Nontraditional Recreation: Model Airplane Flying Sites
Jim Slaughter
Background
When Salt Lake City, Utah, learned that it was chosen to host the 2002 Olympic Winter Games, the city realized that with such an enormous undertaking, it could not also host the 2002 National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) Congress the same year. The NRPA Congress attracts 10,000 people annually from around the world. A host city was needed to pick up the ball.
Through the efforts of Tampa Recreation Director Joe Abrahams, Tampa, Florida, was selected to host the event. A committee of approximately 10 of the local parks and recreation directors was formed to plan the event. As director of the Pasco County Parks and Recreation Department, I was honored to be one of the Executive Host Committee members.
We found out about the task before us in early 2001, and the date of the congress was October 15–20, 2002. We had our work cut out for us because most cities have three years to plan!
Planning the Session
As we set about planning this incredible event, I realized what an opportunity we had to plan a field trip to a local flying field to present a program for parks and recreation directors and managers from throughout the United States. The session would be called "Non-Traditional Recreation—Model Airplane Flying Sites."
I have been an avid modeler for nearly 50 years and a member of countless clubs. I am also an AMA volunteer flying-site assistant. One of the clubs I belong to had recently lost its flying site, and all of the open spaces around the area were being sold for development. I believe that flying fields will ultimately need to be located on publicly owned lands held out for conservation and green space. Who controls those lands? In most cases, it's the local or state parks and recreation departments.
The Sarasota R/C Squadron in Florida had a great success story to tell, thanks to Elizabeth Warren with Sarasota County Parks and Recreation and members of the Sarasota club. They secured a capped landfill and built one of the best flying sites I have ever seen.
I contacted Elizabeth Warren (who had recently become the parks director in Pinellas County, Florida), Trip Galasso (one of the Sarasota club members who worked to get the flying site), George Jenkins (president of the Sarasota R/C Squadron), and Joe Beshar (AMA flying-site assistance coordinator) to run it up the pole and see if anyone would salute. They were enthusiastic about hosting such a program. I proposed the educational session to the NRPA Education Committee, and it was approved. AMA sent great materials outlining the Academy's benefits, flying-site layouts, education materials to be used to teach kids about aviation, and some great door prizes.
I realized that to convince local officials that model flying sites were a good idea, we needed to demonstrate benefits beyond simply allowing people to have fun in the park. I enlisted Frank Tiano—Mr. Top Gun—to speak to the group about the economic impact that model flying events can have on the local economy.
As planning progressed, George Jenkins stepped up and assured that the Sarasota R/C Squadron would host the event. Thanks, George!
The Day at Sarasota R/C Squadron
October 16, 2001, dawned overcast and threatening rain. As we loaded the bus to take the NRPA participants to the flying site, it started to rain. It was raining heavily as we approached the flying field. This was not good! We could do the classroom presentations in one of the club shelters, but I really wanted these people to see the airplanes fly, talk to the club members to feel their love and enthusiasm for the hobby, and actually get their hands on a buddy box and fly.
We reached the exit on I-75 to turn off and go to the Sarasota R/C Squadron field, and the clouds parted and the sun came out! When we arrived at the field, I told the participants to talk to the pilots, ask questions, and step up for an introductory flight. They were excited and ready. They had so much fun that it was difficult to get them to stop two hours later and sit down to listen to somebody talk! They were all ears; they had tasted the sport and wanted to learn more.
Presentations
I started the session by talking about AMA—its history, the insurance benefits, the huge number of modelers, and the dire need for flying sites. I passed out AMA literature and some Delta Dart kits, and I encouraged the participants to go back and start model-building and -flying programs for the kids in their communities.
Frank Tiano followed my presentation. He did a magnificent job of relating how the hobby is perceived worldwide and the economic impact his Top Gun event (which was to be held in Lakeland, Florida, that year) has on the local economy.
Joe Beshar emphasized how those present could be great supporters of the sport, what it has meant to so many people, and how it continues to be a great family pursuit. Elizabeth Warren explained how Sarasota County Parks and Recreation and the Sarasota R/C Squadron worked together to make the club’s magnificent facility a reality.
Trip Galasso and George Jenkins kept everyone’s attention, telling about the events they put on, the large crowds, and the great working relationship they maintain with the community by going into schools, working with youth groups, and more.
As a surprise wrap-up to the day’s events, the Sarasota club members had secretly voted to choose three participants as the “Most Promising Student Pilots.” One of the men and the only two women in the group got wings!
Outcomes and Conclusion
When we arrived back at the Tampa Convention Center, there were only beaming faces coming off the bus. They all stopped to shake my hand and rave about what they had seen and learned that day. Throughout the rest of the week, delegates who had participated in the flying-site session told me they were going to go back home and start movements to get flying fields in their communities.
The Sarasota R/C Squadron, Joe Beshar, Frank Tiano, Elizabeth Warren, and all who made this program possible did a terrific job! The NRPA delegates who participated in this program will be talking about it for a long time.
The NRPA Congress in Tampa was a resounding success. Joe Abrahams would be proud; he passed away a few weeks before the congress took place. I’m sure he was responsible for parting those clouds!
I firmly believe that this is where the future of the sport lies. Without flying sites, there will be no need for AMA, hobby businesses, or any of the things we enjoy today. We are losing flying sites at a rapid pace. Public lands are the future if the hobby is to survive.
I encourage anyone who is trying to secure such a site to have his or her local parks and recreation officials contact me. I can be emailed at [email protected]. I will be more than happy to do a “sell job” on them!
Contact
Jim D. Slaughter 8459 Flagstone Dr. Tampa, FL 33615
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
