Indoor E‑Fest Electric Festival
By Michael Ramsey
EVERY HOBBYIST OWES it to himself or herself to go to at least one fun‑fly a year. If you can commit to only one, I highly recommend that you consider going to a different one each year. You never know who you might meet or what events might be in store.
A fun‑fly is like your favorite restaurant: find a good one and you’ll be back often. I’ve visited many restaurants, and each one does things slightly differently; sometimes that can be part of the fun. When you find a flying event that is well organized and entertaining, your tummy gets full and you just know you want to come back for more.
Many clubs host fun‑fly events, and the mix of games, contests, and prizes combine to produce a highly rated experience. Consider how good a flying event could be if the biggest manufacturers and distributors in the country hosted it. It would be like going to New York City and knowing 100% that you were going to find a great Italian bistro, complete with fine wine and candlelight (okay, the candle depends on the restaurant).
February 11–12 in Champaign, Illinois, was the opportunity to experience an indoor flying event hosted by the largest hobby distributor in the country: Great Planes Model Distributors (Hobbico).
Sponsors and exhibitors
There were plenty of door prizes and giveaways. The first 50 registered pilots received a free Great Planes FlatOut kit. Great Planes didn’t hog all the glory—Horizon Hobby was welcomed to display and participate, and other top companies in the hobby joined in as well. The camaraderie between manufacturers at the event reminded me that we’re all in this for the love of aviation: competition fuels new ideas and technology, and it was rewarding to see those friendships flourish.
Notable mentions:
- Great Planes Model Distributors (Hobbico)
- Horizon Hobby
- Spektrum radio systems (many pilots)
- Other top hobby companies and vendors
Venue
The University of Illinois at Urbana‑Champaign Armory field house is enormous. The arched ceiling over the approximately 100 × 300‑foot open space tops out at about 100 feet. The floor surface is a textured rubber‑type material—not so hard if you crash your model.
Skylights in the ceiling let daylight down while large arched windows flank the ends of the facility. Three large light fixtures are spread across the length of the walls; their bright light is about the only inconvenience—flying past them can make a pilot squint.
There were enough vendors and experts at the event that if you wanted to get started in the hobby, by the end of the two days you’d be ready to try 3‑D aerobatics solo. The back wall of the building reminded me of the Toledo Weak Signals' trade show—there were so many vendors.
Attendance and flightline
More than 200 pilots were registered Saturday alone, and they logged more than 500 flights—judging by how many times the frequency pins went out. Count the pilots with Spektrum spread‑spectrum radio systems (there were a ton), and I’m sure the flight count takes a big leap.
The flightline was extremely busy, and there was often a line of pilots waiting for a pilot station. Officials at the event kept things rolling; I admired their attention and consistency in fairly giving everyone a turn to fly. The flightline boss has got to be a thankless job. Lead organizers Frank Noll and Amanda Price did a great job of running things smoothly.
Many times during the day specific types of aircraft were scheduled their own times to fly:
- Slow flyers
- Scale models
- Helicopters
- Jets
Open flying filled time slots between scheduled sessions and at noon and 5 p.m., and demonstration time premiered some of the hottest and newest aircraft. Great Planes, Horizon, and other companies had surprises to contribute.
Atmosphere and emceeing
From a spectator’s point of view the E‑Fest could be described as a circus (not meant in a bad way). Center stage was a wild vision of flying artistry. All the while, “Mouth of the South” Bob Sadler was the ringmaster under the Big Top with impromptu interviews, humorous commentary, and insight that was simply brilliant.
Special events
Special events were scheduled for Saturday evening, beginning with Ultimate Combat. This hammerhead contest was fast‑paced and gripping. The pilots didn’t do anything silly like try to cut streamers; this was a full‑contact event in which the last airplane to touch the ground was the champion. Rules like this separate the men from the boys: 20 pilots entered the contest for a single cash prize.
Combat lasted three rounds. In the first two preliminary rounds the first five pilots to crash were ousted from the money. In the third round the 10 remaining fliers battled until the last model was left. Each of the first two rounds finished in less than a minute; it was over too quickly to really enjoy the thrill.
In the third round there wasn’t a single contact made for at least the first three minutes of the heat. (Three minutes is like three hours in Combat time.) The crowd began to get vocal and cheer on the pilots. Soon the pilots began knocking each other out of the air, and it was down to just two.
Those two aircraft did everything they could to avoid contact. The contrast between them was as obvious as the battle between the tortoise and the hare: one was a foamie biplane (light and slow) and the other was a Combat flying wing (fast and sturdy).
The Combat wing had a distinct advantage—it could probably rip through anything it came up against and keep flying. The foam aircraft was basically floating tissue paper, and its battery was deeply drained. All bets were in, and eventually the victor looked to be the Combat wing. Many “oohs” and “aahs” voiced the narrowness of the near‑miss collisions. Just when you thought it couldn’t go on any longer—crash! The Combat‑wing pilot lost orientation and smashed his steed into the floor. Larry Marky won that joust and landed his aircraft safely.
In the spirit of good sportsmanship, Larry waved in acknowledgment of his triumph and then flew his foamie again. He took it high into the rafters and then pointed his winning airplane straight down on the far side of center stage. Bam! The gallant aircraft took its last bow.
Heli Smackdown
Following Combat, the evening moved into the Heli Smackdown: a freestyle contest in which six pilots put their best—and only—flight forward. The audience acted as the judges. I lost my voice rooting for the pilots as their models performed.
All the helicopter pilots flew intensely, and in a few cases you could tell how hard they were pushing themselves; three of the six pilots had “incidents” with their machines. The top three fliers were the best, and they also finished with their helicopters in the same condition they were in at the start of the flight.
Nick Maxwell won the contest and was honored by Wendell Adkins, Extreme Flight Championships (XFC) committee chairperson, with an invitation to fill the last pilot slot in the XFC Helicopter contest. Nick gladly accepted—best of luck to him in Dayton, Ohio, in June.
E‑Style freestyle contest
The E‑Style event was special for me because the director—Mark Jorgenson—asked me to be one of the five judges. I was honored by the invitation and glad to put IMAC (International Miniature Aerobatic Club) judging classes to work.
Ten pilots were invited to participate with their indoor electric‑powered aircraft. Given one flight per pilot, they performed a two‑minute program with a diverse yet specific set of criteria. This was like an RC Aerobatics contest, except the maneuvers weren’t absolute: pilots composed a flight sequence that explored the flight envelope by demonstrating a variety of aerodynamic and gyroscopic maneuvers. If they spent the whole two minutes doing rolling maneuvers, a large part of their score would be lost.
Judging considerations included:
- Variety of upright and inverted maneuvers
- Knife edge and vertical sequences
- Execution quality and whether maneuvers looked aborted
- Choreography and positioning
- Use of variable‑pitch power systems (earned extra points only if well executed and emphasized choreography)
Jason Noll devised a way to add smoke contrails to his flight sequence. That was a unique approach to personalizing his sequence, though a full two‑minute flight with the smoke on was a bit much for me. He did earn top marks for execution, versatility, choreography, and positioning; his first‑place standing was well deserved.
Night flying
After the contests, it was time for some night flying. For one hour the lights were turned off and the “ghost” aircraft took to the air. The variety of aircraft didn’t seem to change with the loss of sight: foamies, helicopters, slow flyers, and even a flying saucer. If it blinked or glowed in the dark, it was flown.
That concluded Saturday’s events. Whew!
Sunday and general impressions
Sunday had a much more relaxed format. The flightline was a bit less crowded—perhaps because many people were traveling that day, including myself. I was able to squeeze in a few flights with my Honey Bee helicopter.
Flying indoors will spoil you quickly, especially when hovering practice is planned. We all long for those calm‑weather days, and where else can the conditions be better than inside?
Flying at the Armory didn’t feel any different from flying at the local ball park; after all, the available space was as large as a professional soccer field. Foamies and slow flyers were the most popular aircraft. There was surely enough space to fly GWS scale models and many Speed 400‑sized models. Jets were a popular speed choice; many ducted‑fan and propeller designs were flown with regularity.
Many aspects of this event made me feel it would be worth attending again. I liked that there were a large number of tables available at which pilots could pit and set up workstations. Along all the tables there were extension cords with power strips every 10 feet or so.
The most courteous pilot comfort was the two worktables at the flightline entrance designated the “Fix‑It” areas. Depron foam sheets and glue were provided so that aircraft involved in mishaps could be repaired and returned to flight.
"Oh, the weather outside was frightful, but inside it was so delightful..."
Although it wasn’t the holiday season, the cold winds and snow flurries made me glad to be indoors. This is a fun‑fly event I’d like to make an annual reunion.
Thanks and closing
Congratulations to Great Planes for organizing such a great weekend. Come summertime I hope there is thought about getting together for another fun occasion in Champaign—how about an outdoor fun‑fly this time?
Michael Ramsey [email protected]
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
