4th of July Cross-Country (Virginia to Colorado)

[@b3_Media]

dang. that was freakin sweet. Want to be up there right now haha.

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks B3 Productions, me too :) In a related note, you had previously asked about an Instagram account in one of my earlier videos. Happy to report I recently created one: @man_and_a_mooney. See ya there!

[@b3_Media]

@@ManandaMooney AH heck yeah dude. About to follow! Excited to follow along bro. Love a good mooney!

[@msounart]

Getting my ppl at KAPA right now. Love your videos!

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks Michael. Glad you're enjoying them. Best of luck with your continued PPL progress

[@hpijeep]

I really enjoy watching your videos. I appreciate that you fly at higher altitudes.

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks Landon. Glad you're enjoying them.

[@ianadkins471]

Very well presented and inspirational. Exactly why I want a Mooney! Keep up the great content.

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks Ian, I'll try to keep them coming

[@skyeknapp6019]

Great job, enjoyed seeing the leg I missed out on. Excited to see the next video ;)

[@ManandaMooney]

Coming soon!

[@soflaav8r]

Great video! Thanks for making it

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks Mark!

[@steini6771]

Thanks for sharing your pilot skills! Very informative at all level. Love your channel here -

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks Steini!

[@vincentdalise1311]

I think it should be mentioned that heavy to extreme precip often contains hail in addition to the downdrafts, etc. I fly in Colorado and West Texas a lot in the Summer and hail is one of my biggest concerns. I love the videos. Keep up the good work.

[@ManandaMooney]

Great point Vincent! I don't script these conversations and occasionally omit important elements by accident. Thanks for brining that up.

[@midlifeflyer]

LOL! When you started talking about threading the gap in that line of thunderstorms, I said to myself, "no way, or we wouldn't be watching this video!" BTW, I don't know how I came across our channel but I spent 20 years in the Denver area until 2013. Even flew a rental Mooney much like yours (scatter panel too, but old avionics) for a while. I'm in North Carolina now and have been thinking on and off about a flight out there, so I really enjoyed this video. I was active in the pilot community there and am surprised we never came across each other.

[@ManandaMooney]

Hahah touché Midlife Flight. Small world, I actually bought the Mooney in NC and flew it back to Colorado. Surprised our paths never crossed as well. Glad you liked the video.

[@Tom-tk3du]

Great video. Useful tips for avoiding weather/haze while flying xctry east of the Rockies.

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks Tom. Glad it was helpful!

[@faisalsultan892]

Found you thru you brother... Love all your videos and how you explain things.

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks Faisal. Glad you found me, welcome aboard!

[@PiperCherokee_N-50YR]

It has been a while, great video. Very good explanation of what you are doing. Keep the videos coming when you can. I always enjoy your flights but would like to see the landings.

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks Jim. I'll try to keep them coming. Time has been short lately.

[@robertharris_1]

Just came across your channel. Love the videos and Mooney. Owned a Cirrus for a few years and would love a Mooney but need more space for the family and dog. Great airplane and value!

[@ManandaMooney]

Welcome Aboard Robert. It’s hard to beat the value of a vintage Mooney

[@murdocks8242]

Awesome! I love the channel and love Mooneys! I hope to take my ppl check ride in April! A Mooney C, E, or F may be my first bird if I ever get the chance to own a airplane. Love the efficiency they off and looks.

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks Trent. I've been very happy with my Mooney. As you said, they're a great blend of speed and efficiency.

[@christopherwassink6620]

Just discovered your channel. All of your videos are very informative and entertaining. It’s making me want to fly again after a 15 year hiatus. I’d be interested in a video about the cost and logistics of airplane ownership. Keep up the great videos!

[@ManandaMooney]

Welcome aboard Christopher! That's my goal with this channel. To ignite (or reignite in some cases) that passion for General Aviation. I've had that video planned for a while... haven't wanted to add up the cost though ;)

[@Lekoppe]

Great video

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks Lekoppe!

[@teejayevans]

Forget the column of water, you could get a column of air that will push you into the ground, especially in a normally aspirated plane and at Denver’s altitude.

[@ManandaMooney]

Exactly, water, hail, air (insert your favorite flight hazard). It's not just the downdrafts either, a thunderstorm can suck you up like a vacuum cleaner. Out west, I can often see the columns of air preceding precipitation as dust clouds below virga.

[@billbancroft3707]

Interested in you explaining the oxygen tank and setup for flying high. I saw the earlier video with you and your brother both using O2. Would be cool if you would demo the setup for us who are interested in the same thing. Great job and thanks!

[@ManandaMooney]

Thanks for the idea William. I'll try to do a quick video on the portable O2 system. FYI: I use a SkyOx system (SK 12-15). I plan for about 15 hours of use per fill (~$25 at my local airport). That's 15 man-hours, so divide that by however many pilots/passengers are on board.

[@docholiday7758]

With my Mountain High O2 system, the oxygen tank lasts forever between refills. I hardly even think about it.

[@danielclooney6248]

Great video. I love hearing the weather part. Delicate question here....do you have a way to relieve yourself between stops? Or maybe you can hold it. I'm older and could not wait that long.

[@ManandaMooney]

Daniel, I have used "Travel Johns" on longer flights if I need to relieve myself. They're pretty handy and instantly turn liquid to gel. They work equally well as a "barf bag". Here's a link on Amazon: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003IW8IXI/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B003IW8IXI&linkCode=as2&tag=manandamooney-20&linkId=6ef469add6db6a2df3e04384579e9216

[@georgestuart2483]

Great video. I like to fly the exact same way in my Grumman on cross county flights. One question, you said you were at 12,000 feet which would be proper for flying west, but it sure looks like your altimeter says 11,000!

[@ManandaMooney]

Keen eye George. The clip I think you’re referencing was a closeup recorded on my eastbound journey. If you pause the video you’ll see I’m actually headed towards the DC SPECIAL FLIGHT RULES AREA (SFRA). I wanted to weave that shot in but it broke the continuity. Oh well, good catch!

[@midlifeppl4969]

I caught that too but I also picked up on foreflight reading circa 9376 AGL but suppose you were on QNH setting. Really like your videos, wish they were more frequent!

[@ManandaMooney]

You guys don't miss much! The difference between 9,376 and 12,000 is due to the terrain elevation out west. The plains of Eastern Colorado sit above 2,500 ft. I really love the Above Ground Level (AGL) feature of ForeFlight especially for flying around the Mountains. Crossing mountain ranges at 14K feet I often see only 1,500 AGL on ForeFlight. I always fly with this setting enabled because this translates to my decision time in the mountains.

[@georgestuart2483]

Man and a Mooney Aha, makes sense. I didn’t look at your DG!

[@TibDriver]

Is that your Stratus mounted under your center stack? Just a remote antenna?

[@ManandaMooney]

Good eye Dr. Bruce Lee, no one's asked me about that yet... Yes, I have a Stratus ESG transponder with the remote connector kit that feeds that Stratus portable which I have mounted under the stack. That's my ADS-B in/out solution. I had that installed long before I upgraded to the GTN650. I still question whether I should have gone with a Garmin transponder for increased functionality (and integration with the GTN650) but value the redundancy of the independent solution.

[@nealparnell5403]

Great video. Since I'm not a pilot, how do you negotiate through those storms that might have microburst. In west Texas, those are very common.

[@ManandaMooney]

Neal, that's the tricky part. There are plenty of flight hazards you can't see. Downdrafts often exist under precipitation even if it hasn't made it to the ground (ie verga). This is much easier to see from the air than on the ground. Mature micro bursts can occasionally be seen as upside down mushroom clouds of blowing dust on the ground. Steer clear of those.

[@23aviatorguy]

You did not show the best part, the landing? It still was a great video

[@ManandaMooney]

Sorry Bobby. I'll keep the landing in the next one. I wanted to focus on X/C tips and tactics for this video.

[@23aviatorguy]

I totally understand, thanks!!