On October 5, 2013, several members of Cheeseland Chapter 431 took a tour of the American Champion Aircraft factory near Rochester, Wis.
American Champion Factory Tour – October 5th
Cheeseland Chapter EAA 431 will be touring the American Champion Aircraft Corporation in Rochester, Wis. on Saturday, October 5th at 9:30 a.m. Members who wish to carpool can meet at Brodhead Airport at 7:30 a.m.
Annual Chapter Picnic
A great turnout today for the annual Chapter 431 members’ picnic. Several planes flew in from out of town and Warren Clobes and Ben Johnson gave rides to the local Boy Scout troop, which has been working hard on the beacon tower project all summer.
Chapter secretary Brian Law received a commendation for “Exceptional Service” for his work on getting our IRS 501c3 designation, his work with the local Boy Scout troops, several educational programs and all the work that comes with being Secretary. Brian has been tireless in his volunteerism and received a well-deserved round of applause from those in attendance.
Chapter 431 president Mike Weeden (left) presents secretary Brian Law with a special commendation for Exceptional Service at the annual chapter picnic, Sunday, Sept. 22, 2013.
Bob Pokorney has a nice set of pictures from the day up in the gallery section HERE.
Grassroots Fly-In Roundup – 2013 Edition
UPDATE: Allan Blunt kindly sent a link to his photo gallery from the Grassroots fly-in. Check out some very nice pics HERE.
While we do not have an official tally, there were at least 200 aircraft of all types in attendance over the long weekend of the Midwest Antique Airplane Club “Grassroots” fly-in hosted by Cheeseland Chapter EAA 431 at Brodhead Airport. Just a guess, but I’ll bet there were over 1,000 people over the three days as well. While Saturday was rather hot, it was good flying weather all weekend until a low overcast came in Sunday morning. As of noon on Sunday though, all but a lone J-3 Cub had left for home and Brodhead Airport was pretty well deserted.
We would like to thank everybody at MAAC and of course, all those who made the trip from near and far to make this such a great event. Thanks too to the Brodhead High School Yearbook Club and instructor Bobbi Miller (see picture below) for putting on the Saturday evening dinner. They, along with Ray Miller put in a awful lot of work to serve up Ray’s famous pork chops. The proceeds from Saturday’s dinner go to the club and give the Chapter 431 members a well-deserved break for the night.
Looking back after a long weekend, it is very gratifying for the volunteers and members of Chapter 431 to see such a successful and safe event and we all appreciate the nice comments we received from those who came in by air or by land. Its amazing to talk to the pilots who flew in from California, Maryland, Florida, Texas and all over the Midwest who say they wouldn’t miss Grassroots at Brodhead for anything. Cross-country flights in antique airplanes can be quite an experience and we recognize the effort you all put in to get here. It makes the hard work to put this event on worthwhile.
Be sure to check our photo gallery and please send us any good shots or links to your own galleries.
Brodhead High School Yearbook Club, with instructor Bobbi Miller at left.
Grassroots Fly-In 2013
The MAAC Grassroots Fly-In is underway with near perfect weather and a very good crowd on hand. Some pictures from Friday evening are in the Gallery section or by clicking HERE.
Remember, if you are flying or driving in, please read the INFORMATION page first.
MAAC Grassroots Fly-In, Sept. 6-8, 2013
The annual Midwest Antique Airplane Club (MAAC) “Grassroots” Fly-In is September 6-8 at the Brodhead Airport and is again hosted by Cheeseland Chapter EAA 431.
PLEASE NOTE: The MAAC Grassroots Fly-In is a private event for members of the Midwest Antique Airplane Club. All attendees, whether flying or driving in, must be members of MAAC. For information on joining, please contact MAAC president, Jay Baeten.
All those attending, please read the Grassroots Information Page:
https://www.eaa431.org/2013-maac-grassroots-fly-in-information/
The airport is again in fine shape for the event and the camping facilities (showers & bathrooms) will be open starting mid-week. The long-range weather forecast looks good with warm days and cool September nights. Everybody travel safe!
Work Day and September Meeting
WORK DAY – The work day to prepare for the 2013 Grassroots fly-in will be this Saturday, August 31 from 9:00 a.m. to noon. Sign up sheets for volunteer times for the fly-in will be on hand along with the usual clean-up and set-up tasks. Some jobs may be curtailed to to the expected heat.
MEMBERSHIP MEETING – Tuesday, September 3rd at 7:00 p.m. at the airport. We’ll have a brief business meeting, Grassroots update, then the EAA Chapter Video Series; News from Oshkosh-Report on AirVenture 2013 and Douglas World Cruiser-Building a replica of the first aircraft to fly around the world.
See you then!
Cool but Plenty of Activity on Saturday
Visitors to the 2012 Pietenpol/Hatz Fly-In will remember the blistering heat and burnt grass at Brodhead Airport during a summer heat wave and drought. A year later the temperature struggled to hit the low 60s with a stiff breeze and low clouds on Saturday, the busy day at our big summer event. It didn’t seem matter though, beyond selling out of sweatshirts and burning through a huge pile of wood at the fire pit. We had a great crowd on hand for the various forums and meetings, and looking through the parking lot, there were cars from all over the country and Canada with some overseas visitors checking in as well.
Here are some pictures from Saturday, July 27, 2013.
A packed house at one of the PIetenpol forums.
The Hatz group held their meeting on Saturday morning.
A group of nice looking Hatz Biplanes at the south end.
…and another beauty at the gas pumps.
This is July in Wisconsin? We’ve had warmer temps at our February Ski Fly-In!
Evening awards and silent auction.
Look for more pictures in the Gallery section over the next few days.
Friday Fly-In Update
After a gloomy morning and a line of storms in the afternoon, the skies have cleared and the traffic pattern is full of various aircraft giving rides and enjoying the annual Pietenpol/Hatz Fly-In.
The Fish Boil dinner is sold out and a good crowd is already around the campfire. This is what summer at Brodhead Airport is all about.
10 Piets Already
By our count, there are 19 Pietenpols on the field already on Thursday afternoon and a healthy crowd as well. The Welcome Barbecue is set to start at 5:00 p.m.
