Private Flying to Watertown, NY

September 11, 2019 By Hollie in flying Tags: flight, flying, new jersey, new york, travel 2 Comments

It’s been a couple of months since my husband, and I flew anywhere substantial. A few weeks ago, we were discussing possible things to do on Labor Day Weekend. I always wanted to run the 18.12 Challenge Race. My husband was not as keen on spending over 14 hours, driving to a race and coming back. I guess I can’t blame them.

He asked if I wanted to private fly. I’ve never private flown to a destination with a time limit. We’ve flown around the state and Northeast on our own time, but we’ve never flown somewhere to do something. I didn’t know how my body would handle flying the day before a race. Private flying is loud, bumpy, and you get sick a lot easier. But it sounded like a fun adventure.

What most people don’t realize is Private Flying, and Air Force Flying is entirely different. Just because you are an Air Force Pilot, does not automatically make you qualified to fly private planes (and just because you fly Private Planes does not make you qualified to fly Air Force Planes.) They are similar but separate entities. You must have different certifications for both. My husband has both and instructs and teaches people how to private fly. So if you, random internet person with no flying experience wanted to learn to private fly, he could teach you. He likes to fly, and it’s become a hobby of his. Anyway, I get a lot of questions about that, so I thought I would answer.

We also rent airplanes (We don’t own any LOL). First, we can’t afford to buy an airplane. Second, my husband prefers to fly a few different types of planes.

A Few Fun Things About this Flight:

My first cross country flight (260 miles/2:15 minutes)
During the flight to Watertown, we faced headwinds and flew to 8000 feet.
During the flight to South Jersey, the cloud layer made us fly lower at about 5500 feet.

Here are a few photos from our flight up to Watertown:

landing in Watertown

Close to clouds

Looking Down at the Steel Stacks in Bethlehem, PA

Delaware river

Delaware River and view of Philadelphia

Looking down at Top Golf in Mount Laurel, NJ

In all, it was a lot of fun.

Flying to Essex County

July 5, 2019 By Hollie in flying Tags: aviation, flight, flying, new jersey, scenic

Before joining the Air Force, my husband got his privates pilot license. Then a few years ago, he became an instructor so he is able to teach people how to fly (yes, even you!).

While we didn’t fly as much last year, we do privately fly together from time to time. A couple of weeks ago, we decided to fly to my 250th diner. It wasn’t because the diner was special or even that we couldn’t just drive there, but it’s fun to fly.

Like running, sometimes private flying is more about the journey than the destination. When we flew, it was windy and turbulent. In fact, when we made the approach into Essex County Airport, we had to change runways because it was too turbulant to land from the direction we were coming. Unlike commercial flying, private flying isn’t quiet. You hear a lot of things.

This was one of our shorter flights and it was nice to get a scenic view of all of western NJ.

NJ Turnpike

NYC Skyline

Flying to Essex County Airport morristown airport

Morristown Airport. You can see an expensive jet is parked there.

Mining

Flying to Essex County Airport me selfie

Accidental glamor shot captured inflight when we hit turbulence

Flying to Essex County Airport Philadelphia

Philadelphia in the background

Pa across the water

It was a lot of fun. It will be a while until we get to fly again but I can’t wait. I always tell people, that the plane we fly in can fit four people so if you are local and interested, you’re always welcome (no one seems to take me up on it!).

Flying to Bridgeport, CT

May 29, 2018 By Hollie in flying, new jersey Tags: connecticut, flying, new jersey, new york city, pilot 8 Comments

As many people know, my husband is a pilot in the Air Force. He also has his private’s license, so we are able to rent planes and fly to various places. Due to being busy, life, and other interests we haven’t gone anywhere too exciting in a few months. Last year was my first time going through the Hudson Corridor (around NYC). We like flying there and it’s usually scenic.

The weather looked good last Saturday so we decided to fly back up to Connecticut. We chose Bridgeport since it would be scenic and there was a lot going on around the airport.

We took off from Princeton Airport. Tim’s been taking lessons to be an instructor there (so he can teach people how to fly…).

The morning of, we realized the Mets were playing which means certain parts of the Hudon, New York, and New Jersey Air Space are closed. This is the same for any major sporting event. When Trump plays golf in NJ, it essentially shuts down half of the state for private flying. If you cross the airspace, you run the risk of getting escorted out by F18s.

We were able to fly around NYC going up, but coming back we had to stay clear and flew down through Western NJ. It ended up being a cool flight because we were actually above Newark Jets approaching. It’s kind of crazy to look down and see a massive 737.

Here are a few photos:

Taking off from Princeton Airport

Flying over the Verrazano Bridge into NYC…who has started a marathon there?

Down into Connecticut:

Coming back home. On multiple occasions, we were about a mile away from 737s and other jets (which in flying world will cause your plane to beep: “traffic traffic”.

This was definitely one of my favorite views of the night.

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One of my favorite photos of the short trip landing back in NJ.

A post shared by Hollie (@fueledbylolz) on May 25, 2018 at 7:05pm PDT

It was definitely one of the more scenic flights. We are hoping to fly to Block Island this summer as well as Montauk but we will see how schedules go.

Philadelphia Airport 5k (19:47)

August 29, 2017 By Hollie in Running, Training Tags: airport, fitness, flying, race, running, workout 7 Comments

Since hearing about the Philadelphia International Airport 5k, my husband and I wanted to run. It was a pricier 5k (around $50), but it understandably costs quite a bit to shut down the airport. The race started at 8 am, which made it convenient to get to work on time as well. It’s the time of the year that I don’t have off many Saturdays so I plan races around what works with my work schedule as well. Usually, I can find something.

When we got to the race, we stood in line for quite some time before picking up our bibs and checking in. Due to running on the actual runway, you had to show your ID, which was scanned as well. It was the exact same process as checking in for a flight.

After that, we warmed up and got to the start right at 8. It was surreal to see planes on the parallel runway taking off and landing. Philadelphia has several runways, so they closed off the one we were running on.

During the first mile, I was running with several people. I could see my husband way up ahead, battling for first place. Similar to the 5k last weekend on a runway, you can see everyone at all times.

The first mile was windy, and we had a pretty significant headwind. I hit the first mile in 6:17 and I was excited. It was almost a 10-second improvement from the previous week in the headwind.

During the second mile, we went straight onto the long runway. It was a simple straight, windy, tarmac. It wasn’t headwind though! I was running alone and could see several men including my husband in front. I tried to focus on the few people closest to me. I was running by myself but having people to concentrate on made the mile go by much faster.

Unlike last week, the race went by quickly. Last week, I was counting every .1, while this week most of the 5k was a blur. When I hit the second mile in 6:18 and felt good, I hoped I could chase after a sub 20 minute 5k. To be honest, I was shocked I was competitive to even do that! I kept in mind that the second mile was a tailwind so the third would be back into the headwind.

We rounded a turn, and I saw my husband pull into first. I was excited because he has been training hard. I continued to just focus on the end. I could see the finish line at 2.8, and it felt like it wasn’t coming any closer.

As I edged closer to the finish, I saw the clock tick over 19 minutes and knew it would be very close to breaking 20 minutes. I hit the third mile in 6:24 and just focused on the end. I crossed the finish in 19:47 and as first female overall. I was excited to break 20 minutes so early in the racing season again. Most years coming back, it takes me 5+ 5ks to inch under there. I will say despite

I was excited to break 20 minutes so early in the racing season again. Most years coming back, it takes me 5+ 5ks to inch under there. I will say despite the wind, the weather was pretty ideal.

The other fun fact is my husband, and I have run several races together but have never both won the same race, so that was neat. I secretly hoped we could get a free American Flight somewhere. However, this was the first race I’ve run with zero awards.

In short, I’m happy with this race as it’s actually the first time I’ve run under 20 minutes since April. I have a lot way to go, fitness wise, but this was fun motivation. I didn’t have any aches or pains (or random injury/issues), so trucking along is the current plan.

Questions for you:

Have you ever run a race on a runway?

Have you ever flown to Philadelphia International Airport?

Flying through the Hudson Exclusion and NYC

July 18, 2017 By Hollie in flying Tags: date night, flying, new jersey, new york city 8 Comments

As many readers know, my husband is a pilot. While I haven’t mentioned it much recently, we go on shorter, private, flights together. No, we don’t own an airplane but since my husband has his General Aviation license, we are able to rent certain aircraft as well.

So with that, last weekend we decided to go flying!

The pilot himself

And of course, it would not be complete without an awkward Instagram stories selfie.

My husband and I have flown several times together. He flies, I take photos and hope I don’t puke (which yes, has happened). Sometimes, we just fly down to on our favorite restaurants: Georges Place in Cape May. Other times, we fly to North Jersey like Pompton Plains. Last weekend, we decided to do a flight from Berlin, NJ to Oxford, CT. It was our longest private flight together.

Southern New Jersey

While planning the trip, we ran into a few Snafus. President Trump was in Northern NJ which puts flight restrictions into the air. There are certain places you can’t fly as well as other places you must fly at a certain altitude. Depending on who is in town, it can shut down a lot of private flying. Since Trump frequently visits Bedminster, NJ it has shut down a lot of weekend flights.

If you break any of the rules that are put in place, your plane can be escorted out by an F-16 or shot down. Last weekend, most of Western NJ was shut down but we were able to find a cut through to CT by way of the Hudson. There were plenty of military aircraft patrolling NYC.

As we flew up, it was neat to be able to fly over Mcguire AFB and see all of the planes lined up. While they look tiny, I can assure you they are not.

Comparison: standing in front of a single engine of one of those planes last year.

Standing next to one of the engines

After that, we headed right up to Northern, NY and to NYC. I didn’t expect how close we would be able to get to the buildings. It was incredible and truly breath taking.

It eventually led to a selfie next to the new World Trade Center Building.

After that, we headed up to Oxford, CT. We chose the airport because we knew there was a nice restaurant there and we could grab a bite to eat and fly back!

The trip back was just as beautiful. The sun was slowly setting, so we were able to see a gorgeous sunset along the Hudson.

reentering the Hudson

Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty

Lady Liberty Herself

Jersey City Area:

Sandy Hook and Jersey Shore

The total flying time was about 3 hours and it went perfectly. We had a great time flying and saw a lot of great views.

Other Flying Related Posts:
Flying to Cape May
Flying to Pompton Plains

Questions for you:
Have you ever flown in a small aircraft?
Have you been to NYC?

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Running and Laughing through the Garden State

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Private Flying to Watertown, NY

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Flying to Essex County

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