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(meteorobs) Tales of the NAMN get-together...

Greetings all...

Now that I have been home several days, and am starting to feel less
sleep-deprived, thought I would pen a couple words about the West Virginia
trip...

Kim and I left Canada on July the 11th, headed off down Interstate 81 into
the wilds of that foreign country... the U.S.A..  We are, after all, classed
as aliens... ;>  They were very good about letting us in... and told us we
just missed the resident amateur astronomer customs officer!

We passed through 1 province and 5 states on the Saturday... Ontario, New
York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia, finally coming to
rest at a little 2 bit motel near Winchester, Virginia.  We did a small
detour on the way down, and stopped at Pocono Mountain Optics.  If you want
customer service, don't expect it at that place!  They basically ignored us
females... although <one> of the staff was pleasant to us, and even set up
an h-alpha filter on a Pronto so we could take a look at the sun...

Sunday we trucked the rest of the way, over highway 250 into West Virginia.
I have never seen road curves so sharp or so highly banked.  My trusty old
car kept repeating... I think I can... I think I can... up each hill.  It
whizzed down the other side, with me gearing down to slow down the car.  In
the meantime, Kim was bracing herself against my roof while we did
slingshots around the curves...  I figured it was just me not being used to
hills... but when Lew arrived shaking, having taken the same road, I knew it
wasn't just my female driving! ;>>

We hit Green Bank early Sunday afternoon, and Kim checked in for the SARA
conference over at the radio complex.  We picked up the requisite souvenir
shirts, mugs, pins, hats and posters... neat posters.  Heading over to the
Boyer, we were the first ones there... but were joined shortly by Pete
Gural, then Norman and Joan McLeod.  Norman was still driving his old 1970
meteormobile car!!

Mark Davis arrived on the Monday, as did Lew Gramer.  Wayne Hally couldn't
make it over until Wednesday... think I have the days right.   Harry Waldren
came over for part of one day, very good of him to drive so far just for a
short visit.

We had clear blue skies driving down.... and clear blue skies driving back.
During the week, though, the weather gods were not so kind.  We got
sunshine, just not clear skies at night.  The very last night there, when it
was down to just Lew, Kim, and I, it cleared miraculously after a nice
bright meteor lit the clouds from behind!  The three of us did some meteor
time, and played astro word games in the dark...

So... we got a lot of chatting in but not much observing....  It was neat to
finally attach faces to names, though! ;>>  The only one I had previously
met was Norman, who I met when I was 19 and he was 27... on a ship to Africa
for a total eclipse of the sun!  I hadn't seen him in about 12 years,
though, so still did a doubletake when I saw him... Pete said it took me
about 3 minutes!  

I had no concept of what Pete looked like, but my conceptions of Lew and
Mark were fairly true to the mark.  The only one who really surprised me was
Wayne... I had a completely different mental image of him!  This threw me a
bit at first... but when he started talking about meteor theory over the
campfire one night, I started to relax, and appreciate his particular talents!  

We took a lot of photos... and the guys were very patient with my
photographic techniques! ;>  Between Pete, Mark and myself, we should have
some decent shots, including a group photo.  Pete didn't run his video
camera... although I think he was just being kind... something about us all
mis-pronouncing the European names if we tried to say hello! ;>>

We all took the guided tour of the Green Bank radio telescope facilities.
Most impressive... You can see the scope from miles away.  The grounds are
quite pretty too... huge beds of cosmos and poppy flowers, I think it was...

Wildlife?  Well, apart from the aforementioned meteor observers ;> ... we
had foxes we think, that we half saw in the campground late at night near
our tents... a loud noisy animal of unknown origin crunching branches in the
dark on Friday night... and more species of bugs than I have seen before!
We had big 2" beetles, red and black beetles, green 'inchworms' who liked my
tent best, and little 'sweat bees' that were really tiny.  I think I counted
2 mosquitoes the whole week.  

We all chatted until the wee hours in the campground, and on several nights
that threatened rain, adjourned to Mark's motel room to resume the
discussions...

It was a productive week, if only an opportunity to meet informally and
discuss ideas.  Hopefully we can make this an annual event, and get to
interact with even more of the North American meteor crew.  It is a hefty
drive, though... Kim and I did <theoretically> 13 hours each way, not
counting the 'detours' and the shopping ;>>.... Mark did about 9 or 10
hours.... and Norman and Joan even more than that.  Big country, that U.S.A....

Wayne and Lew are planning to come up to Canada later this summer, for our
Canadian 'Starfest', where Wayne will be talking about meteors and Leonid
possibilities... so Kim and I will get another chance to visit with them.
No hills up here, Lew! ;>>  

On the way home, Kim and I had beautiful blue skies... and drove... and
shopped... and drove... and shopped! ;>>  We both picked up really neat
meteor observing 'beach chairs' in an Eckert's drugstore in the States...
multi-position, reclining, even to a flat position... well-made with many
uses!  We both picked up t-shirts for ourselves, and little gifts for the
nieces and nephews.  The lady at Canada Customs was very good... questioned
us about Pete's wine (that we found a good home for after he left it in my
cooler!)... but didn't comment at all about the large stuffed porpoise in
the back seat... or the glow-in-the-dark baby alien buddy in the back window
of the car.... ;>>

We hit Canada about suppertime on Sunday, July 19th... good week.  Won't
forget it... must do this again next year....!!

Good meeting ya'll! ;>>

- Cathy



===================================================
Cathy Hall, chall@cyberusdot ca
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
RASC, Royal Astronomical Society of Canada, Kingston Centre
NYAA, North York Astronomical Association
===================================================
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