Wild Men, Wild Alaska II: The Survival of the Fittest by Rocky McElveen

Author:Rocky McElveen [McElveen, Rocky]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Sports & Outdoors
ISBN: 9780982355497
Publisher: Big Mac Publishers
Published: 2010-10-31T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seven

Quest for Manhood

“Born to Fly”

One day he was hammering nails, and the next Jacob was on a big jet en route to Anchorage, Alaska. There he climbed aboard a much smaller aircraft and was flown to Lake Clark, where he then boarded a very small bush plane to be flown to the lodge. Each part of the trip whetted his appetite for more. He was in absolute heaven, literally, figuratively and emotionally. As each plane got smaller, his excitement got bigger. He knew he had made the right decision.

He had arrived in the land of bush planes and pilots. He felt like a cat at Microsoft: Mice everywhere, but how do you connect? Jacob was thrilled at the opportunity to see bush pilots up close, and he couldn’t wait to fly with one of them. He hoped someone would give him that chance, and soon.

He had heard many stories from Ken about the bush pilots and the dangers of flying in the wilderness. There is no better place to challenge oneself as a pilot than in the Alaskan bush. Jacob could hardly sleep knowing he would soon be experiencing this for himself up close, and maybe even have the opportunity to fly a bush plane himself.

Flying was his ultimate dream. His parents had given him flying lessons in well-maintained planes at safe airports with good instructors, and he had easily excelled because of his talent and passion, but this was a far different kettle of fish. Jacob wanted to fly here, but knew he would have to prove himself first.

I watched him carefully after he arrived. Ken had told me a lot and I was curious. I saw that Jacob had good size, was in great shape and was very strong. Although almost 18, he seemed naïve and this suggested a sheltered upbringing. I was totally okay with that because I suspected he had been raised with a great set of values and had not developed any bad vices.

Happily, I discovered he was quiet, possessed great manners and was a very good worker. Along with that, he was reliable and had good habits. I had a sense early on that he would excel in this endeavor, and I had a notion almost from the time I met him that if he did, I would be willing to put some resources into him.

Of course, he wasn’t without some odd habits too. Talk about set routines. This guy brushed his teeth the same number of strokes every dang time. How do I know? He counted them aloud!... 99, 100. It was enough to drive you batty. I wanted to grab his arm and force him to take one more stroke. Oh, but there was more. He put on his clothes the same way each morning. He was organized to the point of being anal and never deviated from his routines.

I mean, talk about a daily ritual. This fellow would sit exactly the same way in the same place at the same

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