D.B. Mathews
F l y i n g f o r F u n
909 N. Maize Rd., Townhouse 734, Wichita KS 67212
GooDbye to Another Good Guy: As
one grows older, it seems that more and
more of his or her valued friends expire. In
Tontines the survivor opens an old bottle of
wine and toasts all of his departed friends.
Consider how sad and lonely that act
would be. Somehow I’m beginning to feel
more of that inevitable emptiness.
As is so typical of those in the publications
end of this modeling activity, we spend
numerous hours talking via telephone and
exchanging letters with many fellow modelers
without much, if any, eyeball-to-eyeball
contact. The relationships developed over
long distances and the high regard and trust
developed meet all the criteria of friendship.
D.B. (Doc) Mathews fires up his own-design Cruiser 60 model. There is a great deal of
pride and pleasure in creativity. Photo by George Sauer.
Doc fires up his Sig Somethin’ Extra ARF. He has fun flying it. Sauer photo.
As time goes by, the inevitable march of
time takes more of those good guys away,
leaving us with a void that can never be
refilled and a nagging sense of loss. I am
still working on the loss of Tom Runge,
then came word of Radio Control Modeler
(RCM) editor Dick Kidd’s passing.
Dick had the knack of being kind and
gracious while being particular about what
material went into his magazine. On
numerous occasions Dick called me and
advised me that my submission fell short of
his quality standards while not insulting me
or even making me feel bad or angry about
it. His guidance and suggestions invariably
led to much better pieces in the magazine.
He had a gift for interpersonal
communication that is rare in these modern
times.
Dick’s desire for high quality in his
magazine is also demonstrated in the
outstanding inked plans that dominate the
earlier RCM catalog. Dick beautifully and
accurately inked many of the plans for Joe
Bridi, Phil Kraft, Chuck Cunningham, Ken
Willard, and countless other designers.
I’m going to miss those telephone chats
with Dick for his sense of what was going
on in Radio Control (RC) modeling, his
evaluation of trends, and his uncanny ability
to make even a peon like me feel valuable.
Many of us will miss him.
What’s in a Name? A letter from John
Brodak (who sells Control Line kits and
supplies) suggested that we all start
referring to our modeling activities as a
sport rather than a hobby. Initially I found
this confusing; what is the difference, and
where is the need?
The dictionary definitions for hobby and
sport are close, but in my mind the
difference is sweat versus intellect. When
building a model we rely mostly on our
collection of knowledge of the various
techniques filed in our memory or on logic
when faced with a challenge. On the other
hand, flying models involves increased vital
signs (heart rate, respiration, pulse, and
body temperature). Flying requires part of
our brain for motor skills and good
judgment, but those become sort of
instinctive.
Am I implying that you have to be
smarter to build than to fly? Maybe, but
flying model airplanes is a physical activity;
therefore, it is a sport.
John’s rationale for all of us referring to
our modeling activities as a sport is
grounded in the public’s perceptions about
hobbies and sports. To the public, a model-
70 M ODEL AVIATION
72 M ODEL AVIATION
airplane hobbyist is a person who sits for
days on end in some basement workshop
gluing little pieces of material together with
minimal social contact with the outside
world.
This perception places us with people
who tie their own fishing flies, collect
stamps, create better mousetraps, do
needlepoint or quilt, build boats in their
basements, create boats in bottles, restore or
rebuild automobiles, etc. In the public eye,
hobbyists are often creative people whose
pursuits are wholesome and worthwhile, but
not exactly mainstream in our contemporary
society which views such behavior as
mildly eccentric. The public sees hobbies as
something to be interested in but hardly
worthy of public support.
Is it any wonder why we often get
benevolent smiles and little else when
seeking flying facilities from park boards
and recreation commissions? These elected
or appointed officials often treat us like
oddball nuisances, or at least not the same
way they respond to tennis players and
golfers, softball and baseball players,
fishermen and boaters, soccer leagues, bicyclers, and other
sportsmen. They seem to think of us as silly, old men playing with
expensive toys.
We need to refer to our activities as a sport to receive the same
consideration given other sports. The benefits to be gained are well
worth some thought and a change in attitude on our part. Presenting
ourselves to the public as a hobby has been only marginally
successful throughout our history. It’s time to change our public
image!
Consider the types of facilities used for any of the previously
mentioned sports, and ask yourself who provides most of them. A
public perception of us modelers as sportsmen would likely help us
be treated the same way.
The portion of model-airplane activities with the strongest
potential to create a positive image to the public is Almost Readyto-
Fly (ARF) models. Those who fly ARFs are sportsmen,
meeting nearly any definition of the word. Properly named and
exploited, these models and these fliers can have a monstrously
positive impact on each of us whether we fly Control Line, Free
Flight, or RC in its various forms.
Jim Ewers of Tulsa, Oklahoma, looks happy with his lovely Hangar 9 Taylorcraft ARF.
This airplane is powered by a Moki 1.35 engine.
Cubs were popular at a float-fly in Wellington, Kansas. Some are from kits, and some are ARFs. John Riggs photo.
Doc shows good hand-launch form with his Sig Rascal. He takes
a few steps, then delivers it like a baseball. Sauer photo.
January 2003 75
I will be the first to admit looking at
such model aircraft with disdain for many
years. A diminishing number of us still
much prefer to build what we fly and feel
totally out of tune with those who would
rather fly ARFs. After some serious soulsearching
on the subject in the last few
years, I’ve concluded that these sportsman
pilots have the potential to benefit everyone
involved in modeling, and it is much to the
advantage of all of us to alter our attitudes
toward them.
We need to recognize the incredible
numbers of new fliers that these ready-built
models are attracting to the sport. In sheer
numbers we have an increasing influence on
governmental agencies, from local park
boards to the Federal Communications
Commission. There is strength in numbers!
These sport fliers are going to get more
attention from the media, the public, and
governments.
There is also an increasing economic
impact; no longer is modeling a kid’s
activity involving inexpensive kits
purchased at the local drug store. We are
mostly grown-ups who spend a significant
amount of money on our models and on
attending out-of-town modeling events.
Tourism/visitor bureaus should have
called to their attention the amount of
money fly-in and contest attendees
contribute to local economies. They buy
gas, food, lodging, and their spouses might
even spend some time shopping while in
town. Communities should be seeking us
out, hoping that we might schedule such
events in their towns.
The explosion in the numbers of people
flying models as a sport can be a positive
thing for modeling. For the sake of public
relations, we should refer to all flying of
model aircraft as a sport.
As I mentioned, I and many other
modelers have viewed the ARF as a
disturbing aberration in our modeling lives.
Why would anyone want to miss out on the
fun and good feelings of building model
airplanes?
Watching my young adult children work
their way through their daily lives, I see that
they simply do not have time to build! What
little recreation time they have is so
precious that they are lucky to have time to
fly. Perhaps when their children are grown
and their jobs require less of them, they will
have more leisure time. At that point they
might find creating model airplanes
fulfilling, but they don’t now.
Those same limits on recreation time
probably describe the bulk of 25- to 55-
year-olds. Considering their quandaries, we
older modelers would be most wise to offer
all the help our experience and knowledge
can provide. After all, the younger group
holds the key to much better public relations
for us and the benefits that can come from
that.
So, John Brodak, you are absolutely
correct; we are participating in a sport.
As we use more and more electricity to
power our models, a perverse thing runs
through my mind. It is considered correct to
refer to power plants for these models as
“motors” since they produce their power
without fuel combustion (actually the
expansion of a gas), whereas internalcombustion
units are referred to as
“engines,” as are steam-powered and CO2
units.
So in correct terms we modelers fly our
airplanes with electric or rubber motors and
glow or CO2 engines. Then shouldn’t it be
“General Engines” and “Ford Engine Co.,”
and shouldn’t Detroit be “engine town”? MA
