Family Weekend Fun: Lancaster LA County Air Show

This post isn’t one I planned to write, but we just came back from such a fun little family getaway so close to home that I feel I must share it!

I was invited by my friends at Destination Lancaster to visit that city in the high desert of north Los Angeles County, to visit the Museum of Art and History, check out the local tourist strip, and see the Los Angeles County Airshow, featuring the Air Force Thunderbirds.  I had never been to Lancaster in the 10 years I’ve lived in southern California, and didn’t know what to expect.  I was planning to go by myself to find out what Lancaster is all about, but just a couple days before my trip, Red Bear won first prize in his class Science Fair Project, with an experiment and investigation about how paper airplanes fly.  So I invited him to go with me see the Airshow. We picked him up from school and drove straight to Lancaster (about an hour drive from Los Angeles, and we beat the traffic!).

 

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FRIDAY NIGHT:

We had fun right from the start!  We checked into the Homewood Suites hotel, and then we headed to the tourist-friendly “Boulevard” section in the middle of the town, where there are many restaurants and clubs, interesting shops, and the Museum of Art and History.   Aviation has been a major part of Lancaster’s essence over the last half century, so much of the vibe of the town is about aviation.  In fact, there is aviation oriented wall art, and the sidewalks are turned into a “Walk of Honor” for famous pilots.  The Boulevard section of Lancaster is set up to be pedestrian and tourist friendly, with free street parking.

 

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Our first stop was to take a look in the Museum of Art and History (MOAH).  Lucky for me, there was one exhibit of some amazing shoes that filled one whole room!  There were plenty of other exhibits for other tastes, such as very modern chairs.  Since the exhibits change every 90 days, you can always return in a few months to see what is new.  It seems that the city has made a real commitment to support art and tourism – some of the buildings right next to The Boulevard are artist lofts, where working artists can live, collaborate with other artists, and have good studio space.  I was impressed.

 

Then we wanted some dinner, and it was easy to find something that suited our time, tastes, and budget – plenty of choices within the few blocks of The Boulevard.  We chose The Lemon Leaf, because it was close & vegan-friendly.

 

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After dinner we headed a block down the street where there was an outdoor concert outside a place called BEX, Red Bear got to play with some other kids and dogs there, it was fun! Then he got to shop in 1 cupcake shop and FOUR candy stores! Woo Hoo! Red Bear was repeating, “Best day ever!” over and over.

 

 

SATURDAY:

We go to a lot of air shows, at least one big one every year, but this was our first time to see the L.A. County Airshow at Fox Field in Lancaster.  I must say it was so nice to receive VIP parking from Destination Lancaster, and to be guests of the City of Lancaster in their large pavilion (or tent or “chalet” as some called it) right at the center of the Airshow festivities, where we could see pretty much everything in comfort!  The City of Lancaster chalet had plenty of creature comforts, with tasty refreshments, and even a section where children could entertain themselves with coloring books, Play-Doh, and other activities.

 

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For airplane fans, there was plenty to see at the show.  There was a long performance by all kinds of Air Force planes, old and new.  Part of the show featured  World War II airplanes, including a B-25 bomber, P-38 Lightning (one of Red Bear’s favorites), a British Spitfire, and many other beautiful warplanes.  To add to the thrill, they even simulated loud strafing and bomb runs – safe, but enough to get everyone’s attention!  There were several amazingly skilled aerobatic pilots, parachutists, and other flying acts.

 

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One exhibit I really enjoyed was sponsored by Precision Exotics, which offered rides up and down the runway (between flying exhibitions!) in either a black Ferrari or a silver Lamborghini.  I didn’t dare to drive, but the experience riding in a Lamborghini in a “heart-attack” speed was exciting!

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The Thunderbird team put on a fantastic show of precision flying, with 6 airplanes in all.  You can see some of the most incredible shots – 4 aircraft flying in CLOSE formations, and 2 jets passing VERY CLOSE at high speed in opposite directions, and also 2 Thunderbirds flying extremely close together – one upside down right above the other one!

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It was barely a 24-hour visit, but so much fun, and so close to Los Angeles!  We still plan to go back to Lancaster to see the wildflower fields, which are quite famous and should be fully blooming in a week or two.

 

We special thanks to our hoster: Teresa (the lady in the middle in the picture above)& Angela(the lady in the right in the picture above) from the #DestinationLancaster for warmly welcoming us and working with us on this story.