January 2009 193
HAPPY NEW YEAR! 2008 was a
wonderful, exciting, and very busy year for
the Smiths! It seemed as though every
weekend was booked with traveling to
various flying events, and 2009 promises to
be even more exciting!
We continue to have much going on
around the district and the following are a
few of the events that were submitted.
Hutch Bunch friend Jim Harris, from
Hutchinson, Kansas, sent in this report:
“Every summer the Kansas Cosmosphere
and Space Center holds an aviation camp for
high school students. The students come
from all across the United States and other
countries. Among the many events, students
get some experience on several RC aircraft
simulators located at the Cosmosphere.
“The Hutch Bunch RC club participates
by inviting the students to the flying field for
demonstrations and some hands-on, buddybox
flying. High winds put a damper on this
year’s event, but the students got a good look
at the equipment and saw that these models
will still fly in 30- to 35-mph winds. They
enjoyed their visit despite the weather.”
Kansas Cosmosphere aviation camp
attendees.
As many of you know, associate vice
president (AVP) Jim Wallen and I made a 9-
day trip around the district meeting, flying
and chewing the fat with 12 clubs, covering
five states, and more than 2,300 miles!
Rather than write about the whole trip for
your reading enjoyment, I plan to interject
portions of our journey during the next few
months, starting with our last day on the
road. We traveled from Lincoln to Omaha,
Nebraska, to fly in the morning with several
of the Omahawks.
One really cool thing at the field was
club member Joe Cole who flew a rather
large autogyro: DAG-R1. I have two
different autogyros and believe me, neither
of mine fly like his. I asked Joe for a brief
overview to share with you.
“The DAG-R1 is becoming popular to
the scratch builder. It is a wonderful flying
autogyro, can be flown in tight areas, and
has the look and feel of a 30s-styled bird. It
is the perfect first-time autogyro for the
experienced pilot.
“The build is straight forward and the
plans were very easy to follow. Most of the
body is made from 1/4-balsa sticks and went
together in less than a week. It flies easily
with a 40LA but I converted mine to electric.
“For more information you can go to the
following http://home.att.net/~imsofaman/
wba.htm or do a search on the internet for
DAG autogyro.”
DAG-R1 Autogyro.
I have several good friends from the
Wichita, Kansas, area and always enjoy
attending the Wichita Radio Control Club’s
(WRCC) auction. Fred Harvey, WRCC
auction chairman, submitted the following:
“The 2009 auction will be on Saturday,
February 7, beginning at 8 a.m. Once again, it
will be at the 4-H building on the corner of
21st North and Ridge Road. If people desire
more information or to get forms to
preregister as sellers, go to www.flywrcc.
org. Alternatively, they can send me an Email
at [email protected]
and I will help them out.
“I think that events like this are as much
about socializing as they are about buying
things. There are guys that I like very much
but I only get to see them a few times a year
at big RC events.”
As many of you know, I support the Pro
Bros because they certainly have fun and
represent a younger crowd of modelers. I
was unable to attend the only Kansas Pro
Bro event, but brother Troy Hamm sent me
the following report:
“The Franklin County Flyers of
Wellsville Kansas, hosted the South Kansas
City Pro Bro 3-D event on September 5-6.
There were 25 registered fliers and over 40
spectators in attendance. Pilots came from
places as far away as Springfield, Missouri,
Lake of the Ozarks, and Fulton, Missouri.
“They flew from 8 a.m. until dark and
then flew foamies under portable lights until
well into the night. The Franklin County
Flyers did a wonder full job hosting the
event and everyone had a great time. The
event was topped off by a catered barbecue
supper on Saturday evening.”
Above: Tanner
Nakonechny, age
10, was the
youngest flier
present.
Above: Daniel
Smith from
Eldon, Missouri.
Left: Mark
Custard from
Fulton, Missouri.
Thanks again for all the support from
around the district and let’s make 2009 even
better! Have fun! Mark
Mark Smith
Vice President
14632 W. 50th St.,
Shawnee KS 66216
Tel.: (913) 248-9191
www.amadistrict-ix.org
Associate Vice
Presidents
Fred Hildebrand, Casper WY;
[email protected]
Troy Lapp, Bismarck ND;
[email protected]
Ward Neesen, Omaha NE
[email protected]
Brenda Schuette, Auburn KS;
[email protected]
Mike Tallman, Wichita KS;
[email protected]
Jim Tiller, Rapid City SD;
[email protected]
Jim Wallen, Arvada CO
[email protected]
Webmaster: Jim Shaw,
[email protected]
Contest Coordinator:
Mac Strader, Overland Park KS;
[email protected]
Frequency Coordinator: Steve
Mangles, Denver CO;
[email protected]
District IX Volunteers
District IX
Mark Smith, District IX Vice President; [email protected]
Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming
01amanews.qxp 11/25/2008 10:10 AM Page 193
Edition: Model Aviation - 2009/01
Page Numbers: 193