Chuck Yeager, 1st to break sound barrier, dies at 97
“Retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Charles ‘Chuck’ Yeager, the World War II fighter pilot ace and quintessential test pilot who showed he had the ‘right stuff’ when in 1947 he became the first person to fly faster than sound, has died.”
A larger-than-life hero Yeager was so much more than a pilot. Here’s the instructive quote for a life well-lived:
“I haven’t yet done everything, but by the time I’m finished, I won’t have missed much,” he wrote. “If I auger in (crash) tomorrow, it won’t be with a frown on my face. I’ve had a ball.”
[shakes fist at sky] FFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUCCCKKKKKKKK YOU 2021!!!
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Seems a little harsh to blame next year.
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LOL! Getting my practice in, I guess! I was asked to block off some rooms in our room reservation system today until June 2021 and I swear, my first thought was “oh that is SO FAR into the future, who knows if the building will even still be around…”
This year’s gonna leave an outsized mark on everyone…
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2020 has form going for it… But that’s about it.
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The original “Boomer”, in a literal sense. A hero to kids like me growing up in that era.
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What a character he was all the way until the end. His granddaughter and her husband are good friends of mine. He drove them nuts with his 17-year marriage to a woman half his age which they only referred to as “the Gold Digger”, However, they loved him and were intensely proud of his service and accomplishments. RIP Chuck Yeager you magnificent bastard.
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We have family in West Virginia, where Chuck was born, and I’m reminded of his accomplishments when we drive through, as a part of the highway is named in his honor.
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I have two Yeager stories, both old.
Lolo, the barber in the small city of Avalon on Catalina Island, told the story of when Yeager’s friends were visiting and called him to ask when he’d be there. Yeager said he’d be right over. Shortly thereafter, he buzzed Metropole Street, breaking a bunch of windows.
Decades later, Yeager was going to do a flyover of an air show at Edwards Air Force Base. I was with a group of motorcycles on a lonely highway nearby. The desert roads are mostly straight shots for miles. Yeager pounced on us from behind in an F-15, passing maybe 50′ overhead, complete with sonic boom that almost knocked us out of the saddle.
Good times.
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From my reading years ago: Yeager shot down five German planes over England IN ONE AFTERNOON. He was shot down over occupied France, made his way to neutral Spain, and eventually returned to England several pounds heavier.
The man could fly a plane.
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Hey Ridley, you got any Beemans?
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