pools on the bottom. Despite such measures, “it is likely that nonindigenous species will continue to arrive in the Great Lakes,” said the report by the national centre, which is part of the Environmental Protection Agency. Some saltwater-tolerant species may survive ballast water exchange and tank flushing, it said. And aquatic invaders could find other pathways to the lakes – perhaps escaping from fish farms or being released from aquariums. The report does not predict which species might get through. Instead, it urges government resource managers to monitor waters under their jurisdiction in hopes of spotting attacks in time to choke them off. “Early detection is crucial,” said Vic Serveiss, a scientist with the National Center for Environmental Assessment and the report's primary writer. Hugh MacIsaac, a University of Windsor biologist and director of the Canadian Aquatic Invasive Species Network, said he expected very few invaders to reach the Great Lakes in ballast water now that both nations are requiring tank flushing at sea. Flushing and ballast water exchange should kill 99 per cent of organisms, he said. “I would be very surprised if their prediction comes true,” he said, referring to the EPA report's suggestion that numerous invaders could reach the lakes despite the new ballast rules. The report reinforces the need for further measures to keep foreign species out, including requiring onboard technology to sterilize ballast tanks, said Jennifer Nalbone, invasive species director for the advocacy group Great Lakes United. “We are only beginning to invest the tremendous amount of resources needed,” Ms. Nalbone said. “We're being hammered by invasive species and are still woefully behind.”

But february made me shiver With every paper I'd deliver. Bad news on the doorstep; I couldn't take one more step. I can't remember if I cried When I read about his widowed bride, But something touched me deep inside The day the music died. So bye-bye, miss american pie. Drove my chevy to the levee, But the levee was dry. And them good old boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye Singin', "this'll be the day that I die. "this'll be the day that I die."

By line:Last Updated: 9:34PM GMT 10 Dec 2002... And that governor was replaced by the terminator.

Figures, I'm soothing a 4 week old, making chilli, appetizers, watching 2 channels simultaneously (HD PVR Plus rules) and surfing the web.

Bet it didn't cost you $40,000 US Bernie.

I thought this thread had to do with some unknown reel vs a Penn...yawn.

We need Dawg to give us his secret, I don't ever remember him complaining 'bout his guides freezing up. Agreed, bigger guides help. All I've ever used was WD40, but I want to give these other products a try.

Wonder how thick the ice was? Great structure if it had gone through

Clarence: Your avatar is great, but you really should blur that background 'cause I totally know were that spot is. Sorry Beans, I didn't want to high-jack your thread.

Have you been told today!!! Besides, your icefishin' sucks!

Nice. I've gota' dig-out my old family photos.

Have you been told today???

Give Theo's a try. It is a great restaurant right on the main drive in amongst the chains. I'll second the vote for Mariposa Market downtown as well.

My understanding of the regs was that 4 hooks (excluding the ever present exceptions) are now legal (a treble or dual hook counting as one on a lure, but 3 or 2 on bait), and that by adding even something as simple as a small spinner blade would convert "bait" into a "lure". In other words, adding bait to a lure doesn't make it bait, but adding a lure to bait makes it a lure. Doesn't impact me since I take the dual hooks off so that they don't catch on the hole... and I don't use bait. I wonder what a CO's interpretation would be?

I have used scented "plastic" minnows exclusively for the last few years. Lakers, whitefish, walleye, pike and perch never an issue. I'll tip my spoons just like it was a real minnow. I don't use the plastics on set lines though.