Control Line: Speed
Spring is almost here; I saw my first robin a couple of days ago, so we all better get our Speed models ready. The first Midwest contest will be at St. Louis, Missouri in the middle of May (not far away), and I need two new airplanes. Instead, I've been working on some race cars, but that's for a future column! Florida Speed Meet: I went down to southern Florida for Bob Whitney's contest held January 3-4. Turnout was good, the weather was good, and it was great to see the Florida Speed fliers again; I hadn't flown there since the King Orange contest that I went to a long time ago.
Control Line: Speed
It's too cold here this time of year for any kind of Speed flying. The year 1997 is gone, so you should be getting ready for 1998 by building new airplanes and reworking new engines. Meanwhile, I'm going to Bob Whitney's contest in Florida where it should be warm! I hope to bring back some nice photos. Sidewinders: I need a new Class D airplane and one for Class B, so what should I build? Should they be conventional upright-style models or the boomerang-shaped "sidewinder" aircraft? Bob Ytuarte has been doing more than 195 mph with his O.S. .65-powered conventional model, but others, such as the FABS team, Phil McGee, Charlie Legg, and all of the FAI (Federation Aeronautique Internationale) fliers, are using sidewinders. I don't like the looks or flying characteristics of sidewinders, probably because I've only built a couple of them and neither one flew very well. I don't think I built them correctly; they floundered through the air like wounded ducks! They didn't last long.
Control Line: Speed
Bill Nusz: I was saddened to hear about the death of Bill Nusz, one of the recent years' prominent younger Speed fliers. He died when the Air Force T-38 jet that he and a British exchange pilot were in collided with an F-16. They were photographing a B-1 bombing exercise at high speed and low altitude. Bill grew up in Lombard IL (not far from where I live), and he bought his first model jet engine from me about 20 years ago. He graduated from the University of Illinois in 1978 with a degree in Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering; he obtained an MS in Astronautical Engineering at the Air Force Institute of Technology in 1979; and in 1984 he went to the USAF Test Pilot School for a Flight Test Engineer course.
Control Line: Speed
FLORIDA: Speed fliers are scattered around Florida, so I have been bugging Bob Whitney to put on a contest this winter. He found a site, and will host the Florida State Speed Championships Cash Bash at the Pompano harness track, January 3-4, 1998. All classes except Jet will be there; that much noise is not permitted. I needed an excuse to go south this winter, so this sounds good. Get your stuff together and go! Dayton: As I write this in early September. I'm getting ready for the Cold Cash Speed Bash in Dayton, Ohio. This traditional contest is normally the best-attended Speed meet all year, with competitors from as far away as Colorado, Florida, New York, and Canada. I'll probably have some photos for the next column. Weather is usually excellent for this event, so I wouldn't be surprised to see some records.
Control Line: Speed
Something new was started this year at the Nats: The North American Speed Society (NASS) was assigned to organize and run Control Line Speed, so Frank Garzon, Bob Heywood, Ken Barthel, and Barry Tippett formed a Nats Committee to do so. Bob was Event Director, Barry was Treasurer, and many other volunteers helped out. Lori Wilson did an excellent job as Tabulator, with Ione Parsons as assistant. For most of the week, Seabert Parsons ran the line-check and pull-test. Frank Garzon Jr. was Head Timer, and John Camp, Al Kelly, Nick Arpino, Warren Kurth, Tom Hartvigsen, Mike Couts, Dave Hull, Barry Tippett, and Kevin Peters helped at various jobs. A hearty thanks to all of them; we couldn't have a Nats without them, and I hope that I didn't miss anyone.
