38 MODEL AVIATION
■ Rich and Kaitlin Lopez
and Todd Ryan
AT AGE 16, I, the daughter of avid Control Line (CL) Combat
flier and journalist Rich von Lopez, set out for the 2002 Control
Line World Championships in Sebnitz, Germany, July 14-22, for
my first time as a member of the press.
I went to the World Championships in Sweden in 1996, but I
don’t remember much except that they had really good meatballs; I
was only 10 at the time. And although I went to the World
Championships in France two years ago, I conveniently blocked
most of my rain-soaked memories of this trip and decided that it
wouldn’t happen again. I was right. The 2002 World
Championships illustrated how enjoyable and relatively painless an
event such as this can be.
Many of the American team members and supporters arrived in
Germany under the watchful, helpful gaze of Team Manager Bill
Lee, and preparation for the contest began. Pilots practiced, and
models were checked, flown, and rechecked to make sure
everything would run smoothly during the competition. The
excitement was building in anticipation of this world-class event—
especially among the Combat fliers and their faithful supporters,
who were ready to see an American flier take first place.
The entire town of Sebnitz was present for the opening
ceremonies because an event such as this doesn’t happen very
often. It is stirring to see the competitors march in procession. A
special stage was built for the ceremonies, and there were
speeches, music, and dancing.
The shops around the town square were open and bustling, and
the scene was full of life. The smell of sausages was in the air.
Booths filled with all sorts of goodies were set up around the
perimeter, including a beer stand. Most of the competitors took
advantage of that one! The people of Sebnitz brought out their
official flower-girl mascot, who handed out carefully designed
artificial flowers.
Mike Willcox
heads up a great
team effort by
US CL fliers
in Germany
03sig2.QXD 12.19.02 2:53 pm Page 38
Mike Willcox (L) fights it out with Russian Boris Faizov in the
F2D finals. Mike was victorious to become World Champion.
Junior US F2B team member Robert Gruber (R) talks with the
German television crew. Rob was an excellent ambassador for us.
Above: Two-time World Champion Bill Werwage
captured F2B Bronze with stunning P-47
Thunderbolt. Has PA .61 with Aeropipe pipe.
Left: David Fitzgerald’s Star Gazer is veteran of two
World Championships. It features PA .61 with Brian
Eather pipe and propeller.
Upper left: Rob Gruber’s Randy Smith-designed
Dreadnought captured Junior-class Silver in F2B.
Has PA .61 with Aeropipe carbon pipe.
March 2003 39
03sig2.QXD 12.19.02 2:54 pm Page 39
40 MODEL AVIATION
Todd Lee—shown with his supportive wife Amy—placed 15th in F2B with his O.S. .46
SF-powered P-51 original. This was Todd’s first World Championships.
The victorious
Chinese Stunt
team (L-R): Anlin
Niu, Han Xinping
(World Champion),
and Zhang Wei.
They have colorful
models!
The United States CL team marches into the Sebnitz town square during
the opening ceremonies. It was a proud moment!
After an 18-year absence, Team Mexico returned to the World
Champs. Federico Quezada and Leonardo Silva competed.
Photos by Rich and Kaitlin Lopez and Todd Ryan except as noted Graphic Design by Carla Kunz
03sig2.QXD 1.6.03 8:41 am Page 40
March 2003 41
New Combat World Champ Mike Willcox in action against
Pavel Kucera of the Czech Republic, who tied for fourth place.
The model that F2B World Champion Han Xinping flew is of moderate
size (approximately 650 square inches) and is light!
Don Cranfill (L) does battle with veteran Combat flier Loet
Wakkerman of the Netherlands. This event was actionpacked.
Lenard Ascher pits for his teammate and son Aaron in
F2C. This experienced team finished a competitive 10th.
Brazilian Bene Rodrigues—longtime friend and US team favorite—flew
a beautiful rendition of Al Rabe’s P-51D Mustang in F2B.
The waiting lines for F2B practice
are always long at a World
Championships. Some beautiful
models were present.
rld
03sig2.QXD 12.19.02 2:57 pm Page 41
Tommy Brown (L) and Billy Hughes stage
Junior Krystal King’s model for
competition. She finished in sixth place.
42 MODEL AVIATION
Dick Lambert prepares the Lambert/Fluker-team F2C model for competition. Dick is well
known for his outstanding craftsmanship.
Aaron Ascher does some one-up
practicing. Pilot technique is extremely
important in the Team Race event.
Stewart Willoughby (L) battles with Heiner
Borer of Switzerland (partially hidden) in
F2C. Johnson photo.
Junior contestant Krystal King with her family. They worked through equipment
problems which burdened Krystal throughout the contest. Johnson photo.
Jim Booker took Will Naemura’s place in
F2A and helped the US team to a fourthplace
finish. Charlie Johnson photo.
03sig2.QXD 12.19.02 2:58 pm Page 42
March 2003 45
Competitors mingled with townspeople,
and the mix of languages added to the festive
atmosphere. Many attendees saw recognizable
faces, renewed friendships, and made new
friends. The Americans and British exchanged
friendly competitive digs, including making a
bet about which of the two countries would do
better during the meet. The winnings would
be a round of beer. These festivities were a
fitting start to the competition.
During the competition we went back and
forth between the main field and the Combat
field so we could catch Combat—Fédération
Aéronautique Internationale class F2D—and
Precision Aerobatics, or Stunt—class F2B.
The organizers provided the spectators
with portable stands downwind of the main
circle. This gave them a good view of the
action. To keep the spectators informed, there
was a mini information kiosk with a listing of
each match’s results. Many officials helped
keep the competition moving along.
The Stunt models looked amazing. I
instantly felt sympathy for the Stunt fliers,
who often had to fly when a wind kicked up,
which made it more difficult to fly without
twitching. The American competitors did
exceptionally well considering the
circumstances.
The Combat fliers were ready to go. All
the practice may seem dull, but the official
Combat matches tend to be exciting. The four
American competitors started out enthusiastic
and finished in the same manner. It came
down to a finish that brought us to our feet
cheering, and it meant that “The Star
Spangled Banner” was played for the first
time in 20 years at a World Championships!
The banquet that closed the competition
was a grand occasion. Everyone was dressed
in his or her best attire and ready to party after
a long, hard competition. Food and drink,
mixed with mingling and dancing, made a
fitting end to a well-run competition. Many
competitors use this occasion to trade T-shirts,
hats, pins, and stickers with anyone who has
something interesting. This is also a fun photo
opportunity. All good things must come to an
end, but memories from the competition will
last forever.
F2D: With 86, this event had the largest
number of entries at any World
Championships. The US team—Don Cranfill,
Rich Tupper, Mike Willcox, and Junior Nick
Mears—were well prepared with plenty of
models and top-of-the-line engines. Don used
Foras, Rich preferred the Redko, Mike had
strong Zorros, and Nick sported AKMs.
This class included five female pilots.
Monique Wakkerman of the Netherlands is
a regular around the European circuits.
Laura Leino of Finland has one of the top
engine people in the world—Jari Valo—as
a mechanic. Making appearances for the
first time at a World Championships were
Svetlana Bolshakova of Russia and
Juniors Olga Soshnina of Ukraine and
Anja Möbius of Germany.
No equipment was used that we had not
seen before. The models had the same paperwrapped
leading edge with wooden ribs and
metal mounts, and there were no new engines
that would cause you to want to sell
everything and buy them. One of the most
popular models in the US is the Andrei
Belaiev design, and they were plentiful at this
competition. Andrei was part of Team Russia
at this contest. There were only a few all-foam
models.
Round One had 43 matches and five
rematches. First-time US representative Rich
Tupper was the first American to fly, and he
took it on the chin at the hands of Robert
Liber of Belgium. Mike Willcox gave Junior
Mikael Sjölund of Sweden his first loss. Nick
Mears drew Rik Olijve of the Netherlands and
came up short in his World Championships
debut.
This was the first World Championships
for Don Cranfill, but he had qualified for a
previous US team. He earned a victory over
Ladislav Marek of the Czech Republic.
There were four Americans who lent
their services to foreign teams. Pat Willcox
worked for New Zealand pilots Adrian
Wellington and Bryce Gibson, Chuck
Rudner and Rich Lopez went to work for
Federico Quezada and Leonardo Silva of
Team Mexico, and Marshall Busby went
to work for an Argentine Junior named
Patricio Nadig.
Individual Standings
F2D
1. Mike Willcox (US)
2. Boris Faizov (Russia)
3. Volodymyr Vesich
(Ukraine)
F2B
1. Han Xinping (China)
2. Jiri Vejmola (Czech
Republic)
3. Bill Werwage (US)
F2A
1. Lluis Parramon (Spain)
2. Peter Halman (Great
Britain)
3. Ken Morrissey (Great
Britain)
F2C
1. Yuriy
Bondarenko/Semen
Lerner (Ukraine)
2. Yuri Shabashov/Serguei
Moskalev (Russia)
3. Thierry Ougen/Roland
Surugue (France)
Team Standings
F2D
1. US
2. Russia
3. Belarus
F2B
1. China
2. France
3. US
F2A
1. United Kingdom
2. Russia
3. France
F2C
1. Russia
2. France
3. Spain
Junior Standings
F2D
1. Cesar Picardo (Spain)
2. Mikael Sjölund (Sweden)
3. Alexandre Belov
(Russia)
F2B
1. Li Wen (China)
2. Robert Gruber (US)
3. Richard Kornmeier
(Germany)
F2A
1. Hugh Simons
(Australia)
2. Matthew Hart (United
Kingdom)
3. Renè Birnstein
(Germany)
F2C
1. Alvin Tan Kheng
Siang/Nur Izzad B.Noor
Ghani (Singapore)
Complete results can be
viewed at www.sebnitz-
2002.de/HauptseiteWMeng
lisch.htm.
2002 Control Line World Championships Results
03sig2.QXD 12.19.02 2:59 pm Page 45
Only Monique Wakkerman and Olga
Soshnina posted wins for the ladies. The
2000 World Champion, Stanislav Chorny of
Ukraine, took a loss from German Johann
Schwarz.
In Round Two there was another 43
matches and seven rematches. Nick Mears
drew French pilot Xavier Riera I Romagosa
and took another loss, putting him out of the
competition. Rich Tupper got a win when
Sven de Ridder of the Netherlands was
disqualified for an infraction of the rules.
Mike Willcox had to fly Christian Pedersen
of Denmark twice before he posted his
second win.
Don Cranfill, flying against Czech
Lubomir Slezak, continued posting wins.
Anja Möbius also posted a win. Stanislav
Chorny would not repeat as World
Champion after taking his second loss at the
hands of Lithuanian Audrius Rastenis.
Marshall Busby was laid off after his pilot
took his second loss.
Round Three shrank to 31 matches and
eight rematches. It took Mike Willcox three
tries to dispense with a feisty Anja Möbius.
Ching Chee Hau of Singapore sent Rich
Tupper to the showers. Don Cranfill
suffered his first loss when he flew a
vintner from Moldova: Igor Dementiev.
Monique Wakkerman earned a win and
found herself the only lady left in the
competition. Rich Lopez and Chuck Rudner
were unemployed, but Pat Willcox kept
both of his New Zealand pilots in the hunt.
By Round Four, less than half of the
original field was left with only 21
scheduled matches. There were three
rematches in this round. Don Cranfill flew
against Junior Sergiu Dementiev of
Moldova for his third win. Mike Willcox
ended Monique Wakkerman’s hopes by
taking his fourth win. At this point the everdangerous
Russian Boris Faizov was still
undefeated after his bout with Volodymyr
Vesich of Ukraine.
Round Five had 13 matches and three
rematches. Don Cranfill beat Canadian Ivan
Mackenzie in the refly. Mike Willcox beat
Ole Bjerager of Sweden. By this time in the
competition the Junior ranks had been
thinned out, and Spaniard Cesar Picardo
looked as competent as any of the Senior
pilots. Igor Zholnerkevich of Belarus, Loet
Wakkerman of the Netherlands, Andrei
Belaiev, and Johann Schwarz were still
flying well.
In Round Six there were 17 pilots left.
Mike Willcox gave Boris Faizov his first
loss. Don Cranfill flew Loet Wakkerman
three times before he could post a win. Tie
scores caused the rematches. Pat Willcox
was still pitting for Bryce Gibson, who had
just dashed Cesar Picardo’s hopes.
In Round Seven, six matches were
scheduled. Mike Willcox beat Igor
Dementiev for his seventh win. Bryce
Gibson ended Don Cranfill’s excellent run
after two rematches. The difference was a
40-point penalty for stepping out of the
circle. At the end of this round, only six
pilots were left: Mike Willcox, Pavel
Kucera (Czech Republic), Bryce Gibson,
Volodymyr Vesich, Boris Faizov, and Igor
Zholnerkevich.
In the three matches of Round Eight,
Mike Willcox beat Pavel Kucera to obtain
the only undefeated scorecard—8-0.
Volodymyr Vesich beat Bryce Gibson and
sent Pat Willcox to the spectators’ stands to
cheer on his son Mike. Boris Faizov
disposed of former fellow Russian pilot
Igor Zholnerkevich. Boris and Volodymyr
were sitting with 7-1 records.
The Juniors sorted out their final
standings before the Seniors took center
stage. Cesar Picardo was the new Junior
World Champion. Mikael Sjölund of
Sweden was second, and Russian Alexandre
Belov was third.
Mike Willcox drew Volodymyr Vesich
in the first of the final rounds. Volodymyr
was in a desperate situation, behind on
points with no way of making them up. He
took a chance on attacking Mike’s model
without a streamer. Volodymyr hit the
model, which is against the rules, and he
was promptly disqualified. This left Mike to
do battle with the only remaining pilot:
Boris Faizov.
This was a battle of Zorros versus AKM.
Boris had Mikel Zorlov, the AKM engine
builder, and former World Champion Slava
Belaiev as his pit crew. Mike had been well
served by his pit crew of former Junior
46 MODEL AVIATION
03sig2.QXD 12.19.02 2:59 pm Page 46
World Champion Mark Rudner and former
Soviet citizen Andrew Nadien. In the bout
with Boris, Mike took his first loss but was
still alive; the task for Boris was to beat
him twice. The stage was set for the real
final with each pilot with one loss and the
championship at stake.
Mike took a cut early and never looked
back. All of that practice at Whittier
Narrows in Southern California paid off.
He was the new Combat champion of the
world. The only other US Combat World
Champion—Tom Fluker—was on hand to
cheer and applaud Mike.
In the final team standings the US was
first, Russia was second, and Belarus was
third.
F2B: Stunt has to be one of the most
difficult events to win at a World
Championships. A competitor has to fly a
perfect pattern and hope that the judges
like it. There is an element of subjectivity
that sets Stunt apart from Speed, Team
Race, or Combat. Team Race—with that
calling of fouls on pilots—and Combat—
with clear cuts being missed and invisible
ones being counted—have an element of
subjectivity, but not for the entire flight.
The judges in Sebnitz worked long and
hard to eliminate wide gaps in scoring and
tried their best to be impartial.
The element of luck can also strike
positively or negatively on even the most
well-prepared competitor. The site at the
main venue in Sebnitz was surrounded by
tall evergreen trees and located in what I
would describe as a minivalley. The main
circle was subjected to irregular and
turbulent winds coming off the trees. Some
pilots were lucky and flew during calm
moments. Others were not so lucky and had
to fly when the barrier tape was stretched
and bent to such an extent that the rattle
could be heard several circles away.
This uncontrollable element played an
important part in the final finishing order.
Competitors who knew they could fly
straight and level without a bobble would
see their models buffet and twitch in the
wind.
The US fielded a competent, wellpracticed
team that included two-time
World Champion Bill Werwage, former
Silver Medalist David Fitzgerald, and firsttimers
Todd Lee and Junior Robert Gruber.
One of the obstacles in traveling to any
competition is just getting the models to the
contest. The second obstacle is having the
proper fuel. Team Manager Bill Lee and
Assistant Team Manager Keith Trostle
worked tirelessly to make certain that
everyone’s fuel was in Germany waiting
for them. There were a couple of glitches
that caused extra stress.
Early in the week tragedy befell David
Fitzgerald when his model hit a fence on a
practice flight, causing extensive damage to
the outboard wingtip and panels. He spent
frantic hours in the Sebnitz model
clubhouse making repairs. He was able to
fix his model and continue in the
competition.
Local television news camera crews and
reporters were present to ask questions and
interview competitors. Robert Gruber was
asked about his model and how he got
involved in flying. This will give him
something to talk about with his highschool
friends back home.
F2B had 86 total entries, 12 of which
were Juniors. All the pilots flew qualifying
rounds during the first part of the week to
get to the final 15 competitors, who flew
three rounds. The two highest scores were
combined to obtain the final scores.
David Fitzgerald, Todd Lee, and Bill
Werwage made it to the finals, as did the
Chinese team: Han Xinping, Zhang Wei,
and Anlin Niu. France also sent three pilots
to the finals: Rémi Beringer, Serge
Delabarde, and Gilbert Beringer. Team
Slovakia sent Alexander Schrek and Igor
Burger to seek podium positions. Jiri
Vejmola represented the Czech Republic,
and Hiromi Ohata was Japan’s sole
representative. Alberto Maggi represented
Italy, and Yuriy Yatsenko of Ukraine
reached the finals.
Han Xinping used a SuperTigre .60 to
claim the World Championships for
himself and China. Czech pilot Jiri
Vejmola used a piped Jett .60 engine on his
run to second place. Bill Werwage put the
Hughes RC 1-800-786-0802 www.hughesrc.com
The CHARGE+ glow start charger
makes your pocket glow starter
as good as your power panel.
Charges at 1.6A, yet takes only
600mA from your field battery.
Use at home with AC adapter.
Peaks at highest voltage.
Rejuvenates older depressed
batteries. Get full details at our
website, or call toll-free.
12 ft., 37 lb. Cub, Col. M., Bossier City, LA
CHARGE+ the GRANDSTAND
The GRANDSTAND is great for
.60 size to 40% scale. Made of
HEAVY-DUTY PVC, it is strong,
lightweight and folds for easy
storage and transport. Why pay
more for heavy, old fashioned
stands? See it in action on our
website.
The BATTERY TENDER,
Jr. keeps your 12 volt
gel cell or lead acid field
battery topped off with
microprocessor
controlled float charge
system. Plug it in and
leave it. No more
guessing and no more
down batteries.
Increases battery life too.
Full technical
specifications at our
website.
ONLY $39 95_
ONLY $3995
+S&H
ONLY $4995
+S&H
BATTERY TENDER Jr.
Continued on page 55
US colors on the podium with third place.
Bill used a piped PA .61 to power his
beautiful P-47 Thunderbolt.
All of the French pilots used Saito 56
engines. The two other Team China pilots
used Retro .60s, as did the Ukrainian pilot.
David Fitzgerald used a PA .61 with a pipe
for his 14th-place finish. Todd Lee used an
O.S. .46 SF to power his P-51 Mustang to
15th place.
Li Wen of China won the Junior World
Champion title. Only three points behind
was US Junior Robert Gruber. Richard
Kornmeier of Germany was third.
The team prizes were awarded as
follows: China, first; France, second; US,
third.
Rich and Kaitlin Lopez
8334 Colegio Dr.
Los Angeles CA 90045
F2A: The US Speed team comprised
members who have been on it many times,
including Tommy Brown, Billy Hughes,
and Will Naemura. Will had to withdraw a
few weeks before the event, allowing
alternate member Jim Booker to take the
vacant position.
Tommy Brown used his familiar
Halman Special Irvine equipment. Bill
Hughes used his nicely painted stars-andstripes-
covered, Profi-powered airplane
along with a Mejzlik carbon-fiber
prototype model. Jim Booker used the
newest-generation Profi models he
obtained only a few weeks prior to the
competition. Junior Krystal King filled out
the US team with her Halman Specialpowered
airplanes.
The weather in Round One was less
than desirable, with calculated available
horsepower as low as 90% at times. This
proved troublesome for many competitors,
but all US team members posted times.
Tommy Brown had a 174.59 mph flight, to
be slightly edged out by Billy Hughes with
174.77 mph. Jimmy Booker followed up
with a 171.36 mph to round out the open
entries. In the Junior class, Krystal King
posted her fastest flight of the contest with
a respectable 161.57 mph.
These times seemed slightly slower than
expected for world-level competition, and
many pilots were worried that they
wouldn’t hold up. However, the times were
very good considering the weather
conditions, and they put the US team in
second place overall at the end of the
round.
After adjustments were made, Round
Two began. Tommy Brown made an
incredible improvement in his time and
posted a good 176.57 mph. Just from
watching Tommy, one can see his complete
comfort and control while flying.
Billy Hughes posted a time just slightly
slower than in the first round, and Jim
Booker had an incident during his flight
March 2003 55
which caused his model to contact the
ground. This vaporized the propeller but
only caused minor cosmetic damage to the
model. His backup flight later in the day
was down considerably and resulted in a
164.79 mph posting.
Krystal King posted a flight at 159.46
mph to finish the US entries. Her flying
skills have improved greatly in the past
years, and her times have become
considerably more consistent with her
family’s help.
The highlight of Round Two was when
three-time World Champion Lluis
Parramon broke the world record at an
unbelievable 187.67 mph. The cage around
the circle was at least three-people deep,
and the applause was incredible.
At the end of the round the US team had
moved to fourth place overall, and the next
day was set aside for either a tour of nearby
Dresden or a full day of practice. Most of
the US team members opted for practice,
and the atmosphere had become more
pleasant; the break was greatly appreciated.
Flights were made and communication was
considerably better than earlier in the week.
The day was spent visiting with all of the
competitors from around the world.
Everyone seemed to have a great time, and
many friendships were established.
The third and final round began with a
Continued from page 48
CL Championships
03sig2.QXD 12.19.02 3:00 pm Page 55
March 2003 57
surprising twist; the rain came down in
traditional monsoon fashion, and the sight
of people scattering for shelter was
somewhat comical. After the initial flood,
flying resumed and approximately 70% of
the competitors used their flights as
attempts, hoping for better conditions later
in the day during reflights. This resulted in
a tremendously long day for competitors
and observers.
Billy Hughes improved his position by
posting his fastest flight of the
competition: a good 175.77 mph time to
position him 18th overall. Tommy Brown
showed consistency with a time of 176.39
mph but didn’t improve his second-round
score of 176.57 mph, thus securing 15th
place overall.
Jim Booker had a hard time with his
third-round attempt because of a failed
glow plug. His pit crew identified the
problem and quickly changed plugs, but
then the starting equipment failed, giving
him a no-score for the final round.
Jimmy’s first-round time of 171.36 mph
gave him the 30th overall position.
The combined scores of the three
competitors gave the US team an overall
placing of fourth.
Tremendous equipment problems
plagued Junior competitor Krystal King
throughout the competition and resulted in
what I am to understand as the demise of
at least five engines. With an intense
struggle by Krystal’s family, she produced
a third-round flight of 143.71 mph, which
was down tremendously from her firstround
score of 161.57 mph. She finished
sixth in the Junior standings, completing
competition for the US team.
F2C: Representing the US in Team Race
were three veteran teams with incredible
experience and different approaches to the
competition. The first team—pilot Tommy
Fluker and longtime team member Dick
Lambert—used their own models that
Dick built with a newly designed bar-stock
engine conceived through the work of
Dick and Wayne Trivin.
The second US team consisted of
veterans Stewart Willoughby and quickhanded
pitman Bob Oge. This pair used its
own-built, Mazniak-powered models.
The third-place qualifier was this year’s
deep-pockets racing team, consisting of
pilot Aaron Ascher and pitman Lenard
Ascher. This team opted to acquire
completely different equipment from what
was seen at last year’s Team Trials. The
newly purchased Surayev models and
engines gave the pair plenty of ammo for
the competition.
Round One proved the most consistent
for the US, with all three teams posting
official times. Ascher/Ascher had the
fastest US time with a good 3:24.
Following this performance, Tommy
Fluker had to work tremendously hard in
the circle to achieve a time of 3:43; Dick
Lambert provided quick stops. Rounding
out the day’s competition was
Willoughby/Oge at a respectable 3:46; that
team had to deal with some restarting
issues.
It was great to see the three teams
working as a single unit when it came to
competing. While one team was flying, a
member of the other team would provide a
watchful eye for incoming traffic and other
possible problems.
Round Two was the next day. The teams
were confident in their abilities after the
morning practice. The Aschers solved their
restarting problems by adjusting their
model’s priming mechanism. By reducing
the amount of prime delivered to the engine
during pitting, the system changed from a
four-flip pit to a single-flip restart, giving
them the window to improve their time
from Round One.
The Aschers’ race looked promising
with a good start, one-flip first pit, and
good airspeed. The second pit ended the
hopes of a good time when the lines
dragged on the ground during landing,
which raised the wingtip and caused a
missed catch.
Willoughby/Oge had a slightly faster
race than in Round One, but continued
restart problems plagued the pair’s
performance. The team posted an official
3:45 time. Team Fluker/Lambert worked
diligently on its problems and improved its
03sig2.QXD 12.19.02 3:00 pm Page 57
March 2003 59
placing considerably to post a good 3:27 to
end the day.
The next day was the scheduled tour of
Dresden and a day off for the F2C
participants. This allowed an open practice
field for the day and a chance to debug
anything that was needed. Team
Willoughby/Oge members felt that they
had their problems worked out, so they
chose to go on the trip. They reported that
those who went had a wonderful time, and
a much-needed break from competition
served them well. Teams Fluker/Lambert
and Ascher/Ascher spent the day at the
practice circle working out problems and
getting their programs together.
The next day provided highs and lows
for the US team. Round Three began with
a strange twist when Fluker/Lambert was
disqualified for having lines that were
.00025-inch undersize. This was
immediately protested, and a second
measurement was requested with a
different instrument. The protest was
denied, and the team had to settle with its
previous time of 3:27, for a 24th overall
placing.
Ascher/Ascher spent the morning
tuning in at the practice circle in
preparation for the final chance to make
the semifinals. This practice paid off with
a tremendous 3:16 time, which
simultaneously secured the team’s position
in the semifinals and broke the US heat
record.
Willoughby/Oge began its Round
Three flight and was on a great pace. The
team had solved its restart problems and
looked promising. Disaster struck on the
second pit when the model was launched
while another competitor’s was landing.
The lines were tangled with the other
model, and the Willoughby/Oge airplane
crashed after two laps of uncontrolled
flight. The impact was so great that the
fuselage sheared off at the leading edge,
sending parts and pieces through the
fenced area.
After sometime, all pieces were found
and returned to the team. The
entanglement resulted in a disqualification,
and Willoughby/Oge had to settle for 37th
place.
The semifinals began the next day, and
Ascher/Ascher worked hard to improve its
performance. The first semifinal proved to
be a rough flight; pilots were battling it out
for position and Aaron received three
penalties, ending the round.
The second semifinal gave the Aschers
their last chance to improve their position.
They began the race with a great start and
were comparable to the other two teams in
airspeed. After the first pit stop, it became
apparent that the French team, which had
already qualified for the finals during
Round One of the semifinals, was
providing a tough scenario for the other
two pilots in the circle. It used its penalties
to impede the other members in the circle
by blocking and getting in the way
whenever possible.
The Aschers battled with the French the
entire flight until the jury disqualified the
French team for these violations. Through
all their efforts the Aschers had to settle
for a 3:26 time, securing them an overall
position of 10th.
The US team attained the position of
seventh place overall. Thank you guys for
all your hard work and dedication during
the 2002 World Championships.
The finals were a glorious sight; the
competition was extremely close. The
three qualifiers were teams from France,
Russia, and Ukraine. When the finals
began, the French team was considerably
faster than the other two because it had
gotten its engine too hot during the initial
warm-up. This resulted in the need to
quench its engine with water during the
first pit stop.
The other two teams appeared to be
close in airspeed, but the Ukrainians were
using a new multifunction valve that
provided them with an amazing 1.5
seconds of hands-on time during pit stops.
The finals were extremely consistent for all
teams, and the Ukrainian pair of Yuriy
Bondarenko/Semen Lerner proved superior
and won with a 6:31.80. The Russian team
of Yuri Shabashov/Serguei Moskalev
finished second with a close 6:35.50, and
the French team of Thierry Ougen/Roland
Surugue finished third with a 6:47.60. MA
Todd Ryan
03sig2.QXD 12.19.02 3:00 pm Page 59