CL Speed
The Perky Speed Contest invites entries for a fun event with a NIB engine prize, using .14 to .1525 ci engines. The AMRCA Nationals saw speeds up to 187.188 mph. WCMC tracks speeds in five classes, with modern cars featuring advanced designs.
Control Line: Speed
MAGNIFICENT! Colossal! Stupendous! Maybe that's a little strong, but that's what I thought of the 1996 Nationals! It was great, and it was fun. The Control Line area at the AMA site is beautiful, smooth blacktop; I had built a couple of new pylons for Speed that really worked well. The weather was outstanding-the best that I can remember for any Nats. I expected high humidity and temperatures in the 90s, but we had clear, nice days-only two of the days had temperatures beyond 80º. It was a little windy on Tuesday when we flew A and FAI, but not enough to bother anyone.
Control Line: Speed
A CELEBRATION OF EAGLES: A stupendous event is planned to help initiate our first National Championships at the International Aeromodeling Center in Muncie, Indiana July 6-7. Competitors have flown at the Nats for 70 years, and many of the older modelers whose names have become legend will attend the planned banquet and party. If you would like to meet fliers that you have only heard of, plan to participate in the show during the weekend before formal competition starts. Demonstrations of all types of the older models will take place, so if you have any of your old Speed models still in flying condition, bring them along and fly them again, for fun!
Control Line: Speed
FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS: A few columns back I wrote that I would comment about coming technology and future improvements in our model engines. This is a good time to make a few predictions about materials that I expect to see in coming years. Our model engines have been "top dog" in the world of internal-combustion prime movers. We get more horsepower per cubic inch of displacement than any automotive, aircraft, snowmobile, motorcycle, or other engine that I am familiar with. Big engine manufacturers haven't even tried to design for matched thermal expansion as we have in our ABC and AAC material combinations. So I'll stick my neck out and make a few predictions about possible new stuff. Maybe this technology has already been used-I'll explain later.
Control Line: Speed
SPRING: What a wonderful word to those of us who are living up here where there are long, cold winters! The first Speed contest of the year is only two weeks away as I write this in early May. As usual, I don't have my airplanes ready as they should be. I've been working on my .21, .29, .40, and .65 engines. I'm rechroming some of the; some are getting new heads; things like that. I haven't touched my jets since last year, and I want to try suction fuel feed instead of pressure this year. The Lafayette Esquadrille Control Line Club of St. Louis has scheduled a Speed and Racing contest May 19. They tried one this early last year, but spring flooding put six feet of water on their flying field at Buder Park. They had very little snow this winter, so maybe it won't happen again.
