Safety Comes First
Box 4520, Milton FL 32572; E-mail: [email protected]
Tick Harvest
By the time you read this, summer will have been here for several months, and bugs that love to "bug" you will be well-entrenched.
New England promises to have a bumper crop of ticks this year, waiting for you to be their next meal.
I learned about the problem while I was fishing in Connecticut in May. Almost every newspaper had tick precautions in it, and boat ramps had posters advising anglers to search their clothing for ticks if they go into the woods.
The East is taking the threat of ticks that spread Lyme Disease very seriously, and so should you.
In the Midwest, LeRoy Cordes, editor for the Chicagoland Radio Control Modelers, Inc., published the following article in the club's newsletter:
"Tick Alert—it's that time again. About a week ago, I was sitting, talking with my daughter, and felt something on the back of my neck. When I picked it off, I was surprised to find a tick.
"I had been out at the field the day before, but had never left the short grass area. I usually associate getting a tick with walking in the high grass, but obviously not so.
"I point this out so you will remember to check yourself occasionally, after visiting the field. The ticks can hang around for a long time and if attached to your body, they swell up and are quite difficult and sometimes painful to remove.
"Remember, these buggers can carry Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, which I'm told, is no fun at all."
Tick Prevention and Removal Tips (from The Lyme Disease Network of NJ, Inc.)
I. The best way to prevent Lyme Disease (LD) is to check frequently for ticks.
- A. Check all body parts that bend including:
- behind the knee
- between fingers and toes
- underarms
- B. Check other areas where ticks are commonly found including:
- belly button
- in and behind the ear
- neck
- hairline
- top of the head
- C. Check pressure points including:
- where underwear elastic touches the skin
- where bands from pants and skirts touch the skin
- anywhere else where clothing presses on skin
- D. Go back and visually check all other areas.
- E. Run fingers gently over skin. If there is a tick and it is attached, it will feel like the last piece of scab left before a cut completely heals.
II. Shower after all outdoor activities are over for the day. If the tick is still wandering it may wash off.
III. If a tick is found, remove it carefully with fine tweezers. Grab as closely to the skin as possible. Do not squeeze the body, apply Vaseline™, use a burn match, or clean with alcohol while the tick is attached. Any of these actions could cause transmission of the bacteria.
IV. Ticks can be tested. Place tick in a glass or plastic vial with a moistened cotton swab. A clean pill vial is good. If none is available, use a Ziploc™ storage bag as a temporary container.
V. Many Lyme Disease organizations now recommend prophylactic treatment when a person is bitten by a deer tick in a known endemic area. Since there isn't enough evidence on either side to prove or disprove this theory, the final decision is up to the individual and the treating physician.
- The recommended treatment is 4–6 weeks of an oral antibiotic. Anyone needing information supporting treatment for a tick bite can obtain it by contacting the Lyme Disease Network.
VI. The use of sprays is a personal decision so you must know the facts.
- Products that contain DEET (diethyl-m-toluamide) are tick repellents. They do not kill the tick and are not 100% effective in discouraging a tick from feeding on you.
- Products like Permanone contain Permethrin and are known to kill ticks. However, they are not to be sprayed on the skin. Permanone can be sprayed on clothing. Once it is dry it is assumed to be safe.
- Ticks are anti-gravitational. They are generally seeking the highest point. If they get on your body below the clothes line, one hopes they will travel up and die once they come in contact with treated clothing.
- Note: If the tick meets resistance on its journey to the top of your head it will stop and feed at that point. If you are wearing shorts and the tick gets stuck in the bend behind your knee the Permanone will not be helpful.
VII. Lyme Disease is a 12-month problem. The best defense against LD is education. Know your facts. For more information, contact the Lyme Disease Network.
The Lyme Disease Network of NJ, Inc. is on the Internet at http://www.lymenet.org/.
Rotary Wings
F.H. Huber wrote to mention structural failures with a type of model that seems prone to wing-pin failure while in flight.
As F.H. describes it, the failures are quite impressive—and potentially dangerous—if they happen near the pit area:
"We had an aircraft go out-of-control and crash at our flying field today. On-site investigation revealed a problem in the construction, which could be attributed to poor instructions in the kit (and possibly poor design), and unfamiliarity with the tubular wing-joiner system that is common in AMA Pattern aircraft. Luckily there were no injuries, as the aircraft impacted several hundred feet from the nearest person.
"The main joiner tube was not the problem. The alignment dowel at the rear of the wing was glued to the balsa fuselage sides, from the outside, after the fuselage was covered. The glue did not penetrate the joint gap, but soaked the dowel. The glue was held out of the joint by the covering material. The dowel slid to one side during flight, and allowed the right wing to pivot on the wing-joiner tube, resulting in rapid, uncontrollable rolling of the aircraft.
"Anyone installing a wing-alignment dowel in this kit, or any similar system, should reinforce the fuselage at the dowel penetration, and ensure the dowel is firmly glued in place. Because of the plywood servo tray incorporated in the structure of this kit, it was impossible to apply glue to the dowel from the inside, after the tray and bottom sheeting were in place.
"Installation of adjustment blocks (which are commonly used in Pattern aircraft) and epoxying a stub dowel in the rear wood would also eliminate this problem.
"Amplification needed—there are a series of threads on rconline.com regarding problems with the rear alignment dowel on this kit. Several people have had the dowel shear, resulting in the same problem—the wing no longer stays aligned, with catastrophic results to the model.
"There are recommendations to replace the dowel with a solid aluminum rod or music wire, held in place in various manners."
From the Mailbag
I've written a lot about the simulator recently; I believe in its ability to increase competency and contribute to safe flying.
One drawback is that some of the software is expensive, and it requires sophisticated hardware to run properly. If you're a "webhead," there's plenty of shareware available that works great if you have the time to look.
If you're into Radio Control (RC) and have a computer, using simulator software can make you a better pilot.
Alan Levine (Boynton Beach FL), a member of the Palm Beach Skyhawks, helps validate my assumptions.
"If you can stand one more love story about the use of simulators.
"These wonderful additions to the home personal computer (PC) have done as much for RC enjoyment as the Wright Brothers have done for full-scale. While they require a fair chunk of change to get started, the old adage, 'you can pay me now or pay me later' could not be more fitting.
"I cannot tell you how many airplanes and how much time at the hobby shop and workbench have been saved by my simulator. While it is fun all by itself, the simulator's greatest value is teaching the learning pilot the entirely unintuitive aspect of steering the airplane as it is heading toward you—a process requiring the exact opposite of what you would normally instinctively do.
"To even the more-seasoned pilots, the simulator, coupled with a hardware-accelerated graphics card, is a great way to practice 3-D (three-dimensional) maneuvers that otherwise cause a lump in your throat when attempted with a model that took six months and 100 hours to build.
"Bottom line—they are great fun, a great way to overcome stick withdrawal during inclement months, and the best way to prevent accidents to your airplane and others around you."
Until next month, fly safe, use sunscreen, drink plenty of fluids, and enjoy the weather! MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
