That's a great idea... what I really want to do for my next visit to Airventure is rent a plane and fly there, though. Very unlikely to happen for me this year , as I'm too broke and busy right now to even get my hand back in and clear out the cobwebs. But who knows? I may get it together in time, and a bunch of us could chip in on a Saratoga or something and fly out there from the NYC area.
Re: Hagar's misgivings about crowds/lodgings: There's no reservations for campsites whether you fly or drive in; I drove in last year late on the first day, and still got a decent spot... and that was the 100th anniversary of flight/50th anniversary of EAA year! Only thing you need to do is become an EAA member (good for 1 year) before you show up. If crowds themselves bother you, I assure you it's not that bad. I didn't wait in line more than 10 minutes to get in, and that was pretty much the worst wait of the whole week. The EAA provides plenty of everything, scattered all over the place. And if you're up very very early, you can walk around and take pretty pictures with very few people around to get in your way... the local crowd descends on the field for the airshows, but then it thins out nicely in the late afternoon (and just about every citizen of this temporary tent city you meet is "one of us", not some goon who came hoping to see an airplane crash).
I highly recommend this event. It's like a pilgrimage to the Holy Land and a freak-out at Sturgis all rolled into one... but with aircraft!!
All you need to survive Airventure is: comfy shoes, camera, a hat, sunblock, water, a little money... and PASSION!!
