Ford Parkway Bridge

Looking towards the St Paul side of the Ford Parkway Bridge.

The Crafts Of Flugtag 2010

I wanted to show a closeup of some of the crafts from the Flugtag 2010 event on Harriot Island this past weekend in downtown St Paul. A lot of time and energy went into making each of the aircrafts. Some claimed 200 hours of time. In the end, the skit/performance and pushing the craft off the ramp for flight lasted all but 120 seconds.

View all of the Flugtag 2010 photos.

  
  

Little Boxes, On The Hillside

Which Is More Shocking?

The tattooed legs caught my eye initially, but take another look....which is more shocking, the tattooed legs or the legs wearing shorts and over the calf socks? I mean really?

New World Record Flugtag Flight In The Twin Cities

More than 90,000 people witness Major Trouble and The Dirty Dixies fly their craft 207 feet, breaking the old record of 195 feet set back in 2000. Their flight really pumped the crowd up as the aircraft landed just past a buoy that marked the previous record. From my vantage point, I thought they crashed into the water around the 40 foot mark, but the wings took lift and sailed to victory. The video is worth a look.

Here is the video of their historic flight.

The plane design is based off of one of the eight remaining B-25 Doolittle Raiders named Miss Mitchell. Frequent readers to this blog may recall my posting from May featuring Miss Mitchell, which is housed in the Commemorative Air Force, Minnesota Wing hanger at Flemming Field. I would have to guess, since there is the CAF logo on the plane, they either helped in the design and construction, or they were a sponsor for the project. Then again, there is also a Commemorative Air Force, Dixie Wing division as well, so perhaps they are just fans of the plane?

  

Flugtag 2010 Twin Cities

The RedBull Flugtag 2010 Twin Cities was held this past Saturday. The event coordinator was hoping for 50,000, but the draw of the Flugtag, estimated the crowd by the St Paul Police at 90,000 people. Overall, it was the most unique event I've ever witnessed. 35 teams were selected to make an craft with a theme and perform a short skit, they would then, push their craft off of the 30 foot ramp to see how far they could make it fly. A small number of the crafts managed more than 50 feet including a record setting 207 feet. While most of them, like the one pictured, topped off at 20-35 feet.

The team in today's photo is the 'Band Of Bunyans'. According to their Facebook page, they are all from the Good Ideas Club of UW-Madison. Their theme was Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox, local Minnesota folklore. The wings on their aircraft was painted in Maroon and Gold, the University of Minnesota school colors on one side and Red and White, the University of Wisconsin school colors. I believe their craft landed in the 30 foot range.

  

This Is Not An Exit

Graffiti found on the supports of a St Paul bridge. The path to the right, that the 'exit' leads too, is a one hundred foot drop off....so, ummm, no....this is not an exit I'm looking for. The path to the left, I cannot read what it says....so I ain't going there either.

Keep On Riding

If your in Minnehaha Park and are looking for a quick way to visit the park, these four person bike carts are available for renting. I'm unsure of the cost, but I did see plenty of these on the road during my time at the park.

Say Hello To Mr. Creepy

These insects look rather nasty to me. They are called an earwig and looks like something out of a Hollywood creep show movie. Earwigs are generally nocturnal while hiding in dark moist areas in the day. To me, they're simply creepy!

Cruising Main Street

Back on July 4th, I posted a close up photo of a very patriotic couple wearing red, white and blue outfits to celebrate the occasion. Today I'm showing you the vehicle they were traveling in during Afton's 4th of July parade.