capt. mike - 2-18-2004 at 06:43 AM
another baja legend now gone...... Tue, 17 February 2004 17:09
Just got word that Arnold Senterfitt died last night. Wow! He and Jimmy both swapping tales in that big old hangar in the sky.....Arnold started and
ran the BBP for 30 years. With out him a lot of us might never have ventured south in our puddle jumpers. As Roy Lopresti used to say..."life is
short, fly fast!"
Nikon - 2-18-2004 at 07:26 AM
What was Arnold's age? I was wondering how old he was when I met him in '75. We camped beside our airplanes at the Cabo Pulmo strip during Memorial
Day weekend, and he was there measuring the strip with his pedometer and an assistant. He was charmed by my girlfriend to take her up for a ride in
his taildragger.
David K - 2-18-2004 at 07:38 AM
Arnold Senterfitt was the author of 'Airports of Baja' which was the pilot's Baja bible starting in the 1960's.
It began as a collection of notes about dirt runways on the peninsula. Soon word got out and other pilots wanted those notes. A book was born! Arnold
photographed, landed and measured each airport in Baja.
The Baja Bush Pilots was the club born from this group of pilots who had been using Arnold's book. Eventually, Arnold expanded his book to include all
of Mexico and Central America.
On a personal note: At 15, my favorite Christmas present was Arnold's book (1972 edition). I never got to meet him, but corresponded with him a couple
times.
Arnold once kept his plane at Lake Wohlford Resort's hilltop airport. My pilot friend and I measured the runway at Lake Wohlford with my measuring
wheel back around 1990. As we walked by the hangers, a pilot working on his plane yelled out, "Arnold says it's sixteen hundred feet"! I was
smiling... area Pilots knew who "Arnold" was.
Have tailwinds where ever you fly, Mr. Senterfitt!
great stuff, nikon. I heard from Jack Mack
capt. mike - 2-18-2004 at 08:15 AM
current owner of the BBP and good friend of Arnold's, that he was late 70's. say 79, mabe 80. he had been in seriously declining health the past few
years and recently had to be placed into assisted living. Jack had informed him of Don Jimmy's recent death, they went back quite a ways.
I have access to one of Arnold's circa 1967 baja charts/maps which were only produced a few times. they are incredible, full color and large at about
3'x 6' , with lots of notes and details about places long since gone or changed. An older pilot friend of mine now living retired in nogales area
offered it to me and i refused saying it was too valuable a item to give away - that he should hold on to it. i pieced together color copies of it but
lost those, am going to call him and borrow it, hell , he'll tell me just to keeo it this time. Maybe i should......
Skeet/Loreto - 2-18-2004 at 11:54 AM
Thanks Mike for the Up Date;
May he Soar with the Eagles and rest in Peace!!
As I do this Post I am looking at my weather beaten copy of his Second printing in 1970.
I met Mr. Senterfitt at the Playa De Cortez many years ago, I always called him Mr. as he was a man of Respect to a young pilot just getting started
Flying in Baja.
If you look on Page 170 and 171 You will see Gloria Davis Benziger and '
"Marta" on her left!!WOW the memories are flooding me with the Music and Dancing with the Senora to the "San Antonio Rose" .
Only 6 rooms at the Hotel oasis!
I tried to fly to each Strip in the book and found that it was impossible so only got to about Half. I am now gettin the Air Baja guide and Compare
that info with what I have to see How many are still open.
Nikon !! In 1969 i flew into Cabo Pulmo, parked my 170B and Swam out to the Reef and took pictures witha Cheap underwater Camera, have a good picture
of a Trumpet fish.
there were no structures, only Jose with his Leaking wooden boat who would take you out fishing for $4.00, then always charged me $1.00 for parking my
plane, which I slept in for the Time I was there.
Later in 1973/4 Tom Miller and his wife had Large Palapa on the Beach, he had just finished writing and Publishing his Baja guide.
For any of you Bay Of Los Angeles people there is a good picture of Mamma and Papa Diaz on Page 141.
God Stuff for an ole man on a Rainy Day. Skeet/Loreto
bajalera - 2-18-2004 at 02:16 PM
I had that '70 edition of Arnold's book too, Skeet, and it got all tattered even though we never got off the ground. (It was useful there as well.) I
never met Arnold in person but we talked on the phone several times. Nice guy, may he fly up there with the angels.
bajalera
skeet, you have so much to tell!
capt. mike - 2-18-2004 at 04:20 PM
you really need to compile this good mierda!
God Bless,
M - 2-18-2004 at 04:52 PM
Thats all. I have no stories, but can appreciate what he ment to so many. Hugs to his family and friends,
M
[Edited on 18-2-2004 by M]
Capt Mike
Nikon - 2-18-2004 at 06:15 PM
Thanks for the reply about Arnold's age. That would mean he was 51 when I met him! Incredible, because he seemed ANCIENT to me at the time.
Just three years after my first trip to Cabo Pulmo, I returned to find the strip unusable because of the hurricane that year. But after flying all the
way from San Rafael we were not to be denied just because no strip existed, we landed in the pasture. The property belongs to Jesus Castro. He's still
there and owns a restaurant. Not Nancy's, the other one. When I next saw him in 1999, I asked him if that parallel track we'd landed on was where he'd
hauled his boat in and out. He said no, it was where he'd run his race horses against each other for training. Did I mention the length? It was 540'.
We stayed three days and flew out every day to refill the air tanks at CSL. An empty 182 with only two guys and little fuel will leap into the air.
[Edited on 2-19-2004 by Nikon]
Ken Bondy - 2-18-2004 at 06:19 PM
Miguel
Que lastima. Met him only once (at Meling Ranch) but he changed my life with his maps and guides. Arnold: I am sure everything is CAVU for you now
amigo. Hasta la proxima vez.
++Ken++
an
thebajarunner - 2-18-2004 at 09:19 PM
We have a great saying in private aviation....
"There are old pilots, and there are bold pilots, but there are no 'old, bold pilots' "
I think that Arnold belied that adage.
I never had a moment of fear in driving the various off-road racing events but my piloting in Baja was pretty limited... I like the long, straight,
level, black stuff.
I walked a number of those in his book and was simply amazed!
Of course, he did not have tires on that little pumper, they looked more like sofa pillows.
RIP Arnold
Arriba Baja!!
yeah! and Arnold did the early ones in a C- 195!
capt. mike - 2-19-2004 at 10:30 AM
what a machine! gives me goose bumps every i stand next to one, thinking how would i do on short final, that big radial smoking and torquin', a very
short dirt strip and you can't see over the nose! Man, tail wheel pilots rule! i'm not one yet, they say you ain't a piloto if you drive tri-gear
planes. some day maybe....
and Nikon, that must have been puckerin,!
540' of useable. did it have a STOL kit? must have?
[Edited on 2-19-2004 by capt. mike]
Nikon - 2-19-2004 at 11:16 AM
Affirmative, but when we returned to the U.S. the leading edge had a little dent from taxiing in the brush at Punta Chivato.
[Edited on 2-19-2004 by Nikon]
Capt. Mike
Skeet/Loreto - 2-19-2004 at 03:56 PM
Hey Mike; I can not beleive that you don"t have any time in a Tail-Dragger.
You cannot beleive the good time you will have when you switch and Get into a "Proper" Aircraft!!
High-Wing to see below you!
High-Wing to be further away from the Ground on Landing'!
We must all help Capt. Mike to become a member of the Tail Dragger Pilots club!!
Take a week off and get you SailPlane endorsement, then rent a Super Cub,get about 5 hours in short field take-off and landings, rent a 182 for one
trip to Baja and you will never fly that "Low Winger again"
Looks like we are going to have to go flying after all Mike!
Do you have any Mountain time?
Skeet/Loreto
"In God We Trust"