Boy Who Flew With Condors - Johnson? Other Comments

> * Can a 1-26 really thermal away from an auto tow behind a Model T on
> a 200 foot rope?  Can you actually stand up-right immediately
> following a 5 hour flight in a 1-26?  ;-)  Ahhh, that's Hollywood for
> you.
>
> Thanks, John

I once thermalled away from a 300 ft auto tow in a 1-26

On Aug 27, 9:11 am, "garyk...@" <garyk...@>
wrote:
> > * Can a 1-26 really thermal away from an auto tow behind a Model T on
> > a 200 foot rope? Can you actually stand up-right immediately
> > following a 5 hour flight in a 1-26? ;-) Ahhh, that's Hollywood for
> > you.
>
> > Thanks, John
>
> I once thermalled away from a 300 ft auto tow in a 1-26

My instructor did his Silver C flight in a Schweitzer 1-19 off a 400'
winch tow.
I think the winch was a Model A -- I've seen it at the National
Soaring Museum.

> * While I am sure that many of the soaring types shown in the movie
> are the real deal, did the two teenagers (Chris Jury and Margaret ???)
> exist or were they simply Hollywood actors?  If real, did they do
> their own flying (the Torres Pines beach takeoff especially).

The girl was real and her name was Margaret Birsner. She was the
daughter
of J.W. Birsner, M.D., a well known radiologist from Bakersfield. I
never met Margaret
and don't know where she is now, but I did meet J.W. Birsner when I
worked in the
same hospital for a while, and he was very proud of her
accomplishments.