District IX Report - 2005/05
Leader Club Awards
Please join me in congratulating the following clubs for earning AMA Leader Club awards:
- Arvada Associated Modelers — Gold
- Beresford Aero Radio Flyers — Gold
- Jefco Aeromodelers — Gold
- Love-Air RC — Gold
- Mile High RC — Gold (2005)
- Minot Aircraft Modelers — Gold
- Hutch Bunch RC Club — Silver
What? You don't know anything about this award? Please visit the District IX Web site at www.amadistrict-ix.org for details. You can link to these clubs' Web sites from our district site! Please send them a congratulatory note!
Global Flyer — Don Moden (Salina, KS)
As reported by one of District IX's associate vice presidents, Don Moden from Salina, Kansas:
"On March 3, thousands of people packed the streets and highways leading to Salina, Kansas, hoping to see Steve Fossett set a world record. The Global Flyer made it around the world—23,000 miles—in 67 hours, 2 minutes, and 38 seconds, and made a perfect landing.
"Steve Fossett did a great job on a cold night here in Salina as he took off on the 8,000-foot runway. When the aircraft left the runway, the wings bowed from the load of fuel he carried. Fossett lost roughly 2,000 pounds of fuel on takeoff which is why he got to his 45,000-foot altitude in such a hurry.
"His team thought he would have to land in Hawaii, but Fossett said he wanted to press forward to Salina. He made it all the way with fuel to spare. When his tanks were checked, he still had enough fuel remaining to fly another 10 hours!
"This was a historic event for Salina and really put us in the eyes of the world. It won't be official for several weeks but it appears that Steve Fossett will add three more world records to his long list. Now everybody who flies composite model airplanes knows what composite material can stand in the way of stress because those wings on the Global Flyer withstood the stress with no problem."
Thanks, Don, for the informative article from a modeler's perspective.
Electrification and Rocky Mountain Electric Flyers
I want to turn your attention to what I think is the hottest area of modeling: electrics! I understand from a couple of sources that park flyers are outselling 40-size trainers by a substantial margin. We need to encourage and nurture this fast-growing segment of our hobby.
The following was sent to me from Ron Evans, featuring the newly formed all-electric Rocky Mountain Electric Flyers located in the Denver area:
"We completed our club charter on February 1, 2004, with four members and now boast 59 AMA members. We are an all-electric club—mostly sport fliers, with some 3-D, sport scale, helicopters, Hotliners, and powered gliders. Roughly half of our members weren't AMA members before joining our club and the rest flew glow RC, FF, or RC gliders.
"Our stated goal is to fly safely and have fun! We've had great support from local hobby shops including Thompson's Hobby, Hobby Giant, and Colpar West as they have donated four trainer models. We fly every Sunday morning—weather permitting—in Arvada, Colorado. Guests are welcome. There is no field fee and we will train new fliers on the buddy box without an AMA membership; otherwise an AMA card is required."
Please see the District IX Web site for a link to this great club.
Arvada Mall Show
Phil Trowe from the Arvada Associated Modelers in Colorado sent the following report about the club's mall show:
"The mall show was held at Westminster Mall, January 20–23, 2005. This was a first-class show where the club displayed models of various sizes. The pictures are just a few of the many excellent airplanes on display that weekend. The club always looks forward to this annual event."
I ran out of room for Phil's pictures. These great shots can be viewed on our District IX Web site. Please take a look and also link to the Arvada club to let them know you saw their pictures!
Jefco Auction and AMA District IX Event
What a great way to say thank you! Shortly after I returned home last month from the Jefco auction in Denver, Colorado, I received a copy of the club's newsletter which contained the following:
"Our auction received AMA national attention with a visit and coverage by President Dave Brown and staff. On Saturday night of the auction, Dave hosted an AMA District IX special event to introduce the 2005 leadership team. Outgoing District IX Vice President Russ Miller was properly roasted with deliciously funny stories about his many escapades. Apparently, this Harley-loving modeler cut a wide swath serving his many years of service to AMA.
"Crowd control was contained by door-prize drawings held at different intervals along with food and beverages. Those of us who mustered the energy to attend after a full day at the auction were pleased to meet Russ' successor. Mark Smith is a fine gentleman with a solid history of management expertise.
"It is a pleasure to see AMA suits up close and on the floor with the rank-and-file membership. The agenda for the evening was to grow the AMA and to better serve the more than 170,000 members. With the constant advances in technology, park flying, and the increasing numbers in electric flight, these ideas will test their mettle.
"Jefco Aeromodelers extends its thanks to the team for attending our event and wishes them success in their mission!"
Closing
In closing, I want to paraphrase the Arvada club president Jim Wallen who said it best: "It is the local club's responsibility to implement programs to stimulate growth." I hope all clubs emulate this thinking.
Until next month, have fun and keep in touch!
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
