192 MODEL AVIATION
View from HQ
Executive Director Jim Cherry
Joe Nall is one of those events
to put on life’s to-do list.
hose who have been involved in
flying in any aspect have come to
know that there are two places they
have to visit before that “final flight” of
life. For full-scale flying the Experimental
Aircraft Association’s annual event in
Oshkosh, Wisconsin, in July is essential,
and a visit to the National Air and Space
Museum in Washington DC is equally so.
If AMA’s International Flying Site and
National Model Aviation Museum in
Muncie, Indiana, are the mecca of
aeromodeling, a trip to the Joe Nall Giant
Scale Fly-In has to be the number-two
place to visit.
If you have been involved in modeling
for any length of time, Joe Nall in May is
that event every aeromodeling enthusiast
hears of and yearns to attend. I fell into
that category until I finally made it to the
25th anniversary of the gathering at the
Triple Tree Aerodrome in South Carolina.
Located just southeast of Spartanburg, in
the small community of Woodruff, it is
within easy reach of many who live in the
eastern states.
This event is open to AMA members.
As stated on the Web site, spectators must
be an AMA member, guest, or family
member of an AMA member. The facility
has to be one of the best flying sites in the
nation; it has a runway built for full-scale
aircraft and a huge lake to accommodate
any size floatplane.
For many years the Academy has had a
presence at the event, but this year for the
first time we had a booth with items from
the museum gift shop. AMA held a
membership meeting and approximately
250 members attended. The AMAsponsored
hotdog supper that followed
helped attendance and made for a short
business meeting.
A special thanks to our host Pat
T Hartness for accommodating the Academy
and providing the PA system and chairs
for the meeting. It was presided over by
Doug Holland, AMA’s executive vice
president. (Dave Brown, AMA’s president,
was recovering from back surgery and
unable to attend.) Six district vice
presidents were also in attendance.
Almost everything that flies in the
IMAA (International Miniature Aircraft
Association) category was there. I’ll leave
the reporting of the events and
demonstrations to other areas of the
magazine.
Joe Nall is one of those events to put on
life’s to-do list.
Regarding things experienced recently,
the “rocket guys” were on-site in June.
The Rocketeers of Central Indiana (ROCI)
staged the 2007 National Sport Launch the
first weekend of the month.
AMA should be envious of the number
of youth participating in this event. Having
gone to many fly-ins, fun-flys, and other
noncompetition events, the lack of youth
involvement has always concerned me.
Unless the flying event was specifically
targeting youth, the average age of those
attending was much higher than what I
witnessed at the rocket lunch.
At times there were 15 or more
Rocketeers waiting to set up their rockets
on the 30-plus launch pads. My unofficial
observation put the percentage of youth
and adults at roughly 50% each. We must
involve the youth of today for the future of
modeling tomorrow. The challenge is, how
do we do it?
The first reports coming back in on the
Take off And Grow (TAG) program have
been encouraging. Many clubs are utilizing
the AMA-provided trainers and flight
simulators. MA has recapped one club's
TAG program success on page 10. If your
club did not participate this year, look on
the new AMA Web site for the
opportunity to apply for 2008.
Many clubs that did not need the
trainers or simulators requested the public
relations materials and information to
stage their own version of the TAG
program. Either way the outreach to
attract new participants in our hobby/sport
is commendable.
On a final note, the hospitality shown to
me on a recent visit to Kansas City and
the Shawnee Mission Radio Control Club
at the Shawnee Mission Park and a related
visit to the Omahawks in Omaha,
Nebraska, was outstanding.
The visit with the Omahawks allowed
District IX Vice President Mark Smith
and me the honor of presenting a Gold
Level Leader Club award to club president
Steve Culver. Thanks for the hospitality
and keep up the good work.
Remember: Someone helped you get
started. Help get someone else started in
enjoying our great sport!
In the spirit of flight. MA
Jim Cherry
Executive Director
[email protected]
08sig6.QXD 6/22/07 9:29 AM Page 192
Edition: Model Aviation - 2007/08
Page Numbers: 192