Bill Adams and I met with Kent Sessions, the owner of iFly California, and Travis Richards, his general manager, on Sept 30th. They run a great company and have a top-notch team. After some tunnel time, we went for lunch (PF Chang’s… thanks, Kent!) and discussed how we can help each other grow. They are “pay it forward” kinds of people, who understand that business success depends on exchange of ideas and sharing strengths to win. We look forward to a long and beneficial relationship.
One unique initiative at their facility is educational outreach. We got to sit in with a small school group on a field-trip to see how these are presented. The instructor taught the physics of the wind tunnel, and explained the many engineering advantages of a Skyventure tunnels, and why they use a recirculating system with roof-mounted turbine to create the wind force instead of a floor-based propeller model.
Another instructor went into the tunnel and floated a soccer ball, tennis balls, whiffle balls, and basketball to show the aerodynamic qualities of each (the wind tunnel was set at about 35 MPH wind).
Aerodynamics experiment
She then took us into the plenum chamber, under the wind tunnel, where we could look up to see the tunnelflyers above us, later explaining the physics behind the chamber design. Really interesting stuff; I’m looking forward to doing similar educational outreaches here in Seattle. It’s the fun kind of experience you’d get at Space Camp. Reminded me of “Bill Nye the Science Guy” (from Seattle).
