CL Scale
FOR THOSE OF YOU who didn't make it to the 1989 Nationals, you missed a good one! The Tri-Cities area (Pasco, Richland, and Kennewick, WA) is located in a high desert that's surrounded by rolling mountains. The weather was near-perfect for this event with 5 mph winds, temperature in the low 90s, and low humidity. The flight circles were laid out on one of the main taxiways of the Pasco Airport. Sport Scale National Champion was Mike Welshans of Ferndale, MI with his smooth flying Howard DGA 15P. The engine exhaust in Mike's ship was ducted out through scale exhaust locations, giving it a unique and scalelike sound. Second place winner was Charles Bauer from Norridge, Il. Charlie flew a Top Flite J3 Cub that was powered by a geared Astro Cobalt 25 electric motor. Although it was slightly underpowered (according to Charlie), it flew at a very realistic speed and was extremely quiet.
1986 Nats: CL Scale
THE WORD was hot for the 1986 Lake Charles Nationals. The temperatures at the flying site were running 95º+, and the humidity was in the 90% range. This made it uncomfortable for everyone, to say the least. My hat is off to Jack Sheeks, the event director, and his wife Shirley, who tabulated and posted all the scores-also to Burt Duggan and Ron Sears, who were the flight judges and did a fine job while enduring the hot Louisiana weather. The total number of CL Scale entries was down from previous years, but that didn't make the competition any less exciting.
AMA Nats: CL Scale
THE WIND BLEW and some brave souls flew. What heat was to last year's Nats in Lake Charles, wind was to the Nats this year in Lincoln. My hat is off to all the contestants who flew their Scale models in such a tempest. The wind was already blowing at 15 mph by 6:30 a.m., and it increased steadily throughout the day. By 10:30 it was up to around 30 mph. Because of the strong winds, only a couple of flights were made on Saturday, with almost everyone taking a pass on the first round. Steve Ashby, the event director, called a pilot's meeting to discuss the possibility of beginning at 6:00 a.m. in hopes of getting in flights before the winds became too strong. It wasn't much help, though, because Sunday dawned the same as Saturday-warm and with a stiff breeze already blowing.
