Clover Creek Invitational
by Joe Cutright
Overview
Sixteen international aerobatic pilots competed for bragging rights and a big check at the Clover Creek Invitational, held in Toone, Tennessee. Judges and pilots hailed from the Netherlands, Norway, Canada, France, Italy, Austria, Puerto Rico, Australia, and across the United States. The $20,000 first-place prize drew an accomplished field of competitors.
Weather and schedule changes
Approximately a week before the 2012 Clover Creek Invitational, pilots began arriving to clear skies and light winds. However, Hurricane Isaac moving into the Gulf Coast threatened the event. By Wednesday afternoon, forecasters predicted a 40% chance of rain on the opening day and a washout for the remainder of the event. With only a few hours until the pilots' meeting, event staff revised the schedule.
Pilots were instructed to arrive at the flying field and be ready to fly at 7 a.m. The meeting concluded with the drawing for flight order and distribution of the Unknown A maneuvers.
Thursday morning the invitational started on time. A few times flying was paused to let mild showers pass, but 96 flights were logged and flying finished at 7:05 p.m. The Thursday flights included four single-sequence Known A rounds, an Unknown A sequence, and a Freestyle round. The pilots poured every ounce of energy into their flying, knowing it could be the only day they would get.
Friday's forecast called for a 70% chance of rain, but the rest of the weekend remained on the original schedule. Friday's flying included Unknown B, a Known B single sequence, Freestyle number two, and another Known B single sequence. The pilots completed all scheduled flying on Friday and Saturday. Saturday's flying ended with a fantastic sunset, and attendees left to prepare for the 6:30 p.m. banquet.
Volunteers, banquet, and video
Food for volunteers, event staff, and judges was prepared by Tina Schroder, Pam Moser, and Cheryl Jorgenson; they provided meals every day and night throughout the week.
During the banquet, attendees viewed a 25-minute video compiled by a family friend of French pilot Nicolas Detry, featuring footage from the first three days of competition. CD Joe Cutright acknowledged the volunteers by calling them up individually to choose prizes graciously donated by sponsors, and he thanked the event staff and judges.
Finalists announced
The primary purpose of the banquet was to announce the top 10 finalists who would compete on Sunday, the final day of competition. With such talented pilots in the line-up, it was difficult to name those who placed 11th through 16th—all were accomplished competitors.
Gernot Bruckmann was announced as the first-place qualifier after three days of competition, finishing with a perfect raw score and more than 500 points ahead of second place.
Top 10 pilots advancing to Sunday:
- Gernot Bruckmann
- Jason Shulman
- David Moser
- Nicolas Pinzon
- Kurt Koelling
- Frank Noll Jr.
- Nicolas Detry
- Gabriel Altuz Jr.
- Matthew Stringer
- Will Berninger
Finals (Sunday)
On Sunday the finalists started anew. Each flew two single-sequence rounds of Known C, Unknown D and E, and two Freestyle rounds, with each pilot keeping his best score in each category. If a tie had occurred on the final day, judges would have referred back to Saturday's final standings to determine the winner.
The Sunday forecast predicted no chance of rain—incorrectly. There were light sprinkles in the morning and the wind picked up for a while, but by day's end the sun was shining and the flying was spectacular.
Several pilots sustained aircraft damage: Nicolas Detry's aircraft had structural damage that prevented him from finishing the contest; David Moser's aircraft was damaged early in his last Known sequence but he continued to finish; and Kurt Koelling crashed his Freestyle airplane in an adjacent bean field during his last flight, sustaining only minor damage and expected repairs.
Gernot Bruckmann delivered well-choreographed Freestyle routines and performed consistently. Gabriel Altuz, the last Freestyle pilot, put on a memorable show and won that round.
Results
All pilots gave everything they had and were mentally exhausted by the end of the competition. With scores tallied, final standings were:
- Gernot Bruckmann — winner (29 points ahead of second)
- David Moser
- Kurt Koelling
- Nicolas Pinzon
- Jason Shulman
- Gabriel Altuz Jr.
- Matthew Stringer
- Will Berninger
- Nicolas Detry
- Frank Noll Jr.
Conclusion and thanks
The 2012 Clover Creek Invitational was a success. Debuting in 2008, the Clover Creek event is known worldwide. Thank you to all who attended and made this event what it was.
—Joe Cutright [email protected]
Sources
- Clover Creek Aerodrome — www.clovercreekaerodrome.net
- Higher Plane Productions — http://higherplaneproductions.com
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
