NatsNews. Inside: Daily coverage of the 2010 National Aeromodeling Championships. May 29, Indoor Free Flight

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1 Inside: NatsNews Daily coverage of the 2010 National Aeromodeling Championships May 29, 2010 Indoor Free Saturday Manhattan, Pennyplane, Helicopter, *No Cal, *Ornithopter, *WWII Mass Launch, *Coconut Scale, *A-6 Sunday Ltd Pennyplane, Electric Duration, *F1M *Unofficial Events Where is that pesky model? The big story of the day was the thunderstorm and power outage while planes were in the air. Dennis Tyson and John Kagan search the darkness for some sign of John s F1L aircraft. Jeff Hood photos. Academy of Model Aeronautics International Aeromodeling Center, Muncie IN; Web site: e- mail: nats@modelaircraft.org; Copyright Academy of Model Aeronautics 2010 Editors: Liz Helms, Ashley Rauen, and Jennifer Orebaugh Staff Contributors: Michael Ramsey and Jay Smith A special thank-you to members of AMA s Support Team. Our community partners recognize that AMA onsite events bring thousands of visitors during the flying season who spend dollars in our community. Their generous donations help AMA continue to host the many competition events held annually, and in turn, AMA promotes and encourages our members to look for and support members of the Support Team.

2 Indoor Free Day 3 Indoor Free Day 3 It s early afternoon and I ve got an F1L test flight up that is drifting toward the speakers, so I walk across the dome to top off my balloon before I try to steer it out. There s another thunderstorm raging outside, like the ones we ve experienced almost every day, when all of a sudden, wham! It s pitch black. Emergency lighting comes on and we can start to see well enough to move across the floor, but it is still way too dark to see the planes in the air. A few people dig out a few flashlights and one gets aimed at my model. Every few seconds we can see a glint from the prop. The plane seems much higher, faster, and closer to the speakers when you can barely see it. Fortunately it ends up drifting back out into the open. After a while the main lights begin to start back up and the ordeal is over. It was eerie and something I hadn t experienced in the previous 17 years I ve attended the Indoor FF Nats. With that ordeal behind me, I took a few more full-motor test flights and then recorded a 20:22 with a 20:07 backup to take the early lead in F1L. This model, the one and only F1L I ve ever constructed, has been very consistent in the times it produces year after year. The only difference in the overall results has been because of the performance of the other planes in the field. Last year Bill Gowen set a new site record with about 22:30 minutes. This year Bill struggled a bit, logging 19:23 and 18:24 for the fourth spot. Jim Richmond s funky-looking model scored consistent flights of 19:37 and 19:29 for third place. Larry Cailliau came within seven seconds of the top position with a 20:34 to lead his earlier 19:46. While he calculated what he needed on his next flight to move into the lead, I launched another flight and beat him into submission with a 20:57. He gave it one more valiant effort before declaring, I give up! and heading off to dinner with his bride. I waited for one of the other contenders to put up some last-minute barn burners, but this year the mid twenties were good enough for the win. You've got to admit that Richmond's F1L looks funky. Kang Lee spent a good portion of his first USIC retrieving his F1L from the scoreboard, but eventually had his model back in hand. 2

3 Left and inset below: The computer screens glowed eerily in the dark. Below: Ghostly image of John Kagan s F1L at the roof in the dark. Right: John Kagan waits for his model or the lights to return. John Diebolt s A-ROG and F1L models. 3

4 4 Dennis Tyson hooks a motor up to his Mini Stick. Inset: Parker and Dennis Tyson. Tom Iacobellis built a.4gm EZB with leftover/reject F1D wood. It was supposed to be just a half-hearted project, but it produced steadily increasing mid-twenty-minute flights that landed him in third place. It also gave one of the most amazing and entertaining encounters with the big scoreboard. The model drifted into the wires from which the scoreboard is suspended, bouncing off three of them before breaking free and continuing its flight, but it wasn t done. On the next lap it banged into the wires on the other end, dropped into the opening in the top of the box, and then miraculously emerged from a gap in the side. Tom decided enough was enough and steered it out to safety; it had earned the reprieve.

5 Scores and Standings Please note: Scores are unofficial until tabulation is confirmed. A-ROG Name AMA # Best Place LARRY LOUCKA :42 13:42 1 H DIEBOLT :40 10:40 2 AMA Peanut Best 2nd Total Place Name AMA # Aircraft Static PAUL GRABSKI Lemberger KENNETH JOHNSO Facetmobile GEORGE WHITE Lemberger Dime Scale 1st 2nd 3rd Score Place Name AMA # Aircraft Bonus H DIEBOLT 5286 B.A.T. Monoplane ROBERT WARMANN 187 Arado KATIE BOSMAN Stinson TIM LAVENDER Lloyd CV GEORGE WHITE P-6e WILLIAM ODELL Cessna ROALD TWEET S.E WILLIAM LYONS B.A.T. Monoplane RAYMOND HARLAN 131 PAUL GRABSKI EZB Name AMA # Best Place RAYMOND HARLAN :21 29:18 29:18 1 JAMES RICHMOND :29 25:54 25:54 2 THOMAS IACOBELLIS :56 24:04 25:08 25:08 3 JOHN KAGAN :37 23:59 23:59 4 JEFFREY HOOD :51 22:14 11:02 18:19 22:51 5 WALTER COLLINS :05 19:53 19:01 4:01 22:06 22:06 6 YUAN KANG LEE :14 16:14 7 ABRAM VANDOVER 894 3:28 10:33 13:34 13:42 10:23 13:42 8 DAVID ERBACH 198 7:33 10:35 11:32 10:19 11:32 9 DOYLE BLEVINS :26 6:57 7:10 7:49 7:43 7:49 10 Towline Glider Name AMA # Best Place H DIEBOLT :02 2:53 2:53 3:09 2:54 3:09 1 FRED RASH :44 2:59 0:35 2:59 2 RAYMOND HARLAN 131 2:58 2:44 2:55 2:48 2:21 2:58 3 WALTER COLLINS :28 2:25 2:38 2:46 2:31 2:46 4 KENNETH ACHEE :50 1:50 5 F1D Name AMA # Best 2nd Best Total Place JAMES RICHMOND :28 32:25 27:30 34:07 34:28 34:07 68:35 1 JOHN KAGAN :47 33:09 33:22 33:44 32:25 33:44 33:22 67:06 2 LAWRENCE CAILLIAU :49 32:25 33:28 29:08 33:11 31:56 33:28 33:11 66:39 3 BRETT SANBORN L486 30:06 32:52 31:19 33:12 14:03 30:42 33:12 32:52 66:04 4 TOM SOVA :31 30:45 0:22 32:31 30:45 63:16 5 BENJAMIN SAKS :54 28:18 30:24 25:05 29:49 30:47 30:47 30:24 61:11 6 DENNIS TYSON :56 20:01 19:29 21:14 21:14 20:01 41:15 7 PARKER TYSON (Jr) :12 20:04 20:00 18:55 20:37 20:37 20:04 40:41 8 CURTIS WERNETTE :29 20:08 16:59 19:31 20:08 19:31 39:39 9 THOMAS IACOBELLIS 6698 DNF KENNETH JOHNSON DNF NICHOLAS RAY DNF 5

6 F1L Name AMA # Best 2nd Best Total Place JOHN KAGAN :07 20:22 20:07 20:57 20:57 20:22 41:19 1 LAWRENCE CAILLIAU :29 19:46 20:34 19:48 20:34 19:48 40:22 2 JAMES RICHMOND :41 18:21 19:29 19:37 19:37 19:29 39:06 3 WILLIAM GOWEN :22 18:24 16:05 19:23 19:23 18:24 37:47 4 BRETT SANBORN L486 17:25 18:43 17:18 16:33 18:41 18:43 18:41 37:24 5 YUAN KANG LEE :43 16:35 15:19 18:14 18:02 18:45 18:45 18:14 36:59 6 BENJAMIN SAKS :06 18:48 17:53 17:22 16:11 18:48 18:06 36:54 7 TOM SOVA :39 16:47 17:15 15:15 17:15 16:47 34:02 8 VICTOR GAGLIANO :34 14:28 13:07 14:33 14:33 14:28 29:01 9 PARKER TYSON (Jr) :18 12:02 11:44 14:54 13:37 14:54 13:37 28:31 10 H DIEBOLT :47 14:11 8:08 13:33 14:11 13:47 27:58 11 THOMAS BATTE :09 8:16 12:53 12:01 12:42 12:53 12:42 25:35 12 DENNIS TYSON :17 11:17 11:25 13:17 11:25 24:42 13 BILLIE LANDRUM :49 11:07 11:07 10:49 21:56 14 ABRAM VANDOVER 894 8:56 10:38 10:38 8:56 19:34 15 WALTER COLLINS :20 9:01 2:31 9:20 9:01 18:21 16 LEN SINGER :15 12:15 12:15 17 FAC Scale Const. Det. Color & Markings Scale Score Bonus Points 1st 2nd 3rd Points Total Points Name AMA # Aircraft Work. VAL THOMAS Piper Vagabond ROBERT STEVENS Voisin KATIE BOSMAN Douglas SBD SORIN SLATER (JR) Pilatus Porter PAUL GRABSKI Lincoln Beachey GREG THOMAS :00: Ministick Name AMA # Best Place LARRY LOUCKA :25 9:46 12:42 12:42 1 FRED RASH :14 9:07 11:28 11:51 11:51 2 TOM SOVA :58 11:12 11:25 11:31 11:23 11:31 3 WALTER COLLINS :19 10:11 8:20 10:45 11:19 4 EMIL SCHUTZEL :30 8:36 10:30 5 DENNIS TYSON :15 8:38 8:08 8:59 8:59 6 BENJAMIN SAKS :12 6:01 8:12 7 LOU YOUNG :07 7:27 4:33 7:27 8 LEN SINGER :09 7:09 9 WILLIAM ODELL :09 6:43 7:06 5:29 5:54 7:06 10 PARKER TYSON (Jr) :51 5:43 5:51 11 JOHN ODELL :35 3:55 4:07 4:27 4:03 4:27 12 DAVID ERBACH 198 2:51 2:57 2:57 13 ROBERT WARMANN 187 0:43 0:43 14 RTR Name AMA # Best Place RAYMOND HARLAN H DIEBOLT WALTER COLLINS FRED RASH TOM SOVA DNF ROBERT ROMASH DNF MORGAN SLATER (JR) Science Olympiad Name AMA # Best Place LEO PILACHOWSKI :40 4:47 4:53 5:14 5:14 1 ELIZABETH HE (Jr) 0 4:20 3:56 4:38 4:25 3:54 4:38 2 YUAN KANG LEE :23 4:28 4:20 4:28 3 NEAL HENDERSON 0 4:26 4:12 3:41 4:26 4 JOHN HANCE 0 3:31 3:40 3:42 3:38 3:42 5 CARL BAKAY :09 3:22 3:29 3:29 6 ERICA ATKINSON (Jr) :57 0:57 1:06 1:07 1:07 7 Place 6

7 Ben Saks packs a lot of planes in his model box. Jim Richmond managed to get his floppy.3gm record holder up to altitude and down with a 25:54 for second. Ray Harlan did a fantastic no-touch 29:18 for the win. Earlier in the day Tim Lavender faced off with Larry Loucka in the WWI Mass Launch. Both biplanes climbed at similar rates, but Tim missed his opportunity to take Larry out in a head-on game of chicken as both models converge at the same altitude. Tim s model then began to descend, but Larry s super-lightweight plane was still on its way up. The only way to beat Larry is with a little bit of war-driven carnage. That will have to wait for next year. Towline Glider continues to evolve, with improvements in mechanics and launch technique. It is commonplace now for models to get towed to top-dead-center and then released with no loss in altitude and perfect forward momentum. Ray Harlan s biplane has an impossibly slow glide and sink rate. After watching it fly, I wouldn t have believe that any of the other model could beat it, but they did. Ray flew 2:58 for third place, Fred Rash came in ahead by just one second for second place, and John Diebold turned a 3:09 for the win. Saturday brings the much anticipated Pro/Am LPP contest, as well as Pennyplane, Ornithopter, Helicopter, and a bunch of other great events. Stay tuned to ats ews for the results and excitement. John Kagan 7

8 Brett Sanborn works on an F1L prop. Inset: Brett s F1L model in flight. Left: Larry Cailliau fights in F1L.

9 Jim Richmond and his F1L. John Kagan looking for every inch of ceiling height during his launch. Above: John Kagan's F1L climbs out on its winning flight.

10 Left: Ray Harlan's towline glider. Below: Nick Ray s ministick features a swoopy motorstick and tailboom. Above: Tom Iacobellis works on his EZB. Right: Larry Loucka s winning WWI Mass Launch model is fantastically light.