Radio Control: Pylon Racing
I HOPE all you racers survived the New Year's Eve parties and enjoyed a Merry Christmas. Now get busy and put the finishing touches on that new bird for the '79 racing season! Bob Violett Models is marketing a new pair of racing wheels for Quickie 500 and Formula One. The hubs are molded nylon in halves and are held together with four flat-head machine screws. An "O" ring tire is stretched over the assembly so that the completed wheel looks like the machined aluminum wheels, but are lighter. They sell for $6.95 per pair. Check with Bob Violett Models or your local hobby shop. I worked the California National Air Races at Mojave, in October. Ray Cote turned a 253.5-mph lap during practice and averaged 245 mph for five laps in the IXL Heat Race.
Radio Control: Pylon Racing
BY THE time you read this it will be the start of the '79 racing season. I think we all should take a good long look at the safety aspect of our various racing events. I had a long conversation with a fellow magazine writer about this subject and he voiced concern about the lack of safety at some of the racing events during the '78 season. A look at the AMA rule book establishes the minimum space required for the 1/4 Midget and Formula One classes. Any other form of pylon racing using the Q.M. or F-1 courses obviously would require the same amount of space. The Flying Forks of Lancaster, Ohio put it very neatly in their newsletter. "If something bad happens at our field, insurance or not, the pilot is going to feel terrible! The pound of cure won't help that much. The ounce of prevention is the only proper solution. And you owe it to the rest of the club to assume the responsibility to exercise safe flying. Safe flying means never having to say you're sorry."
Radio Control: Pylon Racing
LAST month we discussed the subject of safety for the workers on the pylon course. I think we should take a look at the safety of the aircraft. Obviously, the airframe should be sound and straight. After a few races the airframe begins to get a little "war weary." A thorough inspection of the basic airframe should be performed before each heat. Some of the more critical areas to inspect are all control surface hinges, wing center section, stabilizer attach point, and firewall security. A loose firewall can cause severe vibration of the airframe and literally shake the airframe apart in the air. Loose hinges can cause flutter at high speed and destroy the attached surface in seconds. Particular attention should be paid to the installation of the radio equipment. The battery pack should be wrapped in foam and a plastic baggie to protect it from vibration and fuel. The receiver should also be wrapped in foam and plastic as well. Fifty to 70% nitro can destroy the battery and receiver rather quickly if the fuel tank springs a leak.
Radio Control: Pylon Racing
QUITE A FEW of the Formula One pilots in Southern California seem to be unhappy with the way scale judging is being accomplished at various races. According to the 1976-77 AMA rule book, the aircraft should be lined up wing tip to wing tip and judged in descending order. In California the judges are splitting the aircraft into four groups, one through four. Number one starts first, then number two second, etc. Obviously, when a heat comes up with two or more aircraft with the same handicap number, you have to resort to the toss of a coin.
Radio Control: Pylon Racing
LAST MONTH I stated that we would talk about "Quickie 500" racing. I would like to regress just a bit to 1/2A racing to mention that Dick Russ of Allied Models is bringing out a new 1/2A racer called "1/2A Streaker." I was able to look at one of the prototypes of this little speedster and was impressed with its appearance. Dick mentioned that they had flown three prototypes before being satisfied with the performance. The plane is very clean with a semi-cowled engine and spinner, uses the Ace foam wing an all-balsa tail and fuselage. The 1/2A Streaker will sell for under $20.00 which is a very reasonable price considering the cost of balsa these days.
