*Below is a post I put on the Members Discussion Forum an hour or two ago. It’s about our upcoming gathering in Duluth - many of our Cirrus ‘birds’ will be ‘migrating’ back to their ‘nest’.
I’ve received a number of inquiries from people who want to know if the Migration is open to non-members. The answer is Yes, for just $50 more than the Member price. And the really good news is that the price includes a year of membership in COPA - what a deal! - so you won’t be a non-member if you sign up.
About 100 members (and 60 or so Cirrus airplanes) are expected so far; I would not be surprised to see those numbers double for the event. This will be a good time – join us!
Details below.
- Mike.*
Well, here we are… barely a month to go before our First Annual Migration in Duluth. All of us at COPA are extremely fortunate that a volunteer as energetic and resourceful as Myron Garfinkle has stepped forward to offer his talents to pull this together. I don’t know how he finds the time (especially because we seem to spend 6 hours a day talking on the phone! [;)])
An important deadline is approaching – we have advertised that the price will go from $150/head to $185 starting this Thursday, May 15th. Technically, that means midnight tomorrow night. We’re going to keep the $150 price until midnight EDT on Saturday night, though – but if you haven’t signed up yet, do it now. To register, go to our Calendar and scroll to June.
Please note: If you need to cancel, we will refund $125,
regardless of whether you paid $125, $150 or $185;
NO cancellations will be accepted after May 31st.
L3 Comm. (formerly Goodrich)
Northstar (seat makers)
Garmin
Avidyne
STEC/Meggitt
TCM
V-Flight/Pegasus
Bingham Upholstery
PPG Paint
AS & T
BRS
Tire Vendors
AirGraphics
Jeppeson
PROBLEM: Our block of rooms is guaranteed by the hotel only until Thursday. We’re working on that, but obviously, we have less control there. They have only 41 reservations so far - so a lot of people who plan to come still have not reserved their accommodation. Don’t let this one slip through the cracks! Click here for our Migration Page, which contains details on how to make hotel reservations.
Below is an email I received from Myron today, summarizing where things stand right now. Boys and girls, we are going to have a GOOD time!
Mike,
Here’s an update on the Migration. First of all, I am really excited about the way our programs have evolved. We have secured some of the best speakers available to present our seminars and lectures. Friday evening is shaping up to be a real memorable one, due to the support we have gotten from the Depot. The banquet on Saturday night promises to be a real fun evening, with door prizes and John and Martha King speaking to us.
Here is a list of speakers we have lined up:
We have arranged for Bob Wright from the FAA (he was person most instrumental in allowing GA to use GPS for DME!) , Bruce Landsberg from AOPA’s Air Safety Foundation, Paul Fiduccia of the Small Aircraft Manufacturers Association, and our own “JT” Helms, who will lead an insurance forum and Saturday morning. We have set aside a chunk of time for Walter Atkinson, John Deakin and George Braly of GAMI fame.
There will also be the Stand-In Pilot seminar and flight training given by UND; the folks from V-Flight will be presenting both advanced and basic seminars on our Garmin 430Â’s. Garmin, Avidyne and L3 will tell us whatÂ’s coming in the future, Teledyne-Continental and Hartzell will advise us on the care and feeding of our engines and propellers, etc. Hey, we might even be able to nail down any controversy about LOP operation with the GAMI guys and the Continual folks there at the same time - who knows?
Doug Ritter, survival expert from Equipped to Survive, will give lectures on proper liferaft deployment and use, and provide actual (interactive!) demonstrations in the hotel pool showing the finer points. The raft itself will be provided by the Winslow folks - bring a change of clothes for the ride home Sunday if you want to try that too! 
We need to figure out how many people will be interested in which talk. I will be juggling the schedule and presentation rooms available at Cirrus Design, so a little advance notice will go a long way.
Friday nite will be special at the Train “Depot”. I have arranged for an old trolley to circulate between the hotel and the train station for transportation to and from. There will be load of hors dÂ’oeuvres for us, and actors in period costumes mingling among us for some authenticity at the station. We will have an incredible simulator where they train engineers to drive (I can just see the competition now) available for our use. There will be beer tasting from the local breweries and a guaranteed surprise for you in one of the special cars. ItÂ’s hard to imagine how cool this place is - just think of the ultimate garage, and you have a start.
Our banquet at the DECC (Duluth Entertainment / Convention Center) should be super too. I have worked with the local folks to provide a great meal; there should be enough choices for all our members to be satisfied. In addition to meeting some of the neatest folks around (COPA Members) we will be treated to Alan Klapmeier introducing John and Martha King, our featured dinner speakers. The Kings will be arriving Saturday in their Falcon 10 - look for it on the Cirrus ramp. They have also been kind enough to offer a discount to COPA on their latest product, Practical Risk Management For Pilots. Click here for more information, or to order at an amazing price.
Van transportation will be provided from Cirrus to the hotel and back all weekend and Budget has offered a special deal for those of us who want a car also, although most really shouldn’t need to have a car.
The biggest challenge will be to meet the folks you want to and to get to the seminars you are interested in, in the few days we have for our meet.
I’m psyched!
- Myron.*
Now you can all see the trouble with Myron… no enthusiasm or drive at all. [;)]
I know that we don’t have a list of topics yet (we will, soon); but please email me or Myron and let us know which speakers/seminars you are most interested in seeing.
The following vendors will be present (list subject to change):
More as I think of it… and THANK YOU MYRON!
- Mike.