C James

ISS does have a "lifeboat"; they keep a Soyuz docked at all times; they roate them; a Soyuz brings up a 3 many crew, and the three men leaving the station then take an older Soyuz down. While there are six men on the station, they keep two docked. SpaceX is a company I'm intensely interested in. *IF* they can do what they claim; achieve far lower launch cost per pound, that will enable far easier, and more frequent, access to space for both manned and unmanned payloads. The shuttle was originally planned to do that, but never even came close; it was phenomenally expensive to run. SpaceX is claiming a cost of about 100 million for a Falcon Heavy launch, and even if that ends up doubling, it is still a massive improvement in cost per pound to orbit. Falcon Heavy will be a true heavy lifter, and if it works, it'll be in a similar class to the planned SLS heavy lifer NASA is working on. Personally, I hope Falcon Heavy (Basically, three Falcon 9 first stage cores) is flying soon, and then SLS can be canceled. SLS is a kludge on the engineering side anyway, almost as bad as the Ares1 design. Falcon Heavy's initial configuration is planned to put 120,000 pound payloads in LEO; that's more than twice a shuttle payload, and the US hasn't had that kind of capacity since the Saturn 5. SLS, for comparison, is supposed to achieve 150,000 pounds. The Falcon Heavy figures may change with the Merlin D engine, and a LOX/LH upper stage. The biggest difference, other than cost; Falcon Heavy is supposed to be on the pad late this year (I'll be surprised if it is... fall next year is my guess). My best guess on SLS is it won't be operational within a decade. Now, cost... So far (and much remains to be seen) SpaceX and a few other companies are far better than NASA. Space X developed the Falcon1, the Merlin and Kestrel engines, the Falcon 9, the Dragon capsule and service module, and some of the Falcon Heavy, for under 900 million, including some launches. NASA? NASA blew 750 million plus on JUST the Ares1x test launch. That launch used a 4 segment (shuttle) SRB as a first stage. It used a dummy second stage. It had precisely zero hardware commonality with the proposed Ares1 rocket. So, to get a one stage test shot off the pad, NASA spent almost as much as Space X did to develop a family of rockets and hardware, and several space shots. And don't get me started on the Orion capsule; that's cost billions already, and has taken years longer, than SpaceX's Dragon. And a Dragon is currently in space, Orion isn't even close. Yet, for far less money, SpaceX developed a capsule of equivalent capabilities, plus the entire launch system to get it to space, and have done so; this is the second Dragon to orbit the earth. They are working on a manned version; and the cost? About 75 million for the upgrade (for the development program and a test flight!), primarily for the launch escape system. (something Shuttle never had - Shuttle was not actually "Manned rated" per the guidelines that NASA has for manned rated). I hope SpaceX can keep going like it's going. *IF* it keeps up the good work, I think it's a far better option than NASA for both heavy lift and manned lift to LEO, but that's *IF* things keep going they way they are going; it's still early in their test program, and SpaceX does not yet have a long-term record. I'm an opinionated bastard on this issue. I know that. I have two reasons; the first is cost. Space CAN'T be a jobs program, because that increases costs, and that means, perforce, far less actual spaceflight. The second reason is that we have already killed at least seven astronauts thanks to space being treated as a jobs program. This was because Of political (spreading the jobs) agendas in congress and the white house in the early stages of the shuttle program. In this case, I'm referring to the solid rocket boosters; there were four candidate bids. The top contender was a design by Aerojet, for a single-body design, of greater circumference than what was actually used. It was single-pour as well; it would have been cheaper, it would have given the shuttle a greater payload capacity (especially to high inclination orbits like ISS) and it would have been safer, too. But, Aerojet wanted to build an automated facility in Florida to build them. Instead, for political reasons, Thiokol was chosen. A Utah company, because at the time Utah had a very powerful senator, who wanted a "piece of the jobs pie" for his state. This had a number of problems. One is that the SRB segments were constrained by the diamiter of the 19th century railroad tunnels tin the rockies. thus limiting the diameter of the SRBs. Also, thanks to the railroad constraints, the SRBS were segmented, not single structle like the Aerojet design (and Aerojet had a longer history with large solids; they knew what they were doing). So, thanks to politics and the jobs issue, we got a more expensive, less capable, and less safe SRB for Shuttle. When Challenger went up on that cold January day, it was one of the joints between the segments that failed. It didn't have to happen. And new, the buffoons in congress (both parties did this) wanted to use the Thiokol segmented SRB not just for a booster, but build a longer (5 1/2 segments) for a first stage of Ares 1. This was madness on many levels; the vibration issue alone would have made the capsule akin to a paint shaker, and the structural rigidity issue was a major one. They also want to use this same stretched SRB as a booster on the SLS heavy lifter. Why? Because Congress (whom I would not trust to design a shoelace, let alone a rocket) specified "Shuttle derived technology". Okay, I've ranted and raved long enough.

Chapter 122: Thrown to the Sharks For those who would like to follow the action on a map, here's a link to google maps, centered on Geraldton, which can also be moved and zoomed to show other areas mentioned. As they drove through the streets of Geraldton, Bridget winced in agony. “We must stop for supplies, any convenience store shall do, though best to clear the area first,” she said, clutching her cracked rib. Billy kept driving; it had been only a few minutes since they’d seen Kook

Thrown to the Sharks is up. There's a link at the top of the chapter to an interactive map of Geraldton, in case anyone wants to follow the action. There's also a link at the bottom of the chapter to the Atlantis page, which is a handy resource for Kookaburra's layout as well; they are basically identical in layout. My sincere thanks to all those who acknowledged that there were no cliffhangers in Wheels within Wheels. After all, one head-hunting hit man does not a cliffhanger make. Try looking at the bright side; Trevor was, as we last saw, taking Kookaburra far out to sea. Being far out at sea can be lonely, but now Trevor and Shane have company aboard, Basingstoke, so getting lonely is no longer a worry.

Me?!!?!? It wasn't me who let Bridget get away... And it's not a cliffhanger.. We don't know where on the boat Basingstoke is, and all we know is they all sailed off together into a beautiful Aussie sunset.

But the last chapter had a bit of action too,such as a pilotless aircraft coming down in flames.

My sincere thanks to those who have acknowledged that Wheels within Wheels is cliffhanger-free. We are still waiting on a few holdouts... so, if this delays the chapter post past the usual time, we could blame them... or, we can just blame Wildone. However, those are not mutually exclusive propositions!

In the Wheels within Wheels thread, Wildone posted the following, Wildone is right; often, if there is a, ah, ever-so-slightly-tense chapter ending, I do indeed, when possible, post the next chapter ahead of schedule. In the case Wildone mentioned, I did so, and thank you, Wildone, for suggesting we do it that way again. Now, let's recall exactly what happened then... I offered to post the following chapter just as soon as people weighed in on the thread and declared the chapter that ended with Trevor feeling kinda down and under pressure to not be a cliffhanger. I hereby answer the call to do just that here; as Wildone has requested, the next chapter will be posted when one thing happens; when all who have accused or implied a cliffhanger in this chapter declare it cliffhanger free, here or in the chapter thread. I shall then post the chapter, as Wildone asked. See? I'm always reasonable and happy to help.

Emoe!!!! You know I could never create a cliffie... I don't even know how! It is the team's solemn duty to carefully scrutinize each chapter for any hint of a cliffhanger, and thus allow it to be fixed. It is also the teams' duty to defend the poor, innocent author from such scurrilous and libels claims as cliffangery! I'm shocked... Shocked! That the eeevil conspiracy has gotten to you, too!!! This is true! I then explain why it could not possibly be a cliffhanger. If need be, I change the chapter ending to make it absolutly unarguable that it's not a cliffhanger. For example, in the current chapter, I added a description of the beautiful sunset's colors. Due to never, ever seeing a cliffhanger??? Oh come on... Any member of the team (or any reader for that matter!) is absolutely free to argue absolutely anything! I think the narration mentioned that Julie is in Tahiti, quite some time back, so I'll confirm that that's where she is. She wasn't the one giving Basingstoke his lessons. Hrmmm... I wonder... could a Canadian have been giving Basingstoke his diving lessons? ACK!!! No no no no!!! I am unquestionably ineleigable for the award this year!! As for the story... yep, it was Basingstoke who sabotaged the customs boat. The whole escapade in Geraldton (and with the plane) was designed to drive Kookoburra into port, and then back out. Trevor's head would be sent east, across the pacific. It's the closest route from where they are, and the good news is that if this happens, it satisfies the novel's notle, Circumnavigation (because Trevor's head would be completing the circumnavigation). Due to the title, someone, or something, has to circumnavigate the earth. Now, as for the coming chapter... I'll adress that is a seperate thread. I will mention here though that the title (Graeme came up with it! Thanks Graeme!) is "Thrown to the Sharks". I was going to go with "head games" but I'd used that before. I tried "head game" but, meh, and "decapitated" was a bit too suggestive IMHO.

But you should know by now that it always is... Awwwww.... come on... sailing off into a glorious blood-red sunset isn't a cliffie! Air tanks would be good for a couple of hours at most,in total. No worries on the shark attack thing: Basingstoke only wanted to do that to make it look like an accident the last time; this time, he's planning on leaving the country permanently and, as such, is unconstrained by that issue. Thanks!!!!! You're right, there could be cliffies if I wasn't so careful. But, our team and I are utterly dedicated in our determination to avoid even the hint of cliffhangers.

Rachel put her cane to good use. I'm only offended that you think there are cliffhangers! And yes, you read it right: There are three people on Kookaburra; Trevor, Shane, and Basingstoke. Ack! It's not a cliffie!!! Rachel gave it a good try... she did hurt Bridget, and would have done more than knocked her out if Bridget hadn't gotten her with the sand. She was aiming the cane for Bridget's head; that's a recipe to knock someone out permanently. At least this shows how Rachel feels about Bridget. What happened to Rachel at the end though, with the abdominal pain, going pale, etc? I'm sure it's nothing serious... she was only tackled,blindside by a big rugby player, after all. But it was such a pretty sunset... and the motion of the boat was comforting to all three board... such an idyllic scene... What? Poor, innocent me, evil? E tu, Benji? Awww.... The police searched the four cabins and the other areas adjoining the salon. How many cabins does Kookaburra have? Five. Just like Atlantis, there's a small crew cabin on the forward port side, and there's no access from the salon area. The only way in or out is via a deck hatch on the foredeck. (Bridget knows the boat's layout very well, due to having once owner her). However, Basingstoke may, or may not, have been in said cabin when Kookoburra left the dock. We do know he's aboard now though. How he got there is hinted at in the chapter (in the last several, actually). It's those mysterious lessons he was taking. That would qualify as aboard, yes. But, he couldn't stay underneeth and under the water once she picked up speed. Of course, there are ways to be underneeth without being under water. E tu, Frog??? But... come on, you know it's not a cliffie!! We don't know Basingstoke's plans, so nothing to worry about. Trevor and Shane aren't worried, so why should we be? Granted, they don't know that Basingstoke is aboard, but don't worry, they will soon. Actually, at this point I'm happy to report that the next chapter will probably post on time. Until quite recently, I was worried about a possible need for another skipped week, and Low Flyer (one of our team, an expert in grammar, as well as continuity and advice on other issues as well) thought the end of this chapter would make a good, calm, restful pausing point of one was needed, so I was going to go with it for a two week break. But, no need now. Expect the next chapter to be on time. *********************** Okay, now a general question; did everyone like Bridget posing for photos with the toy boat, with Kookoburra in the background?

Oh come on! That's not a cliffy!! It's a beautiful red sunset...

Chapter 121: Wheels within Wheels For those who would like to follow the action on a map, here's a link to google maps, centered on Geraldton, which can also be moved and zoomed to show other areas mentioned. In Florida, Jim and Dirk had heard the news; another attack on Trevor was underway. Dirk phoned the farm to talk with Rachel. Martin was the only one there and he shared with them all he knew about the situation, which wasn’t much. Dirk, in a morose mood, sat on the couch. “I wish

Wheels within Wheels is up. There's a link at the top of the chapter to an interactive map of Geraldton, in case anyone wants to follow the action. There's also a link at the bottom of the chapter to the Atlantis page, which is a handy resource for Kookaburra's layout as well; they are basically identical in layout. In some ways, this chapter is the beginning of the end - I estimate nine chapters to the epilogue. Enjoy, and please let me know what you think. BTW, Point Moore, mentioned in the chapter, isn't marked on the google maps link, but it's the westernmost point of land on that map. The lighthouse is across the highway from the surf shop that''s marked.

Red-A is the one behind most of the realism in Trevor's voyaging, including the tide data (which I could not find a source for until Red provided it) and a host of other things. I am NOT a blue water yachtsman, so I rely on Red-A a great deal, especially on the technical side. This cannot be said enough (I may seem was remiss in omitting it in the above post, but I was admitting to a screw up, so didn't think it would be very nice of me to do so in that context. ) this story is a team effort, and in the case of technical issues, especially sea related ones, Red_A is the expert, and he's as much a part of the story as I am in those aspects. This is true in other aspects for other team members. Graeme, for example, is behind the Aussie characters having a real feel, in both personality and dialog, and he's also very knowledgeable on Australia in general, and on human reactions in general. One thing I do want to make very clear; if any error creeps through, it is mine, period, full stop. Unless it's a cliffhanger, of course..

You typed the words "I acknowledged it being cliffhanger free" and I thank you for it. Hrmmm, I've been needing a new quote for my siggy, too.... Short version, in a nutshell, I'm nuts! You're right; in general, fiction has no rules, per se, on technical accuracy. Many authors take all sorts of liberties with facts, and chalk it up to artistic license. Others also make glaring factual errors, sometime unintentional, such as you see in darn near ever CSI or police type TV show. To a degree, I have used artistic license as well; doing a google news search won't find you any articles on Trevor Carlson, in spite of the fact I've shown characters in the story doing just that. In another case, I was trapped by shoddy research (mine) into an unfixable departure-from-reality scene. I research things like weather (for example, the weather and tides are as depicted if plot relavan; one example is Trevor's first entry to Kalbarri at night in a storm; that was the real weather that day, and real tide times as well.) Now, the huge screw-up; remember when Trevor decided to try a circumnavigation; it was seeing the distant launch of the shuttle Atlantis that triggered his decision. Well, SWS (Stupid writer syndrome) struck, and struck hard. I'd checked launch dates for shuttles, as well as the unmanned launches Jim and Dirk saw, prior to laying out the plot. I even checked the pre-9-11 range safety limits (so when we see Rachel, on Ares, in the prologue, she's within the then-extant but not today's range safety limits). However, I'd checked just one site for the launch data. What I didn't catch is they'd inadvertently displayed 2007 data on the 2006 page (They promptly corrected this when I e-mailed them). However, by the time I knew this, the story was posting and it was too late for me to fix it. So no, Atlantis didn't launch on the day I depicted, and that particular error galls me to the point where I'm ashamed of it. Is it normal for an author to worry abotu such things? Heck no; They generally make stuff up to suite the plot. Creating a fictitious launch, even a fictitious shuttle, with fictitious capabilities in some cases, is nothing. However, as we all know, I have never been sane. Therefor, it's just a thing with me; I like to get the technical details right. The nuclear warhead design in Changing Lanes? Real. Same with a host of other things, such as Trevor's improvised navigation methods when he crossed the Indian Ocean in the wreck of Atlantis. I went for realism there; his methods work in the real world. Did I build an arbelast to try it? yep. Now, for one thing, his method of estimating the effect of the seasonal movements of the sun in the sky to come up with calculated latitude, I wanted it to be very real: something he'd come up with himself. So, I avoided any emergency nav manuals or guides, and tried to think of a way. Well, what Trevor came up with - essentially using his map as a crude slide rule to calculate the sun's apparent latitude at zenith each day - not only works, but works better than anything in any emergency nav manual I've since seen. (their method is to just divide, which gives much large errors near equinox and solstice). I've even had professional navigators write to me about this. Trevor did well indeed. Anyway, that's the level of my obsession with getting facts right. YEs, I am that crazy. Even minor stuff... like the Bellevue Airstrip at the Bellevue gold mine. Did I make that up? Nope... it's at 27°36'35.65"S 120°35'41.05"E So, Ret2AK is right to challenge me on facts; it keeps me on my toes. It is also, in this case, something I should have taken more care with; it's critical to the plot, plus I should darn well know better. I am (or used to be, to be accurate) a pilot. I've flown Debonairs a few times. I've also, as part of emergency jump training, climbed out onto a wing step (on a low wing, slower plane) and jumped. So, I really should have gotten that scene right, because darn it, I've actually done most of it. It bugs me when I screw up, and it looks like I may have here. I think it could have worked as written, but I don't think Basingstoke would have taken her to the razor's edge of a stall like that (opening a door while in stall buffeting may, or may not, totally destabilize the aircraft.). He may well have chosen 5 or 10 mph more airspeed. Anyway, this is just my obsessive nature regarding details. I like to get 'em right.

You're wrong, that's no bluff. It happens to be a fact, based on what the narration in a third person story HAS to be; it's actual, not subjective, for everything, unless it says so. It's not relevant where Basingstoke gets his info, nor what he thinks the airspeed is, for the purposes of a narrative statement. In a third person narrative, all such things are absolutes, not character subjective, unless stated as such. I can point to countless examples of you like, including all the cases where Trevor's indian ocean navigation was off by a bit or a lot, or when I list a distance, etc. If it's what the character is thinking or seeing, I have to say so. If the narration says that a car is going 50mph, that's how fast it's going, regarless of what its spedomiter says. If the narration says that a building is ten stories tall, that's how tall it is. If the narration says that the character thinks somthing, or sees something, then it's subjective info reflecting the character's beleifs, experaince, etc. Otherwise, if something is stated in narration (not dialog) it is absolute. Those aren't my rules, those are the rules of third person narrative. Now this is entirely plausible, because I think you're right, the airspeed is too low. Yes, I'm standing by my claim that the airspeed is stated as an absolute, even though that potentially replaces a somewhat hard to open (put still feasible) door with a plot-wrecking full on stall. If you're thinking that I forgot to convert true airspeed to indicated when I considered stall speed,while writing the chapter, you're right, I did, and that was a mistake. My references, found online, list both 51 and 52 knots, though most DON'T say if that's clean or dirty. I've found one that is supposedly from the manual, and it says, Cruise speed 161 kts @ 75% Power Maximum speed 203 kts Stall speed Full Flaps 44 kts Stall speed No Flaps 51 kts Rate of climb 1,280 fpm Glide ratio 8:1 Take Off Roll Distance 572 ft Take Off Distance 1,294 ft Landing Distance 610 ft Loading +4 G’s, -2 G’s Maximum Range 1100 nm Maximum Endurance 6.5 hrs @ 135 kts Fuel Consumption 16.5 gph @ 75% Power Powerplant IO-520BB If we say 51knots, that rinds up to 59mph, and that'd be indicated airspeed. That does not say if it's power off or power on. Some planes, especially with no flaps and gear up, have little difference there; it dpends on where on the wing the flow first starts breaking. If it's not in the propwash, there's little effect, BUT, most stalls begin near the wing root. I have no idea on a Deb. Anyway, If she was in stall buffet, her nose would drop, as it was doing anyway. We both know that there's a huge difference between entering stall conditions and a full stall, ala AF447. In a deb or similar, you are not going to suddenly transition to vertical decent. You'd have to keep pulling back on the stick or yoke, like they did on AF447. The only real difference here is stall buffeting would make it easier to get out, due to more of the door being in the wing shadow (due to effectively increased angle of attack). Also bear the dynamic envelope in mind; the Deb is topping out of a zoom climb, her nose dropping. That's a different dynamic envelope regarding stall than straight-and-level. She's basically already doing a stall recovery. Now, is she turbocharged? Good question! Some Debs were, some weren't. The one I flew wasn't. The narration has never said this one is, so lets assume not, so at 15k, she'd have far less power, but at ten k? The Deb seems (to me anyway) to fly the best for cruise between 7k and 11k, and I don't recall significant power loss in any type of plane below 10k (that's subjective, so take with a grain of salt, especially as it's been a lot of years). I've had planes, even an old Cherokee, over 15k many times, though yeah, they start to labor past 13k. I've even had my SUV (a 4x4 with a 6 cyl engine) over 14k, though I didn't notice a big power drop (but, that's a fuel injected engine.). The temps in Oz... He's at 10,000 feet, so ground temps are little guide. I live at 7000 feet, and my temps are routinely 20 degrees or more cooler than Phoenix, 6000 feet lower. I also remember summer flying and heading upstairs for cooler air. So, how much cooler would it be at 10,000 feet in that climate? I'm not sure, but I do know it'd be a lot cooler than ground level. As a guesstimate, let's use a standard lapse rate: Altitude Pressure Temp. Density - (ft) (in. Hg) (F.) slugs per cubic foot 0 29.92 59.0 0.002378 1,000 28.86 55.4 0.002309 2,000 27.82 51.9 0.002242 3,000 26.82 48.3 0.002176 4,000 25.84 44.7 0.002112 5,000 24.89 41.2 0.002049 6,000 23.98 37.6 0.001988 7,000 23.09 34.0 0.001928 8,000 22.22 30.5 0.001869 9,000 21.38 26.9 0.001812 10,000 20.57 23.3 0.001756 11,000 19.79 19.8 0.001701 12,000 19.02 16.2 0.001648 13,000 18.29 12.6 0.001596 14,000 17.57 9.1 0.001545 15,000 16.88 5.5 0.001496 That gives us density and temperate guides. Granted, the air temp in summer in Geraldton (which has a Mediteranian type climate, dominated by the onshore flow) is warmer, and the mean high in January is 21.8 c, so 71.24F, and this was close to mid day. Still, the table gives us a guide - a rule of thumb, for lapse rate. So, at 70mph actual, at 75% power, at 10k feet, using the OAT estimation correction of .02, that gives us and indicated airspeed of 58mph, which is 50.5 knots. That's below stall onset, per the manual, which is 51 knots. I think that's plausible for a breif moment with the nose already dropping, BUT, it's wrong in another way; Basingstoke is a good pilot, he would NOT try this so close to the edge of the envelope - he'd know that the plane could enter full stall and spin, which there would be zero chance of the autopilot revcovering from. He'd want a margin. I think his speed's too low as written. Maybe the actual should be bumped up by 5mph? Or drop the altitude by a thousand or two?

The Bellevue airstrip and gold mine... yep, it's just a coincidence. It caught me by surprise; I was looking for a strip near Mt. Kieth on the Goldfeilds highway. I knew there were a couple, and found that one in google earth. Then I saw the name, and thought, "oh crap," but then it occurred to me that coincidences happen, and can affect events. But the narration does not say indicated airspeed, so it means actual, so the 31% is accurate. You live in some very windy country! I do as well, but not as much as you. The wind only gets above 80mph a few times a year here. Yep, cut off the bows (one was damaged) and put on new ones, to make her hull like a Lagoon 57. Ned does seem to leave things laying about his yard a lot, doesn't he? On the other hand, I can see why he might not want to keep them; he fiddled the paperwork for the boat, and wouldn't want to leave evidence of shenanigans about. Yes, I know you did, and I thank you for it. It's "Wheels within Wheels".

The pilot was a skydiver (he was the one teaching me, and was kinda... unorthodox in many ways). Truth be told, had I had more trouble getting out, I'd have used it as an excuse not to do so. Skydiving just isn't my thing. The first time the door wasn't there, so less trouble, but for this jump he wanted to give me what he called "a real bail-out feel". Looking back, I can't say for sure whether he crabbed the Cessna a bit, too. And as they say, the first step is a doozy. Getting outside, to me, was the scary part. Well, that, and letting go. It's one hell of a rush seeing the plane receding into the sky (that's where I got the scene of Basingstoke doing it, and also a couple of scenes in Changing Lanes) but I was 19 and nervous as hell, and at that point, I was seriously questioning my decision to add jump training to my flight training. As for Basingstoke, I freely admit I didn't think through his egress enough. I was encumbered by a backup chute (on my chest) and Basingstoke isn't, but still, the propwash is an issue. Hrmmm.. a better autopilot (one with throttle control) might have been the answer... or jettison the door back at Bellevue Airfield, though that would have impacted his range a bit, plus he didn't have as much time there as he'd planned. He was already out by the time the nose dropped and airspeed picked up; The propwash would be affected by angle of attack, though not as much as the airflow would be. Hrmmm... Could he get out the door? It pains me to say it, but I'm not sure... and I should be. I wish I knew the square footage of that door. I'm going to take a wild guess as 3X3, though it's narrower at the top. So call it 9 square feet. He's going to need to open it at least 30 degrees to get out. Now for airspeed... take into account angle of attack, 70mph, and then factor in propwash... I have no idea what the prop-wash airspeed would be. That's an airfoil prop, so you're getting your thrust from lift generated by the blade's rotational speed, and small planes have a hell of a lot less backwash than jets, or course... so I'll take a SWAG and say... 140 mph airspeed at the door at 70mph airspeed and at that angle of attack? Let's make it easy and say he has to open the door 33% 1/3. That's roughly the equivalent of 3 square feet exposed to airflow, and we'll assume it's a flat plate (it'd actually be less drag than that.). Now, let's see if I remember wind loading calcs... nope, I don't, even though I did them to calculate Atlantis's speed under jury rig. HAd to look it up... .004 x 140^2 gives us 78.4 pounds, minus 30% gust factor mentioned is 54.88 pounds, x 3 gives us about 162 pounds total. max pressure on the door when open 1/3. I think it's be less than that, because I think the Cd would be less than that. However, that's at sea level. At 10,000 feet, the air is 69% of what one would feel at sea level, so drop the applied pressure by 31%, gives us 111 pounds of pressure, max, needed to get out (and far less than that to get the door open a few inches to start squirming out). That's easy (most moderately fit guys can bench way more than that... usually they can bench their weight or better, and benching freeweights is harder than a fixed hinged item, it's more like benching on a arm-type lift bench) plus he's leveraging himself out, and can get help from his legs, so I'd say getting past the door is totally feasible, BUT, that's a total back of the envelope guess, way too many assumed variables there.

I think I'd love the region - I live in a remote part of Arizona by choice, so it looks very inviting to me. And you are very welcome for the chapter being cliffhanger-free! Thank you for noticing!! Thanks, and thanks for acknowledging that it's cliffhanger-free! Basingstoke already knew that the video security system was being used to set a trap for him, and he has at least expressed concern that the battery on his tracking device would be dead by now. Thanks!! I share that hope... Though at the moment the greatest threat to my well-being is frequent threats of goat-roasting around here... There was also my first novel, For the Love... Dependent upon who one thinks the real antagonist there was though. Absolutely no cliffhangers! There, does that help? True that compared to the distances involved that 200 miles (it's around 300 by road) is nothing... Oz is indeed vast. True, prop blast is never mentioned, and yes, it should have been. However, one factor that comes into play here is angle of attack. The Deb stalls at about 60 (I'm going from memory here.. I've only flown as pilot in command in a Deb a few times, and it's been years). At 70, pitched well up, the angle of attack becomes significant. (for those unfamilier, the angle of attack is the difference between the way a plane is pointing and its direction of motion). He'd have to lever himself out, but given that the door is well back relative the the wing's leading edge, part of it - the lower back part - would be in partial wind shadow. Here's the best pic I could find on a Deb, though it's not too clear. The closest personal point of referance I can make would be climbing out of a Cessna 155 at around 50mph and standing on the step on the wheel strut. I was at ten thousand feet, so the air is a bit less dense, same for Basingstoke. This was for my jump to learn emergency parachute procedures (basingstoke's choice to learn how to use an emergency chute was actually mine as well) I know the extra 20mph makes a big difference, but I managed it fine at 50 without the angle of attack, BUT, also far less propwash (the pilot had throttled back). CJ

Well, Trevor has been at it for less than a year, in HIS time (He started May of 2006, it is now January 2007) but yes, that was a tongue in cheek jab at the author, for taking two years to tell this tale.

What's evil? It's just a... fun day in Geraldton. I had to end the chapter somewhere, it was already much larger than average. At least it wasn't with the Deboanir still in the air. So, no cliffhangers... Things do heat up a tad in the next chapter. How many sticks of dynamite did Basingstoke give Bridget? Three. How many did Billy deposit next to Kookaburra? one. Where might the others be? Also, when Billy picked up Basingstoke, what are they talking about? Trevor and Shane are indeed safely ensconced in the police station. And, Bridget just parked a car outside of a police station. Incidentally, the number of police stations in Geraldton is, at that moment, one. So, same station. And why has Bridget having her picture taken with a remote controlled model boat, which she promptly threw away? No cliffhangers, but plenty of unanswered questions. I think y'all will like the next chapter, Wheels within Wheels.

There were no cliffys!!! Just a few... active sequences. And the chapter ends with the word smile. And, now we know what Bridget was carrying that looks sort of like road flares, so no more worries there. When did I say no kill offs? The only thing I've promised is that the story will be utterly and entirely cliffhanger-free, and as we all know, that's a promise I keep.

Chapter 120: The Grand Feint For those who would like to follow the action on a map, here's a link to google maps, centered on Geraldton, which can also be moved and zoomed to show other areas mentioned. Also, a helpful hint; if you try to find Ayers Rock, it's not near Alice Springs (a common misconception) it's about 200 miles southwest of Alice Springs. A hot wind gusted through Ayers Rock Airport, where Basingstoke was tending to his Debonair. His mood had been dark and apprehensi

The Grand Feint is up (or will be, within a minute of this post appearing). There's a link to an interactive map at the top of the chapter (this is chapter AUD87 - it's mostly happening in Australia so we're still using Australian maths for the numbering) .

I hope it goes well, and isn't too rough, though I know it can be. When you can, please let us know how you're doing!