I don't have to tell you that it ain't no fun when one augers in a model, especially when it could have been avoided.

Sad to say that I lost my World Models P-40 Warhawk to "short eyeballs," as Moe of the Three Stooges once said.

I had LASIK surgery a few years ago and it literally gave me HDTV-quality vision and beyond after 35 years of corrective lenses.

Well, the nearsightedness is creeping back in ever so slowly and I've been putting off a visit to the eyeball specialist for glasses. Flying nitro models has become a bit of a white-knuckler as a result. You'd think that alone would be incentive enough.

So, here I am, bringing the P-40 around to final after a really fine flight...and I lost sight of it. Wasn't too far away, either. Far enough to matter, though. When I last saw it in flight, it was heading straight down with no possible way to pull it up.

What does this have to do with the title...?

Well, the O.S. 46AX and all the electrics will be going into my nearly refurbished, kit-built Great Planes Ultimate Biplane originally built as an electric and abandoned by its builder after a very minor belly-flopper. Parts to complete the Ultimate will hit the hobby shop at week's end.

The Magnum XL .46 which was slated for the Ultimate will be going into the thirty-year-old Super Sportster (I don't trust the old Webra) and I'm getting an Evolution .46 off of a buddy soon. It was going to go into the Super Sportster, but instead will go into a new Hangar 9 Solo Sport trainer I got from my club nearly two years ago. I can use that to teach friends and family to fly.

So, I get three for one.

I will, however, miss that snarling shark staring me in the face every time I pulled into my garage.