COG Annual Fly-In 2025 - Augusta, GA

 

Yes, we are headed to Augusta Georgia for the Commander Owners Group (COG) Annual Event. We departed St. Simons Island and made the 3 hour 30 minute, 195 mile trip, once again, by land. 

The drive over was uneventful, like flying, it's always a good thing. We checked into the Partridge Inn Augusta.

We were getting hungry and decided to take advantage of the free shuttle. There were two other pilots from COG also heading out so we went to the same place for a late lunch.

The restaurant is a cajun/creole cuisine. I had the red beans and rice mary had the shrimp quiche.

With a call to the hotel the shuttle was dispatched to bring us back, it’s nice not having to drive. We decided to call it an early night and hung out in our room, watched a little bit of TV and passed out.

Friday 9.19

We slept until 8 o’clock and then went to the in-house restaurant on the second floor and had breakfast. Excellent service and very good food.

The plan was to tour the Augusta History Museum, so we once again boarded the free shuttle from the hotel. Our driver Norman did a great job, showing us a few of the sites taking the long way to the history museum.

We passed the Sacred Heart Cultural Center while touring and this place caught my attention. The architecture is amazing. 

A Brief History

In 1874, Father Theodore Butler purchased a home and a lot in Augusta, Georgia, for $10,000.00 to construct a building to be used as a church for the Catholic population and a school for children of all denominations. A simple Victorian structure served as a temporary facility for the church until work could begin on a larger, more significant building for the group.

The first bricks were laid for Sacred Heart Church in 1897 and the church opened with the first service on December 2, 1900. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the building features towering twin spires, graceful arches, fifteen distinctive styles of brickwork, ninety-four stained glass windows, a barreled vaulted ceiling and intricately carved Italian marble altars. Unfortunately, due to a number of factors the last mass was held in Sacred Heart on July 3, 1971.

We arrived at the History Museum and took our time exploring. Here is a brief history on the museum.

The Augusta Museum of History collects, preserves, and interprets history in relation to the past of Augusta and the Central Savannah River region for the education and enrichment of present and future generations.

Founded in 1937, the Augusta Museum of History is Augusta's oldest historical agency devoted to the preservation and presentation of local and regional history. The not-for-profit agency functions as the steward of the community's rich, diverse, and invaluable material past. The museum curates the largest and most significant historical collection in the CSRA and functions as a historical research and resource center for professional and amateur historians, media, organizations, and individuals, and is home to the permanent exhibition Augusta's Story, a 12,000-year journey through the region's past.

Transportation

Augusta History

A reconstructed, 56-foot Petersburg Boat 

Cotton gin

The Sport of Golf

The first major national golf championship ever held in Augusta began at the Augusta Country Club, where in the 1930 Southeastern Open amateur Bobby Jones defeated professional Horton Smith. The Augusta Open was played in 1936 and 1938 with two rounds at the Country Club and two at Forest Hills Golf Club.

Bobby Jones, one of the greatest golfers of all time, decided to build his dream course in Augusta. His dream became the Augusta National Golf Club, which opened in January 1933 with the first tournament being played in 1934.

Today, golf is truly one of the great sports of the world, being played in almost every country. It is enthusiastically followed by millions more on television, many who have never themselves teed off or sunk a putt, but still can appreciate and love the game.

Once we finished up at the museum we headed out for lunch. We decided on the Oliviana Ristorante and Bar Italiano and our shuttle (magic carpet) got us there. I really wanted a cup of soup but instead selected the appetizer of meatballs and ricotta cheese. The sauce was very good but the meatballs were overwhelming with garlic, even too much for this Italian.

Mary and I each had a sandwich that we ended up taking half back to our room. I could have been good with just the meatballs. We called for the shuttle and returned to the hotel for the evening. I think we were still catching up on sleep.

Saturday 9.20

I was up early, showered and dressed for the COG airport meetings. The club had a full schedule of events. The group of judges went out to the flightline to review each aircraft.

First up was Adam Clark of Circle C Aviation based at KRFI in Henderson Texas. Adam covered critical maintenance items that need to be inspected. 

Next up was Cole Schiff of Peter Schiff Aero Air Conditioning. An excellent presentation and a really nice AC unit that is portable.

Next we took a break for lunch and our host Bill Moran did not disappoint. Excellent BBQ with sides.

Jim Richards from Aerodyme Corporation was next up. Jim covered Airframe corrosion and cowl latach beds. The info provided on our older planes and the need to inspect/maintain the upper and lower cowlings is critical. The repairs can be costly if not maintained the correct way.

The remaining afternoon topics were focused on the 114/114TC and the Hot shot upgraded aircraft. Since neither topic pertained to my aircraft I decided on heading back to the hotel and called for a shuttle. I took a nap, and then Mary and I got dressed for the awards banquet, cocktails and buffet dinner. 

Banquet & Awards

Our president held a moment of silence for two members that have passed this year, one was my friend Jay. 

The banquet was fun, and the food was excellent. The awards were handed out and our table picked up a few. After dinner and awards a bunch of us headed out to the bar with the large front balcony on the second floor. Fun times and good memories. Mary and I didn't stay very late since we were planning on a 3am departure.

Saddle up for Home

By the time we showered, dressed, and made our way to the lobby, it was 4:15. The valet brought our SUV out front and loaded up our baggage. It was time to head north for home.

Our "9 hour" trip ended up taking 11 hours. Two stops, one for a fuel top off and some munchies. The second was back at the Exxon east of Emporia for the cheap gas and top off. 

The Next Day

Blog edit and a few errands. I wanted to get the Porsche washed and debugged. Mary and I also did some grocery shopping, med refills, and breakfast at our local favorite place. 

What's next? Hopefully a good report on this weeks doctor visit and x-rays. I'm looking forward to getting back in the air especially after all the driving the last week. I am thrilled to report our new to us Porsche Cayenne ran great! I think the new kid is going to fit in just fine.

St. Simons Island, Georgia

 

One Week Out

This morning I had to cancel our Hertz rental in St. Simons Island GA. Just to recap, I broke my wrist on August 4th and was told 8-12 weeks if everything heals as it should, if not surgery time. Thankfully the scaphoid bone is showing signs of healing and I can remain in a hard splint. Unfortunately, I am still grounded.

What was going to be a fun flying week will now be an extended ground pounding session. We are planning to depart Ocean City on the 16th at 3am arriving at the Ocean Inn & Suites around 2pm just ahead of check in. the trip will take 10 hours and 30 minutes, and works out to 695 miles.

Departure Day 9.16

Rise and shine...it's 3 am and time to hit the road. For this Georgia get-away we are going to take our new to us Porsche Cayenne. Time to give the new kid a road test, besides, new blue can rest up since she will be the ride of choice when we head to Florida in January. Old blue will rest easy in the hangar and enjoy her partial retirement alongside 3 Tango Charlie.

We have the Porsche packed, fueled, and fresh off her recent Maryland inspection. The only thing we need to do this morning is pack the snacks and water.

The trip down to Peninsula was very quiet. When the sun finally came up, it was overcast most of the way. We made a fuel stop just east of Emporia finding an Exxon for 2.88 a gallon and and took on 10 to top off. We ran into some weather, heading down through Virginia and came upon one really bad accident. A large SUV went through the guard rail and almost stood up on the left front quarter panel up against the trees no idea what happened to the people. Continued on from that point south and I ran with two trucks a large 18 wheeler with our given nickname big red and a hot shot dually Dodge pick up pulling an empty car trailer. The three of us ran really well together. Into the Carolinas traffic backed up and we crawled along for about 40 minutes, there was another SUV coming northbound that went into the median, rolled over on its left side into the trees and caught fire. I’m talking a big fire. I was driving so I didn’t really get to see much but you couldn’t miss the flames. Mary said she saw a family standing not too far away from the accident scene and the fire department was there so hopefully they’re all fine.

We arrived in Saint Simons Island about 12 hours from our departure time. We were up at 3 AM left at 3:30 and we got into Saint Simons about 4pm. We walked right into the hotel and checked in and then went to find some dinner. 

For dinner, we decided on Georgia Sea Grill. We got one of the last reservations at 5:30, the place filled up rather quickly. Mary had the scallops over a medley of Sweet Potato, Farro, White Rice Peas, Wilted Spinach, and Basil Aioli. The scallops were large and Mary said it was delicious. 

I had the blackened flounder over Charleston Gold Blue Crab Rice, Carrots, Green Onion, and Citrus Soy Aioli, it was excellent. 

We decided on dessert, Mary had chocolate cheesecake and I had bourbon pecan pie with vanilla gelato. Neither Mary or I could finish our dessert, just too much food.

Exploration 9.17

After our long drive yesterday and very filling dinner, we slept in until 7:30 this morning. Across the street from our dinner choice last night was a breakfast place Called Mallery Street Café, we decided to check it out. 

Mary had apple crêpes with a cream cheese drizzle and the apples were fresh cut. It looked awesome and Mary said it tasted delicious. Yours truly had the conventional two eggs over medium hash-browns with fried onions and cheese and a biscuit. The hash browns were very crispy. Mary even had some and liked them, and the biscuit was large and awesome.

Once we finished breakfast, we decided to head north and check out the Fort Frederica National Park.  At least we could walk off some of our breakfast.

Fort Frederica was once a thriving British town and fort founded in 1736 by General James Edward Oglethorpe. The Fort was designed to defend the northern colonies against Spanish attack. 

After exploring Fort Frederica, we watched about a 20 minute video that talked about the history of the fort and the people there. The short piece did a great job explaining the area and all the goings on.

After spending time at Fort Frederica, we headed south and made a stop at the Red Fern Village. There were various shops to explore and plenty of restaurants. Since it was just about 1 PM, we decided to stop for lunch at Bubba Garcia’s, a great little Mexican place. 

Mary had a shrimp taco with a pineapple salsa and I had I had a carne asada, marinated steak with onions and cilantro. Both dishes were very good.

On the way back to the hotel, we made a slight detour since the lighthouse is not far from where we’re staying. I went out on the edge of beach and took a picture. It’s a beautiful area and the waterfront was very clean.

Mary and I tried Del Sur for dinner. The restaurant was just around the corner from our hotel on the street that leads to the pier. Service and food were very good. I had rigatoni bolognese, my bride had salmon. No dessert tonight. We checked out the shops leading to the pier then made one stop to pick up a battery for my key fob.

Heading to Augusta 9.18

We were up early and checked out, deciding on breakfast at Mallery’s before driving to Augusta. 

Yes, we are headed to Augusta GA for the Commander Owners Group Annual Event. More on this event in my next post.