District XI Report -2004/12

December 2004 167
SATURDAY, JUNE 26, dawned calm and
clear. The Helena Flying Tigers’ first
Helicopter Fly-In was off to a good start.
Things got even better when the crew from
Heliproz showed up with a Raptor-50 with
an engine to be raffled off by the club. Thank
you, Eric!
Seth Mott from Clancy, Montana, a
young member of the club, was the lucky
winner. The weekend was full of spectacular
flights, the renewal of old friendships, and
the all-important exchange of ideas.
Lunchtime found Ted Reichert providing
free sodas and burgers with all the
trimmings.
CD Ted Reichert, at the far right, briefs (L
to R) Larry Bennert, Kurt Kreiger, Jeremy
Sinnema, Aaron Hansemann, and T.J.
Reichert.
As usual, strong winds limited flying
after lunch so things broke up early.
Saturday’s flights took their toll. Although it
was another beautiful flying day, attendance
was down Sunday. Wayne Venetz had a
short flight which ended in an inexplicable
loss of signal and a total loss of his Raptor-
30. Despite the loss of equipment, a good
time was had by all and we hope to do it
again next year.
The first man out, Larry Bennert and his
Raptor-50 gave a sterling performance
including a chaos series (pirouetting flips)
that was mind-boggling.
Kurt Kreiger showed us all how to do
autorotation. Time and again he would
finish a flight, sans power, and just back it
in and park it at his feet. What control!
T.J. Reichert in a rare instance of rightside-
up flight. T.J., who suffers from
upside-downers syndrome, keeps our field
neatly mown with his Raptor. Typical
takeoffs find him hovering upside down,
three feet off the ground, in approximately
two microseconds. His flights are a thing
to behold.
Ted Reichert likes to use a neck strap. He
flies to music and says it soothes the
nerves and keeps him ahead of the
helicopter.
Thanks to Grace Dixon, wife of the
Lebanon Area RC Club’s vice president,
Proctor Dixon, who sent in the following
report.
“The Lebanon Area RC Club (LARC)
has been busy promoting the RC airplane
hobby. Lebanon, Oregon, celebrated the
reopening of its historic train depot with
Excursion Day on May 15, and the 95th
annual Strawberry Festival on June 4 and 5.
Both of these events gave us the opportunity
to share our enthusiasm for RC airplanes
with the community.
“LARC had a booth set up near the
remodeled train depot on Excursion Day.
Several of us brought airplanes to display,
and informational leaflets from AMA were
available to visitors. We fielded many
questions about our models and RC flying.
Club secretary Fred Schafer created some
excitement when he helped rob the train
depot.
“On June 5, Lebanon held its Strawberry
Festival Parade. The theme for LARC’s float
was ‘Strawberry Happiness Is…Flying RC
Planes!’ The float was constructed on a large
trailer covered in black to resemble a
runway. Model airplanes were parked across
its surface. Brian Funk, club president, also
built stands that made some airplanes look as
if they were taking off. Our entry won the
third-place trophy for Nonprofit and Civic
Organizations.
“Our float was well received by
spectators along the parade route. Our
display of airplanes brought such comments
as ‘Airplanes! Awesome!,’ ‘I can ride in that
one!,’ ‘Wow!,’ ‘Looks like they’re flying!,’
‘Cool!,’ and ‘Can I have one?’ Some of the
attention was also because of the float’s
patriotic aspects, with many military-type
airplanes being presented and our banner’s
proud claim ‘We Support Our Troops.’
“LARC is looking forward to further
opportunities to encourage others to join in
the fun and satisfaction of the RC airplane
hobby. Besides attending various local
events, we are working on a new flying field
and on a program to interest youth in RC
flying.”
Associate Vice Presidents
Rick Allison, 26405 SE 160th St., Issaquah WA
98027; E-mail [email protected]
Darrell Anderson, 132 Fifteenth Ave NW, Great
Falls MT 59404
E-mail: [email protected]
Al Culver, Box 86, Wilder ID 83676
E-mail: [email protected]
Jerry Holcomb, 1010 NE 122nd Ave., Vancouver
WA 98684
Reeves Lippincott, 4400 Gray Wolf Dr., Wasilla
AK 99654 E-mail: [email protected]
Gene LaFond, 840 Stevens St., Wenatchee WA.
98801 E-mail: [email protected]
Dave Legard, 3139 Kurt Drive NW, Salem OR
97304 E-mail: [email protected]
Mike Mosbrooker, 533 E. Birch St., Oak Harbor
WA 98277 E-mail: [email protected]
Frequency Coordinator
Phil Tallman, Medical Lake WA (509) 299-5102
District XI Report
Alaska / Idaho / Montana /
Oregon / Washington
Bruce Nelson
Vice President
807 E. Vicksburg St.,
Spokane WA 99208
[email protected]
Tel./Fax: (509) 467-1852
Cell: (509) 953-4418
District XI Web page:
www.yosemiteflash.com/xiama.htm