Radio Control: Pylon Racing
SOME of you are just getting into Pylon Racing this year, and you may be having a little trouble trying to get it all together. A big part of doing well at a race is being prepared. What do you take with you? How do you remember all of the little things? What I have done in the past is to make a checklist and then follow it. This applies not only to what you take with you, but also to race preparation on contest day. I have established a procedure that I have been using for about 10 years now. This is something that I have not written down-it just comes automatically. Or it's supposed to, anyway. At one race this year, I forgot to change a plug after a test run. I had all wins except for that one "zero." If I had written down my checklist and used it, I don't think this would have happened. Granted, this is the first time I have ever gone out to the line with a bad plug, but believe me, once can be too often. So, I think from now on I will use a checklist.
RC Pylon Racing
THIS year's Pylon Racing Nats was held in Ohio at the former Clinton County Air Force Base. The air base is located just outside of the small farm community of Wilmington. While Wilmington didn't have a lot to offer in the way of lodging, a short drive took you to Dayton, or Cincinnati, or King's Island, where there were plenty of motels and fine restaurants. For the contestants who brought their families along, there was plenty for them to do, as King's Island is one of the largest amusement parks in the world. You could also go to a Cincinnati Reds baseball game or go to the Air Force Museum in Dayton. There were just plenty of things for a family to do.
Radio Control: Pylon Racing
FOR MOST of you, the racing season is about over. For some, however, there is one last and very important race. Every year, about the end of October, the National Miniature Pylon Racing Association has its annual Championship Race. This is usually the most competitive race of the year, as only the top fliers in the country are invited. How do you come up with a list of these people? The NMPRA has divided the country into districts, somewhat like the AMA has done. Each of these districts has a district vice president whose job it is to coordinate the racing activity in his area and to keep track of who the top fliers are. We have a point system which awards points to a flier according to how he or she finishes in each race. At the end of the season, a flier uses the best six race finishes to come up with a total for the season. The top 20% from each district are qualified for the Championship Race. Also, the top 10 finishers at the AMA Nationals, the NMPRA officers, and the past Championship winners are automatically qualified.
Radio Control: Pylon Racing
IN THIS column, I have tried to cover all types of Pylon Racing. This month we will cover an event that I have not said much about-1/4-Scale Pylon Racing. Quarter Midget Pylon got its start in the northeast part of Ohio. There seems to be a very industrious and eager group of fliers in that area. It seems as though this same group has now gone to work on 1/4-Scale Pylon Racing. Here is a look at what they did last summer. Five RC clubs in northeast Ohio have formed a Quarter Scale Pylon Racing Circuit. The clubs making up this circuit are the MARCS of Mentor, the RAMS of Ashtabula, the Goodyear Club of Akron, the Balsa Bees of Alliance and the CRCC of Cleveland.
Radio Control: Pylon Racing
RC PYLON RACING, in my opinion, is the most competitive and the most exciting aspect of flying RC model airplanes-not only to the competitors, but also to the spectators. We have at our disposal the best equipment, the best engine people, and the most experienced and best fliers. Then why is it that we don't compete on a worldwide level? Just about every other aspect of model aviation has international or world competitors. There used to be such an FAI event, but due to a lack of interest, it was sidelined. So while the Pattern and the Scale guys have their world competitions and their Tournaments of Champions at Las Vegas, and the Control Line fliers compete all over the world, we, the Pylon Racers, sit on our thumbs just racing each other and watching our event die.
