At the joystick was Bob Webster, a droll and brilliant adventurer half-jokingly known as the “Bill Gates of Oklahoma”. A software developer and inventor, Webster created some of the Midwest’s tech infrastructure in the early 1980s. He's also a passionate pilot. In 2001, he and his brother Mike built this aeroplane from a $100,000 kit offered by Lockwood Aircraft.

I first met Webster in 2008, on a group trek to Everest Base Camp. One morning, I woke at dawn and found Webster drinking coffee in the dining area. A high peak loomed above our village, with a Buddhist monastery crowning the summit: the perfect goal for a day hike. I asked him if he’d like to join me.“ Just got back,” he giggled.


Over the years, we’d stayed in touch, and Webster had recently made me an irresistible offer. If I came to Oklahoma to visit his family, he’d fly me back to California in his AirCam. We’d spend a week or so heading west, refuelling and overnighting at some of the tiny general aviation airstrips along the way.

“And unlike with the TSA,” he wrote, referring to US Transportation Safety Administration procedures for passenger jets, “you won't have to take off your shoes to get into the plane, and can use your cell phone on takeoff.”