The Same, Yet Different It’s odd how two things can be so similar, yet so different. These two classic hotrods are alike in that they have been customized with body modifications, paint, engine, suspension and more. Yet their tastes vary in color, fenders, even down to the mirrors. Both reflect a different taste in style, yet both show great style in the quality and outcome of their restoration.
The Rainy Church For the two weeks we were in Europe, it only rained hard one day. Even then, most of that time we were returning from Normandy, back to Paris. Traveling through the French countryside, I could have napped (I could have used it too), but it was so pretty that I didn't want to miss any of it. Each small village would have a church that would be the tallest and oldest building. You could see the steeple above the trees and roof tops as you entered and it was always on the main street through town. Trying not to fall asleep, I took this photo through the coach window as we passed through Creully, Lower Normandy, France.
Bede BD-5B The BD-5 is a small, single-seat, homebuilt “kit” aircraft by the now-defunct Bede Aircraft Corporation in the early 1970s. It has a small, streamlined fuselage holding its semi-reclined pilot under a large canopy, with the mid-engine and propeller mounted immediately to the rear of the cockpit. The BD-5 sold over 5,000 kits or plans. Only a few hundred BD-5 kits were completed and many of these are still being flown today. There was even a version with a jet engine, like the BD-5J from the James Bond movie Octopuss, now on display in the Pima Air and Space Museum in Arizona. I remember seeing these in magazines as a kid, so it was a treat to view this one sitting under the wing of the Boeing 307 Stratoliner. Both aircraft can be found at the Boeing Aviation Hanger at the Udvar-Hazy Center, part of the National Air and Space Museum.
