Control Line Combat
Rich Lopez
[[email protected]]
Also included in this column:
- FAI Combat "tune-up" meet
- US F2D Team Trials
- Alexander Kalinnikov's new Cyclon PC7 engine
- European Championships
Milissa Huber wins the 2005 Bladder Grabber Combat meet!
The summer of 2005 saw some interesting outcomes to some long-standing contests. I will start with the premier Fast Combat contest in the United States: the Bladder Grabber.
Many years ago some members of the Jive Combat Team of Seattle, Washington, decided it would be a good idea to have Bob Carver's stereo company sponsor a Fast Combat meet that would feature an unprecedented amount of merchandise to be given to the top-placing pilots. This is what really set the trend in triple-elimination money contests.
In 2005 Bob Carver still had a love for Combat and brought out newer and better high-end stereo components as prizes. The sad part of this year's event was that the turnout was probably the lowest in the history of the contest, with only 15 entrants.
On the positive side, it was a young lady—Milissa Huber—who won the contest in convincing fashion. When it got down to the final two contestants, she pulled it all together and beat a legend of long ago: Howard Rush.
Howard has recently been flying mostly CL Aerobatics rather than Combat. He is a retired engineer from the giant Boeing Corporation who will no doubt put a great deal of time into overengineering simple model-aircraft components. I think he has a secret desire to emulate Rube Goldberg's propensity to develop complexity in machinery. But all kidding aside, Howard is still a force to be reckoned with; he has no fear of "bellcranking" his opponent. I was one such victim at Snohomish, Washington's Harvey Field.
Milissa had no trepidation about flying against any male opponent with or without a reputation. She went into the finals needing to win twice. Her support personnel—Tom and Tim Strom, her dad, and her brother—provided strong engine runs and efficient starts all the way to the top spot.
Howard's imported California pit crew, on the other hand, was hard-pressed to keep his equipment in the air and flying.
Milissa joins the elite group of Combat pilots who have won the Bladder Grabber. I finished third, with fellow Southern Californian Darrin Albert in fourth. Rumor has it that Bob Carver is going to put up a considerable amount of cash for the 2006 Bladder Grabber. Make your plans now and be part of the action.
One reason for the low Bladder Grabber turnout could have been that there was a large FAI contest just a week before in Chicago, Illinois. Most of the serious FAI pilots needed a tune-up event before the US Combat Team Trials, and the Bladder Grabber fell between the two.
FAI Combat "tune-up" meet
Rich Tupper, a 2002 US team member, was responsible for organizing a triple-elimination competition, and 20 pilots from across the US and Canada gave it a go. Richard Stubblefield is so amazing that, at his age, he can still beat up on the younger pilots and find his way to the top spot on a consistent basis. Lou Scavone finished in second place, and Allen Deveuve was third.
It seems as though more people are interested in FAI than in the other AMA events. I would not mind seeing more FAI contests scheduled throughout the US. Perhaps we can hold the Pan-American Championships every other year. A good start would be to hold it in the US or in Canada.
US F2D Team Trials
The fliers in the Lubbock area—Bobby, Andy, and Nick Mears; Larry Driskill; Jim Mears; and Riley Wooten—had wanted to host the Team Trials in their back yard for a long time. Thirty-eight pilots obliged them by making the trip to Lubbock, which is singer Buddy Holly’s hometown and home of the Red Raiders of Texas Tech.
Preparing for this competition takes a long time. I have heard that Mike Willcox did some intensive practice flying that involved hours and hours of match after match. Mike has also made a concerted effort to fly in a number of European contests to gain every advantage possible through a careful study of flying styles and strategies. He went as far as importing an Eastern European mechanic, Alexander Prokofiev, for the Team Trials. Mike’s effort paid off; he was one of the fortunate three to make the team.
Chuck Rudner is feeling young and must have found the “Fountain of Youth.” He made his way onto the team for a fifth time. I know how Chuck practices and prepares since I am usually present when he does so. His flying-field routine consists of approximately 50% testing engines and trimming models, and the other 50% is practice matches. He also spends a great deal of time testing engines and documenting their performance levels.
Almost all of Chuck’s engine work is done in a soundproof engine-testing compartment in his garage/barn. Propeller testing and experimenting plays a big role in getting the last 100 rpm out of an engine. He also knows that a propeller with good rpm numbers on the ground may not yield the best performance in the air or when towing a streamer.
As a big contest nears, the testing and trimming time is reduced and Chuck spends more time on practice matches with a painted circle on the ground. Sometimes there is a specific technique he will work on, such as using the entire circle. Most of his practice is clean flying, and we seldom fly in line wraps or hit the other model. This happens frequently enough without trying to do it deliberately. Two weeks before the Team Trials Chuck, Darrin Albert, Greg Hill, and I flew quite a few matches with legal-length streamers to hone our skills.
The third member of the team is Andrey Nadein from the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, area. He is originally from Russia and has become a naturalized US citizen. Andrey is no stranger to the rigors of international competition; he was a key member of the pit crew that took Mike Willcox to his World Championship in Sebnitz, Germany, in 2002.
The US team should pose a formidable threat in Valladolid, Spain, in 2006. Holden Hill will be attending his second World Championships as the Junior entrant.
The first and second alternates are also keen competitors. Greg Hill is a former FAI National Champion, and Mark Rudner is a former Junior World Champion, US team member, and pit-crew member for Mike Willcox’s World Championship. I wish them well and know they will represent the US to the best of their ability.
I just received word that Mike Willcox has been back overseas in Ukraine and won a World Cup event in Novomoskovsk, where there were 52 entrants. Cary Minor of Amarillo, Texas, made the trek with him and managed a seventh-place finish. It is impressive that Mike has been able to win overseas several times to date.
Alexander Kalinnikov's new Cyclon PC7 engine
Alexander Kalinnikov has outdone himself once again by producing his latest Combat engine: the Cyclon PC7. Preliminary reports are that this engine makes good power and will be extremely competitive with anything that is currently available.
I mentioned Goran Olsson’s website—www.go-cl.se/cl.html—in the last column I wrote. There you can link to Cyclon engines.
Cyclon power plants are well engineered and machined; they are nearly works of art. I own four versions of the 15-size Combat engines, all of which run exceedingly well. They consistently start well and are easy to tune. I have yet to have a mechanical failure on one.
As with anything else that is high performance, breakage could happen to the best. With their 4 mm venturis and the limitation to 10% nitromethane fuel, these engines will give you a great deal of fun for the buck.
I mix my own fuel and am always careful to make certain there is 20% oil at all times. The rules call for castor oil in the fuel. I prefer 20% Ucon 625 or Klotz-brand synthetic oil in my practice fuel.
European Championships
The European Championships were held in Hungary in 2005, and an old friend from the United Kingdom—Mike Whinnall—was able to capture the title. Former World Champion Mervyn Jones finished third. Mervyn is also from the United Kingdom.
MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
