Boston City Tour

Boston has an excellent aerial view.

Boston lies inside the Logan class B airspace, and you must obtain Logan tower's permission to enter the airspace to visit the city.

You must also check the TFRs for Fenway Park.  You cannot be within three NM of the city one hour before, and one our after a scheduled game in Fenway.  Check other TFRs for visiting state officials.

If you are on flight following, you may be cleared in B, and told to fly to a nearby airport like KBED or KOWD, then contact Boston tower at 128.8.  If not on flight following, then you will contact the Logan Tower at 128.8, well outside the B airspace.

State your intentions like "Boston Tower, Cessna 172EF, over Bedford, at three thousand, requesting city tour".

Once permitted to enter the B airspace, head towards the city, start descent/climb to 1700 feet.  Prudential is 700 feet high, and according to FAR, you must be at least one thousand feet above the highest obstacle.

Maintain 1700, comply with tower instructions, fly over the city, and have fun. The best views are when flying between Prudential and John Hancock buildings.

Stay away from Logan, and when done with the tour, state your intentions to the tower.

I have visited Boston twice, once at night, and once during the day, and it has been a great experience both times. Boston Tower is very accommodating.

Here are some pictures from the day visit.

Logan on top right

Next to Prudential

You can read the name of the building, but you cannot see the people inside from  a thousand feet above

South Boston

Prudential Tower

John Hancock Tower

Sailing in the river

Museum of Science

Boston Marathon 2012

I finished the 116th Boston Marathon after enduring pain and cramps through the last eight miles of the race.  I did not meet my under four hours finish goal, but I managed to finish the race in four hours and twenty five minutes. I can conveniently blame the heat for this under-performance.

The ideal temperature for a marathon is fifty degrees overcast.  However, the temperature was almost ninety when I reached the half way mark. There were twenty-six water stations, and I gulped a glass of Gatorade at every single one of them, but I still got dehydrated at the finish line. Two gallons of water evaporated from my skin during the race.

I knew that I would not meet my time goal due to excessive heat so I decided to take it easy, and had some fun in the way. I shook hands with every willing spectator, high-fived every kid who extended a hand, and waved at each one of the two hundred screaming Wellesley college girls. It was not a race, it was an experience of a life time, and I thoroughly enjoyed it till the wheels fell off at mile eighteen.

I met Uta Pippig (Three time Boston Marathon winner) at the start line. I got her autograph on my back. I met Jack Fultz (Winner of the 1976 Boston Marathon) and he signed my shirt too.

Autographs from Uta and Jack

This was a different race for me for many reasons. To run this race, I raised $4200 for a charity. That was an accomplishment bigger than this race, and a life changing experience in itself.  I ran this race for people suffering for cancer, and I finished this race for the friends who helped me in the cause. I am especially proud of my Pakistani-Boston community for their financial and moral support.  They donated when the donations dried up, and they were on the race course when I needed some motivation in the heat.

I started at around 11 AM, and finished at around 3:30 PM. A lot happened in between.

It was eighty-three degrees and downhill in Hopkinton. Things became a little more interesting near Natick. Direct sunlight became unbearable so I tore a shirt and tied it on my head. I periodically poured water on my head to cool me down.  The screaming Wellesley college girls were throwing flying kisses as if the runners were some sort of celebrities (http://vimeo.com/40489594).

I was spotted by friends in Hopkinton (Amir), and in Natick (Zaki). I met my family, and a dozen friends and their kids in Wellesley. At the finish line, my friends (Scharukh and Moushmi) wrapped me in Pakistani flag, and Hamayon took some memorable pictures. Many friends tracked my progress on Facebook with periodic status updates.

These are some memorable pictures from the marathon.

Spotted by Amir's Family at start

Head cover from a torn shirt to beat the sun. Eating a date given by the spectator in red shirt

Crossing the 15 kilometer mark

Muazzam Ali tracking my progress on Facebook

My nephews and nieces at mile 14

My crowd in Wellesley

My favorite picture

You rock!

They helped me get home after a tiring day. 

I gained a valuable lesson from this chapter. If you want to be felt loved, do something good for your community.

Cross Wind Landing

This is my recent cross wind landing at KACK (Nantucket, MA).

The wind was 010 at 16 knots, gusting to 22 knots, while runway 6 was under use.

Cross wind landings are always fun and challenging... You bank into the wind with ailerons so you do not drift away from the runway.  The nose points into the wind, away from the runway center line. Just at the moment of touchdown, you use the rudder to straighten the nose so that you do not land sideways.

You have done it!

Its a very special day today.

I have reached the goal to raise $4000 towards cancer research. There were great doubts in my mind about my ability to convince people to give. I did not have to convince much... the cause was great, and my friends have big hearts.

The ticker towards $4000 started moving with Qasim, and ended with Scharukh. An extraordinary donation from Scharukh Jalisi moved the ticker past the finish line.

I will do my best to reach the Marathon finish line in Boston on April 16. I am ready for the race, and my goal is to finish in under 4 hours.

My training for Boston Marathon lasted eighteen weeks, during which I fought two bouts with Bronchitis, and ran countless hours outside in the dark in below freezing weather. I missed tens of training sessions during the Boston Marathon training. In comparison, I had missed only two training sessions for the MDI marathon training. But I am ready to beat my MDI marathon finish time.

The Boston Marathon is 26.2 miles long, starts in Hopkinton, passes through Ashland, Framingham, Natick, Wellesley, Newton, Brookline, and ends in Boston in Copley Square.

I will be in the third wave, will start at around 11 AM, and will reach the finish line at around 3 PM. I am expected to be in Ashland at about 11:30 AM, Framingham 12 PM, Natick 12:30 PM, Wellesley 1 PM, Newton 2 PM, and Brookline 2:30 PM. It will be hard to spot me, but look for Dana Farber T-shirts with some green on them.

The key to finishing in good time is weather. I prefer cloudy weather at around 50 degrees, and tail wind.

I would like to thank Haider Raza, Amir Qamar, Paul Dao, Jon Schau, Mike Sestina, Emily Cudmore, Pascal Cleve, Kashif Siddiqui, and JP Carney for their recent support to the cause.

To my firends who donated: You have done it! and I am proud to be your friend!