Wednesday, May 28, 1997
Man and dog circled United States
By Ken Ellsworth / Reporter-News
EASTLAND - A Texan, Linda Finch, is flying around the globe,
following the route of Amelia Earhart in a Lockheed Electra 10E,
a duplicate of Earhart's airplane. If everything goes well, Finch
should complete the 29,000-mile trip and land back in Oakland,
Calif., her starting place, within a few days.
I think the whole thing is pretty admirable, but I think Finch
should have gone all out and followed the lead of Eastland resident
Mike Zoellick and taken her dog along for the ride. Zoellick,
35, did take his dog along in the fall of 1993, when he decided
to circumnavigate the entire continental United States in his
twin engined Comanche airplane.
I would admire Linda Finch even more if she had agreed to take
my dog on her 2-1/2 month journey, and I would have been glad
to pay her for the service, too, but that is another story.
But, back in the fall of 1993, Zoellick, had just left the
U.S. Navy. He and and his wife, Anne, were both Navy fighter pilots,
but she still had some time to serve, and he had some time to
spend. That was before the couple moved to Eastland to become
owners of The Eastland, a Bed and Breakfast Hotel.
Zoellick, knowing that he and his wife would soon be selling
the family aircraft, decided to go on one last memorable spin.
He would depart Kingsville, head west, and fly literally around
the United States, following our borders with Mexico, the Pacific
Ocean, Canada, the Atlantic Ocean, and, finally, the Gulf of Mexico,
until he arrived again in Kingsville.
Zoellick packed lightly. A little food, a tent, a little dog
food - but he carried a big dog, a 65 pound golden retriever mix
name Windsock that he and Anne had retrieved from a dog pound.
"We knew we wanted an aeronautical name, and she has white
feet, so we thought of Windsock. I guess naming her was kind of
a family affair," Zoellick said.
Anyway, man and dog took off. Flying west and cruising at 170
mph, they rounded San Diego, Calif., and landed north of Los Angeles
at a town called Lompoc for their first night out. Zoellick pitched
his tent on the grass near the runway, and after a necessary walk,
he and Windsock slept. In the morning, Zoellick bought peanut
butter and jelly and the pair flew on.
The next night was spent at a little airport in the state of
Washington.
"It was the most northwestern airport I could find. I
picked up some rock and driftwood for souvenirs on the beach.
It was cold, and I wasn't prepared for it, so Windsock and I huddled
together in the tent for warmth. We were in our survival mode,"
Zoellick said, laughing.
Two days later, flying straight east, Zoellick flew over Lake
Erie and landed near Cheektowaga, N.Y., the home of his in-laws.
He stayed a day and flew on. Rounding Presque, Maine, the pair
flew south, past New York City, and landed at New Bedford, Mass.
There, man and beast rented a motel room.
The next day, it was on to Key West, Fla., and an overnight
stay with friends. By the next evening, the two flyers were back
in Kingsville and home.
The 7,000 mile, or so, trip was accomplished in seven flying
days, with a total of 52 hours spent in the air.
"Windsock had a good time. She thought it was just like
riding in the car. She would ride in the co-pilot's seat. If she
got tired, she slept in the back. We used to take her on weekend
trips, too, before that. I think by now she has enough flying
hours to qualify as a commercial pilot," Zoellick joked.
This column covers the cities and communities of this part
of West Texas. To contact Ken Ellsworth, call (800) 588-6397 or
(915) 673-4271, Ext. 381, or write to P.O. Box 30, Abilene, TX
79604.
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Abilene Reporter-News / Texnews / E.W. Scripps Publications
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