Flying, signing, eating and shooting, Louisiana style.

Packing up the airplane and heading east this afternoon to Natchitoches, Louisiana.

One of my book readers has put together a shindig and it includes a fly-in, Louisiana food, a book-signing and a get-together at the shooting range on Saturday, June 30th.

As he explains it, "anytime in the South when a few good folks get together, you just know there are going to be some great times to be had along with some serious truth-stretching come story-telling time."

Pass the cornbread.

Here is the Saturday itinerary for anyone in the neighborhood:

• Fly-in is at the Natchitoches airport (KIER) and folks will be flying in beginning around 0900 through mid-morning.

• Lunch and a book-signing will be around 11:30 (ish--everything in Texas and the South is on "ish" time. That's how we do things.)

• Shooting and more book-signing at the local range begins at 2:00 p.m.

• Probably some more truth-stretching throughout the afternoon until around 5:00 or 6:00.

More information can be found here.

I was at the hangar today topping off the bird with fuel and doing a thorough pre-flight. In this heat, I want to be in the air as fast as I can. That means load up the plane, roll her out of the hangar, get strapped in, check everything over one more time from inside the cockpit before spinning the prop, do my pre-start checklist and pre-takeoff checklist together, flip the master switch, turn the key and crank 'er up.

As soon as I see oil-pressure indication, slip the brakes and taxi to the run up area. My pre-takeoff physical checklist will be done on the roll--controls, instruments, gas, trim, flaps. Runup will be the last thing, then takeoff. I'll set my radios and frequencies and GPS units while in the air.

As Murphy's Law pointed out a day or two ago, with an air-cooled engine, the ground is NOT where you want to be on a hot day. I want to be in the air with some nice 100kt breezes flowing into the engine cowlings and keeping my cylinders nice and comfortable as well as keeping my oil temp out of the red.

It's going to be hot and bumpy until I get to altitude. It's a relatively short trip (230nm) and weather forecast is for hot and clear so I'll go VFR and climb to 7500 and see how comfortable that is.

Taking my camera, a few guns, lots of books and the joy and knowledge that a weekend spent with folks who love guns and airplanes always promises to be a fantastic time.

If you're in the neighborhood Saturday, drop on by.