As District III vice president, the most often-asked question I hear is “how do we get new people involved in our hobby?” That’s the million-dollar question for which no one has an easy answer.
There are many things we can do to attract new individuals to our hobby that will provide positive exposure and entice new modelers. The two easiest and most productive ways are to contact is your local Civil Air Patrol (CAP) and Boy Scout troops. Following is information about clubs that have done this with success.
The Doylestown Barnstormers RC Club of Akron, Ohio, teamed up with the Akron-Canton CAP Model Airplane and Remote Control Program (MARC) with the goal of educating the cadets about model aviation. Working with senior members, the club introduced a five-session program.
Session one was a PowerPoint presentation where they introduced their club, AMA, the MARC program, and RC flying to the cadets. Session two was a hands-on experience using a homebuilt wind tunnel where the cadets would fly a stationary RC airplane with a fan blowing at it.
Session three was an introduction to model building in which cadets built the AMA Delta Dart models and then flew them at their indoor facility. During session four, the club provided five Real Flight simulator stations to simulate what RC flying would be like.
Session five was the AMA Take off And Grow (TAG) program the club field. Parents and CAP members were invited to fly utilizing several buddy boxes. The club provided hamburgers, hot dogs, and drinks. Several demo flights were flown by experienced fliers to get the students even more excited about modeling.
Although it seemed like a lot of work at the time, the club members agreed that seeing cadets successfully flying an RC airplane for the first time made it worth the effort.
The Greater Pittsburgh ARCS, AMA Chapter 511, of Pittsburgh, hosted a Boy Scout Day at the K. Leroy Irvis model airport. Scouts from troop 365 in the Pittsburgh area came out to the field and received stick time and a hot dog lunch.
Instructors from the ARCS included Paul Rebres, Doug Snider, John Smith, Joe Jackson, and Herb Fletcher. The Scouts flew Kadets, Quakers, and the Advance 25 from eFlite. The ARCS hosted another Boy Scout Day in July as well as providing flight demonstrations in October for the Boy Scout Camporee.
The Flying Wing Nutz of Saint Marys, West Virginia, hosted a day of fun and flying. The purpose of the day was to expose young people to the joy of the RC. Club president, Jim Andrews, stated that the crowd was much larger than expected. “We invited the local Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts, and I guess the word just spread.”
Club members spent the day teaching both the young and old on buddy boxes. One mother of a Cub Scout joined in the fun by taking a turn on the buddy box. She said, “I can’t believe how nervous I was. My heart was really pounding. What a rush!”
The club provided hot dogs and hamburgers and experienced modelers performed several demonstrations to entertain the crowd.
These events provided positive exposure to model aviation. I assure you that the cadets, Scouts, and adults who experienced their first time flying RC will never forget it and will tell many more about their experience. This kind of activity will help our hobby grow in the future. I encourage your club to give it a try.
Until next month, go fly and have fun![donkeykong]
