86' - an Interesting Year for Finance, Cars, Weather and Science

I expected to find more tech stories in my 1986 scripts.  Maybe because of assignments, or luck of the draw, most of my stories that year were political in nature, with some Washington standard stories in the mix.

Halley's comet was big in January.  We joined a few astronomy clubs at the Manassas Battlefield to watch the once-in-76-years comet cross the skies.  As I recall, the view wasn't so great - already too much urban light.

Computers were busy designing camouflage patterns for the military.  The standard patterns were good enough.  I remember this story for two reasons.  We visited the N. Virginia company creating the camouflage designs and one of our lights set a wall on fire during the shoot.  The second reason: we visited Ft. Belvoir to show the camouflage "in action."  Unfortunately, the camouflaged truck stood out (the leaves had fallen) like a sore thumb.  The story was picked up nationally....ooops.

(2/7/86) A big sleet and ice event caused hopeless traffic snarls across the region.  My script read, "it started out as a bad day and got worse."  There were a lot of days like over the next 20 years. Weather, Redskins and Traffic always are lead stories in Washington.

1986 was also the year that all the traffic folks got together and agreed that the American Legion Bridge was indeed the beltway bridge that spanned the Potomac between Virginia and Maryland - never mind everyone called it the Cabin John Bridge.

There was a bit of car history in '86.  I got to ride in a brand new Hyundai (rhymes with Sunday).  I called it basic transportation at below current market prices.  They've hung around.  The starting price for a Hyundai back then was about $5k. They're higher now!

Technology isn't always perfect.  On the night of March 5, 1986, the automated system that plays "taps" at Arlington National Cemetery ---- played taps 617 times.

Both Montgomery and Fairfax counties were wrangling over growth problems (shocker).  Remember, this was 1986.  Politicians wanted to rein in growth.  Charlie Gilchrist was County Exec. in Montgomery at the time.  He wanted impact fees.  This story hasn't stopped in 24 years.

There was drought, more savings and loan prosecutions, the emergence of the "he said, she said" of two prominent surgeonsin a child custody case - one of the physicians being Dr. Elizabeth Morgan.  The story took reporters down under, to federal court and to DC jail for a news conference I'll never forget.

Perhaps the "nicest" story that year for me was a proposal made in the newspaper (no, they didn't meet online), and we watched as the couple floated in a paddle boat in the Tidal Basin....and released a balloon to let the world know that she said "YES" -  they would be married.  Even Jim Vance was moved...