Flying a narrow strip at Harris Ranch 3O8, on the way to propose. Rated ★★★★☆
I flew my girlfriend from Santa Monica (SMO) to San Francisco (OAK) the weekend I proposed to her. We stopped halfway at Harris Ranch 3O8.
It was the most harrowing landing I’d had, so far. As we approached we heard another pilot taking a couple of runs at the strip, with head- and crosswinds, so I lined up for the landing. The strip is a lot smaller — narrower — than your usual runway; it’s about the width of a two-lane country road. It’s not especially short, but since you approach expecting the runway to be further away, you may be too fast when you get to the tarmac, and have to bleed off speed.
Which I did the first time, and made it a go-around. The second try, the wind had moved to cross, but as I touched down it had become a tailwind, and I was still rolling too fast by the halfway point. Power up, lift, ground effect — and there’s a trailer with hay bales parked near the end of the runway. I cleared it — probably with plenty of space — but it was still pretty nerve-wracking.
We could have headed out and landed somewhere else, but by this point I was determined. The wind seemed to be head again, and my third try was a charm. I don’t really remember the meal — there was cowflesh involved and I think it was good. My girlfriend seemed to take it better than I did, though I’m pretty sure she was scared s-less.
Next stop was OAK, where even the general aviation strip seemed like all the space in the world. In retrospect, I’m glad I did it, though I wish I’d had more chances to practice at small, narrow runways with shifting winds.