Radio Control Aerobatics - 2006/01

columnist is the mail and phone calls I
receive. I never know what the subject or
content is going to be. Sometimes it is a
thank you and sometimes it is a bit of
admonishment for facts that are wrong or
could be misleading. More often than not it
develops into a chat between two
modelers, such as when I got a call from
Hank Hankinson of Sonic-Tronics.
I used the word “Ni-Starter” in a
column when describing some
modifications I had made to the older-style
(orange) Pro-Drivers sold by Radio South.
Hank gave me an education on the use of
the word Ni-Starter, which is the name on
a range of products sold by Sonic-Tronics.
(See photo.)
I had fallen into the practice of calling
all my glow lighters Ni-Starters; this is a
brand name and not a noun. After Hank
straightened me out, we had a long chat
about modeling, its history, and a whole
bunch of hobby-related general topics.
So I apologize for misusing the product
brand name and I thank Hank for
understanding my honest mistake. Not
only can I correct my mistake, but I can
salute these great McDaniel Ni-Starter
The McDaniel range of Ni-Starters sold
6. Jason Shulman: 1,851 points (Hacker)
7. Yoichiro Akiba: 1,838 points (YS 1.70)
8. Kouji Suzuki: 1,821 points (YS 1.70)
9. Sebastiano Silvestri: 1,804 points
(Hacker)
10. Wolfgang Matt: 1,729 points (Hacker)
Again, Christophe won every round
and is still the World Champion. Although
all of our pilots made it into the
semifinals, only Chip Hyde and Jason
Shulman made it into the finals. The
World Championships is becoming quite a
family affair, with two brothers and a
father and son in the finals.
104 MODEL AVIATION
2005 Nats winners (L-R): Brian Wickizer in Intermediate, A.C. Glenn in Advanced,
David Snow in Masters, and Quique Somenzini (holding his son) in F3A.
A happy Carl Zalvaney during his first Nats Intermediate contest.
products. Not only do they make it easier to
start our engines, but they may have also
changed our modeling dictionary.
The 2005 FAI F3A World Championships
was held in Saint-Yan, France, in August.
The US team went in as the defending
World Champions! We were hoping for a
repeat win. We were also hoping that one of
our own would unseat Christophe Paysant-
Le Roux (CPLR) in his own country to
become the individual World Champion.
I was hoping to have some photographs
and information from Bryan Hebert for this
month’s column. However, Bryan and his
assistant manager Brian Clemmons live in
Louisiana, and they returned to the US in the
midst of Hurricane Katrina.
They battled for 28 hours to get home,
and they eventually rented a car and drove
into the teeth of the storm, only to find
domestic damage. Then the second
hurricane beat them up some more.
I have had little success getting through
on the phone or using E-mail.
Understandably so; both have been tied up
in repairs and hosting “refugees” from New
Orleans. (Brian Clemmons is a minister in
his church.)
However, I can report on the results I
obtained from the French Web site. The
Japanese regained the team trophy after the
preliminaries were completed. Following are
the individual results of the finals and the
engines/motors used.
1. CPLR: 2,000 points (YS 1.70)
2. Tetsuo Onda: 1,948 points (YS 1.70)
3. Roland Matt: 1,891 points (Hacker)
4. Chip Hyde: 1,871 points (Hacker)
5. Benoit Paysant-Le Roux: 1,856 points
(YS 1.70)
Staying with the competition theme, the
AMA RC Aerobatics (Pattern) Nationals
was held at AMA’s Muncie, Indiana, site
in July. The event had 113 contestants
registered, 107 of whom actually made it
and stayed. Two of the US world team
members showed up. To accommodate
that number of contestants, all three
AMA flying sites were used with two
flightlines on each runway.
Sunday afternoon is when the contest
actually begins. Mickey Losardo started
with a beautiful rendition of the national
anthem. Contest flying began the next
day with some moderately poor visibility
because of some mist, which soon
cleared as the wind increased. By noon
the air was clear with the wind blowing
over the pilots’ left shoulders as they
flew.
The large Masters group flew from
the two paved sites and was able to
complete its rounds by 11:59 a.m. At 1
p.m. FAI flew using the same sites. The
Intermediate class flew in the morning
on the third site. Advanced flew in the
afternoon with no problems at all.
There were many more electricpowered
airplanes this year, and you
could see extension cords running out
from AMA’s 115-volt outlets. For the
first time 12-volt generators could be
heard as they supplied electricity to
charge the 6000 mAh and 8000 mAh Li-
Poly batteries.
Tuesday began with two rounds for
all classes already in the bag. The pilots
concentrated on improving scores.
Tuesday had the best weather; it was
perfect for competitive flying. There was
a slight summer breeze in the afternoon
and some local heat thermals.
The larger classes flew using a daily
matrix system. It was not perfect, but it
did let the pilots know who was in the
01sig4.QXD 11/22/05 1:28 PM Page 104
by Sonic-Tronics.
lead and who would be the winner if the
weather turned bad.
At the Tuesday National Society of
Radio Controlled Aerobatics (NSRCA)
banquet, AMA CD Ron Morgan presented
Dave Guerin with the AMA Event Director
Recognition award. Lamar Blair gave a
“State of the NSRCA” address. Brian
Kennedy (Mr. Cathy Reuther!) was a lastminute
substitute who gallantly ran the
FAI/NSRCA fund-raising auction.
There were no surprises in the FAI
F3A top eight except for one; Tony
Frackowiak was back on the Pattern scene
after a foray into jets. The Masters contest
was a repeat of last year, with the addition
of new pilot Jeff Carder.
Thursday was the last day of flying.
The weather gods were good to us; we
were extremely happy not to have to
activate the “bad weather plan.” The two
finals events were run in parallel on
separate sites.
NSRCA President Lamar Blair
announced the winners at the closing
ceremonies, which the NSRCA hosted. I
thank all the people who worked so hard to
make this Nationals work. Yet another
Nationals is now in the history books,
along with a personal treasure trove of
great memories.
Intermediate
1. Brett Wickizer: 4,000.00
2. Mark Hunt: 3,948.74
3. Dennis Bodary: 3,823.00
4. Erik Newsholme: 3,661.34
5. Jim Sheffield: 3,612.17
6. Keith Hoard: 3,599.45
7. David Borrow: 3,581.77
8. Ken Alexander: 3,545.05
Advanced
1. Albert (A.C.) Glenn: 3,983.808
2. Scott Pavlock: 3,905.475
3. Robert Mairs: 3,866.255
4. Mike Hester: 3,856.581
5. Wayne Galligan: 3,846.665
6. Michael Radeke: 3,839.022
7. Joe Dunnaway: 3,833.835
8. Roddy Ory: 3,826.416
F3A
1. Quique Somenzini: 2,000.00
2. Chip Hyde: 1,937.71
3. Don Szczur: 1,937.60
4. Dave Lockhart: 1,827.46
5. Todd Blose: 1,921.47
6. Tony Frackowiak: 1,876.41
7. Andrew Jesky: 1,862.86
8. Troy Newman: 1,782.10
Masters
1. David Snow: 2,000.00
2. Gerald Budd: 1,958.74
3. Michael Hill: 1,948.81
4. Archie Stafford: 1,931.55
5. Kenneth Velez: 1,926.77
6. Vern Koester: 1,925.41
7. Jeff Carder: 1,923.34
8. Jeff Carrish: 1,913.86
In looking at the World Championships
and the Nationals, there are definitely
some trends emerging at the national and
international levels. The most significant is
electric motors, which are showing that
they are truly competitive.
I admit to being a bit cautious about
the electric power plants. Every time I
write about electrics, I seem to get into
some kind of hot water with someone
somewhere. This is most likely to happen
if I seem not to be supportive of the big
electrics.
I have flown and have seen many of
the smaller sport electrics. They are no
doubt viable and practical. In most cases
the family car battery will give you almost
endless recharges, and the airplanes
function as well and last as long as their
glow-powered equivalents.
Pattern is, by its competitive nature, a
leading-edge sport. Pattern power plants
have a long track record of leading-edge
status. My firsthand knowledge began with
smaller two-strokes and soon moved to the
YS .61 and O.S. .61 Hanno specials. These
were a cut above the sport versions out
pump injectors with O.S. EFIs, and YS
DZs respectively. Some of this technology
made it into sport engines we see at the
field today.
In the case of electrics, it seems to
have developed the other way. Park flyers,
electric sport models, and the like are
already well established with brushless
motors and ESCs. Pattern has pushed the
biggest brushless motors and leading-edge
huge Li-Poly packs to produce power at
least equal to that of the mighty YSs and
O.S.s.
I have already conceded that the
“electric solutions” being put into Pattern
models are viable. I have judged more
than one Nationals winner flying these
setups. But I continue to raise the
question, What are the practical limits of
the big motors and batteries?
It is not a battle of one religion versus
another; it is much more a battle of
“practical” versus “viable.” In the past,
most of us accepted that to be competitive
you had to own three glow engines—one
in the model, one in the car, and one in
the mail to the service department. Did
that make exotic glow engines viable and
practical?
The parallel issue with electrics is how
long motors, speed controllers, and
expensive battery packs last. What may be
practical for a sponsored pilot may be
impractical for the average budget.
A less contentious observation is that
the takeoff procedures changed with the
advent of the Pattern electrics. There is no
need to start the stopwatch and put the
pilot “on the clock” as the motor is being
fired up; with electric power you just put
the airplane out on the runway. The pilot
moves the throttle stick, and the model is
in the air.
The AMA Nats saw electrics win the
finals of Masters and F3A. The World
Championships saw the YS 1.70 push
back and take the top two spots. However,
most would argue that at that level the
pilot is probably the biggest factor—not
the power plant!
What I worry about most is that the
cost of glow power is probably within the
reach of the typical, unsponsored Pattern
pilot. If a technology we cannot all afford
becomes dominant, will this reduce the
ranks of competitors?
We, as human beings, can rationalize
the use of various technologies.
Inevitably, those with the latest “toys”
will defend their investments to the death!
Do yourself a favor and ask the hard
questions about longevity and durability
there but needed special exhaust
FAI finalists (top L-R) Don Szczur, Quique Somenzini, Chip Hyde, Dave Lockhart;
(bottom L-R) Todd Blose, Tony Frackowiak, Andrew Jesky. (Not shown: Troy Newman.)
Masters finalists (top L-R) David Snow, Jerry Budd, Michael Hill, and Archie Stafford;
(bottom L-R) Ken Velez, Verne Koester, Jeff Carder, and Jeff Carrish.