AMA News District IX - 2010/02

February 2010 161
I WANT to thank all the members in
District IX for your support, which has
allowed me to continue to represent you as
your district vice president. My focus has
been, and will continue to be, to provide a
better conduit that represents our members
concerns and interests to the Academy.
Larry Everett submitted this update on his
club’s activities.
Civil Air Patrol cadets tested their thumbs
and got exposed to RC flying!
“On October 17, the Denver RC Eagles
(DRCE) hosted the Parker Colorado wing of
the Civil Air Patrol. The club provided
ground school, buddy-box experience, and a
wealth of good will and genuine fun to
seven cadets during a four-hour period on a
gorgeous Saturday afternoon.
“Dick Hamilton (lead instructor), Larry
Everett, Frank Precopio, and Tom Bell were
the instructors during this event. The Civil
Air Patrol is always a good source for clubs
to partner with for any type of flying
activities.”
Walt Stroessner, of the Crosswinds club,
reminds us of the inherent dangers of
propellers. It seems as though every week we
hear of one of our members “going to sleep”
and sticking his hand in a propeller for some
stupid reason.
More often than not, it is not the novice
who makes this tragic mistake, it is the salty
veteran who gets lax and takes thing for
granted. Perhaps it might be a good idea for
all the Safety Officers to give a lecture to
their members. It might save a finger!
Jim Tiller, our valued associate vice
president from South Dakota, provided this
interesting article.
“The Black Hills Special Services
Cooperative (BHSSC) has provided
education and community services in
Western South Dakota for over 28 years.
One part of the BHSSC charter is to organize
and promote community education classes
that are offered, for a small tuition, to
residents of our area.
“This fall, with the help Tammy Sellars,
director of Community Education, the
Propbusters R/C Club put together a class
called Introduction to Radio Control
Airplanes as a Hobby.
“Our purpose was twofold: first was to
give some basic flying instruction; second,
and more important, was to emphasize the
wide variety of activities and interests in the
world of aeromodeling.
“Our course description read: This course
is designed to introduce you to an exciting
and open-ended hobby that millions of all
ages, around the country already enjoy—
radio controlled airplanes. In the two
classroom sessions you will participate in the
assembly of a six foot wing span RC
airplane, fly that airplane on a flight
simulator, and learn basic flight principles.
At the end of the week, there are two sessions
of individual flight instruction and flight time
at the airfield under the supervision of an
instructor pilot.
“Propbuster members Clancy Kingsbury
and Jim Tiller were the instructors for the
class. We offered two nights in the classroom
on October 19 and 21, and two flying
sessions at the field on Saturday and Sunday,
October 24 and 25. We had five students
sign up for our class.
“In the first classroom session, we
discussed basic flight principles and
terminology. We pointed the students to the
AMA Sport Aviator Web site as a
knowledge base for those just starting out.
“On the second night, we emphasized the
wide variety of interests that aeromodelers
pursue. Propbuster members did a ‘show and
tell’ of a variety of airplanes types. We
showed a few YouTube videos as well.
“Throughout the course we emphasized
the role the AMA plays in facilitating the
many facets of our exciting hobby and the
benefits of being a member.
“For the last half of both nights, we had
two activities. The class assembled an ARF
trainer that we would use in the field sessions
and we had RealFlight G4 projected on to a
screen and offered simulator instruction to
each class member.
“Due to inclement weather, we postponed
the flying sessions to October 31 and
November 1. Each student was offered
multiple flights on our newly assembled
Alpha trainer. We emphasized basic flight
maneuvers such as figure eights, takeoffs,
and landing approaches. We emphasized
flightline safety and etiquette.
“We received very positive feedback
from all the students throughout our short
course.
“The class would certainly not have been
a success without the help of all the
Propbuster members, but especially president
Doc McGuigan, secretary Ken Corrin, and
John Pondish. Our special thanks to
Propbuster member and owner of Who’s
Hobby, Clancy Kingsbury, for the donation
of materials that made our class a success.
The $70 instructor fee from the BHSSC will
go to the Propbusters.
“Of note is that the students in the class
were all at or beyond retirement age. With
our community having a large retired
population, this is not unusual, but we may
want to gear our promotion toward this
segment of our community if we offer the
class again in 2010. This should also be a
potential source of new members for our
group.”
Students Lloyd Kessel, Bob Knutson, and
John Bandel with instructor Jim Tiller (R).
Keep the sunscreen on to keep the cancer
off! Till next time.
Jim Wallen
Vice President
7322 W. 82nd Way
Arvada CO 80003
Tel.: (303) 421-9061
www.amadistrict-ix.org
Associate Vice
Presidents
Steve Culver, Omaha NE;
[email protected]
Fred Hildebrand, Casper WY;
[email protected]
Zac Heskin, Garrison ND;
[email protected]
Bruce Ream, Highlands Ranch
CO; [email protected]
Brenda Schuette, Auburn KS;
[email protected]
Mike Tallman, Wichita KS;
[email protected]
Jim Tiller, Rapid City SD;
[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
Jim Wallen, District IX Vice President; [email protected]
Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming
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