Free Flight: Indoor
JUNIOR PROGRAMS: The following notice has circulated for some time on the Internet. The stated purpose has almost timed out, but there will be a continuing need for Junior Program sponsorship: Thanks to efforts by Vern Hacker and Steve Kaluf, AMA has agreed to be the collection and distribution point for any funds sent to it for the purpose of sending a Junior flier to the international contest for F1D models at Slanic, Romania in October. The monies donated should be sent to Teresa McKee at AMA HQ and should be marked for this cause. AMA has indicated that any monies received will be tax-deductible. If stock is given, AMA's taxpayer ID is 52-07-99408. I hope that we will generate a considerable interest, since the Academy is unable to support any Junior program as part of the normal commitments.
Free Flight: Indoor
"This is Jimmy Buxton trying to get a hold of you and let you know I am still all in one piece, and fully recovered from my little incident that kept me from getting to Johnson City this year. "I wanted to let you know that I feel fine, and thank you along with the rest of the Indoor community for the card that was created, and the well wishes I received. It really was great to see the names that I associate with so many familiar faces all on a card wishing me a full and speedy recovery. I promise I will be at Johnson City next year to thank everyone that I can in person.
Free Flight: Indoor
Year of the High Ceilings? With continued good relations at Lakehurst NJ, it can be assumed that 1999 will have a large number of Lakehurst dates. About the time you read this, another landmark site will be visited by Indoor fliers: the 231-foot Tropicana Stadium in St. Petersburg, Florida is the highest ceiling in the US that has been available. A Reprise: Excerpts of a message from Bob Clemens: We have a firm date for the 1999 Empire State Indoor Championships at the Buffalo Bills fieldhouse near Orchard Park NY. It's Saturday May 22, 1999. This is one of the best Indoor sites available: a 200- × 400-foot carpeted floor area with a 128-foot ceiling. Bob Clemens: [email protected]; Tel.: (716) 392-3346.
Free Flight: Indoor
Joe Kehr believes he is enough of a newcomer to Indoor that his remarks can be considered to be objective, especially about F1D models. In response to the remarks Cezar Banks made in the January 1999 column, Joe suggests that the time for a change may be here, regardless of how attractive and slow-flying microfilm-covered models may be. Joe also supports the concept of moving to a 55cm span limit: "There are a handful of mainline model builders that wish to continue with the task of covering with microfilm . . . leave them to their bathtubs and hoops. However, consider those of us who would participate actively in the class if it didn't take years to develop the skill level . . . just to cover it. Handling manufactured film is difficult enough without the problem of finding microfilm solutions and flying sites which will accommodate their fragile nature.
Free Flight: Indoor
TERRY JENKINS of Ontario, Canada wrote to mildly chastise me for "promoting Radio Controlled Indoor Flying." His well-taken point is that RC interests may well overwhelm all available Indoor sites, to the exclusion of "true" Indoor flying. This is a troubling possibility, but my not reporting this activity surely would have little impact on the site problem. There is no doubt that Indoor RC of any ilk is not compatible with other Indoor types. However, Indoor Electric FF, CO2 FF and Scale, all other Indoor Scale models except perhaps Lo-Cal, and P-24 models are equally incompatible with what I call "true" Indoor models. As fliers of duration models covered with microfilm or plastic, Jim Clem and I pay our pro rata share of site rental, and get (at most, on average) 50 minutes of flying time in return for a 70+ mile round trip.
