Quite a few of the planes that went to Concrete for the fly in were great STOL aircraft.  Light airframes with plenty of power and high lift wings make for a really short take-off.  Pilots of STOL planes are usually quite keen to show off the performance of their steeds so we knew we would get some aggressive takeoffs.

Consequently, I did try to position myself in the right spot along the runway when the STOL planes were taking off.  Getting a frontal view of the plane as they pull up rapidly and climb out steeply was the goal.  They usually obliged.  I haven’t been to any of the STOL competitions or the recent version that involves getting airborne and back on the ground, but I would like to see that at some point.  There is one in Alaska I would love to try at some point!