Stuart Air Show

I attended the Stuart airshow last Saturday, yes, I'm a glutton for Trigeminal Neuralgia punishment. I wasn't feeling so hot due to a cold front that had pushed through and another was pushing in. I can say that the F-22 Raptor can pierce your eardrum more than what a F/A-18 Hornet could ever do. I survived the airshow, but barely. My eyes were a little glassy as we left the show. I took two Excedrin Migraine pills; wasn't feeling so hot the next morning, but it was worth it.

Blue Angels

As I said in my May 30, 2014 entry was this was the first time seeing the Blue Angels since the Opa-Locka airshows of the late 80/early 90s. I took a Trigeminal Neuralgia gamble by buying tickets, I knew I was tempting fate, but I didn't care. I survived Shockwave, now it was time to see how my mutinous nerve would react to the Blues.

The Angels didn't disappoint. This was the best airshow I've seen in a long long time. Angel #5 and Angel #6 were approaching fast as the distracted crowed oohed and ahhed over Angels 1-4 performing pin point maneuvering at 600MPH. I brought my camera on the screaming blue duo. I snapped a photo, see above, and saw a cone beginning to form on the front of Five's wing. "UH OH," I thought. Five and Six were coming in near supersonic speed. They eased off and the cone disappeared.

I could feel the shriek of the engines knifing into my ear. The Angels set off several car alarms as they thundered away. I held my aching ear, but I was smiling wildly; the pain was ebbing as I watched the F-18s streak away. I felt fantastic! Tho I did have to take two Excedrin Migraines a few hours later.

It was worth it.

Shockwave

Three weeks ago I attended the 2014 Vero Beach Airshow, it was my first one since being diagnosed with Trigeminal Neuralgia. I knew I was tempting the odds by doing this, but the Blue Angels were in town and I hadn't seen them since the last Opa-Locka Airshow back in 1992.

What I didn't know is that the truck Shockwave would hurt me more than the Blue Angels. The truck is equipped with three Pratt & Whitney J 34-48 engines. It can reach speeds up to 376 MPH. I could feel every little pulse of the engines in my left ear when it was out on the tarmac. I could feel every concussion exploding in my ear even though I had an earplug inside my poor ear with three Aleves swimming in my veins. Thank God I was watching safely from the inside of my truck.

I'll post about the Blue Angels later, but as you can imagine, the next day I stayed in bed for a few extra hours.