A cockpit POV video from the FlyingMAir YouTube Channel.

COME FLY WITH ME as I take Central Washington University geology professor and star of “Nick on the Rocks” Nick Zentner on a helicopter tour of the area between his home in Ellensburg, WA and the Mission Ridge area of Wenatchee with a focus on geology. We’re just getting to know each other in this video but there’s plenty of scenery and geology to talk about. Nick talks about the geology of Naneum Canyon, which we fly along the edge of, and some basalt formations he’s never seen. He also points out the Malaga Slide, which I knew absolutely nothing about. This is part 1 of a multi-part series; I’m trying to keep them short and sweet.

By the way, my reference early in the video to Nick being a “big boy” is due to the fact that he’s 6’6″ tall (!) and weighs over 250 pounds. He barely fits in the passenger seat; his head is up in the overhead window there! I really felt the heavier weight on his side of the helicopter when I picked it up into a hover and that made me laugh.

Some videos referenced in this video:

• Nick on the Rocks (playlist): https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL18y1vgsGPLbl3wrSZwUyvkAiUJHZTS5Y
• Mt Stuart – From Mexico?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UREPCGpmTHU&feature=youtu.be
• Helicopter Flight: Ellensburg to a Friend’s House: https://youtu.be/ktoUs_mIrRo

Points of Interest Discussed:

• Central Washington University: http://www.cwu.edu/
• Central Washington University Geology Department: http://www.geology.cwu.edu/
• Naneum Ridge State Forest: https://www.dnr.wa.gov/NaneumRidge
• Mission Ridge Ski Resort: https://www.missionridge.com/

About Me and the Helicopter

• I have been flying for about 20 years. My nearly 4,000 hours of flight time is in Robinson R44, Robinson R22, and Bell 206L (Long Ranger) helicopters.
• The helicopter is a 2005 Robinson R44 Raven II — the same one that appears in the photo at the beginning of the video. You can learn more about them here: https://robinsonheli.com/r44-specifications/ I own this helicopter. It is the third helicopter I’ve owned since 2000.
• My helicopter has ADS-B Out and is picked up by radar facilities. You can see my track for recent flights on Flightradar24: https://www.flightradar24.com/data/aircraft/n7534D This is a great site for tracking any almost any flight, including the airlines.

About Nick Zentner

• Nick has an MS in Geology and has been teaching at Central Washington University since 1992.
• In 2015, Nick received the prestigious James Shea Award, a national award recognizing exceptional delivery of Earth Science to the general public.
• You can learn more about Nick on his website: http://www.nickzentner.com/
• You can watch Nick on the Rocks episodes here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL18y1vgsGPLbl3wrSZwUyvkAiUJHZTS5Y

About the Video

• The video was recorded with a pair of GoPro Hero 7 cameras (https://amzn.to/2Lxyzwl), one of which is connected to the helicopter’s intercom system with an NFlightCam audio cable (https://amzn.to/31syLTm). Both cameras record audio, but I dialed down the helicopter sound to about 25% of normal volume so it wouldn’t be annoying.
• The video was edited on a Macintosh using Screenflow software. Learn more about it here: https://www.telestream.net/screenflow/overview.htm
• The intro music is by Bob Levitus, famed “Dr. Mac.” You can find him here: http://www.boblevitus.com/

I try to drop cockpit POV videos every Sunday morning and “extras” with more info about owning and operating a helicopter midweek. (Some channel members get early access to some of these videos.) I also host occasional livestreams with Q&A chats. Subscribe so you don’t miss anything new! And tell your friends. The more subscribers I have, the more motivated I am to keep producing videos like this one.

Any Amazon links on my channel are affiliate links (https://amzn.to/32PLHTD). If you click one of them and buy something, Amazon sends me a few pennies. Enough pennies make a dollar. Enough dollars buy new equipment. It doesn’t cost you anything so I hope you’ll shop with one of those links. Thanks.

Still reading? Thanks! Maybe you’ll consider buying a t-shirt, hat, sticker, or other item from my Etsy store to help support this channel? Start here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/FlyingMAir

Or better yet, to support this channel on an ongoing basis, consider becoming a member. This link will get you started: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLGD_GbGsS6YKK_Ekx0QMqQ/join