April 2008 181
Focus on Competition
old club in Indiana used one of the AMA
challenges to curb the dreaded fever. The
AMA gives a patch and yearly add-on for
being a “year-round flier.” That may not
be a big deal to a Floridian or Texan, but
in Indiana, with five months of ice and
snow, flying all year can be very
challenging.
If my memory serves me correctly, we
had at least 12 or 15 members who made it
to seven years straight and a few who
went clear to 10 years flying at least once
a month. No cabin fever in that club and it
could be that way in yours.
Think about it for your club next year;
put a poster board on the clubhouse wall
and keep track. It’s amazing how peer
pressure will get you to the flying field
even on the worst winter days.
If you aren’t one of those year-round
fliers, you’re just now thinking about
getting ready. You’re probably getting out
your airplanes, dusting them off, and
checking the all-important radio system
that’s been sitting idle for several months.
If you’re not one of those who cycles
your batteries in the middle of winter, now
is a great time to do it. Even the nickelmetal
batteries need to be cycled just like
the old nickel cadmium.
Don’t just check for voltage; capacity
(longevity) is actually more important.
Use the cycling to track the capacity, and
you’ll know quickly how good your
batteries really are. If ever in doubt,
replace it unless you just absolutely love
to build the airplane over and over.
Tech Stuff: A couple important tech issues
have surfaced this month. As most of you
know, Futaba found a small hiccup in its two
new dedicated 2.4 GHz systems. I will not
go into detail about the situation because
Hobbico/Futaba has issued two official
statements, which I posted on the AMA
Web site under “news.” If you haven’t
already read them, feel free to do so.
It sounds to me they have things well in
hand and are quickly addressing the
situation. Bear in mind there will always be
issues with any new techno stuff. I can still
remember the early days of 27 MHz and 72
MHz and then the first gold stickers. Give it
time, and reliability will be there.
The ability to ship Li-Poly batteries came
into question last month, and after much
research we still have the ability to ship
them by ground service only. Hazmat status
has not been attached to them either. Not
saying it won’t happen sometime in the
future, but as of right now they are still
standard ground shippable.
Keep in mind that Li-Poly batteries are
not inherently dangerous; the majority of
problems are still centered around
unattended and/or improper charging. You
just have to be careful and pay attention.
Good luck with your spring flying.
See you at briefing! MA
IF YOU HAVEN’T been out for at least a
quick stick fix or attended an indoor event
in your area, then I’d imagine cabin fever
is really working on your sanity. That
particular disease works on all of us in
unique ways, but one thing’s for sure: it
does work on all of us.
I remember back in the day when my
Technically Speaking ...
Greg Hahn
Technical Director
[email protected]
For information about how to become
a part of this exciting sport, contact:
Academy of Model Aeronautics
5161 E. Memorial Dr.
Muncie IN 47302
(765) 287-1256 or (800) 435-9262
[(800) I-FLY-AMA)]
www.modelaircraft.org
America’s
Modeling
Adventure
National Record Updates
OUTDOOR FREE FLIGHT
Electric B (161)
Op. 23:53
Richard Ivers 12/31/07
February 2008
Competition Directory Updates
Contest Coordinator
District X Utah and Arizona Only
Roxanne Cottrell
11504 E. Broadway Rd.
Mesa AZ 85208
PH: (602) 321-7955
E-mail: [email protected]
Scale Contest Board
District VII
Mike Gretz
Box 162
Montezuma IA 50171
**The full Competition Directory listings run every
other month.
04sig6.QXD 2/25/08 8:34 AM Page 181
Edition: Model Aviation - 2008/04
Page Numbers: 181