Experimenter

NOV 2014

Experimenter is a magazine created by EAA for people who build airplanes. We will report on amateur-built aircraft as well as ultralights and other light aircraft.

Issue link: http://experimenter.epubxp.com/i/418587

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 11 of 40

12 Vol.3 No.11 / November 2014 AN EYE FOR DETAIL WHEN THE NAME "FORD" is paired with the word "airplane," it's understandable that the first image that pops to mind is of a corrugated metal airplane with a long, fat wing and three round motors. However, there's a decidedly different visual definition of this Ford airplane. It's a slicker-than-a-raindrop, superfast, and hyper-detailed com- posite bullet that's known as a Lancair Legacy. But N11LL is a Ford Legacy, as in built by William Ford of Durango, Colorado (no relation to that other Ford). In 2014, this Ford Legacy was named the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh Grand Champion Kit Built, which, considering the competition, is saying a lot. Inasmuch as there have been a number of Legacys crowned grand champion in recent years, it could easily be said that Lancair's current incarnation of the little Lancair 320 is the favorite way for perfectionists to display their talents. That is not necessarily the case with William Ford. "I don't do things to be perfect," he said, "but I often do things with an eye toward curb appeal. And at places like AirVenture, that means everything has to be done right. And that's what I try to do. Make things right." Regardless of what William said, there's basically only one definition of the word "right," and it happens to be pretty much the same definition as "perfect." So, while he doesn't see himself as a perfectionist, casual observers (and the EAA judges) do. Or at least they see the results of his handicraft as being perfect. This is an interesting contrast to his day job, which finds him swinging around in trees, wielding a chainsaw as an arborist. While there is an artis- tic element to his work, superfine detail is usually not part of the equation. When it comes to aviation, William is the third genera- tion of Fords to claim the third dimension as his own. He explained, "My granddad flew a Jenny in 1925 at the age of 18 and eventually went into the CAA, then FAA, where he had a hand in a lot of DC-3 certifications. My father tells me that my granddad had a professional relationship with Paul Poberezny back in the early days. It's not clear how well they knew each other or if they flew together, but they did cross paths a number of times. "My dad also soloed at age 18 in an Aeronca 7AC, after which he earned his PPL. My first memories of flight go back to about eight years of age, when my dad took me out for a scenic flight over Ventura County in Southern Califor- nia in a Grumman Cheetah. "When I was ten, I got really heavy into R/C sailplanes and at 13 bought an FAA ground school manual. So, I was hooked early. In high school, I took an aviation class that qualified me to take the PPL written. Then it was flying les- sons at 16 and a PPL at 17. However, even though there was a lot of aviation in my family, neither my dad nor grandfa- ther were EAA members or exposed me to sport aviation or experimental amateur-built aircraft. That is something that I discovered on my own. Photography by Tyson V. Rininger Attention to detail is evident throughout William's Legacy. To attain more speed, every effort was made to make sure everything fi ts fl ush. The retractable gear of the RG-550 Legacy contributes to its 275-mph max cruise speed.

Articles in this issue

Archives of this issue

view archives of Experimenter - NOV 2014