F3D World Championships
US Wins Team Title, Top Three Individual Spots
Every two years the FAI (Federation Aeronautique Internationale) sanctions the F3D Pylon World Championships. F3D is the highest level of Pylon Racing in most countries around the world.
Countries interested in hosting the event submit proposals. Since 1985, five countries have hosted the event: Australia (1987 and 1991), Austria (1993), Czech Republic (1997), United States (1985, 1989, and 1995), and Sweden (1999).
In the fall of the alternate years, the Academy of Model Aeronautics sanctions a team-selection contest for three pilot/caller teams to represent the US the following year.
F3D has never caught on in the United States as an event flown by anyone other than the diehards of the hobby, who want the chance to represent their country at the World Championships.
F3D is a very challenging event that requires unique equipment, extensive preparation, and hard work to qualify for a spot on the US team.
F3D scoring is quite different from Pylon Racing in the US, where pilots fly against each other for points in a given heat. Pilots score a point for each second they fly in a heat. One heat score is dropped after four rounds, and another score is dropped after the ninth round. The lowest total points for the rounds, counted after the end of the contest, wins.
If a pilot cuts one pylon, 10% is added to the score for the flight. If two pylons are cut, or if pilots do not finish a heat, they are scored 200 points. Counting a flight with two cuts or a no-finish can be devastating.
July 12–14, 1999, Sweden hosted what would turn out to be one of the most intense competitions in F3D Pylon. The Bravalla Aero Park, a retired military base near the town of Norrköping, was the chosen site. Under the leadership of Contest Director Robert Sundstrom and his crew, the airfield was set up to host 47 Pylon fliers from 18 countries.
Several US pilots flew the event in honor of Jim Shinohara, who was considered by many the Godfather of modern Pylon Racing. During the 1997 World Championships in Šumperk, Czech Republic, the US team was struck with a tragic blow: Jim Shinohara, caller for three-time World Champion Dave Shadel, suffered a serious heart attack during the second round of the contest. He passed away several weeks later.
Jimmie, as his friends called him, had been a part of every World Championships in the modern era and was known and liked by Pylon Racers all over the world. His contributions to the success of the United States teams during the years cannot be measured.
In November of 1998, the two pilots closest to Jimmie—Richard Verano and Dave Shadel—went to the US team selection "loaded for bear." Each was running the latest Nelson front-intake racing engine, developed specifically for this event. They finished first and second. Chip Hyde edged out Jim Allen for third.
The depth of talent on the 1999 US team created one of the most formidable teams ever assembled. Team members included:
- Chip Hyde — FAI Aerobatics World Champion in 1991. He had been competing in Pylon Racing for several years, had set several US records, and had won numerous contests. Chip is a gifted pilot, with the ability to handle the pressures of the big competitions.
- Tony Lopez — Chip's caller; he had been a successful Pylon competitor on the West Coast for many years and had competed successfully at the national level.
- Richard Verano — record-holder and a Pylon aircraft designer. He designed the wing used by himself and Dave Shadel in contest.
- Dave Shadel — an experienced competitor; this was his second World Championships as a pilot (he had previously competed with Jim Shinohara as his caller).
As someone said a few months prior to Sweden, this was truly Pylon Racing's "Dream Team."
The US team members met in Chicago and flew together to Stockholm. Then they traveled 2½ hours to Norrköping by car and van, arriving on Thursday, July 8. This allowed three days of practice prior to the start of competition.
The team had some problems to work through during practice, the worst of which was Richard losing a very fast airplane on Friday. The cause of the crash was unknown. It was not a great start.
It became apparent that the performance of most competitors had improved noticeably since 1997. Several pilots from other countries were going quite fast and would be very tough competition. Bruce de Chastel from Australia had a unique new T-tailed airplane with an exotic wing that was going very fast.
The contest started off on a better note Monday morning, with the first heat launching on time at 9:00. Dave Shadel was the first US pilot to fly in the fifth heat of Round One. His time was 1:02.0—more than two seconds faster than Richard Verano's world record. Richard followed in Heat Nine with a 1:05.0, and Chip in Heat 11 with a 1:03.9.
Only two other pilots broke the 1:08 mark in the first round: Robbert Van Den Bosch of the Netherlands and Paolo Mucedola from Italy, who turned 1:04s.
When the first day ended, the order was Dave, Chip, and Richard in first, second, and third. The US team averaged 1:02.8 in the first round. It was an impressive display of flying, with the US leading Australia by 53.5 seconds after four counted rounds.
The weather continued beautiful on Tuesday, with light winds and lots of sunshine. The US team continued its outstanding performance, lowering the team average score to 1:02.3.
One of the highlights of the day was Richard's opening heat. In the same heat was Robbert Van Den Bosch. Richard launched first, with Robbert right behind him. Richard was turning consistent laps in the 5.5-second range, with two laps faster than 5.4 seconds. When the heat was finished, the watch read 59.3—the first official time less than one minute, and another world record.
Dave and Chip continued their strong flying throughout the event. Calculating the scores, Chip's flight took the lead in the contest for the first time. With that flight, preceded by consistent flying throughout the event, he won the World Championship.
Dave finished four-tenths of a second behind Chip, and Richard was third—five seconds behind Dave. Fourth place went to Robbert Van Den Bosch, 16.2 seconds back.
The US team finished 203 seconds ahead of the second-place German team, with the Italian team 39 seconds back in third. When you consider that only 5.4 seconds separated the three US pilots individually, their more-than-three-minute lead in the team championships confirms their domination of the event. Their average time was 1:02.6—more than two seconds faster than the previous record.
Although there were a few models with faster airspeeds, no one flew as well as the US pilots.
The closing ceremonies were memorable. After presentation of the team awards, Chip, Dave, Richard, and their callers were called to the podium. Watching the United States "Dream Team" receive their trophies and medals for the top three places was quite a sight. It was a real honor to be a part of the team. They set a new standard for the hobby that F3D Pylon fliers around the world will look up to.
Robert Sundstrom and his very competent crew ran a superb contest. The modelers in Sweden can be proud of their members who hosted the 1999 F3D World Championships. They put on one of the best contests in memory for most of the contestants.
The 2001 F3D World Championships were planned for a site just north of Sydney, Australia. The modelers there were experienced and should run a great event that would be well worth the trip. The US would surely be a force to be reckoned with.
The generosity of numerous companies and individuals is a big reason for the US team's success. The expenses are high—especially when traveling outside the United States. The AMA covers some expenses; others are covered by the competitors or through donations.
The 1999 US F3D team would like to thank the following companies and individuals for their generous donations:
- Precision Plumbing
- Western Nevada Supply
- American Standard Plumbing
- Bradford White Water Heaters
- Langdon Products
- Futaba Radio Control
- Performance Specialties
- Rex Knepper
- Hal Garwood
- Dave Doyle
MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
