Goodyear Blimp Blog

Coke Zero 400 in Daytona, and The Ponytail Express by Corky Belanger

Well, here I am again writing in as a guest in Marty’s blog.  On July 3, I had the pleasure of getting to take the flight of a lifetime.  Then again, flying the Goodyear blimp is always a flight of a lifetime.

We flew to Daytona on our annual trip to cover the Coke Zero 400 race on the 4^th of July. This year was quite different though as I found out I would be flying the great Kyle Petty.  Mr. Petty is now working as a NASCAR analyst on TNT and also hosting a show with SPEED TV’s Rutledge Wood called The Ponytail Express.  We took Kyle and Rutledge up for a flight for the show.

I have flown my share of famous people throughout my career, but I was excited to fly someone with whom I had a close connection. As you know, Kyle Petty is a third generation racer and I’m a 2^nd generation blimp pilot. Being born into something has many advantages and disadvantages as we both agreed upon.

Kyle said he got into racing because he was “Too lazy to do anything else.” I stood there in a daze wondering if that was the reason I got into blimps? He slapped me on the shoulder and we both laughed!

Kyle was excited about the flight, after getting his own pilot’s license this past October. He said his wife won’t let him fly without an instructor, so don’t tell her he made the takeoff and landing.  All kidding aside, we took off from the airport and headed to our destination, Daytona International Speedway. On the way down the beach to the track, Kyle pointed out how and where the original race was run and how his grandfather used to talk about the good old days, racing in the sand.  He said the cars would slide in the water as the high tide came in.

For those of you who don’t know, Kyle’s grandfather, Lee Petty, started racing in the early 50’s and raced for 16 years. As we continued our flight, we talked about racing, flying and how great our jobs really are. Once we arrived at the track, his recollection of all the events he and his father raced at Daytona came back to him quickly.  His father, Richard Petty, better known as the “King,” is one of the greatest race car drivers in the world; his career stats alone would cover this blog.

Kyle started racing in the late 70’s and raced over 800 races in his 30-year career. Between the three of them, Lee, Richard and Kyle, we are talking over 80 years of experience. If that’s not racing royalty what is? As we headed back for the airport, we passed over his hotel and a few other landmarks that he pointed out.

When it came time to land he was amazed at how much of a negative pitch we carried on approach. I think he was holding his seat; but I would be holding more than a seat if I was in a racecar! The flight was very memorable, but what a wonderful person Mr. Petty is I will never forget. I guess I’ll be waiting by the phone for a ride from him in the future!

You can view a video of his flight at http://www.nascar.com/video/cup/2009/07/04/cup.day2.pony.express.nascar/index.html?MostPopular

Also, check out Kyle’s charity camp, Victory Junction, at http://www.victoryjunction.org/. 

 

LIVE on Miami Beach

This week we provided aerial coverage for the popular morning show LIVE with Regis and Kelly.  They were shooting the show here in Miami Beach at the amazing Fontainebleau Resort.  There were two very nice things about this assignment.  First, the resort is on the Atlantic Ocean and flying along the beach is both scenic and smooth making the flights very enjoyable.  Second, the show is live and only lasts for an hour, much shorter than many of the events that we cover.  

 

All went very well over the week and for Thursday’s show I had the pleasure of flying with Art Moore, vice president of programming and executive in charge of production for the show.  He was a very nice fellow and enjoyed the experience of viewing his show from 1000 feet above.  Art communicated live from the airship with Regis and Kelly on the set below.  We planned and tested our equipment to allow him to be on the air from the blimp during the open of the show.  About two minutes before airtime, one piece of our equipment failed and we lost the picture.  James Wilson, my chief radio and TV technician, saved the day by fixing the problem with literally seconds to spare.

We had great look-ups at the blimp during the show all week, and the LIVE team was as excited to have us there as we were to be there.  Our team on the ground even got to meet American Idol finalist Matt Giraud.

 All in all, a very productive and fun week.  Always nice to do something different…

Latin Billboard Awards with Guest Writer: Pilot Corky Belanger

As the first guest on Marty’s Goodyear blimp blog, I must say I’m excited. This is my first time writing a blog…ever.

On April 23, I had the pleasure of flying the 20^th Annual Latin Billboard Awards at the BankUnited Center at the University of Miami.  I was told I would have a guest fly along with me for live coverage inside the blimp.  It turned out that Natalia Villaveces, a host and producer for Telemundo Nitido, had the honor of going for her first blimp ride. We launched from our base here in Pompano Beach, Florida, and headed south.  Natalia, not knowing what to expect from her first flight on the blimp, was a bit nervous.  She enjoyed the beautiful scenic flight down the shoreline and took many pictures so she could post them on her blog and write about her experience.

When we arrived at the show, the red carpet was packed with media, celebrities, and fans trying to get a glimpse of their favorite Latin stars.  As Natalia helped me with the stars’ names and their backgrounds, she hurried to get ready for her live TV hit.  Suddenly, I realized I was a bit nervous as the language coming over the radio from Telemundo’s production team was Spanish!  Natalia translated for me, and I knew if I just kept the airship circling the red carpet, she would take care of the rest.

After a very successful show, we watched the fireworks above the red carpet and headed back to home base. I think Natalia enjoyed the flight just as much as I did and we hope to have her back next year. Now I’m on my way to buy the Spanish edition of Rosetta Stone and hope to be able to communicate back for next year’s show!

Teaching a Marlin to Fly

 The plan for today was to tape a segment for Billy’s Bunch.  For those not familiar with Billy’s Bunch, this is a very popular children’s program that features “Billy the Marlin,” the mascot for the Florida Marlins.

The concept for the show was that Billy wanted to become an airship pilot; I would teach him and then give him a check ride.  Now, I have trained several actual pilots in airship flight, but a Major League Baseball mascot in full costume was a first.  

Since Billy cannot “speak” and only communicates with animated gestures and whistles, the flight became very interesting. 

We launched and flew out over the ocean and I let Billy take the wheel for a bit.  I communicated with mainly hand gestures, since Billy couldn’t wear a headset.  He couldn’t hear me, but he did well.  The producer in the backseat got a little nervous when I had Billy dive the airship toward the ocean, but all in good fun.

At the end of the day, we determined that Billy had potential but needed more practice and had to continue to study and keep his grades up to become a Goodyear Blimp Pilot!

Organ Donor Awareness

We flew some very special guests today to help bring attention to the national need for organ donation.  I had the pleasure of flying a teenager and a little girl who are both currently awaiting donors.  They were very pleasant and seemed to enjoy the flight over the blue waters of the Atlantic.  The younger girl even started to fall asleep towards the end of the flight as we were very lucky to have smooth flying conditions.

Brian Comer, my fellow pilot, flew with touring PGA Pro Erik Compton!  Erik is a spokesperson for the Transplant Foundation and a direct benefactor after undergoing two heart transplants.  To say Brian is an avid golfer doesn’t even describe his interest in the game.  We have flown over so many professional golf tournaments, but this was the first time we have flown an active pro. 

We’re running messages on the Spirit of Innovation’s day sign throughout the month of April to help raise awareness for “Donate Life” month. 

100 Years for Goodyear Aviation

Today we celebrated 100 years for our Aviation Division.  The event consisted of airship rides for our VIP invitees, lunch and a great presentation about our newest products.  I enjoyed the flights tremendously as many of the guests were pilots.  It is interesting to see the reaction of a heavier-than-air pilot when introduced to lighter-than-air flight. 

Several commented on the angle of approach of the airship when we come in to land.  Most airplanes set up for a three degree glide to the runway when landing.  Because we are lighter-than-air we have to force the blimp to descend and our angle of approach will commonly exceed 20 degrees. (Much steeper than what many other pilots are used to.)

I believe everyone had a great time and we even got to enjoy a tasty cake!

Moon over Miami

The plan today was to provide coverage over the Miami Heat game for FSN tonight.  It was my turn to fly and the weather looked good; in fact, the lack of clouds and full moon was very nice visually. 

I had mentioned in a previous blog that we do cover events even though they may be played or conducted indoors.  Many people that I talk to seem to think this is strange but it does make sense.  Consider our game tonight; it is being played in downtown Miami.  The aerial shots that we were able to provide set the scene and location of the game as all of the other cameras are positioned inside the stadium.

We had a great evening and even after covering many events in Miami over the years, I was compelled to take a few pictures of the full moon over South Beach and the whole area as the sun was setting. 

AOPA Visits

Keep an eye out for a special feature on the Goodyear blimps in the May 2009 issue of Aircraft Owners and Pilot's Association (AOPA) magazine.  We had the pleasure of hosting editor Tom Haines for a flight today. 

I worked at AOPA for a short time before coming to Goodyear Airship operations and it was good to be back in contact with the organization.

I can't wait to see how the final project will look...

Here's a video clip of an evening flight on the Spirit of Innovation:

Goodyear Blimp Flight AOPA

Ride for Kids

We've had plans in the making for over a year now for an event to benefit children assisted by the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation.  This is a nationwide effort and South Florida was selected as the city to kick-off the year of motorcycle rides - hosted at our home base.

Yet another reason I love my job is that it is different from day to day.  We didn't fly one hour today but we did some good for sure.

Before I even got into the office at 7:30 a.m., bikes and their riders had already arrived at the base and things were underway.  It was touching to meet both the kids who had beaten the disease and also the droves of dedicated people who strive to find a cure.

And our own Josh Mitchell was one of the riders.

The day went smoothly and I was very impressed with the organization of the ride; they were true professionals.  At the end of the day, we raised more than $80,000 for research to find a cure, and capped the event with a spirited auction for a ride on the Spirit of Innovation.

Every day is different but I was truly inspired by the kids and their parents who have to deal with such a terrible affliction.

Super Bowl Rundown

One of the most frequently asked questions I get when at home or on the road is:  "What is it like to fly over the Super Bowl?"

I can answer that question as I have flown over the game several times, but not since 9/11.  After that day, the FAA/TSA/FBI shut down the airspace well before and during the game.  People from all over the country show up for the game even if they don't get to attend it and the media surrounding the event is huge.

We were lucky to attend Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, FL, and I wanted to share our schedule with you.

1/24 - The Spirit of Innovation and crew travel from Pompano Beach to Tampa.  This is approximately a four hour drive and less in flight time.

1/25 - 26 - We provided rides in the airship to our customers in the Tampa area.  During these flights we were able to fly them over downtown and Raymond James Stadium (site of the big game) and everyone enjoyed it very much.

1/27 - The Super Bowl committee hosted a media day at the stadium and we hosted ours all afternoon at the airport.  We flew reporters from the local market and also from Los Angeles, New York, Pittsburgh and Phoenix.  We also flew Matt Millen, a commentator for NBC Sports and the former general manager of the Detroit Lions.

1/28 - Ahhh, a day off for the crew; however, our PR Manager Sara Waldman and I were in constant conference calls setting up our schedule and operations for the remainder of the week.

1/29 - We were scheduled for a CNN Headline News broadcast from the University of Tampa.  This was very interesting as a cold front has just passed and the winds were blowing.  We launched the airship and Pilot Corky Belanger called down immediately to let me know he was going to be late.  As it turned out, it took N2A an hour and a half to travel eight miles!  We were fortunate to get in some look-ups of the blimp during the broadcast; however, the winds on the ground picked up and we brought the airship back.

1/30 - ESPN was on deck and we covered their evening SportsCenter shows over downtown Tampa.  We were lucky in that the Thunderbirds were practicing for the big day and we shot footage of them in the routine.

1/31 - We provided ESPN coverage once again and all went well but it was a late night given our plan for the next day.

2/1 - Super Bowl Sunday!  Our plan was to fly Al Roker from The Today Show over the stadium live on the air.  Given the other events we were covering, we had no time to check our video and audio until that morning.  So we launched before dawn to fly over The Today Show's set at the stadium to check our feed.  The test went well and after a very chilly flight, I flew back to the airport to pick up Mr. Roker.  We launched with him and headed back to the stadium for the live shots.  Although our check-in flight was fine, by the time we went back to the stadium every station in town for the big game had begin transmitting.  Thanks to my technical staff we were able to broadcast and everything went well.  By the way, Al is a nice guy!

So for all the work and planning we had a great week.  The game was one for the record book and the crew and I enjoyed it on TV like most of America.