Ramble 2008 - Fly & Camp Trip

      Rebel Ramble 2008
               16^th Annual Fly & Camp Trip
             * Rebel Ramble To La Belle Province ! *
      July 12th to July 20th, 2008   Another Trip of a Lifetime !! Fly Along with us !

                                  We're going Rambling !!

Rebel Ramble 2008 from Brampton to Quebec will be a great opportunity to see a large part of this beautiful country of ours - the length & breadth of the St. Lawrence River and the romance of the old walled City of Quebec.
We will be seeing sights like this ...

Like all of the earlier Rambles, this one will be designed for the most relaxed flying possible - day VFR, with NO (we try our best !) control zones, towers, or ARSA's (or TRSA's, or whatever they call them NOW !). It just might be possible to fly this one NORDO, although a handheld radio would be a good idea. Those of you with LOTS of cross-country experience will have to bear with the rest of us - this isn't a race ! There will be pilots from all levels, and all kinds of aircraft - from Archers to ultralights, and the whole idea is to have a relaxed, FUN trip, with lots of sharing of experience.

Every year, a group of Rebel builders, and Rebel lovers, get together at Brampton and set off on a flying and camping trip around the countyside. Everything is low-key and semi-disorganized ! We decide in the morning on our RON (Remain Over Night) for the day, then set off at our own times & speeds, sometimes stopping together at interesting spots along the way for lunch, swims, aircraft shows, etc. We generally try to fly about 3 to 6 hours per day - a reasonably relaxed pace, with time for oil changes, bad weather, etc. If there is a major problem at the RON, (no gas, no welcome ..) we just leave a note for the rest, and go on to an alternate. Once at the RON, we set up tent, (or head for a motel), and organize a restaurant meal, or take-out pizza, and a campfire for later. (4 seaters with lots of beer carrying capacity are always welcome !)

Since there are always many different types of aircraft, everyone goes at their own speed - some folks fly "more-or-less formation" (by prior arrangement only!) , while others speed on ahead to check the weather & camp facilities. The more experienced fliers help the others, sharing tips on navigation, radio procedures, field repairs to aircraft, and hangover cures.

I'm Bob Patterson, a factory-appointed representative for Murphy Aircraft Mfg. Ltd., the makers of the Rebel, Renegade, Maverick, Elite, Yukon, & Moose aircraft kits. Along with my wife Anna, I help the Rebel Builders of Ontario toward the flightline, by organizing meetings, forums, and builder visits. Anna & I have organized all of the Rebel Rambles, and the starting barbeques, with lots of help from the Rebel Builders. We have flown our Rebels over a lot of North America: to Florida & Oshkosh many times, to Quebec City, Nova Scotia & P.E.I., and through The Rocks to/from Chilliwack, B.C. several times, along most of the route we will be following, as we did on earlier Rebel Rambles. I have been a glider instructor for over 30 years, and have been Chief Flying Instructor for 2-week-long mountain wave flying camps for glider pilots for over 10 of those years. Having spent 6 hours above 30,000 ft. over Colorado Springs in a glider, and done a Diamond Gain (800 ft. to 19,000 ft.) in another glider in New Hampshire, I feel I can help out a little with some enroute training sessions on mountain flying techniques & selection of emergency landing fields. Of course, there will be other, more experienced pilots along, and all will help pass on their knowledge. This summer will mark my 51st year flying - I started out in 65 hp. Aeronca Champs, on the old Brampton Flying Club's 2 grass strips in 1957 !

The primary concern on this trip will be safety, followed closely by fun and learning ! If the weather's bad, we'll just have to do a little sightseeing wherever we are - that's why we've left some leeway in the timetable ! Any suggestions on interesting aircraft museums, etc., will be welcomed.

We will all get together before the trip, to exchange notes, at a Ramble Flyer meeting on Saturday, June 14th, at 11 am, at the RAA-TR clubhouse, at the north end of Brampton Airport. Fly in if you can, or drive if the weather's bad. We will go over the planned route on old maps, and answer any questions you may have. Anna & I will supply coffee & donuts, and samples of our favourite protein/meal replacement bars. If you want, we can have lunch at the Wings restaurant, and try to get everybody away by 3 pm.. I will have samples of customs forms & SFA Letters available by then, as well as more information on map packages, etc..

Please bring along your favourite camping gear for 'show n tell' - we're always looking for better tents, cots, mattresses, ....... whatever you've found useful !

The idea of the Ramble is to introduce pilots to the joy of Cross Country (literally !) Flying, in a safe, relaxed environment. Think of it as just a series of 150 - 300 mile cross-countries, not one big 1,200 mile trip ! It's something YOU can do !! We have map sessions every evening, or morning before flying, to review the day's route, and points of interest, and we keep in touch on the radio all the way. We try to keep the legs to about 2 - 3 hours, and sometimes only do one leg in a day. In preparing for the Ramble, we also try to talk to airport management, and anyone else who can help, about tie-down and camping areas on the airports, and any special radio, circuit, or taxi instructions. Having this information in advance can be a great help ! ( Of course, we can't promise these folks any guaranteed numbers of guests, or even exact dates – because of weather delays, etc. ! ) We can usually phone a day ahead, though ....

The more experienced fliers help the others, sharing tips on navigation, radio procedures, field repairs to aircraft, and hangover cures. The primary concern on this trip is safety,followed closely by fun & learning! If the weather's bad, we just do a little sightseeing, wherever we are - that's why we've left some leeway in the timetable ! And, just like the early barnstormers - we just might not even 'get there' at all !!

These fun flying trips are much like LIFE - the object is NOT "to get to the end",
it's "TO ENJOY THE TRIP" !!

We don't always get to the place we expected , but we DO see interesting places,
meet interesting people, and share a lot of fun.

Fly along with us, learn a bunch, share lots of experiences,
and create some happy memories !!

One of our destinations - Trois Rivieres Airport ! Laurentide Aviation, at Les Cedres Airport, Montreal

Both Les Cedres, west of Montreal, and Trois Rivieres airport, further east, are single paved strips, with all the facilities, including a terminal building and restaurant. Like most of the stops on our trip,they use Unicom only ! The restaurants are very popular - pilots fly in from everywhere for their meals - let's join them !

This is a casual, low-key, semi-disorganized FUN trip !! (We'll be Winging It all the way !)

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Please register for the Ramble NOW ! Send $5 cash and we'll add you to the special Rebel Ramble mailing lists.

.. You will be kept up to date, and it will help us with planning ! ........ THANKS !

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