Source: 2015 Q1 Beartracks
This winter brought enough snow in Fincastle for Bob to try out his old set of skis on his LSA proto-type. He originally built the skis for his first design, which he called the “Grasshopper.” Back in the early 1970s, he lived in Utica, New York and made regular use of the skis. The Grasshopper was an open-cockpit design, so that should tell you how devoted he was to flying! He made these skis from a piece of 5/8 oak, using crosswise saw kerfs and steam to bend up the front and rear tips. Once the parts dried, he filled the kerfs with epoxy and laminated a 1/8” layer of birch plywood. Then he designed a tube structure to attach the skis to the main wheel axles. He flew with the standard non-ski tailwheel. Bob’s daughter Maria has offered to draft a set of plans for the skis if any Bearhawk builders are interested in making a set.