Control Line: Combat
THE 1994 COMBAT SEASON has turned out unforeseen contest cancellations and the emergence of many new money contests. The long-running Bladder Grabber was withdrawn from the circuit, as was the Money Nats, the second longest running of the triple-elimination contests. With this rather large hole left in the schedule, Steve Smith offered the June 11-12 Central California Coyote Valley Bellcranker II Contest in Morgan Hill, California. (Since it's about two days after my deadline for this column, I will report the outcome next month.)
Control Line: Combat
During the latter part of April, Mike Willcox hosted the United States Open FAI (Federation Aeronautique Internationale) Combat contest in Garland, Texas, near Dallas. It was an attempt to generate some interest in the F2D event in the US, and to give the US team members a chance to fly in a serious contest against some of the more serious competitors. Most pilots do not get many opportunities to fly in actual Combat conditions during the course of the year; many fly numerous practice matches with short tanks of fuel, in a more relaxed atmosphere. More real contests are needed, in which all of the rules are applied, and there is no deviation.
Control Line: Combat
IT HAS BEEN A LONG TIME since a club wanting to run a competition with a large entry of Combat participants has surfaced. Anytime you want to run a competition, it takes a lot of planning and cooperation among the organizers. In general, Combat fliers are an easygoing lot; they can get along with matches posted on a clipboard that's passed from judge to judge. Most of the time, Combat matches won't have organizers sitting in an RV, with computers printing round-by-round results. Combat pilots are content with just finding out who won the match-the exact score is not of much interest. It is refreshing to see someone like R.W. Howe, who goes all-out to attract as many pilots as possible to his big showdown in Muncie, Indiana.
Control Line: Combat
THIS YEAR MARKED THE return of the once-popular Los Angeles Money Nats contest. Pete Athans decided to push for the return of the original "big money" meets. The Money Nats got its start in 1988, when Steve Hills, Pete Athans, Chuck Rudner, and myself agreed to host a big-money triple-elimination contest to promote AMA Fast Combat. Steve Hills came up with the idea of offering $1,000 for first prize, and the "Money Nats" name. At that time, the only other big-prize contest was the (now dormant) Bladder Grabber. The Money Nats paved the way for the Houston Combat Classic, the Tucson Top Gun, the Chicagoland Duke Fox Memorial, and the Central California Coyote Valley Bellcranker (held near San Jose). These events would make a nice contest circuit if they were offered every year. In 1992 the Money Nats were cancelled due to the Los Angeles riots; the event was dormant for two years.
