Everyone knows about the $100 burger run. You fly somewhere to get lunch—maybe it’s just a short flight and you could get there faster by driving. But, like so many flights, it’s not the destination but the journey that matters. It’s not just the journey that makes flying special, but also the people you meet along the way. Such was a burger run on February 21, 2026.
First, I need to go back more than five years to the tail end of 2020. Phil was looking for people to start contributing to The Mooney Flyer. I had been writing about my flights since my first “discovery flight” on May 28, 2016, and publishing them on my blog. It was a way for me to keep my family updated on my flight training and fulfill a lifelong dream of becoming a pilot.
I was surprised that more than just my family was interested in reading my adventures, so I kept writing and publishing my stories. When Phil mentioned that he was looking for contributors, I sent him a message saying I’d be happy to contribute if he was interested in my writing. I was surprised when he said yes, and thus began my time writing for the Flyer. It also deepened the friendship that started when I first met Phil at the fly-in he hosted in Paso Robles in April 2018. He’s another exceptional individual I’ve met through the Mooney community. (No, this isn’t kissing up to the boss so he’ll keep accepting my articles…)
The first article I sent was in December 2020. I have always put my email at the end of each article, encouraging people to reach out if there’s something they would like to hear about, just to say hello, or if they are in Southern California and want to meet up. A few people have sent me emails, and it has been fun to hear from them.
Fast forward to June 2023, when I received a short email from a gentleman in San Diego who noticed I was in Southern California and thanked me for the article. We traded a couple of emails. He’s not a pilot but he is a huge Mooney fan. He does, however, build and fly RC planes and was in the process of building a Mooney RC plane from scratch.
I must confess I’m not the greatest at email correspondence. If I don’t answer within a few days, they often get pushed down the inbox and might not get answered for a long time—if at all. Well, that’s what happened here, and almost two years went by before I received another email from him. He included a video of him flying the RC Mooney he had built. It was so cool!
I emailed him back, and then another year went by. Thankfully he’s better at maintaining communication than I am, and I heard from him again in January 2026, wishing my family and me a Happy New Year and sharing some updates from his family. His son had been working on his Private Pilot Certificate. I asked about his son’s long cross-country flight, which, as all of you who fly know, is a huge step in the journey. It was coming up in a few days, and that’s when the plan started to take shape.
His son emailed me after his long cross-country to tell me about the flight, and then added this:
“This might be a long shot but it doesn’t hurt to ask. My dad’s birthday is on the xxxx of February and I wanted to do something special because this will most likely be the last year that I will be in town to celebrate it with him as I will be leaving for college. What are your thoughts on flying down to SEE, myself treating you all to breakfast at the cafe (maybe $100 burger blog worthy—I think their food is solid but I am pretty biased) and you possibly taking him on a flight in the Mooney? I would also be more than willing to pitch in a pro-rata share as well.”
Long shot? Are you kidding? How could I say no to a request like that? I emailed back that I would love to do it and gave him a couple of Saturdays that would work for me. As the plan came together, it would be him and his parents at the airport, and my wife would fly down with me. After breakfast they could visit while Randy and I went flying.
The weather that Saturday morning was perfect. February can be hit or miss here in Southern California. There had been some storms earlier in the week, but it was almost a cloudless sky with light winds. I can say that I was more excited than Randy, but that’s only because he didn’t know what was coming. I wasn’t sure how they were going to pull off being at the airport without him suspecting anything, but his son assured me he had it all planned out.
We picked up flight following on the ground at Fullerton (FUL) and we were on our way. Just west of Miramar there is a corridor between 3,200 and 6,800 feet that you can use to get to Montgomery (MYF) and Gillespie (SEE) fields. Approaching the San Diego Bravo, ATC asked how I was navigating to Gillespie and if I wanted a Bravo clearance.
“Sure, if I can get one I’ll cut the corner,” I replied.
He cleared me through the Bravo and we passed just north of Miramar. Kathy and I had been wondering if it was still a secret that we were coming. As we taxied down Delta past the restaurant I told Kathy, “If he didn’t know before, he’s going to know now.”
We made a right onto Alpha and as we were getting ready to turn into transient parking I could see three people standing at the fence by the restaurant, one of them pointing to his Mooney t-shirt. “That has to be Randy!” I said with a smile.
Have you ever had one of those times when you meet someone for the first time, and it feels like you’ve been friends forever? That’s what this was. We climbed out of the plane, took off our life jackets, and walked around the back to meet them. Randy had the biggest smile on his face—possibly outdone by his son, who had just pulled off the biggest birthday surprise for his dad.
Some people are “huggers” and some people aren’t. I’m usually a “hugger,” which works out well if the other person is too. If not, it’s kind of a weird awkward side hug. I walked up and went to give him a hug, and he about crushed me in a bear hug. It was great. Over breakfast we visited and talked about everything from family to work to flying, and of course Mooneys.
He said that he always wears his Mooney t-shirt to the airport in the hopes that maybe one day someone would invite him to come for a ride. I told him today is that day.
Getting back to when he figured it out: As we were taxiing by, he saw my plane and said, “Is that Richard’s plane? I think it is.” Then he saw the tail number and said, “Yes! That is his plane. I wonder if he’s going to stop here and I can meet him.”
The whole time his son and wife were just smiling, knowing what was really happening.
I don’t have any experience taking people flightseeing in San Diego, so I asked his son where they typically go on a local flight. With breakfast done and a flight plan, we walked out to the plane, put on life jackets, told our wives goodbye, and climbed in. His son was in the backseat and Randy in the right seat, still smiling.
We took off on 27R and climbed over Montgomery heading towards the coast. At about 3,300 feet I handed the plane over to Randy and he took us out towards Mount Soledad and north along the coast. It was a little warm by this point in the day and I asked his son in the backseat if he was getting any air. He had opened up the ceiling vents (I usually keep them closed) and was doing fine.
“Are you okay?” I asked Randy, then answered my own question. “Of course you are—you’re flying a plane.”
He corrected me with a smile, “Not just a plane, a Mooney.”
We flew past Torrey Pines and turned inland near Del Mar, towards Escondido, flying past where he works and then turning southeast back towards Gillespie. He’s either a natural or the time spent flying a Mooney in Microsoft Flight Simulator was paying off, but he did a great job. Altitude stayed within 100 feet in cruise and the controls were smooth. I didn’t take over until we were on an extended right base for 27R.
Back at the restaurant we said our goodbyes with promises to stay in touch, then Kathy and I took off for the flight back to Fullerton. People who haven’t experienced the General Aviation community have no idea what they are missing. The flying is great, and you get to go places and see things that you wouldn’t ever experience otherwise, but it’s the people that make it extraordinary.
I must give a big thank you to Phil and James for all their work on The Mooney Flyer and for giving me the opportunity to write for them. Without them and their magazine I probably never would have met Randy and his wonderful family, and I would have missed out on a great friend.
