January 2004 115
AND THEN THERE WERE TWO: Just in time for holiday
shopping, I’m happy to announce that there is a reasonably priced
Almost Ready-to-Fly (ARF) sport model on the market that meets
the AMA Quickie 500 racing-rule formula. The new Great Planes
Viper 500 ARF joins Lanier’s Predator in offering up-and-coming
pilots a chance to get the feel of racing—or even just racing
airplanes—at minimal cost.
The release date for the Viper was August 2003. Although I
haven’t gotten my hands on one yet, initial reviews are positive. The
Viper is reportedly quick to assemble and well engineered to handle
the strong .40 engines used in racing.
For those who just joined us (and those who may be putting
together a gift list for any hotshot pilots in the family), Quickie 500s
are the simplest and most popular racing models ever. With a wing
loading lighter than that of some sailplanes, they will easily ride
thermals and land at a walk. But get two to four of them up together
in a friendly speed contest and feel the adrenaline kick in! Now is
the time to think about a bulk purchase for your club for next
season.
Race Reports: To provide a little midwinter inspiration, following
are two recent accounts of intraclub fun and games. Both happen to
be from my local stomping ground, where I’m best able to sneak up
on people and hide their extra glow plugs until they promise to
submit something. But any and all notes from your latest contest are
welcome here! The more geographical diversity, the better.
Let’s go over to Kurt Bozarth in sunny Denver, Colorado.
“Airpark Elite Q-500 Race, June 22, 2003. After an eight-week
break in the schedule, we finally had our second race of the season.
The weather over the last few days had been typical for Colorado
this time of year—huge afternoon thunderstorms with rain, hail, and
winds. But thanks to some of our contacts, the weather was perfect
all day. In fact, the winds were even right down the runway this
time. Nothing like a good old headwind to slow you down on the
way to Pylon One; can you say ‘double cut,’ John, Hank, and
Chuck?
“Much to Hal Garwood’s dismay, colored stickers on the wings
were not used this time for identification. I showed up with a Neme-
Q wing with all four of the fluorescent colors as part of my paint
job! Hal grumbled for a while but soon forgot—he’s pushing 50,
you know.
“Duane Gall, our local celebrity and club legal eagle, served as
contest director and was immediately faced with a worker
shortage—perhaps the result of Duane failing to follow Hal’s lead in
providing a ‘most deserving’ award. [I had my reasons. The
shameless annual lobbying for Oscar nominations pales in
comparison, and you can guess whose efforts at cottoning up to the
contest director were the most nauseating!]
“Duane maintained control, analyzed the situation, and took the
appropriate action: he decided to run the race without lights at Pylon
One. This proved to be a great call and no issues resulted—and
besides, who’s going to argue with a federal prosecutor? [I am not a
federal prosecutor, either. See above. Case closed!] Other than John
Z. Williams’ continual efforts to eliminate the competition in
midair, carnage was minimal.
“And just like every event at Airpark, lunch was terrific! Pylon
Racing and ribs or quarter-scale and quiche? The choice is clear!
Local hero Phil Kenney fired up the grill at dawn and came through
again with perfectly barbecued ribs, bratwurst, and burgers—all
marinated in his own secret sauce containing just a hint of nitro.
Duane Gall, 1267 S. Beeler Ct., Denver CO 80231; E-mail: [email protected]
RADIO CONTROL PYLON RACING
Modeleers’ club secretary Kathleen Karsko assists competitor
Bill Wright with one of two required pit stops.
Bruce Hayes’ Tiger 60 shows picture-perfect form rounding
Pylon One during the Century Race. He had the fast time.
Ralph Erskine, Art Smith, and Bruce Hayes prepare for the Grand
Junction (CO) Modeleers’ endurance race.
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:24 am Page 115
116 MODEL AVIATION
“A total of four rounds of AMA 428
[Quickie 500] and 424 [Sport Quickie] were
flown, along with a few rounds of trainer
races thrown in for fun. The winds were
perfect all day and no reflies were needed.
You could not have asked for a better day to
race in Colorado! Here are the results:
“AMA 424 (3)
“1st: Gary Johnson
“2nd: Steve Vaughn
“3rd: Alan Thovson
“AMA 428 (12)
“1st: Brian Neff
“2nd: Kurt Bozarth
“3rd: Chuck Andraka
“Trainers (3)
“1st: Nick Smith
“2nd: Alan Thovson
“3rd: Mark Nash-Ford
“See ya at the next one in three weeks!”
Thanks, Kurt. (I think.) Chuck Andraka
is a regular at these meets, although he has
to drive six hours from Albuquerque, New
Mexico, to get there. We’re also glad to see
Bob Dible, who lives in central Kansas and
drives nearly that far in the other direction.
That’s dedication, and it clearly pays off
since those two usually place high.
Let’s go over the Continental Divide for
a report from Bill Hayden of the Grand
Junction Modeleers in western Colorado.
“A couple of pilots in our club have an
interest in racing, but with limited local
interest in racing, nobody wants to invest in
a dedicated racing airplane. After all, if you
don’t have anybody to compete against, it’s
just flying around in a circle. But our
monthly fun-fly competitions are usually
pretty well attended, so we figured that if
we could somehow combine the fun-fly
with racing, we could get enough pilots to
make the event worthwhile.
“Club president Art Smith told us about
an event held annually by a club he had
previously belonged to. They called it a
‘Century Race’ because it involved flying
100 laps. We figured we could apply the
same principle, add a couple of required pit
stops, and make it a fun-fly event.
“So the rules we came up with were that
any airplane was allowed, and each pilot
had to fly 100 laps around a two-pole
course. There were to be two mandatory pit
stops in which the pilot had to land, shut
down, get his airplane to the pit area, refuel,
restart, and get back in the air. The clock
would be running the whole time.
“We positioned judges at the sideline
opposite each pylon [see the racecourse
layouts in the AMA rule book, available
from HQ], and if a pilot cut he would have
10 seconds per cut added to his total time.
Rather than call it a ‘race’ we called it an
‘endurance event.’
“Club vice president Dave Dickey
affixed a GPS [Global Positioning System]
under the canopy of his airplane during the
race. When it was over, the GPS told us that
the race had covered a linear distance of
19.1 miles for the entire 100 laps. Most
pilots chose to pit on roughly laps 35 and
70.
“A traditional racing airplane would do
you no good here, as it would not carry
enough fuel to make it this far. Also,
without steerable tail/nose gear, aircraft
recovery for the pit stop would be a real
problem for a full-blown racer. Out of eight
entrants, four were Tiger 60s, with a variety
of power plants. Remember, all-out speed
would not win this event. The pilot’s ability
to land accurately, refuel, and get back in
the air quickly were equally important
factors.
“Grouping like aircraft together, some of
the flight times were amazingly close. Two
pilots (Bill Wright and Mike Carbonell)
entered airplanes that were beginner sporttype
airplanes, so they flew the first heat.
Their flight times were 35:33 and 36:00
respectively.
“That’s right, only 27 seconds separated
them at the end. Imagine 36 minutes
straight of flying around pylons, with two
pit stops, and knowing the whole time that a
30-second delay in retrieving or pitting
Big is Better and Safer too!
The IMAA is an international organization was formed April 10,
1980 to promote non-competitive, educational, safe, relaxed flying
of LARGE radio controlled model aircraft throughout the world.
We are the largest Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) Special
Interest Group and as such, are committed to representing the
interest of our members in AMA related matters.
Members enjoy the privilege of
participation in hundreds of Fly-ins
and Rallies each year – including
IMAA’s own Rally of Giants).
Don’t wait. Join today! For complete
membership details, visit our web site
(www.fly-imaa.org) or give us a call
toll free at – 866 366-4622.
High-Flight,
the publication of the IMAA, is
published quarterly and is sent to
all members. High-Flight is
dedicated to the advancement of
large r/c aircraft by concentrating
on new products, techniques, and
innovations developed through
the activities of IMAA Chapters
and individuals around the world.
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:25 am Page 116
118 MODEL AVIATION
could make the difference. Those guys
were really whipped at the end of their
heat!
“Fast time of the event was 24:15,
flown by Bruce Hayes who flew a Tiger 60
with a piped YS 61. Two other Tiger pilots
(Art Smith and Bill Hayden) came across
the finish line nose to tail, with Art only
slightly ahead. After 100 laps and two pit
stops, it was very exciting to be this close
at the end.
“We are planning to make this an
annual event for our club, and we may
juggle the rules prior to each event just to
keep everyone honest. It’s a good way to
have a race that is not really a race and
attract participants that might not be
interested in our traditional view of
racing.”
Thanks, Bill!
Speaking of rules, I would be remiss if I
didn’t mention that the deadline is coming
up for the final vote on rules changes for the
2005-2007 rule book. Please, please, please,
dear readers, pay attention to this! Any
“bad” proposal that passes the February
balloting will be staring us in the face for
the next three years. Any “good” proposal
that fails in February will be missing from
the rule book for the next three years.
So what are the proposals? There are
only three issues pending in Radio Control
Pylon at the moment, and two deal with
Very light (26 oz.) Nomex honey-comb fuselage, pre-built (11 oz ea.)
wing panels using foam rib technique, all balsa pre-built stab and rudder.
This design uses the our proven Typhoon 2+2 wing and follows the
Typhoon’s and moments and areas as closely as possible.
417-725-7755
www.gatorrc.com
VISA & MasterCard Welcomed!
Giles 202gt package......................................$795.00
Includes: fuselage, clear canopy, carbon fiber landing gear,
fiberglass wheel pants, G202 Dave Brown Wheels, complete
full-size plans, 1”x30” wing tube and socket set, wing adjuster
kit, plug-in adjustable stab kit, dzus latch kit.
Pre-Built built-up wing panels.....................$395.00
Pre-Built stab, elevators, rudder .................$175.00
Foam Cores; wing, stab and rudder..............$94.00
Wing Span: 2 meters (78.5”)
Length: 2 meters (78.5”)
Wing Area: 1170 sq. in.
Weight: 10.25-10.5 lbs.
Engine: 1.40 2 or 4-stroke
29.7%
SCALE
Take a bite out of the sky with
the Giles 202gt from Gator R/C!
2100 N Old Mill Rd
Brookline, MO 65619
Min. $6.50
Shipping&Handling per order
Sport Quickie (event 424). RCR 05-1 would
prohibit all-molded composite wings and
instead require that all wings be made from
wood or wood-sheeted foam. The goal is to
avoid the appearance that a person “has to”
go high-tech to win this low-cost, low-key,
entry-level form of racing. (Event 428, also
known as “fast” or “expert” Q-500, would
not be affected by this proposal.)
RCR 05-2 would create a five-member
national committee to test sample engines
and publish an annual, national, approved
engine list for Sport Quickie. This would
smooth out the existing patchwork of
conflicting local engine rules.
RCR 05-3 would establish unofficial but
recommended (“provisional”) rules for
racing medium-size sport Scale models such
as the Great Planes Shoestring, the World
Models Midget Mustang, and similar
designs.
Regular readers might know that I favor
05-3 because it could help promote
grassroots racing, even in clubs with smaller
fields or where “nobody wants to invest in a
dedicated racing airplane,” as stated in Bill
Hayden’s preceding report. We already have
one provisional event (1⁄2A—AMA event
423) which is working well in a few areas,
and there’s a hole in the rule book since the
old Formula I went away in 1999. It just
makes sense.
Rule proposals may be obtained from
AMA Headquarters or viewed online at
www.modelaircraft.org/Comp/2005rulesprop
osals.htm.
The names and addresses of the Contest
Board members are published in every issue
of this magazine on the first page of the
“Focus on Competition” section. If you don’t
know which one represents your district (or
even if you do), write to all 11 of them; it
will cost you less than the cover price of this
magazine. MA
SCALE FLIGHT MODEL CO.
Repro Rubber Power Kits, Comet, Megow, Burd,
Scientific, Jasco, also available - Campbell,
Diels, Dumas, Florio Flyer, Guillow’s,
Golden Age Repro, Herr, Micro-X, Peck, Sig.
Send $2.00 for Model Airplane Catalog
Penn Valley Hobby Center
837-A W. Main St., Lansdale, PA 19446
www.pennvalleyhobbycenter.com
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:25 am Page 118
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/01
Page Numbers: 115,116,118
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/01
Page Numbers: 115,116,118
January 2004 115
AND THEN THERE WERE TWO: Just in time for holiday
shopping, I’m happy to announce that there is a reasonably priced
Almost Ready-to-Fly (ARF) sport model on the market that meets
the AMA Quickie 500 racing-rule formula. The new Great Planes
Viper 500 ARF joins Lanier’s Predator in offering up-and-coming
pilots a chance to get the feel of racing—or even just racing
airplanes—at minimal cost.
The release date for the Viper was August 2003. Although I
haven’t gotten my hands on one yet, initial reviews are positive. The
Viper is reportedly quick to assemble and well engineered to handle
the strong .40 engines used in racing.
For those who just joined us (and those who may be putting
together a gift list for any hotshot pilots in the family), Quickie 500s
are the simplest and most popular racing models ever. With a wing
loading lighter than that of some sailplanes, they will easily ride
thermals and land at a walk. But get two to four of them up together
in a friendly speed contest and feel the adrenaline kick in! Now is
the time to think about a bulk purchase for your club for next
season.
Race Reports: To provide a little midwinter inspiration, following
are two recent accounts of intraclub fun and games. Both happen to
be from my local stomping ground, where I’m best able to sneak up
on people and hide their extra glow plugs until they promise to
submit something. But any and all notes from your latest contest are
welcome here! The more geographical diversity, the better.
Let’s go over to Kurt Bozarth in sunny Denver, Colorado.
“Airpark Elite Q-500 Race, June 22, 2003. After an eight-week
break in the schedule, we finally had our second race of the season.
The weather over the last few days had been typical for Colorado
this time of year—huge afternoon thunderstorms with rain, hail, and
winds. But thanks to some of our contacts, the weather was perfect
all day. In fact, the winds were even right down the runway this
time. Nothing like a good old headwind to slow you down on the
way to Pylon One; can you say ‘double cut,’ John, Hank, and
Chuck?
“Much to Hal Garwood’s dismay, colored stickers on the wings
were not used this time for identification. I showed up with a Neme-
Q wing with all four of the fluorescent colors as part of my paint
job! Hal grumbled for a while but soon forgot—he’s pushing 50,
you know.
“Duane Gall, our local celebrity and club legal eagle, served as
contest director and was immediately faced with a worker
shortage—perhaps the result of Duane failing to follow Hal’s lead in
providing a ‘most deserving’ award. [I had my reasons. The
shameless annual lobbying for Oscar nominations pales in
comparison, and you can guess whose efforts at cottoning up to the
contest director were the most nauseating!]
“Duane maintained control, analyzed the situation, and took the
appropriate action: he decided to run the race without lights at Pylon
One. This proved to be a great call and no issues resulted—and
besides, who’s going to argue with a federal prosecutor? [I am not a
federal prosecutor, either. See above. Case closed!] Other than John
Z. Williams’ continual efforts to eliminate the competition in
midair, carnage was minimal.
“And just like every event at Airpark, lunch was terrific! Pylon
Racing and ribs or quarter-scale and quiche? The choice is clear!
Local hero Phil Kenney fired up the grill at dawn and came through
again with perfectly barbecued ribs, bratwurst, and burgers—all
marinated in his own secret sauce containing just a hint of nitro.
Duane Gall, 1267 S. Beeler Ct., Denver CO 80231; E-mail: [email protected]
RADIO CONTROL PYLON RACING
Modeleers’ club secretary Kathleen Karsko assists competitor
Bill Wright with one of two required pit stops.
Bruce Hayes’ Tiger 60 shows picture-perfect form rounding
Pylon One during the Century Race. He had the fast time.
Ralph Erskine, Art Smith, and Bruce Hayes prepare for the Grand
Junction (CO) Modeleers’ endurance race.
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:24 am Page 115
116 MODEL AVIATION
“A total of four rounds of AMA 428
[Quickie 500] and 424 [Sport Quickie] were
flown, along with a few rounds of trainer
races thrown in for fun. The winds were
perfect all day and no reflies were needed.
You could not have asked for a better day to
race in Colorado! Here are the results:
“AMA 424 (3)
“1st: Gary Johnson
“2nd: Steve Vaughn
“3rd: Alan Thovson
“AMA 428 (12)
“1st: Brian Neff
“2nd: Kurt Bozarth
“3rd: Chuck Andraka
“Trainers (3)
“1st: Nick Smith
“2nd: Alan Thovson
“3rd: Mark Nash-Ford
“See ya at the next one in three weeks!”
Thanks, Kurt. (I think.) Chuck Andraka
is a regular at these meets, although he has
to drive six hours from Albuquerque, New
Mexico, to get there. We’re also glad to see
Bob Dible, who lives in central Kansas and
drives nearly that far in the other direction.
That’s dedication, and it clearly pays off
since those two usually place high.
Let’s go over the Continental Divide for
a report from Bill Hayden of the Grand
Junction Modeleers in western Colorado.
“A couple of pilots in our club have an
interest in racing, but with limited local
interest in racing, nobody wants to invest in
a dedicated racing airplane. After all, if you
don’t have anybody to compete against, it’s
just flying around in a circle. But our
monthly fun-fly competitions are usually
pretty well attended, so we figured that if
we could somehow combine the fun-fly
with racing, we could get enough pilots to
make the event worthwhile.
“Club president Art Smith told us about
an event held annually by a club he had
previously belonged to. They called it a
‘Century Race’ because it involved flying
100 laps. We figured we could apply the
same principle, add a couple of required pit
stops, and make it a fun-fly event.
“So the rules we came up with were that
any airplane was allowed, and each pilot
had to fly 100 laps around a two-pole
course. There were to be two mandatory pit
stops in which the pilot had to land, shut
down, get his airplane to the pit area, refuel,
restart, and get back in the air. The clock
would be running the whole time.
“We positioned judges at the sideline
opposite each pylon [see the racecourse
layouts in the AMA rule book, available
from HQ], and if a pilot cut he would have
10 seconds per cut added to his total time.
Rather than call it a ‘race’ we called it an
‘endurance event.’
“Club vice president Dave Dickey
affixed a GPS [Global Positioning System]
under the canopy of his airplane during the
race. When it was over, the GPS told us that
the race had covered a linear distance of
19.1 miles for the entire 100 laps. Most
pilots chose to pit on roughly laps 35 and
70.
“A traditional racing airplane would do
you no good here, as it would not carry
enough fuel to make it this far. Also,
without steerable tail/nose gear, aircraft
recovery for the pit stop would be a real
problem for a full-blown racer. Out of eight
entrants, four were Tiger 60s, with a variety
of power plants. Remember, all-out speed
would not win this event. The pilot’s ability
to land accurately, refuel, and get back in
the air quickly were equally important
factors.
“Grouping like aircraft together, some of
the flight times were amazingly close. Two
pilots (Bill Wright and Mike Carbonell)
entered airplanes that were beginner sporttype
airplanes, so they flew the first heat.
Their flight times were 35:33 and 36:00
respectively.
“That’s right, only 27 seconds separated
them at the end. Imagine 36 minutes
straight of flying around pylons, with two
pit stops, and knowing the whole time that a
30-second delay in retrieving or pitting
Big is Better and Safer too!
The IMAA is an international organization was formed April 10,
1980 to promote non-competitive, educational, safe, relaxed flying
of LARGE radio controlled model aircraft throughout the world.
We are the largest Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) Special
Interest Group and as such, are committed to representing the
interest of our members in AMA related matters.
Members enjoy the privilege of
participation in hundreds of Fly-ins
and Rallies each year – including
IMAA’s own Rally of Giants).
Don’t wait. Join today! For complete
membership details, visit our web site
(www.fly-imaa.org) or give us a call
toll free at – 866 366-4622.
High-Flight,
the publication of the IMAA, is
published quarterly and is sent to
all members. High-Flight is
dedicated to the advancement of
large r/c aircraft by concentrating
on new products, techniques, and
innovations developed through
the activities of IMAA Chapters
and individuals around the world.
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:25 am Page 116
118 MODEL AVIATION
could make the difference. Those guys
were really whipped at the end of their
heat!
“Fast time of the event was 24:15,
flown by Bruce Hayes who flew a Tiger 60
with a piped YS 61. Two other Tiger pilots
(Art Smith and Bill Hayden) came across
the finish line nose to tail, with Art only
slightly ahead. After 100 laps and two pit
stops, it was very exciting to be this close
at the end.
“We are planning to make this an
annual event for our club, and we may
juggle the rules prior to each event just to
keep everyone honest. It’s a good way to
have a race that is not really a race and
attract participants that might not be
interested in our traditional view of
racing.”
Thanks, Bill!
Speaking of rules, I would be remiss if I
didn’t mention that the deadline is coming
up for the final vote on rules changes for the
2005-2007 rule book. Please, please, please,
dear readers, pay attention to this! Any
“bad” proposal that passes the February
balloting will be staring us in the face for
the next three years. Any “good” proposal
that fails in February will be missing from
the rule book for the next three years.
So what are the proposals? There are
only three issues pending in Radio Control
Pylon at the moment, and two deal with
Very light (26 oz.) Nomex honey-comb fuselage, pre-built (11 oz ea.)
wing panels using foam rib technique, all balsa pre-built stab and rudder.
This design uses the our proven Typhoon 2+2 wing and follows the
Typhoon’s and moments and areas as closely as possible.
417-725-7755
www.gatorrc.com
VISA & MasterCard Welcomed!
Giles 202gt package......................................$795.00
Includes: fuselage, clear canopy, carbon fiber landing gear,
fiberglass wheel pants, G202 Dave Brown Wheels, complete
full-size plans, 1”x30” wing tube and socket set, wing adjuster
kit, plug-in adjustable stab kit, dzus latch kit.
Pre-Built built-up wing panels.....................$395.00
Pre-Built stab, elevators, rudder .................$175.00
Foam Cores; wing, stab and rudder..............$94.00
Wing Span: 2 meters (78.5”)
Length: 2 meters (78.5”)
Wing Area: 1170 sq. in.
Weight: 10.25-10.5 lbs.
Engine: 1.40 2 or 4-stroke
29.7%
SCALE
Take a bite out of the sky with
the Giles 202gt from Gator R/C!
2100 N Old Mill Rd
Brookline, MO 65619
Min. $6.50
Shipping&Handling per order
Sport Quickie (event 424). RCR 05-1 would
prohibit all-molded composite wings and
instead require that all wings be made from
wood or wood-sheeted foam. The goal is to
avoid the appearance that a person “has to”
go high-tech to win this low-cost, low-key,
entry-level form of racing. (Event 428, also
known as “fast” or “expert” Q-500, would
not be affected by this proposal.)
RCR 05-2 would create a five-member
national committee to test sample engines
and publish an annual, national, approved
engine list for Sport Quickie. This would
smooth out the existing patchwork of
conflicting local engine rules.
RCR 05-3 would establish unofficial but
recommended (“provisional”) rules for
racing medium-size sport Scale models such
as the Great Planes Shoestring, the World
Models Midget Mustang, and similar
designs.
Regular readers might know that I favor
05-3 because it could help promote
grassroots racing, even in clubs with smaller
fields or where “nobody wants to invest in a
dedicated racing airplane,” as stated in Bill
Hayden’s preceding report. We already have
one provisional event (1⁄2A—AMA event
423) which is working well in a few areas,
and there’s a hole in the rule book since the
old Formula I went away in 1999. It just
makes sense.
Rule proposals may be obtained from
AMA Headquarters or viewed online at
www.modelaircraft.org/Comp/2005rulesprop
osals.htm.
The names and addresses of the Contest
Board members are published in every issue
of this magazine on the first page of the
“Focus on Competition” section. If you don’t
know which one represents your district (or
even if you do), write to all 11 of them; it
will cost you less than the cover price of this
magazine. MA
SCALE FLIGHT MODEL CO.
Repro Rubber Power Kits, Comet, Megow, Burd,
Scientific, Jasco, also available - Campbell,
Diels, Dumas, Florio Flyer, Guillow’s,
Golden Age Repro, Herr, Micro-X, Peck, Sig.
Send $2.00 for Model Airplane Catalog
Penn Valley Hobby Center
837-A W. Main St., Lansdale, PA 19446
www.pennvalleyhobbycenter.com
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:25 am Page 118
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/01
Page Numbers: 115,116,118
January 2004 115
AND THEN THERE WERE TWO: Just in time for holiday
shopping, I’m happy to announce that there is a reasonably priced
Almost Ready-to-Fly (ARF) sport model on the market that meets
the AMA Quickie 500 racing-rule formula. The new Great Planes
Viper 500 ARF joins Lanier’s Predator in offering up-and-coming
pilots a chance to get the feel of racing—or even just racing
airplanes—at minimal cost.
The release date for the Viper was August 2003. Although I
haven’t gotten my hands on one yet, initial reviews are positive. The
Viper is reportedly quick to assemble and well engineered to handle
the strong .40 engines used in racing.
For those who just joined us (and those who may be putting
together a gift list for any hotshot pilots in the family), Quickie 500s
are the simplest and most popular racing models ever. With a wing
loading lighter than that of some sailplanes, they will easily ride
thermals and land at a walk. But get two to four of them up together
in a friendly speed contest and feel the adrenaline kick in! Now is
the time to think about a bulk purchase for your club for next
season.
Race Reports: To provide a little midwinter inspiration, following
are two recent accounts of intraclub fun and games. Both happen to
be from my local stomping ground, where I’m best able to sneak up
on people and hide their extra glow plugs until they promise to
submit something. But any and all notes from your latest contest are
welcome here! The more geographical diversity, the better.
Let’s go over to Kurt Bozarth in sunny Denver, Colorado.
“Airpark Elite Q-500 Race, June 22, 2003. After an eight-week
break in the schedule, we finally had our second race of the season.
The weather over the last few days had been typical for Colorado
this time of year—huge afternoon thunderstorms with rain, hail, and
winds. But thanks to some of our contacts, the weather was perfect
all day. In fact, the winds were even right down the runway this
time. Nothing like a good old headwind to slow you down on the
way to Pylon One; can you say ‘double cut,’ John, Hank, and
Chuck?
“Much to Hal Garwood’s dismay, colored stickers on the wings
were not used this time for identification. I showed up with a Neme-
Q wing with all four of the fluorescent colors as part of my paint
job! Hal grumbled for a while but soon forgot—he’s pushing 50,
you know.
“Duane Gall, our local celebrity and club legal eagle, served as
contest director and was immediately faced with a worker
shortage—perhaps the result of Duane failing to follow Hal’s lead in
providing a ‘most deserving’ award. [I had my reasons. The
shameless annual lobbying for Oscar nominations pales in
comparison, and you can guess whose efforts at cottoning up to the
contest director were the most nauseating!]
“Duane maintained control, analyzed the situation, and took the
appropriate action: he decided to run the race without lights at Pylon
One. This proved to be a great call and no issues resulted—and
besides, who’s going to argue with a federal prosecutor? [I am not a
federal prosecutor, either. See above. Case closed!] Other than John
Z. Williams’ continual efforts to eliminate the competition in
midair, carnage was minimal.
“And just like every event at Airpark, lunch was terrific! Pylon
Racing and ribs or quarter-scale and quiche? The choice is clear!
Local hero Phil Kenney fired up the grill at dawn and came through
again with perfectly barbecued ribs, bratwurst, and burgers—all
marinated in his own secret sauce containing just a hint of nitro.
Duane Gall, 1267 S. Beeler Ct., Denver CO 80231; E-mail: [email protected]
RADIO CONTROL PYLON RACING
Modeleers’ club secretary Kathleen Karsko assists competitor
Bill Wright with one of two required pit stops.
Bruce Hayes’ Tiger 60 shows picture-perfect form rounding
Pylon One during the Century Race. He had the fast time.
Ralph Erskine, Art Smith, and Bruce Hayes prepare for the Grand
Junction (CO) Modeleers’ endurance race.
01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:24 am Page 115
116 MODEL AVIATION
“A total of four rounds of AMA 428
[Quickie 500] and 424 [Sport Quickie] were
flown, along with a few rounds of trainer
races thrown in for fun. The winds were
perfect all day and no reflies were needed.
You could not have asked for a better day to
race in Colorado! Here are the results:
“AMA 424 (3)
“1st: Gary Johnson
“2nd: Steve Vaughn
“3rd: Alan Thovson
“AMA 428 (12)
“1st: Brian Neff
“2nd: Kurt Bozarth
“3rd: Chuck Andraka
“Trainers (3)
“1st: Nick Smith
“2nd: Alan Thovson
“3rd: Mark Nash-Ford
“See ya at the next one in three weeks!”
Thanks, Kurt. (I think.) Chuck Andraka
is a regular at these meets, although he has
to drive six hours from Albuquerque, New
Mexico, to get there. We’re also glad to see
Bob Dible, who lives in central Kansas and
drives nearly that far in the other direction.
That’s dedication, and it clearly pays off
since those two usually place high.
Let’s go over the Continental Divide for
a report from Bill Hayden of the Grand
Junction Modeleers in western Colorado.
“A couple of pilots in our club have an
interest in racing, but with limited local
interest in racing, nobody wants to invest in
a dedicated racing airplane. After all, if you
don’t have anybody to compete against, it’s
just flying around in a circle. But our
monthly fun-fly competitions are usually
pretty well attended, so we figured that if
we could somehow combine the fun-fly
with racing, we could get enough pilots to
make the event worthwhile.
“Club president Art Smith told us about
an event held annually by a club he had
previously belonged to. They called it a
‘Century Race’ because it involved flying
100 laps. We figured we could apply the
same principle, add a couple of required pit
stops, and make it a fun-fly event.
“So the rules we came up with were that
any airplane was allowed, and each pilot
had to fly 100 laps around a two-pole
course. There were to be two mandatory pit
stops in which the pilot had to land, shut
down, get his airplane to the pit area, refuel,
restart, and get back in the air. The clock
would be running the whole time.
“We positioned judges at the sideline
opposite each pylon [see the racecourse
layouts in the AMA rule book, available
from HQ], and if a pilot cut he would have
10 seconds per cut added to his total time.
Rather than call it a ‘race’ we called it an
‘endurance event.’
“Club vice president Dave Dickey
affixed a GPS [Global Positioning System]
under the canopy of his airplane during the
race. When it was over, the GPS told us that
the race had covered a linear distance of
19.1 miles for the entire 100 laps. Most
pilots chose to pit on roughly laps 35 and
70.
“A traditional racing airplane would do
you no good here, as it would not carry
enough fuel to make it this far. Also,
without steerable tail/nose gear, aircraft
recovery for the pit stop would be a real
problem for a full-blown racer. Out of eight
entrants, four were Tiger 60s, with a variety
of power plants. Remember, all-out speed
would not win this event. The pilot’s ability
to land accurately, refuel, and get back in
the air quickly were equally important
factors.
“Grouping like aircraft together, some of
the flight times were amazingly close. Two
pilots (Bill Wright and Mike Carbonell)
entered airplanes that were beginner sporttype
airplanes, so they flew the first heat.
Their flight times were 35:33 and 36:00
respectively.
“That’s right, only 27 seconds separated
them at the end. Imagine 36 minutes
straight of flying around pylons, with two
pit stops, and knowing the whole time that a
30-second delay in retrieving or pitting
Big is Better and Safer too!
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01sig4.QXD 10/27/03 9:25 am Page 116
118 MODEL AVIATION
could make the difference. Those guys
were really whipped at the end of their
heat!
“Fast time of the event was 24:15,
flown by Bruce Hayes who flew a Tiger 60
with a piped YS 61. Two other Tiger pilots
(Art Smith and Bill Hayden) came across
the finish line nose to tail, with Art only
slightly ahead. After 100 laps and two pit
stops, it was very exciting to be this close
at the end.
“We are planning to make this an
annual event for our club, and we may
juggle the rules prior to each event just to
keep everyone honest. It’s a good way to
have a race that is not really a race and
attract participants that might not be
interested in our traditional view of
racing.”
Thanks, Bill!
Speaking of rules, I would be remiss if I
didn’t mention that the deadline is coming
up for the final vote on rules changes for the
2005-2007 rule book. Please, please, please,
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So what are the proposals? There are
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Sport Quickie (event 424). RCR 05-1 would
prohibit all-molded composite wings and
instead require that all wings be made from
wood or wood-sheeted foam. The goal is to
avoid the appearance that a person “has to”
go high-tech to win this low-cost, low-key,
entry-level form of racing. (Event 428, also
known as “fast” or “expert” Q-500, would
not be affected by this proposal.)
RCR 05-2 would create a five-member
national committee to test sample engines
and publish an annual, national, approved
engine list for Sport Quickie. This would
smooth out the existing patchwork of
conflicting local engine rules.
RCR 05-3 would establish unofficial but
recommended (“provisional”) rules for
racing medium-size sport Scale models such
as the Great Planes Shoestring, the World
Models Midget Mustang, and similar
designs.
Regular readers might know that I favor
05-3 because it could help promote
grassroots racing, even in clubs with smaller
fields or where “nobody wants to invest in a
dedicated racing airplane,” as stated in Bill
Hayden’s preceding report. We already have
one provisional event (1⁄2A—AMA event
423) which is working well in a few areas,
and there’s a hole in the rule book since the
old Formula I went away in 1999. It just
makes sense.
Rule proposals may be obtained from
AMA Headquarters or viewed online at
www.modelaircraft.org/Comp/2005rulesprop
osals.htm.
The names and addresses of the Contest
Board members are published in every issue
of this magazine on the first page of the
“Focus on Competition” section. If you don’t
know which one represents your district (or
even if you do), write to all 11 of them; it
will cost you less than the cover price of this
magazine. MA
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