The Inside Loop
If we want our hobby to grow, we need to think of ways to introduce modeling to the general public. Mall shows, charity events, and attending full-scale airshows are some forms of outreach that have been successful.
Outreach through theater
My friend Jeff Shutic, a member of the Lorain County RC Club (www.lcrc.org), invited me to attend a production of Billy Bishop Goes to War. The show ran in May and was a collaboration between the Lorain County Metro Parks and TrueNorth Cultural Arts (www.tncarts.org).
Because a WWI production was happening right in their own backyard, club members stepped up to provide models as stage props and to display in the main hall. A secondary room was provided to display different types of models, a video about RC, and information to promote the club and the AMA. The production’s director even promoted the club in her remarks preceding each performance.
By the time I saw this excellent production in the middle of its run, Robert Brassell, Lorain County RC Club president, shared that a few attendees had shown interest in learning more about the club and possibly becoming involved in flying. The night I was there, a gentleman even inquired about donating a new trainer airplane and engine to the club!
This collaboration is a proactive approach to bring awareness of model aviation to the public and to show what the club can do for its community. Thank you to the Lorain County RC Club members for their hospitality and for promoting our hobby and our organization!
Blue Max RC Scale competition
This month’s event coverage is also WWI related. The Blue Max RC Scale competition celebrates its second year at the fantastic Fantasy of Flight museum in Polk City, Florida. I attended the event last year, but terrible weather grounded models and full-scale aircraft alike. Thankfully, this year the weather was greatly improved and T.J. Royhans was able to give the competition the coverage it deserves.
If you are ever in the area, I recommend a visit to Fantasy of Flight. Kermit Weeks has the largest privately owned collection of rare full-scale aircraft in the world, most of which still fly regularly.
Steampunk and steam-powered aircraft
Although the term Steampunk was not coined until the 1980s, the vision of steam-powered aircraft and machines has been around since the 19th century. The works of H.G. Wells and Jules Verne immediately come to mind. Paul Gentile has done a wonderful job of providing a nice overview and showing that steam-powered aircraft are not just fiction and have even been used in RC.
WACO biplanes in this issue
If you’re a fan of Golden Age of Aviation biplanes, you’ll enjoy the two WACO offerings in this issue. Roy Day’s 44-inch-span model is of the less-frequently modeled WACO 10, compared with the ARE and YMF versions. He also supplies tips and tricks to make a cowl for the WACO that can be used to construct cowls for other aircraft.
If you don’t have time for a scratch-build, or want something a little larger that can be gas- or glow-powered, the Great Planes WACO YMF-5D may be for you. Tom Sullivan supplied two videos as part of the review: an overview of the build and a flight video. The link can be found in a sidebar in the article.
Online content and giveaways
Providing online content in the form of additional pictures and videos is something you will see us doing more of in the future. This lets us provide more coverage than space in the magazine allows.
Before you put down this issue, be sure to check out our "About Us" feature on A2Z Corp for your chance to win more free stuff. We have already given away several thousand dollars in prizes and will continue to do so every other issue.
MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
