Author: Tim Jesky
Edition: Model Aviation - 2014/08
Page Numbers: 145

District VII — Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin

Tim Jesky — Vice President

I hope everyone has been enjoying the flying season so far. There may be parts of the country where the season lasts longer, but I believe that when the sun warms and the skies turn blue, there's no finer place to fly than the Midwest.

In May, I traveled to South Carolina to attend the annual Joe Nall Week and the AMA Open Membership meeting. This year's fly-in featured nearly 1,500 pilots and thousands of spectators. Model aviation enthusiasts from more than 40 states and many foreign nations attended, as did a large number of pilots from District VII.

The Joe Nall is all about modelers sharing fun, flying, and fellowship. Pat Hartness and the Triple Tree Aerodrome crew stop at nothing to see that everyone who travels there is shown a good time. If you haven't attended, this is one event that needs to be on your bucket list.

I want to throw out one last reminder for National Model Aviation Day on August 16. Please attend an event being held near you.

This month's event report comes from Terry Edmonds on the Misty Meadows Soaring Classic as part of the Ohio Valley Soaring Series. Thanks for passing this along, Terry.

Misty Meadows Soaring Classic (Ohio Valley Soaring Series)

The Misty Meadows Soaring Classic, sponsored by the Eastern Iowa Soaring Society (EISS), is a long-running annual contest dating back 17 years with roots long before that with the Iowa City Aerohawks.

The site is on private property located between Iowa City and Cedar Rapids and features unique topography for an RC soaring contest. It is not your typical sod or open-field contest site. Within flying range there are rolling hills, valleys, meadows, woods, a pond, and a state park lake. For first-timers, the site is intimidating, but it offers a variety of lift-generating conditions, depending on wind speed and direction. Nearly all who have flown at the site are eager to come back.

The contest typically is held during the first weekend in May. Weather at this time of year in the upper Midwest can be unpredictable, but this year the date provided good conditions despite previously awful spring weather.

The contest is Unlimited class with a "seeded man-on-man" format. Pilots fly in groups with up to five launching sequentially with EISS-matched winches. In each subsequent round, the groups are reformed according to pilots' current scores.

Contestants came from:

  • Iowa
  • Illinois
  • Minnesota
  • Missouri
  • Wisconsin
  • North Dakota

Top finishers:

  • Mike Fox, Andover, Illinois — 1st place
  • Rick Fox, Davenport, Iowa — placed
  • Mike Trutwin, Lakeville, Minnesota — placed
  • Karl Miller, Chicago area — placed

In 2014, Misty Meadows is the second of nine OVSS events where pilots can earn points for the yearly OVSS series championship. Misty Meadows is the westernmost venue of the series, and a venue in Pennsylvania is the furthest east.

Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.