AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - July 2022 - 63

a Los Angeles beach to the slopes of Big Bear. Eager to cross
the California " twofer " (or double) off the bucket list, I decided
to try it by air.
First, the team. Since great adventures are often more fun
with friends, we'll need a pilot versed in surfing and preferably
better versed in snow sports than I am. I learned to surf as a kid
and have surfed periodically since. Skiing, on the other hand, is
almost completely foreign. How hard could it be?
CFI Mark Cole works at the Sling Pilot Academy in
Torrance, and I knew he'd be the perfect fit for this adventure.
A born-and-raised Californian, Cole embodies the spirit
of Golden State living. He surfs often and snowboards when
he can. He's involved with a local board riding group that aims
to help keep local youth on the straight and narrow instead
of falling into the temptations of big city life. He's competed
in the yearly Catalina Classic Paddleboard Race-a 32-mile
race from Catalina Island to the Manhattan Beach Pier that
takes months of preparation and grit. He worked at In-N-Out
Burger (he's still fiercely loyal to its burgers), then worked with
local and national surf clothing companies, and began flying
in 2012. Freshly hired by SkyWest, we put a tentative date for
the journey on our calendars in between two phases of his airline
training.
Next, the flight plan. We'll fly from Zamperini Field (TOA)
to Big Bear City Airport (L35) and back in one day, leaving as
early as we can from TOA under the local noise abatement
rules. We'll ski and snowboard in Big Bear, then come back to
Torrance for an afternoon surf. Torrance is just a couple miles
from the beach, and Big Bear City Airport is just a couple miles
from the ski resorts, so our required travel on the ground will
be as short as possible.
With an estimated two-hour round-trip flight time, the double
isn't impossible, but we'll need perfect conditions-good
flying weather (specifically good enough for mountain flying),
good enough snow to ski at Big Bear, and good enough conditions
in the Pacific to surf. And we'll need to do all of this with
the limited sun of a winter's day.
On a clear Thursday, our race against time begins. Cole pulls
his Toyota Tacoma into the airport parking lot at 7 a.m., the
surfboards for later sticking out the back window of the covered
bed. Cole preflights the four-seat Sling TSi we'll fly today, and I
wipe dew from the windshield as the sun rises, the various airplanes
on the ramp casting long shadows in the bright morning
light. We load our bags-light but bulky with snow gear-into
the back, maneuver Cole's snowboard in, and start up.
Even with the gear and three adults in the airplane (AOPA
Director of Photography Chris Rose is in the backseat), we have
plenty of room and great performance as we take off on a right
downwind toward Big Bear. The responsive Sling requires only
a light touch-much different from heavier Cessnas. Within a
couple miles, tower hands us off to SoCal Approach and we turn
on the autopilot. We climb to our eastbound VFR cruising altitude
of 9,500 feet and note that our estimated time of arrival is
less than an hour. So far, we're ahead of schedule.
AOPA PILOT / July 2022
63
AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - July 2022

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