RADIO CONTROL PYLON RACING
Duane Gall, 1267 S. Beeler Ct., Denver CO 80231; E-mail: [email protected]
THERE'S NOTHING new under the sun.
Roughly a week after the April 2000 issue arrived, I received a package in the mail from Dave Gierke—ace engine man and collector.
It seems the "bladder tank" idea I heralded in that issue is not new; it is essentially the same concept that Dave came up with in the mid-1970s. He even sent me a 1977 magazine article to prove it.
Baby-bottle inserts weren't a common thing in those days, so modelers used balloons instead. The fuel would attack the balloons, and they had to be replaced periodically. Perhaps that explains why the idea didn't catch on right away.
It's never too late to have a happy childhood, so enjoy the novelty as though it was genuine.
Reader Suggestion: Bag on the Vent Line
In a similar vein, alert reader Mark Clausen wrote:
"I wonder if the bag could also work if put on the vent line that is hooked to the exhaust (rather than to the fuel pick-up line). ... It seems like this would make fueling easier for sport guys, but still help keep the fuel from foaming as much. If the bag broke, you'd be back to 'normal.' ... What do you think?"
The only problem I foresee is getting all the air out of the space where the fuel is going to go before you start fueling. But you're right: as long as the bag separates the fuel and the air, it doesn't matter which is "inside" the bag and which is "outside."
Another Blast from the Past
Wow! I have some alert readers. John Gustafson (Decatur AL) took me to task for the photo in the March issue that showed three fliers on the starting line—only one was wearing a hard hat.
Although I took pains in the text of the column to refer to it as a "practice" heat, I admit that from a safety standpoint, there is not much difference between practice and a real contest.
In past columns, I have exhorted pylon fans to practice as though it was the real thing—including wearing a helmet, so it becomes part of your routine and doesn't introduce an unfamiliar element on race day.
Besides, wouldn't it be embarrassing if the helmet fell off and creamed your airplane, because you never bothered to see if it fit?
A helmet for racing is like a seat belt for your car—it won't save you in a head-on wreck. However, it could make the difference in a far-more-likely glancing impact or a low-speed, goodness-how-did-that-ever-happen freak occurrence.
How many times have you won a heat, whooped and hollered through your landing approach, high-fived everyone within 30 feet as soon as the wheels stopped rolling, and pranced happily onto the runway to retrieve your gleaming model, only to be stopped short by shouts of "Heads up! One more coming in!"?
And remember, these things get very quiet after you shut off the engine.
So wear your helmet.
Sorry, John.
JR GOLD CUP SERIES
21st century, and the JR Gold Cup Series of five races is the glamour contest circuit.
These contests are organized by the NMPRA (National Miniature Pylon Racing Association), financially supported by JR Radio Control, PowerMaster Fuels, and a consortium of other generous sponsors, and hosted by local clubs.
Kicking off the series this year were the Speedworld R/C Flyers of Phoenix AZ, and able Contest Director Jim Allen.
I had planned to just show up and fly this time, seeking to redeem myself from last year’s last-place finish—a career milestone of sorts.
Alas, ’twas not to be. This contest is too good not to be written up; all other volunteers were quicker on their feet, so I got the job. Fortunately (especially for you), someone else was available to take pictures; many thanks to Mabo Amano.
Mabo hangs with the Canadian group. He and Harold Sattler are vice-president and super-president respectively of H&M Racing. With no other employees, H&M proudly claims the title of the “biggest racing company in Canada.”
H&M kits the Miss Foxy Lady P-51, and will soon produce a full-color Radio Control Racing calendar for 2001. Their sprawling office park and vast manufacturing complex in North Battleford, Saskatchewan can be reached at (306) 446-4021, or surf to www.superminnow.com.
At the Gold Cup, 53 entrants showed up loaded for bear. La Niña blessed us with the rare combination of warm sunshine and a cold breeze.
As the name would imply, the Speedworld R/C Flyers maintains a site where pylons are commonplace. Some contestants took advantage of the situation by spending several days practice-flying at the site.
I cannot overemphasize the value of such practice. If more clubs could arrange to keep pylons up at least part of the time, it would greatly reduce the fear-and-loathing factor, while greatly increasing the enjoyment, satisfaction, and quality of competition in racing.
The competition was intense. To find an entrant whose best time was slower than 1:10 for 10 1/4-mile laps, you had to scroll down the final standings to 11th (Andy McIndoe), then to 18th (me).
Favorite Darrol Cady started off with a double cut—rare for him. Midairs took out the primary aircraft of Rich Beers, Tim Lima, Mark Lattimore, Mike Sperry, Garry Long, Norm Johnson, and several others.
Those hanging in to make the top 10 were—in reverse order—
- Drew Telford
- Roy Andrassy
- Lyle Larson
- Mike Helsel
- Jaime de la Vega
- Randy Bridge
- Tom Scott
- Travis Flynn
- Chip Hyde
- Tony Lopez
Tony’s win was especially well-deserved and long overdue. He flew a gorgeous Miss Ashley II in purple-and-white checkerboard, and he was calling for Chip Hyde. They have been flying as a team for some time.
Going into the last round, Tony and Chip had perfect scores. With Tony calling for Chip in a heat against Rich Beers and myself (Rich was the threat in that race), Chip pulled it a little too tight, trying to stay comfortably ahead.
That put him a lap down. The only way he could win the heat was to lap Rich.
Backing off and flying a wider course would have put him behind Rich and ahead of me—an easy second place and three points for the heat, but still one point behind Tony if Tony won his last heat.
Rather than take that chance, Chip went for it. The result was a double cut and a zero—rare for him. That reduced the pressure on Tony in his final heat, but not by much.
Points aren’t given for coulda/woulda/shoulda; you have to start, launch, fly your laps, and cross the finish line.
So they went out again, and not only did Tony finish the heat, he got out in front and won it. Frosting on the cake!
However, neither Tony nor Chip did it alone. Last month I showed you their smiling faces with their support crews—mothers, fathers, sisters. It is so easy to get wrapped up in working on our gleaming missiles, we forget sometimes that it’s only a game. The best game there is, certainly, but still a game.
Come in when it’s dinnertime! Don’t stay out there all night!
You’ve endured the sermon—now it’s time for a lollipop.
ENGINE CLEANING: DEMON-CLEAN™
The other thing in the box that Mr. Gierke sent me was a sample of his new engine-cleaning concoction—Demon-Clean™.
One of the byproducts of that good castor oil in our racing fuel is a dark-brown, sticky varnish. The hotter (leaner) you run the engine, the faster it collects.
Hot places, such as the inside of the head and the back end of the muffler, are especially prone to varnish buildup. Those are also the places where the heat retained by that baked-on crud has the hardest time escaping.
The traditional method of removing varnish is with lacquer thinner and steel wool. This approach is high-impact. The steel wool is abrasive, and the process takes elbow grease. (Note: elbow grease is not a good engine lubricant.)
Demon-Clean™ softens and loosens the varnish without much scrubbing. The best way I can describe it is that it’s like naval jelly for aluminum. You brush it on, go do something else for a while, then rinse it off with warm water and soap.
According to the instruction sheet, it is safe to leave Demon-Clean™ on for days or weeks. After leaving the cleaner on overnight, the varnish may come off easily with a sponge. Heavily-caked areas took two or three tries, but I never had to scrape them.
The parts came out looking not only clean, but bright—like jewelry. Considering what they cost, that’s appropriate.
Demon-Clean™ is available from Dave Gierke Flying Models, Box 83, Bowmansville NY 14026. MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
