I know that as “Wisconsin’s Event City” we love all of our special events equally (except of course for Sawdust Days) but there is one event that continues to be the best event we host–and second place is not even close. I’m talking about Saturday at the EAA Airventure.
I accompanied my parents to the EAA on Saturday, despite a long week of being on the grounds as part of our extended coverage this year here on WOSH because the show the Association puts on that day is absolutely worth missing a little bit more sleep. Consider that you can bring your family to Airventure for that day, see pieces of history in the Warbirds and Vintage areas, check out the latest in military technology in Boeing Plaza, let your kids make their own airplanes, hear from real-life heroes, and maybe even learn a little bit about science and technology–and that is before the afternoon airshow even starts.
Saturday’s show featured an hour of Warbirds putting on a living history display–complete with pyrotechnics–and we got a full hour of loud military jets buzzing the field left and right. The night airshow at EAA is worth the price of admission alone–differing from the afternoon show with a more artistic flair, a routine that came straight out of TRON, a laser that could shoot its beam more than 30,000 feet into the sky, a lighted drone display and a fireworks display that is the best north of Festa Italiana in Milwaukee–oh and the there is a giant wall of flame at the end.
I know there are events here that boast of their “million dollar lineup”–but when you consider the value of operating P-51 Mustangs, Corsairs, B-29’s and C-47’s–along with what Uncle Sam is paying for KC-10 tankers, C-16 cargo jets, F-22’s, F-14’s and B-52 bombers, I would estimate that Airventure features a quarter-billion dollar lineup.
But maybe the best part of Saturday at the EAA Airventure is what you don’t get. You don’t get drunk people yelling profanities and getting into fights. You don’t get marijuana smoke blown in your face. You don’t get uncomfortable public displays of affection or over-exposure of certain body parts. You don’t get people puking on the ground. You don’t get beer spilled on you when someone’s favorite pilot starts doing their favorite routine. You don’t even have to worry if your kids decide to run around a little bit while waiting for the airshows to begin.
And maybe that is why at a time when some of our other events here in Oshkosh are downsizing and cutting back on their days due to dwindling attendance, EAA Airventure is seeing record and near-record attendance the past few years (even without a big-name performance jet team this year). In the free-market economy, people vote with their wallets–and they are voting Saturday at Airventure “Event City’s Best of the Best”.
