July 2004 167
JULY IS the middle of the flying season
for most of us in District VII. I hope it has
been an enjoyable and safe season so far.
For those who read this column, you
will notice I keep bringing up safety and
our District VII Web site at
www.amadistrictvii.org. Safety issues are
on the top of my list.
How can I help our members be more
safety conscious? One way is to point out
some of the simple things that we do or
don’t do that can result in accidents.
Whether it is an injury or property
incident, the question is “why did it
happen?”
As AMA members, we are asked to
abide by the Safety Code, but what about
carelessness on our part? This includes
things such as not tying down your RC
airplane or attempting to start it by
yourself.
Lack of attention is often the reason for
an incident and you won’t find that
addressed in the Safety Code. Paying
attention will be promoted by all the
District VII associate vice presidents
(AVPs) for they are all Chief Safety
Officers. These people will be responsible
for helping clubs and the membership to
take a closer look at reducing accidents.
We will be considering training
programs, field layouts, and areas in
general. We want to plug up any gaps
without being a police force and reducing
the level of fun we enjoy.
I want to introduce and welcome the
newest District VII AVP to our team, Guy
Barber. Guy brings to the table a varied
background in aeromodeling as well as
being a current
full-scale pilot.
Guy’s current
interest is in
Giant Scale
models.
He will be
covering the area
of the northern
part of the lower
peninsular of
Michigan and is
based in Eldon,
Michigan.
This month’s column is my mall-show
issue. I was fortunate to be able to cover a
number of mall shows this year. This is
one of the best ways we can promote our
hobby/sport to a large number of people in
a short period of time without having to
worry about getting rained out at an air
show. More clubs should get involved in
mall shows.
Again this year, the Radio Control Club
of Detroit drew a large number of
interested people during its annual mall
show held at the Oakland Mall.
This was the event where Guy Barber
was introduced to members in District VII.
Also in attendance was Tom Pierce, the
local AVP.
The Monroe Area Cloudbusters held its
annual mall show at the Frenchtown Mall
in Monroe, Michigan. It appeared this year
that attendance was down from last year,
although weather may have been a
contributing factor.
I was fortunate to be a first-time attendee
at the Jackson RC Club mall show in
Jackson, Michigan. I had a chance to meet
many of the members; they were some real
nice people. This was my first opportunity
to meet with this club, but won’t be my
last.
Remember, fly safely and have fun. See
you at the field. C.A.V.U.
Associate Vice Presidents
Larry Brannan, 2181 Cascade Lakes Cir., Grand
Rapids MI 49546; (616) 956-6012; E-mail:
[email protected]
Ed Bucki, PO Box 324, S. Rockwood MI 48179;
(734) 379-4054; E-mail: [email protected].
Bud Gorman, Box 33, Knife River MN 55609;
E-mail: [email protected]
Russell Knetzger, 2625 E. Shorewood Boulevard,
Milwaukee WI 53211; (414) 962-0637
Thomas D. Lazar, 435 Hubbell St., Marshall WI
53559-9409; E-mail: [email protected]
Jon McVay, 5 Hillcrest Heights Ln., Mount Vernon
IA 52314-9611; (319) 895-6527; E-mail:
[email protected]
Bill Millar, 712 Grand Ave., Petoskey MI 49770
(231) 347-2347; E-mail: [email protected]
Tom Pierce, 6862 Frith Rd., St. Clair MI 48079
(810) 367-6450; E-mail:
[email protected]
Mark E. Robotti, 26540 Olympic Trail, North
Lindstrom MN 55045
Tom Ryan, Box 1111, Milwaukee WI 53201; (414)
881-0070; E-mail: [email protected]
Frequency Coordinators
(West): Al Schwartz, 2787 Fernwood, Roseville
MN 55113; (651) 633-2286
(East): Pete Waters, 7420 Seven Mile Rd.
Northville MI 48167; (248) 486-4800
District VII Report
Iowa / Michigan /
Minnesota / Wisconsin
Bill Oberdieck
Vice President
Box 1076
Southgate MI 48195
Tel.: (734) 283-4813
Fax: (734) 283-0650
E-mail: [email protected]
District VII Web page: www.amadistrictvii.org
04july.qxd 4/22/04 1:51 pm Page 167
Edition: Model Aviation - 2004/07
Page Numbers: 167