Posting my reply here, so as to avoid a hijack.
Thank you for that. I wondered if he had built a Van’s, since they’re up here like Rush was. I can see why someone who built a composite submarine would want to display a composite aircraft he built.
Hm. Compared to most aircraft, Rutan’s designs are ‘exotic’. OTOH, the Wright Flyer was a canard configuration. Of course the VariEze and Long-EZ are much more stable and in every way better. The Rutan-designed Quickie, Q2, and Q200 were more exotic-looking, but still based on sound engineering. (I would love to have a Q200.) The point is, the only thing ‘exotic’ about them is their looks – and maybe their now-common construction materials that were unusual when they were conceived.
I had to look up the Maxair Drifter (ultralight), since I’ve never heard of it. Yes, it could be called a ‘flying telephone pole’. But then, the Dornier Do 17 was called the ‘Flying Pencil’. Given that ultralights ‘look funny’ anyway (at least to me), the Maxair looks like a bog-standard kite. Is there something about its construction that makes it ‘exotic’?