Well, Folks, we did it! 

It was quite the weekend; one we won't ever forget, that's for sure!  The Bushwackers flew about 20 feet, and we scored well with the People's Choice, with about 20% of the texts according to the message we got back.  We loved the event, and were glad the people returned the favor.

First and Foremost, we'd like to thank everyone for their support.  We didn't get here alone, and every single $1.00 donated or piece of material given, and even the prayers prayed made it possible.  We cannot express our gratitude enough and want you to know how lucky we feel to have the friends and family we do.  This could have never happened without you.

FRIDAY:

We hit the road just before 10 on Friday morning.  Everything was going well until we hit the rest stop near the Toutle River.  Adam's truck, that was hauling the Squirrel, started blinking the ABS light.  We parked it for a while to let it cool down, then couldn't put it in drive to leave later.  Terrified that we wouldn't make it in time and getting quite aggravated, we spent the next hour attempting to fix the problem.  Thank the Lord, Marc finally figured out that it was a switch in the steering column that was broken, and he jammed his hand up inside the column to manually shove the vehicle into Drive.  For the remainder of our journey, this is how we had to start the truck.  Adam had no tail lights, and no blinkers the rest of the time.

But we DID make it there, and on time, amazingly enough.  We pulled in to Portland and signed in; immediately given Red Bull and a warm welcome.  Portland is a VERY strange place, with lots of one-way roads and plenty of people that could ONLY ever be from Oregon.  I have no way to really explain it, only to say that if you've ever been there, you understand. If you haven't, just be prepared to take it all in.  It's a different kind of beauty with a different kind of people.  And they are proud of it. :)

After pulling into our Hangar at the waterfront Park, we realized that though we had brought everything we could think of, we'd forgotten some key things.  Such as screws, markers, and a tarp.  The U-Haul was turned in and the materials were found, and thus we began to set up our "booth."  We noticed that a large many of our competitors were actually assembling their craft On-Site, which was interesting to watch.  Red Bull had a meeting of all the teams and went over safety, performance, etc.  Then we all ate! Yahoooo!!  The night wasn't without worry, however, because it started to rain.  We made a mad dash to cover the Squirrel and our Backboard (which was the only one there at all) and headed back to the hotel.

Luckily enough, we stayed at the Marriot that was directly across the street from the park, and only had to walk about 5 minutes to be in our lovely room.  We got unpacked and settled in, but nobody slept much AT ALL that night.  No surprises there.  What dreams we did have were about crowds, squirrels, and high jumps into deep water.

SATURDAY: 

Total and utter mayhem was the theme for the day.  We woke up early and got costumed, then headed down to the park.  Everyone was scurrying around trying to do last minute things and finish their crafts, costumes, or booths. People started showing up at about 9:45.  Marc started dancing on top the squirrel and attracted plenty of people our way.  Many bums came to check it out and use one of the 1,000 Porta-Potties, just glad to have something to see and somewhere to pee.

By 11, the place was PACKED.  We kept up with our show, dancing, taking pictures with people, and letting little kids rub the Squirrel's furry tail.  We were a real hit, since Marc was on the Big-Screen at least 5 times and we did more than 3 interviews with the media.  Cameras were everywhere, phones were out and people were really taken with the spectacle.  At all times there was a crowd around us taking pictures, and apparently that wasn't common for the other groups.  We got to know our fellow Fluggers and we had a great time.  The news said 80,000 people came to the event, and we believe it.

The procession of crafts started at 1 and we all got lined up.  We went from the hangar under the bridge, and the closer we got to the Flight Deck, the more the tension rose.  Sonny and Adam can't swim, and Ash is terrified of deep water.  This was definitely a time to face our fears, and the huge crowd was no help. 

It was lots of fun watching what we could of the other performances.  Honestly, we missed much of it since we didn't have sight of a Big-screen. So, we listened our best and tried to gauge how it went from the crowd's response.  Mad props to our Fellow Flugtaggers, you all put on a great show!

Once it was our turn, they wheeled us up to the ramp and put us in soaking wet life-jackets and tight helmets.  They briefed us on our way up to the dock and tried to comfort us the best they could.  The Fear was tangible, and we were all hoping that we knew our skit well enough not to ruin it, and had the guts to jump at the end.

Before we knew it, we were being interviewed. "Uncle E" called Kinsey and Ash up before the cameras and gave us props for the attention to detail on the craft and our great costumes.  He got us laughing to ease the tension, and then the music was on.

The skit went well, but it all flew by so fast!  It was like working on auto-pilot and having an Out of Body experience at the same time. We did the best with our timing, but we had trouble securing the wings and starting to push in time.  Then, a front wheel turned backwards and almost launched Marc out of the craft, sending it a bit sideways.  Within seconds we were at the end and the craft was in the air.

The jump was high.  Higher than any of us thought it would feel, and it hurt bad on the landing.  Ash fell on her left side and hurt her ear, and Kinsey landed on her right side and has a massive welt/bruise up her leg. Sonny hurt his arm, but there were no serious injuries, thank God.  The Squirrel lost it's tail, which was floating next to Adam in the water, but amazingly enough it kept it's Paper-Mache head on.  We didn't see it pulled out of the water, so we aren't sure what happened to it.  Marc is still suffering Post-Partum Depression.

They cut the end of our music off due to the Sky-Divers coming in, and they didn't show a re-play of the flight.  Our family that was there was worried because they didn't interview us and let everyone know we were ok.  The last thing they saw was the squirrel landing on us and the look of terror on Adam's face as he came out of the water.  Everyone was relieved when we got back in one piece.  Many people stopped us on the way back to our hangar to tell us they loved our show, and that made us feel much better.

After the awards were given, the crowd dispersed and we were left to clean up what was left of our efforts at the hangar.  It was bitter-sweet to have it all over with.

We headed back to the hotel exhausted, wet, and smelling of the Willamette River (not the best cologne in the world.)  That night we walked around Portland looking for food, only to find everything closed after 9 and ordering Pizza to our room.  Adam worked on fixing his truck with his parents, and Sonny somehow lost his wallet in the room.  We're still trying to find it.  We slept better that night, but were all anxious to get home and really rest.

SUNDAY:

A trip that started so adventurous could not possibly end dully, and the events of Sunday made that a given.  After eating our Burger King breakfast, we started playing car games in the Jeep.  In the Nisqually area, heading up I-5, we were almost a part of, and witnessed, a horrific accident.  A Trailblazer going about 15 miles faster than everyone and diving in and out of traffic Cut the Jeep off, and almost took out the back fender of the SUV to our right.  As the Trailblazer got in front of us, he over-corrected and slammed sideways into the front of the car to our right and shoved them across the highway into the shoulder.  The black SUV was able to stop safely, but the Trailblazer hit the guard-rail and grinded down it on it's front two wheels for 50 feet.  We thought he was dead, and Marc got around the accident and pulled over.  We ran to make sure everyone was ok, and it's a miracle, but nobody was hurt.  The black SUV had it's front ripped off, and the Trailblazer had it's front caved in, two wheels flat and chunks of the guardrail stuck and twisted into the body of his car.  Apparently, this guy was late to pick up his wife at the airport.  Now, he's in much more trouble than he can imagine, and will probably lose his license.  We stayed to give the police report and then headed home.

So, it's a real blessing that we made it home safe and sound, with no other incidents aside from bad traffic.  All that really woke us up again!  It's not often you have one weekend where your life flashes before your eyes TWICE!

All in all, it was an amazing weekend.  The Boys of the Bushwackers hope to compete in Flugtag again if it visits our coast in the next years.  It was fun, and a very unique experience.  How many people do you know that have built something performed in front of 80,000 people?  We're very thankful for being able to do this.  We hope the crowd enjoyed it as much as we did!!

We are getting closer to the event and the tension is high. Marc has been spending every extra moment working on this beast and it has taken the shape of a 20 foot long squirrel. We still have a few minor details left to take care of. Paint, arm bulk, nuts, and the seat are all that remain though. We will have this thing done, don't worry about that, but keep your mind on the fact that we are going to be stressing out a little bit for the next 6 days.

..Our craft isn't exactly one that will travel gracefully, so we rented a trailer.

Our craft isn't exactly the best "flying" machine, so we are hoping you all think it is creative.

Our skit has barely been practiced, but we are going to have it down.

Our weather may not be the best for the next day or two, so we built a shelter.

Our financial situation isn't the best, so we are washing cars tomorrow.

 

 

WISH US LUCK!

Red Bull came out to film us Sunday; it was a blast!   Hopefully we will get the video to post up here so you can all get a glimpse of how we work. It may be on the news, who knows.

We are expecting a HUGE crowd of over 60,000 people in Portland!  The First Place Prize is a trip for the team to Salzburg, Austria! :)  

We updated who is actually competing with us this year, seeing as most have to bail out for other (much more important) obligations. Our new team members are...

1- Marc (BW01)

2-Adam (Allan's little brother)

3-Kinsey (Marc's Wife)

4-TBA

5-TBA

As you all may have read, our group "The Bushwackers" have been chosen to compete in The Red Bull Flugtag 2008" which is taking place in Portland, OR on August 2nd.

Flugtag is only a few weeks away and we are in need of some help in the Funding Department. If any of you can find it in you to help the Bushwackers with their biggest and best adventure ever, we would appreciate it. No amount is too small or too large. We have to buy materials to build it, transportation to arrange for us and our craft, accommodations to prepare for, etc. If you can spare even the smallest amount it would help us. You can either give donations to any of the Bushwackers, send them through paypal at truckin6382@hotmail.com or mail check or money order to...

Bushwackers
7502 104th St. E.
Puyallup, Wa 98373

We need this folks, now help us out. Any donations will earn some sort of recognition during the event and/or on this website. We will discuss that during the time of donation. Our booth could be decked out with pictures and thanks to you.

Or we could possibly hook up a ride down there with us to the event for the right donation!

Thanks for all your support!

We have officially been accepted to compete in Red Bull's Flugtag on August second in Portland Oregon. I will post more info later.

We got an email today confirming that Red Bull received our application. We are hoping and praying that they accept us and let us fly on August 2nd. So, we have decided to leak out the pics of our application with a little explanation of what the pics are. As you can see, the photos just give you a taste of the application. It consists of at least a dozen pages. We are hoping and praying for the best and we hope you are too.

Photo 1. the cover

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v600/ezr2bdirty/1.jpg

Photo 2. As you open the first portion of the folder a recording of Napoleon Dynamite saying "You know, like nunchuck skills, bow hunting skills, computer hacking skills...", and this is what you see.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v600/ezr2bdirty/2.jpg

Photo 3. As you open the second portion of the folder, a recording of Spock says "Annihilation Jim, total, complete annihilation!" and this is what you see. In the first section, we have our application with a breakdown of who we are and where we came from, along with why we feel this would be good for us (see photo 4). In the second section we have our drawings etc. (see photo 5). In the third section we show some of our inspirational pictures (see photo 6).

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v600/ezr2bdirty/3.jpg

Photo 4. A breakdown of us as a team.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v600/ezr2bdirty/4.jpg

Photo 5. Our Plans.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v600/ezr2bdirty/5.jpg

Photo 6. Our inspiration.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v600/ezr2bdirty/6.jpg

 

The Bushwackers are currently working toward our best goal ever. The chance to enter the 2008 Flugtag in Portland, Oregon. We are currently designing our flying machine in the top secret lab known as "The Man Den". If all goes as planned our application will be accepted and we will be flying on August 2nd, 2008.

For some time now we have been looking for the perfect event to bring our group together. Sure we have built things, or worked on things together, but we needed something that would require teamwork, commitment, planning, and of course, fun. When we saw a commercial for this event we knew right away that it was the one we were looking for. We have already noticed an increase in excitement and teamwork stemming from this event. We have spent hours upon hours thinking, discussing and drawing out the design. The design we have come up with is amazing. A Flying Squirrel named Cash-oooh. He will have legs that fold back into his body so he looks like a normal squirrel. Then comes our parts in this whole thing. Our pilot, Marc, will be dressed as a garden gnome. Our pushers will be dressed as lumber jacks. When we run out to "fly" Marc will hop aboard, and the pushers will spread the legs out and push from the feet. The legs will be webbed together to create wings and they will lock out when spread. The show will be one to see, but we will not be revealing that until the event.

We are putting together our application right now, it will include a rough blueprint of the machine and some other surprises for whoever opens it. This is turning out to be a very good opportunity, we have no doubt that our application will be accepted, but we ask that you pray for us anyway.

THANK YOU AND GOODNIGHT!!!