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Flying Green with Farmboyzim
“Green” Cities of the USA
Part 2
By Harold “Farmboyzim” Zimmer
“Green” Cities of the USA
Part 2
By Harold “Farmboyzim” Zimmer
Welcome back to another “Flying Green with Farmboyzim” adventure! With these articles, we will explore areas of the earth that some of you may have never thought to visit. I’ll also clue you in to some great scenery and aircraft that I find for my articles. These regions that I visit in the virtual world are areas that are of some environmental concern in the “real world” that we should all know a bit about. These articles take place in MSFS 2004 ACOF, but there is no reason that these same areas cannot be explored as well in FSX. For the time being, I will utilize aircraft and scenery for MSFS2004, but just do a search for whatever scenery you need for FSX, and I’m sure you’ll find some good ones.
In the last “Flying Green” article, we started to cover an unofficial listing of the 25 “Best Green Cities” in the USA. The list had been pointed out to me by my wife, “Farmgirlzim” in one of the magazines she enjoys reading, “Country Home”. Certain, basic criteria had to be met by the cities and towns in order to make the list. Issues from city growth and planning, land usage, the development of more environmentally friendly buildings (solar powered for example); to the personal involvement of the citizens themselves are taken under consideration. Personally, I think that latter part about “citizen involvement” is the real challenge.
In the last “Flying Green” article, we started to cover an unofficial listing of the 25 “Best Green Cities” in the USA. The list had been pointed out to me by my wife, “Farmgirlzim” in one of the magazines she enjoys reading, “Country Home”. Certain, basic criteria had to be met by the cities and towns in order to make the list. Issues from city growth and planning, land usage, the development of more environmentally friendly buildings (solar powered for example); to the personal involvement of the citizens themselves are taken under consideration. Personally, I think that latter part about “citizen involvement” is the real challenge.
To recap, the first five on the list that were covered last issue were, in order of ranking…
1 - Corvallis, Oregon
2 - Portland, Oregon
3 - Bellingham, Washington
4 - Petaluma (my hometown!) and Santa Rosa, California
5 - Boulder, Colorado
If you missed the last article, be sure to check out the above areas for some great mountain flying, and some breathtaking vistas! There’s some great freeware scenery out there for these regions as well. The Pacific Northwest is doing their part for a better world, dominating a majority of the overall list! Congratulations as well to Boulder, Colorado for trying to be “greener”, even at a “mile high”!
There are so many places on this old planet that I want to explore with you, that for the sake of time and article space, we’re going to cover the top ten on the list only. Search the web for more current information on this topic if you wish to know more.
So, without further ado, let me present numbers 6 through 10 of the Best Green Cities and Towns in the USA!
6 - Eugene/Springfield, Oregon
7 - Santa Cruz/Watsonville, California
8 - Minneapolis, Minnesota
9 - Bend, Oregon
10 - Santa Barbara, California
1 - Corvallis, Oregon
2 - Portland, Oregon
3 - Bellingham, Washington
4 - Petaluma (my hometown!) and Santa Rosa, California
5 - Boulder, Colorado
If you missed the last article, be sure to check out the above areas for some great mountain flying, and some breathtaking vistas! There’s some great freeware scenery out there for these regions as well. The Pacific Northwest is doing their part for a better world, dominating a majority of the overall list! Congratulations as well to Boulder, Colorado for trying to be “greener”, even at a “mile high”!
There are so many places on this old planet that I want to explore with you, that for the sake of time and article space, we’re going to cover the top ten on the list only. Search the web for more current information on this topic if you wish to know more.
So, without further ado, let me present numbers 6 through 10 of the Best Green Cities and Towns in the USA!
6 - Eugene/Springfield, Oregon
7 - Santa Cruz/Watsonville, California
8 - Minneapolis, Minnesota
9 - Bend, Oregon
10 - Santa Barbara, California
Eugene, Oregon
Santa Cruz/Watsonville, CA
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Bend, Oregon
As you can see, the states of California and Oregon are again, dominating the list. I do want to point out that the “Green Fever” is spreading in the Mid-West as well as other areas of the USA these days, and that’s certainly good to see. These cities all share the same basic concerns for helping to protect the planet, but one issue that leads the way across the board is that of Global Warming. Odds are pretty good that most of you know what this topic is about, at least in a general way, and for those that are not, here's a brief, simple explanation.
Let’s start with an example. I have a simple greenhouse out in back, made from PVC pipe and clear, plastic sheeting. Here is where the “magic” of Farmboyzim’s garden starts. I am able to create an environment within this greenhouse that is several degrees warmer and more humid than the outside air temperature. This warmer temperature allows me to start some vegetables earlier in the year than I normally would be able to. In my case, a greenhouse is a good thing!
Let’s start with an example. I have a simple greenhouse out in back, made from PVC pipe and clear, plastic sheeting. Here is where the “magic” of Farmboyzim’s garden starts. I am able to create an environment within this greenhouse that is several degrees warmer and more humid than the outside air temperature. This warmer temperature allows me to start some vegetables earlier in the year than I normally would be able to. In my case, a greenhouse is a good thing!
What happens is that the sunlight and the heat pass through the plastic of the greenhouse, where the heat’s energy is absorbed by the soil, and some of these light/heat “rays” are reflected back off the ground. Not all of the heat is passed through the plastic, as some of it is trapped inside, thus making it nice and toasty. It gets so warm in there at times that I need to open the vents to let out some heat and allow some fresh air to circulate. It’s a balancing act, but one that works.
Loads of gases are being released everyday into the atmosphere, most of them man made. The accumulation of CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) in the upper atmosphere acts like that plastic sheeting on my greenhouse, retaining some of the heat of the day. We depend on our atmosphere to protect us in many ways, amongst them, is to retain some of that life-giving heat from the good old sun.
There has always been CO2 and other naturally occurring gases in our atmosphere. The problem now however, is that along with the industrial revolution of the late 1800’s, the rise in man-made gases (CO2 predominantly) has been acting like a thicker sheet of plastic, causing more heat to be bounced back toward the earth. There are no ventilation windows in our atmosphere, like I have in my greenhouse, to help regulate the temperature. The only answer is to cut back on the things we do that release these harmful gases.
We are seeing the effects of the changing climate even now, with ice caps shrinking in size, and we also now realize the dangers of a rise in the ocean levels due to this phenomenon. There are also many regions of the planet where weather patterns are changing, my area of California is one of them. It’s happening folks, and we have to take on the responsibility of cleaning up our own “backyards” if we really are to make a difference. This is certainly no time to be apathetic!
There are a number of ways you and I can help in our own small way with this problem. Driving your auto less is obviously a great start (my hat is off to the folks in Europe for their extensive public transportation system), buying locally produced goods and food also helps, considering the cost of transport in terms of fuel, as well as the diesel fumes from trucks, etc! There are truly so many small things that one person can do to help the overall situation! Earlier, I stated that the real challenge of helping the environment is getting people on board with thinking “green”, and taking a few extra steps to help protect the environment. It’s not really an inconvenience, it’s just something different in your daily routine that you need to get used to.
This was a pretty simple explanation of the problems our planet is facing, so I do encourage you to research these topics more, on your own, and discuss it with others, family, friends, whomever. Remember that it all starts with awareness, and you have to admit that these days, getting information on a subject is a whole lot easier than when I had to ride my bike down to the library, both ways uphill…oh yeah, in the snow to boot! Education is still one of the most important tools we have to combat this problem!
Loads of gases are being released everyday into the atmosphere, most of them man made. The accumulation of CO2 (Carbon Dioxide) in the upper atmosphere acts like that plastic sheeting on my greenhouse, retaining some of the heat of the day. We depend on our atmosphere to protect us in many ways, amongst them, is to retain some of that life-giving heat from the good old sun.
There has always been CO2 and other naturally occurring gases in our atmosphere. The problem now however, is that along with the industrial revolution of the late 1800’s, the rise in man-made gases (CO2 predominantly) has been acting like a thicker sheet of plastic, causing more heat to be bounced back toward the earth. There are no ventilation windows in our atmosphere, like I have in my greenhouse, to help regulate the temperature. The only answer is to cut back on the things we do that release these harmful gases.
We are seeing the effects of the changing climate even now, with ice caps shrinking in size, and we also now realize the dangers of a rise in the ocean levels due to this phenomenon. There are also many regions of the planet where weather patterns are changing, my area of California is one of them. It’s happening folks, and we have to take on the responsibility of cleaning up our own “backyards” if we really are to make a difference. This is certainly no time to be apathetic!
There are a number of ways you and I can help in our own small way with this problem. Driving your auto less is obviously a great start (my hat is off to the folks in Europe for their extensive public transportation system), buying locally produced goods and food also helps, considering the cost of transport in terms of fuel, as well as the diesel fumes from trucks, etc! There are truly so many small things that one person can do to help the overall situation! Earlier, I stated that the real challenge of helping the environment is getting people on board with thinking “green”, and taking a few extra steps to help protect the environment. It’s not really an inconvenience, it’s just something different in your daily routine that you need to get used to.
This was a pretty simple explanation of the problems our planet is facing, so I do encourage you to research these topics more, on your own, and discuss it with others, family, friends, whomever. Remember that it all starts with awareness, and you have to admit that these days, getting information on a subject is a whole lot easier than when I had to ride my bike down to the library, both ways uphill…oh yeah, in the snow to boot! Education is still one of the most important tools we have to combat this problem!
Right off the bat, if you have no terrain mesh enhancements installed (this is what makes the mountains, hills, etc., look more detailed), please check out the 38m Terrain Mesh Files that are offered by Justin Tyme. This is freeware that I think is a must for FS9. Justin has covered quite a large portion of the virtual world, and a big thank you for making these files FREE!!! Simply visit a major sim site, and do a search for his name, and prepare to sit back and do some downloading, as these are not small files.
I hope I tweaked your interest a bit on this issue of global warming, and congratulations to all those cities and towns that made the list of "Best Green Cities" in the USA! I think for some, it may have been that they simply had no choice but to clean up their act. I was surprised at the size of the aluminum industry up in the Portland area, right on the river! Minneapolis as well, being a rather large city which borders the Mississippi River, made the list. It just shows that the size of the city or town does not matter! A large city can be just as "Green" as a small town, it just takes involvment from as many people as possible, the ultimate challenge! But let's get to the "stuff" that draws you like a moth into the light...scenery and aircraft that were used for the article! I can't possibly name, download, or even mention all the relevant freeware files that are out there for these areas, but I do want to mention the one's I did use. You can really spice up your flying with a few nice scenery enhancments, plus you can use them as visual flying aids, landmarks if you will, so it's well worth the time to visit your favorite sim site or just do a search for the zip files that I will mention.
It has been a joy to explore these areas around the “Green Cities”. I want to mention once more, that most of my “flying” is done in the world of FS9, but for you folks that have moved on to FSX, there are loads of great addon’s as well, just do a search at any of the major sim sites. Also, you may find that some of the sceneries that I mention may not actually be of the named city/town, but it is included as it may be either in the vicinity or just too darn good to pass up!
It has been a joy to explore these areas around the “Green Cities”. I want to mention once more, that most of my “flying” is done in the world of FS9, but for you folks that have moved on to FSX, there are loads of great addon’s as well, just do a search at any of the major sim sites. Also, you may find that some of the sceneries that I mention may not actually be of the named city/town, but it is included as it may be either in the vicinity or just too darn good to pass up!
Oregon Scenery -
David "Opa" Marshall has created loads of sceneries for the Pacific Northwest. Some of those used for this article were keug_dm.zip. This package is a modest enhancement of KEUG based on the Afcad originally created by Reiley McKendrick. ocsr.zip, tills47.zip, tillup.zip and newport1.zip are sceneries created by “Opa” as well.
aship_j.zip is a collection of World War II Blimp/Airfields in the Oregon area, including Tillamook, Oregon, and the Naval Station at Tongue Point, Oregon. Compiled by John Stinstrom. This is a nice little gem of a scenery package, especially the Naval Station.
David "Opa" Marshall has created loads of sceneries for the Pacific Northwest. Some of those used for this article were keug_dm.zip. This package is a modest enhancement of KEUG based on the Afcad originally created by Reiley McKendrick. ocsr.zip, tills47.zip, tillup.zip and newport1.zip are sceneries created by “Opa” as well.
aship_j.zip is a collection of World War II Blimp/Airfields in the Oregon area, including Tillamook, Oregon, and the Naval Station at Tongue Point, Oregon. Compiled by John Stinstrom. This is a nice little gem of a scenery package, especially the Naval Station.
Tongue Point, Oregon
World War II Blimp/Airfields
Oregon Coastal Railroad
Here we go!.......................Just passing through fella's!.....................Made it!
F9C-2 Curtiss Sparrowhawk taking off from Tillamook, Oregon
California Scenery -
cccoast4.zip, ccc4rev1.zip, ccc4rev2.zip are a series of files that enhance some of the central coastal areas of California. Works best with the default terrain mesh of FS9. This one has been around for awhile, being created back in 2003 by Al Wheeler, but still a very nice enhancement!
slreym1.zip recreates some of the old missions that could be found in the southern California area. This file comes to you from Ron Ezra. The structures in this addon look very nice and work well with Megascenery Southern California, if you have it installed, if not, it still looks nice.
ksba-june08.zip is a makeover of the Santa Barbara Airport (KSBA) and does look better than the default airport scenery. I was not able to determine who the author of this file was.
cccoast4.zip, ccc4rev1.zip, ccc4rev2.zip are a series of files that enhance some of the central coastal areas of California. Works best with the default terrain mesh of FS9. This one has been around for awhile, being created back in 2003 by Al Wheeler, but still a very nice enhancement!
slreym1.zip recreates some of the old missions that could be found in the southern California area. This file comes to you from Ron Ezra. The structures in this addon look very nice and work well with Megascenery Southern California, if you have it installed, if not, it still looks nice.
ksba-june08.zip is a makeover of the Santa Barbara Airport (KSBA) and does look better than the default airport scenery. I was not able to determine who the author of this file was.
Bend, Oregon
Santa Cruz/Watsonville
CA Missions
Fertile farmland in the valley
Nice beach spot
Over Santa Barbara
Typical CA weather!
Santa Cruz, CA
Santa Barbara AP
Watsonville, CA
Santa Barbara, CA Airport
Minneapolis, Minnesota -
kmspv4.zip - Minneapolis/St. Paul by William Morgan and a host of other contributors. This is a marvelous enhancement for the KMSP airport.
valleyfair_kfcmusroads.zip - Want to go to the carnival? Valley Fair Amusement Park lies next to KFCM in the beautiful state of Minnesota. R. Connolly has made two versions available, one for folks that have USA Roads from Abacus installed (which I do!), and one for the default environment. This scenery uses default and custom made dynamic objects. Valley Fair is located southwest of Minneapolis Minnesota US, just east of Shakopee. Lit up at night, the park can assist in finding the approach to KFCM Rwy 36 in FS9. This is a fun piece of work to watch, as the “rides” actually are in motion. At night, the scene reminds me of summer nights at the fair!
minngras.zip - Bush Pilots, attention! Grass Strips of Minnesota adds 49 grass and dirt strips to the state of Minnesota. Slim Tannor created this one, and includes some of the more challenging strips that are available. Three flight plan formats are included in this package.
kmspv4.zip - Minneapolis/St. Paul by William Morgan and a host of other contributors. This is a marvelous enhancement for the KMSP airport.
valleyfair_kfcmusroads.zip - Want to go to the carnival? Valley Fair Amusement Park lies next to KFCM in the beautiful state of Minnesota. R. Connolly has made two versions available, one for folks that have USA Roads from Abacus installed (which I do!), and one for the default environment. This scenery uses default and custom made dynamic objects. Valley Fair is located southwest of Minneapolis Minnesota US, just east of Shakopee. Lit up at night, the park can assist in finding the approach to KFCM Rwy 36 in FS9. This is a fun piece of work to watch, as the “rides” actually are in motion. At night, the scene reminds me of summer nights at the fair!
minngras.zip - Bush Pilots, attention! Grass Strips of Minnesota adds 49 grass and dirt strips to the state of Minnesota. Slim Tannor created this one, and includes some of the more challenging strips that are available. Three flight plan formats are included in this package.
cc7pa23f.zip is not only a fantastic aircraft package (the Piper PA23 Apache for FS2004), but also contains scenery of a small farm airstrips, and scenery for a portion of Lake Superior. The aircraft comes in wheeled and float versions with a few different paint jobs to top it off. Check out who the passenger is in the back seat! Reminds me of my old dog Shadow! Bill and Lynn Lyons have made this package available as freeware, along with many others that should be checked out! In a word, GREAT!
Look in the bak seat of the Piper for this "passenger"!
Over Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis on the left, St. Paul on the right
Coastal Scenery by the Lyons'
Christmas Time on the farm
Valley Fair at night
I cruised around these regions in a variety of aircraft, each one suitable for what the flying conditions were calling for. To begin, there is a beautiful model of the Raytheon/Beech King Air 300 that is worthy of being in any virtual hanger! You can find this one under the file name of afg300v1.zip. Repaint for the article by yours truly. I like that shiny, aluminum look! To accommodate that “Naval” feel, I used P. Clawson’s Grumman J2F-2A “Duck”, and was able to roll into and launch out of the water at the Tongue Point Naval Station in Oregon. This is a military amphibian that is nicely detailed with a host of repaints out there for it. It goes by the file name of gduck.zip.
Working rides at Valley Fair
Note the Turtle, Bird, and the nest on the resting Piper Apache
Bend, Oregon at the edge of the desert
Launching the "Duck"
Lastly, I created the model of the Curtiss F9C-2 Sparrowhawk, file name of f9c2sphk.zip. This is the first “complete” aircraft model that I have created using Abacus’ FSDS V3.5 and Flight 1’s FS Panel Studio. Loads of fun (and cussing!) while working on it! She represents what was once a fleet of 5 aircraft that flew from first the USS Akron Airship, then, after it went down (without the aircraft on board), they flew from the USS Macon, until she too, went down off the coast of California. Only one aircraft escaped the fate of the ocean depths that day, and is now on display, in an air museum.
Thanks also to the “payware” folks for Ground Environment Pro and Flight Environment from Flight 1, and USA Roads from Abacus, all of which make the virtual world just a step closer to the real thing! I do hope you see what I’m trying to express to you through these articles, and I hope that they make a difference in all our lives! Remember to “Fly Green” and keep the real world as pristine as our virtual world!
Thanks! FBZ…
Thanks also to the “payware” folks for Ground Environment Pro and Flight Environment from Flight 1, and USA Roads from Abacus, all of which make the virtual world just a step closer to the real thing! I do hope you see what I’m trying to express to you through these articles, and I hope that they make a difference in all our lives! Remember to “Fly Green” and keep the real world as pristine as our virtual world!
Thanks! FBZ…
My Sparrowhwk over Blimp Base in Tillamook, Oregon
KMSP Minneapolis Airport
KFCM
The Lyon's included some very nice scenery for Minnesota
Winter on the farm strip
There is a stop or two on the line
Chopper Pad at the RR Station