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sidmo
Sport climber
general delivery
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any of you legal eagles trying to CYA, remember: check federal statutes, and, as i recall, the rangers could choose cal state, mariposa county, or federal laws to charge people with, as it suited their fancy
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Jim Wilcox
Boulder climber
Santa Barbara
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I gotta think that if Pam isn't sweatin' it everyone else should be ok. I would have figured she had every governmental agency imaginable climbing her frame at one time or another. The IRS musta been a real joy.
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Licky
Mountain climber
California
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 10, 2008 - 09:39pm PT
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Jim, you hit that nail on the head! Not to mention they were trying to get her to pay for the salvage operation even though they couldn't connect her with the plane. Hell, even her husband was only the pilot, the owner was a bogus company with no paper trail.
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Licky
Mountain climber
California
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 17, 2008 - 01:46am PT
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As many of you have now learned, the plane was a modified military fighter/bomber called a PV-1 Ventura. Eventually it was purchased by a company in Texas that did the modifications to it to make it a real hot rod. This next Monday I will visit the guy that flew with the company's pilots to determine if the plane(s) were air worthy to be flown back to Texas for modification.
Although there were only 17 Howard 500s built, they started off as 250s, 300s, 350s, and a slew of other variants. Howard Aero was the predecessors to the corporate Lear Jet of today.
Dee Howard was the inventor of the reverse thruster for the commercial jets that we all love to fly in today.
For those that are followers of the Howard 500, for the past 30 years all but 16 have been accounted for. It turns out that the 17th was this plane....stuffed in Lower Merced Pass Lake with way too much dope on board.
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Licky
Mountain climber
California
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 28, 2008 - 11:52pm PT
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Let me add a little to my previous post. As I have been researching the Howard 500, I have learned that the Howard 500 was not a "modified" PV-1 Ventura. The Howard 500 was just about built from the ground up. They used engines, landing gear a a few other parts from the PV-1 Venturas that they found all over North America after WWII, but Howard Aero built new fuselages and wings using fixtures and jigs purchased from Lockheed, then duplicated. This was for all intense and puropse, a new plane. They only produced 17 500s and they cost in excess of $500k brand new back in the mid50s.
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Licky
Mountain climber
California
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Topic Author's Reply - Oct 31, 2008 - 01:59pm PT
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Spent Tuesday up in the Valley where I was asked by Butch Farabee to put on a presentation to the Yosemite Alumni Association. It was a one hour talk about some of the things I've found out from my research. In the front row was Lee Shackleton, retired Chief Law Enforcement Ranger and retired Federal Magistrate, Judge Pitts. And a couple of rows back was Vern Clevenger. Ya gotta love the contrast.
For those that came over to speak to me afterwards, thanks so much for your time. It was great to finally put a face to a name/voice that I've talked to or shared email with over the past three and a half years.
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petekuhn
climber
Berkeley
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I saw an article about John Dill in the Chronicle, the day before watching No Country, and a Google search the next morning brought me to this thread. Two hours later I got to post 532. This is the best thing I've read on the Internet.
I think chainsaw's posts are prolly the best thing. He started out incredibly dumb, and did an about face. Kudos to you, and hope your climb continues to be as dramatic as it has been so far.
Rockjox's passages were also amazingly good. You could almost smell the weed juice on the floor of the shuttle bus, the antifreeze cloud coming off his car, and the sweat reeking from his paranoia.
The Mountain Gazette article was amazingly good. I will always treasure the scene in the Ahwanee dining room, with the climbing bums toasting the Curry Company executives.
The details about the plane seem inane. Hell, the plane was just an expensive truck to drive dope in. It's the contrast among the pilot and co-pilot, making millions taking dope to the States, and the rangers and cops trying to ride herd on the tourists and freaks overrunning Yosemite in the seventies, and the C4B's panhandling and diving dumpsters that makes the story, not where the plane came from. Oh, and it's also the Sierra, too. Some people will give a sh#t about the plane, but it's a minor, distracting note. It was a big, powerful plane, but the Sierra are bigger and more powerful, no? And prettier.
I guess that the back story that leads up to the crash will be the main focus of the book. I hope there will be some nicely drawn parallels between the pilots' risk taking and that of the climbers and rangers and cops in the story. I hope there will be some good arcs drawn for the lives of the various characters. And I hope there will be some sweet descriptions of the Sierra, including what it's like to fly over them, climb them, and police them.
But even if the book never happens, I'd like to thank everyone who posted on this for a really good read.
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Licky
Mountain climber
California
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 3, 2008 - 10:07pm PT
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Pete...when I gave my presentation at the Alumni Association's meet last Tusday, one of the retired Rangers came up to me. He said that all of the information was great, but when it came to the plane's history and the stats on it, he leaned forward in his seat. He has a keen interest in aircraft and this really got his attention.
You see, the story has so many angles. If you've read this thread from start to finish, you'll see how many people have so many interests in this story.
For those that have followed this airplane from its inception, all thought it was lost. Since there were only 17 ever made, all of the books ever published on the subject show it as "lost". Thirty years later it pops up with a very unique story behind it.
If you ever think you know how a drug organization works, or at least from back in the 70s, then you'll appreciate some of the stuff that I'm only now learning. No names, just situations. None of them climb, but the book with be of interest from their perspective.
So don't be too quick to think that the story is all about the drugs or the climbers.
Its like holding a cut diamond. You can never see all of the same sides at once.
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sidmo
Sport climber
general delivery
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now, mr. pitts was a good guy - we always laughed when he'd bring his own six-pack to the curry bar and not even tip the waitresses to sit there and take up a table - but he'd chat with anyone, and who wanted to be on the bad side of the local magistrate? little did he know, but i doubt anyone working would have charged him for beer - maybe he didn't like schlitz dark draught - only place i ever saw that brew was curry, did they have it made special?
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Licky
Mountain climber
California
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 10, 2008 - 02:43am PT
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Sirloin...am I missing something?
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Mighty Hiker
Social climber
Vancouver, B.C.
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Nov 10, 2008 - 03:07am PT
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He may be suggesting that you cut to the chase, or at least get the book published.
In a related vein, have you sold the movie rights?
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Blakey
Trad climber
Newcastle UK
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Nov 10, 2008 - 06:55pm PT
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I don't know if any Brits have contributed to this tale, but the general gist of it had made it over to the UK by 78 and was widley known in the climbing community - was it kinda reported in Mountain?
During the 78 summer season at Chamonix, I met two of your regulars from on here who were having a 'grand tour' on the back of the weed's proceeds. They were then pretty well at the end of their dollars and seemed to be living from hand to mouth! One went back to the US, the other came to the UK with his very attractive girlfriend, and stole at least one highly prized first free ascent - you know who you are!
It's been a fascinating thread, I look forward to the book - when it eventually happens!
Best,
Steve
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Licky
Mountain climber
California
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 10, 2008 - 07:11pm PT
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Mighty...there is no chase here. This book isn't a novel with a punch line or an ending. Its a historical book with facts. If I went to print now people would be complaining that not all was told. If Sirloin has read at least three of the pages from this thread then he'd know what I'm talking about.
Movie rights? Nope, not until the book is finished. I have been approached, but I'm not interested until the book if finished.
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graham
Social climber
Ventura, California
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Nov 11, 2008 - 06:39pm PT
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Blakey,
Hate to ruin a good story and not sure how many on here are just that, a good story... I fit your bill as the guy with the attractive girl friend and bagging several free ascents but my trip to the UK was paid for by “Portaledge sales” not pot.
Unfortunately or maybe fortunately we were out of state when the crash accrued. But I did get some good first hand stories running into some of the culprits on my trip back west on a stop in Idyllwild. I doubt if their money ran out any time soon after.
Don’t anyone email me for the details, it was too long ago.
Cheers,
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Jaybro
Social climber
wuz real!
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Nov 11, 2008 - 06:54pm PT
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~"It doesn't matter, but I wish he didn't grab the rope." or similar.
I wish those thieves had not stolen my original model Gramicci ledge, veteren of several el cap routes.
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Blakey
Trad climber
Newcastle UK
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Nov 12, 2008 - 03:35pm PT
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Mike,
Apologies, the passage of time and me making 2+2 add up to six! :-)
Best,
Steve
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sully
Trad climber
CA
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Nov 15, 2008 - 11:05am PT
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Damn! This was the book I was planning on writing. Good for you Licky to get it down first. I agree with the post about less plane engineering detail, more climber and karma beta. I found Lynn Hill's Climbing Free chapter about the plane, the climbers, and karma fascinating. My other book idea is one full of Camp 4 stories from those there in the 70s and 80s. I was there the summer of '82.Does anyone think this book would go over well?
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Licky
Mountain climber
California
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 16, 2008 - 12:10am PT
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Well Sully, the guys that are interested in the plane think the climbers only figure into a small part of the story.
Again, its your own perspective that drives your interest. Thats what's so great about this story
Hate to tell you this about your book idea, but its been writen a number of times
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