"Autumn Air" is a 6 Camera POV trip by Brian FitzGerald in his Quicksilver MXL+ across the plains of Kansas in Autumn. You will see beautiful countryside and wildlife.
+Bass Player Thanks, man! By the way, I play the guitar on a few of my pieces and also play the bass on some of them although I don't consider myself a real bass player. Here is one that I did all the music called "Lil Prop": ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-nlfl0CapN-Q.html
Really nice view of the Kansas countryside! Being that low over the milo would make me a little nervous. No room for error!! Thanks for the great video!
Thanks, Buddy! I don't advocate my flying style to anyone else. Just keep in mind what I said, though, a movie of this type has appeal at low level for extended periods. Once you get above about hundred feet it gets pretty dull... EXCEPT in instances such as the open of "The Harper Run", my other POV effort on The Sky Surfer's RU-vid Channel. In that one, I open with a climb through the clouds. You should check that out! Keep playing that guitar. I just bought a new Line 6 UX2 so I can do some recording. My old Line 6 Pod gave up the ghost...
***** not professionally it's more of a hobby with the sims and some of the other aviation related projects that I get myself into. Though I've shot a wedding, which one time was enough for me then a few special events for friends.
flyguy8294 Thanks! I appreciate hearing that. I put a lot of work into it. Please tell other guys about it. It is my second 6 cam POV on my RU-vid Channel. The other is called "The Harper Run". I go up in the clouds on that one. Another of the POV type I will release soon called "Sun Over Severy". I don't know if you are a subscriber but I would appreciate if you wish to subscribe to my Channel. BTW. I will also be releasing "UFM2" in the next year or so and one of the featured Ultralights shown is a Kolb. I visited the factory and interviewed Stanley Chitwood about his Firefly. Kolb's are excellent airplanes. You might check out "Sky Surfing - The Flite Blog™". It details the Sky Safaris I take during the Fun Flying Season: fitzvideo.com/skysurfing2/ Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ Brian FitzGerald - The Sky Surfer
Brian, I've shared your video on FB and in my Yahoo groups forum. I enjoy flying the frozen lakes here in Minnesota similar to what you do. It's a lot of fun.
flyguy8294 Thanks! You have enriched The Sky Surfer. I believe I get 1¢ when someone watches one of my movies. The "good word" is worth much more. Thanks for the positive feedback. This is about as cold as I dare fly in the open. It was last Winter and I stayed up about 20 minutes or so: fitzvideo.com/skysurfing2/2014/03/08/the-winter-challenge-by-brian-fitzgerald/
***** One more thing... Have you seen "Surfer In The Clouds" aka "Don't Watch My Channel"? I did it a year ago. It's my "reverse promo". I mean what could be funnier than an old guy dancing around trying to act hip? Check it out! It's just a minute-ten: ru-vid.com?o=U&video_id=sknsmeYxYhU
I used to have an MXL with the 503 Rotax, did a lot of flying here in central Calif. I really miss flying that plane. Much of our farm lands and rivers look a lot like your area. Anyway I just purchased a Rans S-14, very similar to the MXl cept its strut braced and fully enclosed. My new plane has the Rotax 582 with elec start and cruises at 80, a little too fast and heavy to be an ultralight. I'm gonna have to get me some action cams.
Randy Phillips Yes, I am familiar with the S-14. I like them a lot. My Buddy Randy Vyff who flew his Phantom in my music video "Down on the Deck" bought an S-14 many years ago and then moved to Oregon. I no longer have his contact data. Back in the 90's I visited the RANS facility in Hays, Kansas. This was before it was expanded.
Brian I used to fly around northern Ohio and southern Michigan just like this from 1994 thru 2001 Haven't flown since 2003 and miss it every day. I love everything about your flying videos. Keep doing them please.
Thanks! My efforts this past year have been diverted toward making a used RANS S-12 into an airplane I want to fly. I am very close to test flying it. After that, I will get back into making movies.
Congratulations! Very good videos. Is your plane a QS Sport? that engine is equipped with? I have a Sport with a rotax 377; but yours looks more big. Congratulations again, very good videos. Best regards
carlosextra300 Dear Carlos, I call it a Quicksilver MXL+ because 5 years ago I updated to what they call "the high thrust kit". It widens the tail so I could put a 2 blade, 65 inch PowerFin on it. Also the pulley is increased to 5 belts instead of 4. I also updated the push/pull apparatus and added the pod on the front (I wouldn't fly a Quicksilver without the nose pod). I have a 503 DCI and I think it is the best engine around. I'm glad you like the movies. I have been making them since the 1990's and will be adding more. You might like "Sky Surfing - The Flite Blog™", too. Check it out at: fitzvideo.com/skysurfing2/ So where are you located? Do you have an Extra 300? Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ Brian FitzGerald - The Sky Surfer
This Saturday I flew in a silver quikc with a 503 in the company of a friend and it has very good power, I liked, so in my Ultralight engine would be would give excellent performances.
Dan Ogle Thanks, again! Yes, flying low and slow is an entirely different thing. I hope I am not making this look too easy, though. I've been flying these things for about 30 years. It is better to maintain about 300 to 600 feet altitude but, as I say in the movies, it is not as visually interesting when making a movie so I drop down on the deck a lot. I would really appreciate it if you would post it to your Facebook crowd. I want all the viewers on the planet!
I have a confession to make....your videos inspired me to buy a quicksilver MX2. my wife and i are both private pilots. except.. we wanted more of the essence of flight.. being a private pilot started to seem a chore with money spent on check flights, aircraft maintenance, fuel...etc. and feeling like you HAD to go fly. after we bought the quicksilver we fly MUCH more and love every minute of it.. you are closer to the elements with the wind in your hair and being 1k AGL and smelling the crisp air for yourself and being able to look down and see everything is a completely different experience than being in the cockpit.. Ty for your videos, and thank you for the inspiration. :)
Dear Warm, Thank you so very much for telling me this. You understand exactly what I have been working to convey all these years. I am very happy to hear this. This is Aviation For The Fun Of It. It is as close to The Wright Brothers and Glenn Curtis as you can get. You also bring up an advantage that is exceptional to rear engine planes like the Quicksilver - the smell of the atmosphere. This is no small thing. I have flown over fields of sunflowers, fields of new wheat - the aroma is like perfume. Tractor prop airplanes don't have that advantage nor do they have the fantastic view afforded by the Quicksilver design. Keep your engine in good tune and repair and you will have lots of fun. I aim to produce a number of RU-vid cuts this Winter showing the things I do to keep my engine and plane in good working order. At the moment I have my MXL covered with camera mounts hoping for the right weather to shoot one last Sky Safari before the season closes down for the Winter. Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ The Sky Surfer - Brian FitzGerald - Wichita
I fabricated the instrument panel myself from an aluminum strap and a piece of thin plywood. If you are referring to the black nose pod, yes. You can buy them from Air-Tech and other places. In a similar vein I have a detailed story about a "Windshield for Winter" I made. You can see the story here: fitzvideo.com/skysurfing2/2014/01/05/improvement-or-obsession-by-brian-fitzgerald/
Whoa.....this is the best ultralight flight video I've seen to date! A great job of planning, camera work and editing Brian, and you have a wonderful narrating voice to boot. I've been wanting to do this for a long time and this video has pushed me over the edge. Thank you Brian for this beautiful and thrilling flight.....
Thanks! You made my day, Ed. By the way, If you are not aware of this, I have 6 of these POV movies on my channel. Go here to see them and my other Ultralight, Classic/Vintage Airplane, Muscle Car and Rocket movies: ru-vid.com Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ The Sky Surfer
+Dan Bloodworth Dear Dan, And Thank You for that! I love flying low and slow and appreciate the opportunity to share the sport with others in this way. Since you like that one, I'm sure you will like the other 3 - particularly my latest effort "The Search for Mustang Valley" (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-SYRAuxkCdWw.html) Please let your Buddies know about my channel and my movies. Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ Brian - The Sky Surfer
I think you have the best flight video's I have ever seen with the commentary and effects. I myself love ultralight and I have 12 hrs earned for my trike experimental license which the economy has sidelined for me so your vid's get me excited again.
+John Davis Dear John, Thanks for the commendation! I put a lot of work into all my movies but these POVs are a different thing all together. Since you like "Autumn", I know you will like "Severy" and "Harper" which are also POVs. Please become a subscriber to my RU-vid Channel and tell your buddies about my work. I also have "Sky Surfing - The Flite Blog". My last post to that was a flight to Iola, Kansas you might like: fitzvideo.com/skysurfing2/2015/07/09/the-misty-highway-to-iola/ Yesterday I was 5 hours in the air working on another POV in Northern Oklahoma. I am downloading the footage from 7 cameras right now. The flight yesterday was so fine I thought to myself if I was never able to fly again I had at least had that excellent time in the air... Let me know when you start flying the trike. Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ Brian FitzGerald - The Sky Surfer
Thanks, H&H! I discern you have an eye for cinema. It has been my heart's desire to elevate the "RU-vid" genre... These are the best I can do at the time I make each one with the best equipment I can afford and content I hope is interesting and uplifting. Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ The Sky Surfer
Excellent video, Brian ! Thank you for presenting it for us. Filming, narration, and score are all top notch! I want more! lol rc ...and I see you have your Key West air force combat uniform on. :-)
+Rusty Case Thank you, Rusty! I have some more on the channel for you to see. You can find them by searching "POV". Also, you would probably like "Lil Prop - Big Trip". Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ Brian FitzGerald - The Sky Surfer
Dear Dirk, Thanks! I like that one, too, but I wish the original video would "come through" better on RU-vid. Their encoding process introduced an enormous amount of noise into the color and their codec cannot tolerate the motion and tends to pixelate too much. I tried 4 different methods of upload to overcome this and you have seen the best I could do... It still comes across pretty good and captures the joy of a ride over this area. Check out "The Flint Hills Fall Fandango". You will like that one, too, or any of the movies with "POV" in the title (i.e. search "POV") Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ The Sky Surfer - Brian FitzGerald
Enrico Hernandez Dear Enrico, The most time I have been able to stay up is 2 hours and 25 minutes. That is an ideal day with no turbulence and relatively cool air temperature. When shooting a POV movie, I only fly = or - 15 minutes of an hour because the cameras are very unpredictable. I have had lots of trouble keeping all 6 (now 7) running for any longer than an hour even though they are supposed to run longer. Also, I think I am running contrary to the rest of RU-vid when I make these long movies... When I go on a Sky Safari I mostly fly to the max range I can get. I have alternate landing places picked if the wind shifts and I am not getting as far as I need to by the time the gas starts running out. A lot of guys preach that you have to run your 2 stroke at relatively high RPM or at least at the crest of the torque curve (5500 rpm) for best efficiency. I decided years ago to experiment with "slow flight" like they taught me in Private Pilot training. I also studied the whole propulsion system and bought the longest, 2 blade prop I could fit on my plane. Here's the point: Current Ultralight designs (like my Quicksilver) are akin to pushing a barn door through the air. They are not aerodynamically designed like a jet or fast prop plane. I found that the power it takes to fly at 38 mph is FAR less than the power it takes to fly at 50 or 55 mph. When you run my 503 DCI with the 2 blade 65" Powerfin at 5500 rpm it wants to fly at 55 mph+ and climb. That's neat when that's what I want to do. BUT, it burns a lot of gas. To fly longer ranges (and for a longer time) I drop the rpm as low as 4200 and I can generally hold about 38 mph. Some days it takes 4450 because of a higher density altitude. Lower RPM = less fuel consumption. The longer prop seems to maintain the thrust necessary at the lower RPM. Also, the PowerFin has a finely developed airfoil that is more efficient than others. You always hear that running the engine that slow leads to carbon build up but I have not found that to be the case. The engine runs much cooler and just purrs like a cat. The big PowerFin makes it sound like a Harley Davidson (at least with my earplugs and earmuffs on...). I am also able to fly in the ground effect for long distances out here on the prairie. I believe that extends my range and allows the use of these lower power settings more of the time. Flying that way requires constant attention and the realization that in the event of an engine failure you are near touchdown. So, you have to be constantly aware of potential landing spots. I hope that answers your question. Thanks for watching! Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ Brian FitzGerald - Wichita
I was raised on a KS farm (near Belleville) and went to K State so I know about farms and the Flint Hills and the things you appreciate out there. I have time in 150's and Cherokees but never could put time and money together at the same time. What I wouldn't give to do what you're doing (too old now). But at least there are your videos. I have to ask about that white "torpedo". Luggage? Tool bag? Both? Oh, and since you're a precise kind of guy, it's an engine not a motor (just had to mention that). Thanks for the great entertainment. I can't imagine a more fun thing to do.
Good to hear from you. You know the Flint Hills, too. The white torpedo is a ballistic parachute. If needed it is deployed by pulling the red handle near my right hand. A charge fires and blows it out like a mortar. It will bring the plane and pilot down. That one happens to be made for a two seater.
@@BrianFitzGerald-TheSkySurfer Isn't the BRS the large white tube behind your left arm? I noticed the tube on your right side also (the horizontal tube). I figured the right hand one was storage... My BRS looks almost exactly like the one you have behind your left hand / arm.
+Rien Diemel Yes. I imagine it would be harder to do. What about this place I see on the satellite photos called Waddenzee? It would seem like there are not many people out there on this coastland. I think you can do it. Check out my movie "UFM2". There are lots of Ultralight Flying Machines that you can break down and put in a car so you can drive to the place you want to fly. Some "Ultralights" are literally motors you strap on your back and you fly underneath a parawing. Check it out! HERE: ru-vid.com/group/PLw-1AzkBKwvPI_oKgrJ96S3zjgemcipI8
i fly in n.w. OKLAHOMA. The scenery is exactly the same with the exception of giant wind farms to keep you on your toes. plus a bit of elevated terrain. not mountainous but large rolling hills. its very interesting flying. but I would never fly as low as you for fear of drawing gunfire, lol. some out that way are growing some strange mexican agriculture.
Love wheat and straw golden fields... use to live next to one with a white farm house with red roof in the middle of it, looked just like Andrew Wyeth's painting "Christina's World". Over grown now... and fallen into disrepair. Wood in it is over 100 years old, found a dot for it there on a 1912 map. You need to bag some windmills... the old farm variety.. not the windfarm variety. We had one until my dad took it down. 14:33 - Oh, snap, you did bag you a windmill. I spoke too soon!. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christina%27s_World You need me in a chase plane with some Go-Pro's ;-)
+CHOPPERGIRL AIRWAR You should see my first edit of "Lil Prop - Big Trip". It was called "Lil Prop - Big Prop" and finishes up with me flying around the BIG windmills. The ones with the 175 foot blades... If you have a BlueRay player I will send you a copy.
I use 33 db earplugs with a 33db set of ear muffs. After that it sounds quite nice. Most of the whiney 2 stroke noise is filtered out and I hear the prop which frankly sounds like a Harley.
+Bob Garber Hello, Bob! Good to hear from you. That tune is called "Wonderland". It is from a "buy out" album called "Mysterious Nature" that I bought from The Footage Firm. I'm glad you noticed it. I have incorporated more orchestral pieces in my movies over the last 10 years. I still like other forms but there is something to be said for other than "beat music". I have a new piece I will be releasing in a month or so called "Mustang Valley". I wrote one song in it that is Rock but that's pretty much my level of expertise. I think that is another reason I like the jazz and orchestral tunes I buy. They help dignify my movies...
Brian, I got your reply. The reason I asked is that I was wondering if you had had it inspected, rearmed and repacked lately and if you had found someone to do that.
+ulpilotrmh No. I am completely remiss in that regard. For a long time there was no recourse for 2nd Chantz owners anyway but somewhere in the order of 3 to 5 years ago I read that BRS decided it would repack 2nd Chantz chutes. I have not gotten around to checking with them about price or anything so I can't tell you about that.
Thank you for reply Brian. I really liked the up grade your ultralight; I would like to make you one equal to the mine; only that it would be a 377 a 447 dual CARB to have more power and to travel with less RPM. Although my weight the 377 is enough to fly without problems. I liked much "Sky Surfing - the Blog Flite ™", thanks for sharing. I live in Irapuato, Gto. Mexico. "World capital of strawberries" a group of friends and I have a small track at 25 km from the city and 15 from the capital city Gto. www.guanajuatocapital.mx/ es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irapuato We are about 1874 20 msnm 20* 54¨38.79"N 101 * 20¨ 28.38' W We have 7 individual hangars for ultralights and also to fly radio control aircraft. When I can upload video and pictures so that you know more. Good flights. Carlos E. Jasso.
carlosextra300 Dear Carlos, I finally got a chance to check out your town on the internet. I'm impressed. It is very attractive. My Wife and I like Mexico but we have only been to Cozumel for stops on cruises we have taken. You are pretty much in the center of the country. I bet you have some excellent scenery. By the way, I like strawberries a lot... I forgot to tell you I used to have a Quicksilver MX. When I bought it (in the 1980's) it had a Cuyuna engine on it that would quit a lot. I finally switched it for a 377 and began REALLY having fun. The 377 is a good engine, too, but I like the 503 because I can turn it as low as 4200 rpm and stay in the air. This helps me get longer range. You said you looked at some stories on Sky Surfing - The Flite Blog™ so you can see I take some rather long trips. 117 miles has been my longest day trip yet. If you want to upgrade to a 503 be advised that there are different engine mounts and you will have to go to a 5 belt pulley system. I get all my parts from Air-Tech of Louisiana and get my engine re-builds done by Rotax Rick. If you want a good re-built engine I would take to Rick. When I bought my 503 new, I got it from Air-Tech. If you want to post any pix to The Flite Blog™, let me know and I will set you up as an "Author" rather than a "Subscriber". Blue Skies & Tailwinds!™ Brian FitzGerald - The Sky Surfer
Hello Brian, had not checked the messages, thank you for answering and for your advice. So, Irapuato, Gto is a small town and we are in the center of the country, the runway where the flight is approximately 25 km about 15 miles from where I live. We make local flights to Silao, Gto, Lagos de Moreno Jal, San Miguel de Allende. Etc. I have not done long in Ultralight flights, but it would be great to do one. Fortunately we can fly over large areas very safe and beautiful, but they really loved the places that your flyer. I like the idea of changing the motor by a 477 with dual carburetor, so I will begin to plan this new project. :) Soon I will send you some pictures of one of my flights so that you may know more of our State whenever you want you can visit and taste you will receive. Good flights.
carlosextra300 Dear Carlos, I think you would like the 503 better if you can get one. Also, regarding the 477 idea... I think dual carbs are more trouble than they are worth. They seem to use more gas for a marginal power increase. With a 503 you can get more power at a lower RPM and thus keep your engine temperatures lower. My CHTs stay under 300 most of the time. My EGTs 900 to 950.
I convince ;) By observations that you give me, is has much better performance the 503. Do it gives you problems to be invested? The spark plugs are not wet? Only would that change the motor base? Si le quedará al Sport el 503?
Yes. I see them all the time. Check out "Flint Hills Fandango". I come upon a good sized herd of them climbing a bluff. It was a Providential Event of magnificence!
