I don't now if anyone out there is interested, but the Indiananapolis Childrens Museum just opened a new, permanant exhibit called 'Dinosphere'. The ICM decided they didn't want to compete w/ IMAX and turned their Cinedome movie theater into a dinosur exhibit - with the help of a $20 million grant from Eli Lilly.

They have the first juvenile T-rex on display, along w/ an adult T-rex, and a triceratops that are set up in a fighting scene. There are also several others dinos on display, including a dinosaur embryo that managed to get preserved.

It opens this weekend; however, I was able to go about a month ago w/ the Indiana Geologists and get an advanced viewing. The musuem is set up for children, but it's pretty cool for adults, too. Unlike other musuems, the actually fossilized bones are on display, not casts w/ the real stuff kept away from the public.

For more info check out: http://www.childrensmuseum.org/dinos...ids_about.html

 

I've never been much on Historical (or hysterical as we used to call it) or Paleo but, that looks pretty cool. Thanks for the link 36!

 

Paleo was the most boring class I had; however, if we had studied dinos instead of this line on that brachiopod, or the shape of the calyx on a crinoid, it would have been a lot more interesting.
Another guy and me sat in the back and played chess during on of the paleo lectures!

 

I seen the article in this mornings INDIANAPOLIS STAR. Pretty impressive--may take the wife soon and check this out!

36fan, do you work for a geological firm on far Westside of Indianapolis, that does earth exploration and drilling? If so, we have probably met. I sold some remanufactured parts and services to this firm when I worked retail truck parts.

 

I worked for a engineering/environmental consulting firm in Columbus for the last 5 years. About a month ago, I started working for a consulting firm at 71st and 465 on the west side. We sub out all of our drilling/probing to various firms - including an 'earth exploration' firm on the far westside.

 

I seen alot of drilling near the airport (East side) by 465 about a week ago; began to wonder if a tanker containing hazardous chemicals may have lost a load around the highway there? Looks like the drilling ceased this week.

I used to sell product to the firm on the N.E. side that had the big white rigs--you probably know who I mean? They do alot of blast drilling for limestone quarries.

 

I saw a lot of drilling around on/off ramps of 465 on the west side last week (not just by 70/the airport) - I assumed it was some DOT geotech work, but I don't know.
I don't know of any drilling companies on the NE side (off of the top of my head). I used to use a couple of companies that were located between Indy and Richmond, one on the NW side that sold off its equip (and I think shut down totally), the one on the far westside, and now a company out of Mooresville. I also know of the national firm in Carmel, and the municipal well drillers out of Orleans.

 

General Drilling out of Fishers, IN has the largest rigs I have ever seen. Most are CCC, Federal, or Ford lower (truck portions) with Ingersoll upper units. Their rigs make these little rigs (like the ones on I465 last week) look like ants. If you ever take 37 South to Bloomington--look at the rock and shot facings that had to be blasted to put portions of that road in. Bill Bolander (??) one of the owners of General personally did most of those holes when his company was in it's infantacy in the late 60's.

The "A" company was a customer of mine too!

 

Environmental Field Services (AKA: EFS). Owned and operated by one of the owners of AME (acronym for a larger name which I shant mention) which sits at the intersection of I-69 and I-465.

RP

 

I do my best to avoid the NE corner town. I'm familiar w/ EFS - but there is another EFS in town, top - something like Enviro Fire Services (?)
Yeah, ATC had a rig at 465 an 71st last week, I can't remenber who else I heard was working along 465 - rumor has it that all the activity last week is because 465 on the west side is going to become a "cone zone" soon

 

Likewise, I try to avoid the N.E. section of Indy on I465. I drive to Gas City, IN on many Friday nights to spectate at a dirt track racing facility, and I am here to testify, sometimes I would rather take a beating than fight the idiots on that side of city at rush hour. Sometimes I will take I70 to Greenfield, state Rd. 9 and go N. to highway 67, which empties onto I69, just S. of Anderson, IN.

 

EFS seemed to have several probes.... seems like their rig was an old BK88D or something... Far from a nice CME...

I sat rig about 4 months ago behind a BRAND NEW CME 75 (I believe it was a 75)... talk about an impressive machine!

We were spinning 5.25's (through cyclothems (sandstone/shale/weathered LS)) and we were at 30' before I could say stop at 20'! LOL! We went ahead and set it at 30' as we had perched conditions in other locations across the site.

 

Have you eiher of you ever heard of installing monitoring wells w/ a GeoProbe? - and I'm not refrerring to temp wells. I just set a couple w/ a GeProbe - I had never heard of spinning augers w/ a Probe before...
Seems to work OK - it's not as fast as a conventional rig, but it really reduces the overhead clearence requirments, you don't have to split spoon or having two setups (GeoProbe and conventional rig) onsite (and thereby reduces the mobilization fee).
Yeah, I was taking SR 9 up from Columbus to 69 when all the work was going on on the E side of 465. It may be a little slower, but well worth the additional time.

 

I've installed several with a GeoProbe. The model probe is a 6610 and it's track mounted. GEOLOGIC (Your Hole is Our Goal) has one in the fleet.

You're limited based on formations but, I've gone 14' through some pretty fat clay. It spins 5.25s.

Generally speaking, KDEP wants soil out of just about every well that we're installing (KY Fund work) so, being able to 'pre-probe' your well and tag the exact (relatively speaking) depth at which they want data and then having the ability to spin augers is a HUGE plus mainly because of exactly what you said; mob-fees.

RP

 

We started off w/ a truck mounted rig - don't know what GeoProbe model (6600?) but it was mounted an an F550. After it broke down, they brought a 6610 mounted on a track unit. It ended up having problems, too - the remote quit working on it! So he had to drive while walking next to it. Not a big deal, but isn't fond of loading the rig on the trailer while walking next to it.

The driller couldn't believe he had electrical problems on 2 of his rigs on the same hole.