Remembering TWA Flight 800

In the darkening skies of July 17, 1996, TWA Flight 800 departed New York's Kennedy Airport en route to Paris. As the Boeing 747 climbed over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Long Island, the jet was torn apart by an explosion. All 230 passengers and crew members aboard were lost. Tonight, fourteen years later, families and friends gathered again in Smith Point Park, at the memorial to the crash victims, to remember their loved ones.

The Fire Underground

Centralia, a small town about an hour southwest of Wilkes-Barre, PA, was founded in 1866, and was a thriving coal-country community, reaching a population of over 2,500 people by the mid-1960s. Today, fewer than a dozen remain. In 1962, while burning trash in the town landfill, an underground coal seam was ignited. Although the fire was thought to be extinguished, it remained burning underground, spreading through the mines which crisscrossed below the town. Over the years, a number of unsuccessful attempts were made to extinguish the fire. Finally, in the early 1980s, when a number of sink holes and subsidences opened up, the true extent of the situation was discovered. Ultimately, the federal government purchased the land, and paid to relocate the residents. A handful of residents have remained in the town. Most of the buildings have been torn down, leaving an almost empty grid of streets and sidewalks.

I've made two visits to Centralia in the past year and a half. On my first visit, on January 1, 2009, rising smoke could clearly be seen in several areas, and patches of ground clear of snow told of the higher temperatures below.







I made another trip to Centralia this past Sunday to further explore the area. I ran into a film crew from The History Channel shooting footage for an upcoming program.


Route 61 was a four-lane highway heading south out of Centralia. After the roadway repeatedly cracked and buckled from the fire, approximately three quarters of a mile of the highway was closed, and a new two-lane road constructed to the east of the original road. Heading south on the closed section of highway, the road appears to be in serviceable, if unmaintained, condition. Grass and weeds have sprung up along the sides and in the center median, but the pavement is still intact.



About one half mile south of the northern end, you come across the first real signs of the damage caused by the fire. This fissure, some thirty feet long, one to two feet deep, and two to three feet wide, is evidence of the fire in the mountain below.





Continue another hundred yards south, and you see more damage - this section of roadway has buckled.


And everywhere on the roadway, you see graffiti - some of it profound, much of it profane.


Local riders use the section as part of their off-road trails around Centralia.


At the south end of the closed section, looking southward toward the open section of Route 61.

Mopar Heaven

The fairgrounds in Carlisle, Pennsylvania are home to a number of car shows annually, most grouped around specific brands or types - there is a show for GM products, Fords, Corvettes, Trucks, you name it, they have a show for it.

My favorite show, though, and one I've been to for most of the past 14 years, is the All Chrysler Nationals. The mechanics of the show are simple - invite a number of specific cars that fit into a theme - this year it was "Barn Finds" - rent space to manufacturers and other vendors, then throw open the fairgrounds to anyone with a Chrysler product who wants to park their car or truck on the acres of this "Fun Field".

Along with seeing all those great Mopars, the show also offers the opportunity for various car clubs to meet at the fairgrounds. I have been a member of the Mopar Mailing List for close to fifteen years, and have joined them at the annual Carlisle BBQ for most of those years. It's a great way to see some terrific cars, get together with friends from around the country, and eat some amazing food!

Two of our MML family found this 1953 Dodge pick up on E-Bay - it's one of only thirteen of it's type known to exist.




Another MMLer's car, a 1970 Plymouth Roadrunner.




One of our youngest members meets Elvis.


Patiently waiting for dinner to be served.


The gang's all here!

Let's Go Mets!

Fireworks Night at Shea Stadium was an old tradition, and I had attended a number of them, tailgating with a group of friends. With the construction of Citi Field, the fireworks came to an end. After a three year break, the Mets introduced "Pyrotechnics Night" for 2010. Not sure what to expect, our group made plans to tailgate pre-game, then see what the night brought.

Making last minute preparations before the game.






After a particularly egregious call, Met manager Jerry Manuel argues, to no avail.


After the game (the Mets never came back after that blown call...) it was show time.






In the end, it turned out to be a very nice show, better than we were expecting, and a fun evening with friends.

A Surprise Visitor

Word went out that a Hornet was due in to Republic Airport on Thursday. While that might seem like an exciting visitor, they are getting to be a somewhat frequent guest of the airport, and just two weeks prior we had the Blue Angels, two Canadian Forces F/A-18s, and a pair of Navy Hornets all in for the air show. Then the rumor started going around that it might be a Super Hornet. Now we're talking - we don't see them around much, so it was something to keep an eye out for. Then the big day comes, and someone living under the approach posts a couple of photos...what on earth are those pods hanging from it...wait, that's not a Hornet, that's a Growler!

Yes, the Navy sent an EA-18G Growler. The local Northrop Grumman plant designed the electronic systems for the jet, which will be taking the place of Grumman's old workhorse, the EA-6B Prowler, and the visit was for workers to see the aircraft and meet with the pilots.

The Big Show

Race day Sunday brought clouds and threats of thundershowers - in other words, typical summer weather at Pocono...the forecast called for morning rain and afternoon storms. Somehow, despite the ugly clouds, the rain held off all morning. As race time approached, I made my way up to my seat in the grandstand, ready for anything - camera, sunscreen, sandwiches, rain coat, and radio.

The pre-race activities went off without a hitch, driver introductions, the invocation and National Anthem and then it was time to fire the cars up! The skies were still dark, but the field pulled away for a few pace laps before taking the green. Unfortunately, the rain beat the field to the green flag - coming out of Turn 3 to start the race, rain began to fall.

Trying to beat the rain to the green flag.




Clean up in Turn 3...


After a brief, intense, rain shower, the clouds blew out, and with the sun shining and the wind blowing, crews got the track ready to race in record time.


After the rain, officials found a patch of asphalt had come up at the exit of pit road. They filled it before the race began, but in the finest traditions of Pennsylvania highway construction, they placed orange cones around the repair and let the drivers race while the patch material cured.




Action in the pits is always intense.






The race was the usual Pocono blend of pit strategy, long green flag stretches, and some intense racing - two and three wide in the turns, and five and six wide on the front stretch. A late race caution set up a Green/White/Checker shootout, which led to a not-unexpected last lap crash on the Long Pond Straight.







When the smoke cleared, the results were familiar - Denny Hamlin in Victory Lane for the fourth time in the past five races.


One last bit of excitement after the checkered flag - Joey Logano wasn't happy with Kevin Harvick after Harvick spun him late in the race. Logano stopped at Harvick's pit to express his displeasure.

Happy Race Day!

It was off to the races once again - Pocono Raceway, the big triangle in the Pocono mountains, hosted the first of two NASCAR race weekends. And of course I was there. This marked the 40th NASCAR Cup Series race I have attended at Pocono. We were treated to a thrilling, and remarkably clean, ARCA race on Saturday.

As usual, the ARCA race had a wide variety of entrants - the young and old - 18-year-old Chad Finley to 75-year-old James Hylton and everything in between, up-and-coming drivers looking for experience to move on to NASCAR, and the ARCA veterans who have run the series for years, like Frank Kimmel, Bobby Gerhart, and Brad Smith. After a spirited battle between Craig Goess and Mikey Kile, Goess went on to win the race.

Ready for the green flag...


ARCA regular Brad Smith brings his car to the attention of his crew.




Battling for the lead!


Lighting them up after the win.