Bishop
During my tenure at Transit, I befriended a guy named Ron Bishop, who apparently flew P51 Mustang fighter-planes during WWII.
Bishop was one of those strange ducks bus-driving seemed to attract. One was a recorded classical guitar-player, and one was the president of his class at a Rochester high school, who later went on to graduate Notre Dame.
And then, of course, there was me. “You graduated college, and are driving a bus?” “Yep. Majored in bus-driving.”
Us weirdos had hired on planning for it to be a temporary job; then stuck with it when we saw it paid fairly well, and could be made agreeable.
Bishop was a wiry little guy, about 10 years older than me. He was hardly the quintessential fighter-jock. But he could tell stories. Apparently he had crash-landed his plane once on a dead stick, and walked away.
Bishop was highly enamored of his Volkswagen Beetle, mainly because he could maintain it with coat-hangers. He used to say it was little more than a glorified lawnmower — and as simple to maintain.
Another guy at Transit had a rusty old ‘64-’65 Valient with a slant-six. It was held together with baling-twine. He kept it because it was cheap to run, and he couldn’t afford a newer car. There was also the matter of principle.
I think Bishop quit before I had my stroke. He was never satisfied — plus running a Beetle became impossible.
I think he switched to a Ford Fiesta. Nice, but the front-fenders were welded on. Impossible.
The head of the Brandywine Phys-Ed Department; one Jim Snyder — just don’t call him “stumpy” — also flew P51s in WWII.
We had a coed Health class, but discussion of sex got replaced with P51 war-stories.
Apparently he flew a lot 10-25 feet above the ground — including under the tree-crowns on country lanes — in rural France.
The P51 was a fabulous airplane. All Americans should be required by law to see a P51 fly — and hear one.
I saw one at the Geneseo Air Show — and I will never forget it. I can still hear it — Packard-Merlin V12.
As taildraggers they have to be zigged and zagged when taxiing, because the huge nose obscures the way.
Bishop was one of those strange ducks bus-driving seemed to attract. One was a recorded classical guitar-player, and one was the president of his class at a Rochester high school, who later went on to graduate Notre Dame.
And then, of course, there was me. “You graduated college, and are driving a bus?” “Yep. Majored in bus-driving.”
Us weirdos had hired on planning for it to be a temporary job; then stuck with it when we saw it paid fairly well, and could be made agreeable.
Bishop was a wiry little guy, about 10 years older than me. He was hardly the quintessential fighter-jock. But he could tell stories. Apparently he had crash-landed his plane once on a dead stick, and walked away.
Bishop was highly enamored of his Volkswagen Beetle, mainly because he could maintain it with coat-hangers. He used to say it was little more than a glorified lawnmower — and as simple to maintain.
Another guy at Transit had a rusty old ‘64-’65 Valient with a slant-six. It was held together with baling-twine. He kept it because it was cheap to run, and he couldn’t afford a newer car. There was also the matter of principle.
I think Bishop quit before I had my stroke. He was never satisfied — plus running a Beetle became impossible.
I think he switched to a Ford Fiesta. Nice, but the front-fenders were welded on. Impossible.
The head of the Brandywine Phys-Ed Department; one Jim Snyder — just don’t call him “stumpy” — also flew P51s in WWII.
We had a coed Health class, but discussion of sex got replaced with P51 war-stories.
Apparently he flew a lot 10-25 feet above the ground — including under the tree-crowns on country lanes — in rural France.
The P51 was a fabulous airplane. All Americans should be required by law to see a P51 fly — and hear one.
I saw one at the Geneseo Air Show — and I will never forget it. I can still hear it — Packard-Merlin V12.
As taildraggers they have to be zigged and zagged when taxiing, because the huge nose obscures the way.
posted by BobbaLew at 4:44 PM
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