Rick_Dickert's Blog

Yes, you all get a break from me! WAHHOO! I'm taking a few days off from my SkyFox duties beginning tomorrow through next week. Nope, I have no elaborate, exotic vacation plans. Instead, I plan to tour around Los Angeles. I think we forget how much there is do in our fine city. We are just minutes away from amusement parks, great hiking, the ocean (and insane surf spots) and amazing museums. I will be catching up on some much needed rest, but I plan on mixing in a long mountain hike, a trip to LACMA and the Getty Villa. I'll for sure log some serious hours at the beach and in the water and will likely take in a movie or two (I have yet to see the Dark Knight). I also have tickets to two Dodgers games. I get to see our city’s FIRST PLACE TEAM  and Man-Ram in action!

I am looking forward to some fun, mellow, low stress times in my own backyard. We live in such a great city that offers so much. I see it from the air every morning, now it's time to cruise around at sea -level. I think we all take it for granted at times. Have a great weekend everyone and see you in another week. I’ll try and get some photos of my L.A. VA-CAY!

Rick

Recently I had the pleasure of being apart of a very special event benefiting the Cystic Fibrous Foundations. When asked to MC this fundraiser, I only knew the basics about the disease. I was unaware that the ocean that I love so much is helpful for patients. Cystic Fibrosis is an inherited chronic disease that affects the lungs and digestive systems of about 30 thousand children and young adults in America. The average life expectancy for those suffering from the disease is about 37 years. However, research is helping! Pipeline to a Cure was held in Huntington Beach on July 19th for just this reason. It brought the surfing and extreme sports community together to bring awareness to this disease. A few years back, researchers in Australia discovered that kids that had CF and spent a lot of time in the ocean surfing had healthier lungs than those that did not. It was determined that the salt water and mist of the ocean had a therapeutic effect on the surfer’s lungs. From this, a therapy was developed so that ALL CF patients could inhale a saline solution to help clear their lungs. WOW! What a connection. The fundraiser was amazing. Big wave riders Laird Hamilton and Dave Kalama were honorary co-chairs. We raised

about $400,000 for CF research from ticket sales and auction items. It was such a privilege to be apart of the event. The highlight was meeting CF patient Emily Haager. What an amazing young lady she is. You HAVE to check out this youtube video of her story:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97Iop-w98YE

The entertainment for the night: Social Distortion..yeah..what a night topper!

Wahoo’s Tacos (the bros were sooo cool!), BJs Restaurant, the Kelly Slater Foundation and many others supported the inaugural event. It was great night..a highlight of my summer. I look forward to being apart of next year's fundraiser. For more on CF or to make a donation, check out their web site:

http://www.cff.org/

Be well everyone-

Rick

If you are weather nut or have any level of fascination for meteorology like I do, this magazine is for you! It’s called Extreme Weather and was published by Astronomy Magazine. With devastating hurricanes, record floods and deadly head waves leading the news the last few years, it was the perfect time for a publication like this. It is packed with amazing photos of all kinds of wild weather. The special edition magazine is also loaded with articles on the science of weather. It is more than just a magazine, it is a comprehensive weather reference. What’s also great is that the writing is easy for lay person to understand, but detailed enough for the professional scientist. Living here in southern California where the weather highlight is mostly the depth of the marine layer, the feature on storm chasing really got me going. A very solid summary on climate change is included as well. Moreover, the story of our nation's greatest natural disaster is chronicled, the Galveston, Texas hurricane of 1900.

Photo from Extreme Weather by Astronomy Magazine

Photographs of clouds, satellite images and spectacular lightning shots make the magazine eye candy for even the casual weather enthusiasts. It’s possible Astronomy Magazine may make Extreme Weather a bi-monthly or quarterly publication. I hope so!    Check it out, it’s on newsstands now or check out Astronomy Magazine’s website for more information: http://www.astronomy.com/asy/default.aspx

 I highly recommend it!

Happy weather watching everyone-

Rick Dickert

Yep..we added another Dickert to the clan recently...Her name is Iris...She's awesome..a pure breed yellow lab. BUT..wow..just like a new born baby she’s A LOT of work right now..We got her when she was 8 weeks old from a breeder up in the Victorville area. We spent the previous few months researching labs before finally committing. I can't wait until she is a few months older and I can start to run with her and take her down to the water. I want to be able to get her out in the surf eventually. They hold a dog-only surf contest down in San Diego every June. A lab won the event this year! Perhaps Iris will hold up the trophy in another few years. She's already brought a lot of joy to our family. She's treated like royalty, like all dogs should be. I've read up on labs and general dog behavoir..but still need some help..Please pass on any advice that you might have! We are keeping her away from other dogs and public areas until she gets all of her shots.

YES..I know the adorable little pup that Iris is now will grow into a 60 pound BIG dog!

It's going to be an extra fun summer with Iris...Have a great week everyone and hit me up with some comments!

Take care-Rick

I love going back to school…Yeah, I was one of those kids that actually enjoyed being educated..most of the time at least! If I could be a full time student and work on a graduate degree, I’d be there in a second. Unfortunately, I have a daughter I am supporting through college and another on her heels! Maybe later in life. Any time I get the chance, I visit area schools to give presentations on the weather and my career. Just a few days ago I had the privilege of visiting Bret Harte Middle School in South Los Angeles. What a school and what a class! I spoke to hundreds of 6th graders. Ms. Margaret Starks, one of the talented 6h grade teachers at the middle school, hosted me. The students were smart, engaging and very polite. They put together a really cool banner to welcome me (see picture below) and presented me with a sweatshirt, school key chain and even an LAUS ID badge! Great stuff! I had a great afternoon with the kids talking about what I love most, the weather. I am so fortunate to do what I do and I think it’s very important for me to give back to the community in some way. It’s easy to get selfish and forget how fortunate we are sometimes. School visits like these keep me grounded. Happy summer students! I’m looking forward to next fall already..Rick

My favorite season...YES..it is here..finally..Summer officially arrives in the northern hemisphere at 4:59 pm PDT Friday, June 20th. The noontime sun will be directly overhead at the tropic of cancer, 23 1/2 degrees north latitude. In the northern hemisphere, it will be one of the longest days (most daylight hours) of the year. Here in L.A., the sun will be above the horizon for almost 14 1/2 hours. The weather is sure appropriate for the start of the warm season. On Thursday, Woodland Hills reached a record 109 degrees. Chatsworth was 110. Friday and Saturday will likely be just as hot, if not hotter. How about the REST of the summer? The Climate Prediction Center just updated their forecast for the next three months (summer). Below is a map which shows the temperature forecast.

A big area of the Southwest is expected to have ABOVE average high temperatures. However, the CPC is forecasting BELOW average temperatures along the immediate coast of southern California. We'll have to wait at see..but it certainly is off to a RECORD HOT start...Stay cool everyone and HAPPY SUMMER!! Rick

Ok..gas prices through the roof...less people on the roads and freeways…for sure less congestion during the morning commute when we are up flying. That’s all I really have for you traffic-wise..You know the drill…It’s been rather slow for us up in SkyFox the last several weeks..not much “traffic” to really cover. Well, we all got a nice break this past Tuesday…FOG DAY!! If you have ever lived in a cold climate area and had snow days..you know how we feel…Waahoo!! A little break from the routine..some time to play. The ceiling and visibility were both too low for us to fly out of Van Nuys Airport. All of the media helicopters sat on the ground through our morning news shows. So what do we do for fun?? Check this out: All the pilots, camera persons and reporters are super tight. Even though we complete for ratings, we are all good friends and support each other in the air and on the ground. Helinet Aviation has an incredibly talented staff that helps us and other news helicopters fly everyday. A few of the pilots were nice enough to tow me around the ramp on a June gloom morning..Good times! Take care everyone and happy father’s day to all the dads out there-  

Rick Dickert

 http://www.myfoxla.com/myfox/pages/InsideFox/Detai
l?contentId=6736776&version=3&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=V
STY&pageId=5.2.1

When going through the photos of my childhood for the "Remember When?...” segment we recently did on Good Day L.A., this one really brought back some memories. It made me remember when there were no gaming devices to keep us entertained. It was just me and my G.I. Joe! Good times..I remember playing outside in the bushes and dirt with this guy for hours and hours. I didn’t have a computer game to establish scenarios, all I had was my imagination. Joe took out an army of 50 once. He also wrestled an alligator and slept in the brush hiding from enemies. He was solid..always there providing entertainment. The only time he showed weakness was when my neighbor Sarah brought over her Barbie J. I’m not sure whatever happened to Joe. I know he got pretty beaten up after a few years of being my playmate. The days of kids having to use their own imagination for entertainment are mostly gone. Kind of sad…Ok..I’m bored with this blog now..gotta get back to the Wii!!....

I love taking pictures of nature. Whether its clouds, mountains, the ocean or trees, I am always clicking away. My inspiration for landscape and nature photography came from my love of the earth and the atmosphere and my admiration for Ansel Adams. I have several of Ansel’s photographs on the walls of my home. My library is also filled with many of his books. Yeah, I try to emulate his work, but never get close. I was fortunate enough to take a trip up to Yosemite a few years back during spring and see where it all started for Ansel. What a magical place. I am hoping to take another trip to the park very soon.

Last year I purchased a Canon EOS Digital Rebel XTi. It’s an amazing digital camera. However, there are so many complicated features that are available to help get just the right picture. I am slowly working with lighting and the ISO speed and am gradually getting more proficient with all of the camera’s bells and whistles. I’ll be honest though and say that many times I just put it in “auto” mode and click away. I need more training and need to get out more and shoot away! Below are a couple of photographs I took at the beach near my home. I like working with both black and white and color.

I’d love to hear from you guys about photography. Any good tips for photographing landscape images? Share some of your pictures with us. I am going to see if our web guys can set up an area where you can post some your work.

Have a great weekend everyone-Rick

Ok, like you..I am being hammered by the high gas prices. I drive from Redondo Beach to West L.A. (our studio) and then to Van Nuys Airport AND BACK 5 days a week. I am filling up about every 3 ½ days at about $60 a tank..If you are like me and can’t carpool or mix in a few days of mass transit, we just have to deal! However, there are some ways that we can get much better gas mileage and reduce our gas expenses. I have tried these and they work!  

1)     Make sure your tires are inflated to the right pressure 2)     Don’t haul unnecessary things in your trunk or truck bed (drive light!) 3)     Remove bicycle, surf racks, ski racks or any other attachments that might be causing drag on our automobile

4)     DON’T fill your tank all the way up! Experts say to keep your gas tank level at about 50% )     Fill up during the coolest part of the day to reduce evaporation of gas 6)     DRIVE the speed limit!! I know this helps. Driving about 60-65 mph really does save on mileage! 7)     When driving around town, stop with the quick accelerations and rapid breaking. By implementing these tips, I have noticed that I have gotten much better mileage and have saved a few bucks. With $4/gallon..every cent counts! Lastly, check out on our web site under the Good Day L.A. tab, “10 Lowest Gas Prices in L.A.”. We list some stations around town with the best prices. Good luck and see you at the pump!

5

Spring is in full swing, temperatures are nice and mild..flowers are blooming...perfect conditions for a hike! With surfing and running, hiking is another one of my favorite outlets. There are so many amazing trails right here in our backyard. The Santa Monica Mountains are loaded with all kinds of great hiking areas with various levels of difficulty. You can hike from the beach up to some of the mountain's highest peaks. Calabasas Peak (2163’) off of Stunt Road and Mulholland Drive is a great hike with awesome views. You can see the ocean and the valley from the trail. Much of the Santa Monica Mountains has been reserved for our pleasure. You have to take advantage of it! A short drive will get you out of the West L.A. or 818 gridlock and into the wilderness. Point Mugu State Park on the west end of the mountains is beautiful. I recently hiked through Malibu Creek State Park. WOW! It was my first time through the area. I’ve included a few pictures.

I'll take this view over the 405 any day..

**This is an old weather station..HAD to take a shot of it!

Yes..this is just a few miles from the city..

We pass over these trails on a regular basis up in SkyFox when we are flying in and out of Van Nuys Airport each morning. The mountains look great from 3000’ but you can’t beat being on the ground trudging through the trails. So make plans for a hike this spring..it’s the perfect time and I guarantee it will be therapeutic. The sea breeze and marine layer keep the temperature nice and mild this time of year. Robert Stone’s “Day Hikes Around Los Angeles” details ALL of the trails in the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. It’s in my library and is my bible for hiking in SOCAL. It gives comprehensive driving directions to the trailheads and summarizes the various hikes. Go out and enjoy! I’ll see ya on the trail-Rick

Here's a great like to info on the Santa Monica Mountains:

 http://www.nps.gov/samo/

The poppys are blooming BIG TIME and you have to check them out! We made a trip up to the Antelope Valley last week and captured images like this: 

The high desert is covered with them..it is quite a sight. The Poppy Festival is taking place THIS weekend. Check out this web site for more information: http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=627

The Antelope Valley California Poppy Preserve is the best spot to view our state’s flower. There are trails and all kinds of great information. If you live in SOCAL and have never made it out to the Antelope Valley to check out the flowers I highly recommend it. It’s a great day trip! HEADS UP THOUGH!! This weekend looks like it will be windy and cooler up in the deserts. Check the latest forecast on our web site where you are at now! Have a good one everyone-

Rick

Time is running out! 62 stories….1377 stairs…858 feet up…. If you want to join me on the 26th for the big AON building stair climb benefiting the American Lung Association. The event is "Climb California Greater L.A.". It is southern California's inaugural stair climb event benefiting the American Lung Association of California. The Lung Association wants to promote exercise, clean air and clean living through this great event. I'll be there leading the charge up the stairs! There will be some serious competitors participating. I was told the winners will be complete the climb in about 7 minutes! I am an active guy who likes to runs, but I have been hitting the stair master at the gym lately to make sure I am ready for the challenge. I am hoping to complete the trek up in less than 15 minutes. I'll let you know how the event goes. OR..you can come down and participate. It is NOT too late to register.

Check out climbcalifornia.org to sign up!

Back on the stair master for now..Rick

I can't wait until April 26th...This is going to be a blast. I was asked by the American Lung Association of California to MC a stair climb in the AON Center. This is the old First Interstate building in Downtown Los Angeles, now the 2nd tallest building in L.A. with 62 stories and 1377 stairs. The building 858 feet tall and was built 1974. 

The event is "Climb California Greater L.A.". It is southern California's inaugural stair climb event benefiting the American Lung Association of California. The Lung Association wants to promote exercise, clean air and clean living through this great event. I'll be there leading the charge up the stairs! There will be some serious competitors participating. I was told the winners will be complete the climb in about 7 minutes! I am an active guy who likes to runs, but I have been hitting the stair master at the gym lately to make sure I am ready for the challenge. I am hoping to complete the trek up in less than 15 minutes. I'll let you know how the event goes. OR..you can come down and participate. It is NOT too late to register. Check out climbcalifornia.org for more info.

The best part of the climb is that you get a great view at the end! Yes, you get to go up on the TOP of the building and look out over the city. Hope to see you guys down there on the morning of the 26th.