District VIII
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Trip summary
- San Antonio, TX → Hot Springs, AR (Huckfest)
- Broken Arrow, OK (Warbird fundraiser)
- Hearne, TX (Giant Scale Racing)
- Almost 1,600 miles in four days to three events in three states
Hot Springs — Huckfest
The Huckfest kicked off the 2010 Huckfest tour on the beautiful Hot Springs RC Club site. It was a picturesque background for a nice event. Jim Flannigan of Edmond, Oklahoma, was the CD and did a good job keeping things moving safely with a lot of fun.
The local effort was led by Josh Price, the key event organizer. Bowling with rudders using full-sized bowling pins was especially exciting. I visited a little with Sleepy C and was glad to have him kick off his Huckfest tour in District VIII.
Broken Arrow — Warbird fundraiser
We moved on to Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, Friday evening for the Warbird event, which was a fundraiser. The gathering was well attended and ably run by Dale Lathem as the CD.
MAD certificates were given to Dale Lathem and club president Ken West.
All the proceeds went to the Blue Star Mothers of Broken Arrow, who care for soldiers around the world with care packages and letters. I think the American Turf Flyers donated a significant sum to the cause. The Blue Star Mothers staffed their own booth selling stickers and shirts and taking donations.
Tulsa — Heatwave in the Heartland
Back in Oklahoma a few weeks later, we stayed in the same hotel and attended the Tulsa Glue Dobbers' Heatwave in the Heartland. The name is quite appropriate—it was plenty hot—but it's a great facility and we had a warm welcome from the club and pilots. I was back where Dad and I flew RC and FF back in the early ’50s.
CD Randal Blackwood flew a couple of nice warbirds while Claude Christ, the club president, kept us informed and comfortable. Jack Rogers, the club's immediate past president, is still an active force in getting things done.
Matt Gilbert, the event's organizer, was scheduled to be the CD, but his application was not processed in time to run the event. MAD certificates were awarded to all the hard workers. (L–R) Jack, Matt, me, Claude, and Randall. I think the score at the end of the event was Trees 3, Airplanes 0. Good time for all—go next year if you are close!
Hearne — Giant Scale Racing
The races in Hearne were fast and furious. Freddy French CDed the event, and while attendance was down some, competition was keen. Spectators from the Bryan/College Station area attended in large numbers and had a great time. Demos of aerobatic scale racing were well received and generated interest for future races.
Unfortunately, Don Modene, who was supposed to co-direct, was unable to attend, but I presented awards to both of these folks for their efforts.
Plan now for AMA's 75th Anniversary events in 2011!
Have fun and fly safely. See you on the flightline!
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
