Thunderbolt. Club Meeting Monday, August 5, 7:30 pm Ray Field. Don. Ribcrackers Model Airplane Club. A Fine Time Was Had By All!

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1 Club 2067 F Ribcrackers Model Airplane Club We re on the web! Thunderbolt August 2013 Ray Field LAT: N LON: W A Fine Time Was Had By All! You couldn t have asked for a better day for a fun fly and swap meet. Several Ribcrackers came out and filled the pit and flight line to capacity. There seemed to be a plane in the air all morning and afternoon. And, to be expected, there were a few planes that did not make the ground in the normal fashion. A plane that Prez Scott Cruzen was flying ended up in the now tall corn field. Upon inspection of the landing site reveled some corn stalks hacked into several pieces by a motor that was idling, a further reminder of the sharpness and torque of the propellers. The planes were plentiful and spectacular as well, there were some family tents, lots of camaraderie and lots of good conversations spurred on by the roving former Veep Hank Wojcik. All in all a terrific Saturday so let s start planning for next year. I am taking a hiatus from editing the Thunderbolt for a while. Prez Scott will put together the September issue, so send your materials to him. I hope to be back for the October issue. Till then Don The next time you see Veep Dennis Carpenter give him a big thank you for organizing the event along with his wife Heather who manned the food tent. Great job you two and the home made caramel corn was a smashing success. We have the cookie lady and now another potential addition to the sweet treat part of the club meetings who knows what other culinary treats reside in the Ribcracker kitchens. Hum? The swap part of the event was so-so with a few tables displaying items, and there were a lot of good things on the Club table, but alas few sales. Club Meeting Monday, August 5, 7:30 pm Ray Field Grand River East of Milford Road

2 July Meeting. The 2nd Annual Warbirds over New Hudson At idle, the prop cut through this corn stalk several times.

3 Need a creeper, Ron? Greg, prepping his Messerschmitt

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5 How the Other Half Lives Whenever I travel, and have the time, I like to visit the local RC flying clubs and talk to some of the members, just to see what other clubs are like and maybe get some good ideas I can bring back. I have a second home in Cape Coral, Florida (just across the river from Fort Myers), and over the Memorial Day weekend I went down there to take care of a few chores that have been lingering on my list for a while. Since I was there without the family this time, I was able to spend some time checking out the local club field, operated by the Cape Coral R/Sea Hawks. Below is a photograph of the field taken from the club website, showing the 1/8 th mile long paved runway, adjacent to a large freshwater basin. Obviously, you don t have to go to a separate venue to fly seaplanes/ floatplanes. Apparently the photo is a little outdated since I saw that several more structures have been added that are not shown in the picture. The club field is situated on a city-owned park property, although the field and all its appurtenances were built and are maintained with club funds. The club has about 300 members, so it s a relatively large club, with a high percentage of active flyers. Since Cape Coral is a retirement mecca, there are a lot of members who have plenty of time to devote to the hobby. The runway is the first thing that catches your attention. It is over 600 feet of smooth asphalt, served by paved concrete taxiways at center and both ends, and was purpose-built for RC flying. The runway is so big that I was told they ve had instances of full scale aircraft mistakenly attempting to land there. There is plenty of wide open space in all directions; even a big airplane would be almost out of sight before it was in danger of hitting any trees or other tall obstructions. All of the build stands, and covered structures are permanent and substantial, as they have to be in hurricane country. Cape Coral R/Seahawks Field Aerial View, Courtesy of the Club Website The R/Seahawks have done a really nice job with their field and it looks like a great place to fly. The club sponsors several annual events, including swap meets and auctions, Jets Over Cape Coral, Warbirds Over Paradise, and Gathering of the Giants. If you happen to be in the Fort Myers area and have

6 some time to spare, drop by and visit the field. I found that the members were friendly and happy to spend time chatting, just like most RC modelers. I wish I d been able to bring along a plane or two to fly, but the logistics of transporting planes and equipment 1,300 miles and having it all arrive intact are pretty tough. Nevertheless, I left with a serious case of runway envy. Nice Shaded Assembly Area with Permanent Structure at Center Field Flight Line and Run Stands at the West End of the Field Separate Heliocopter Flying Area with Landing Pads and Covered Work Area Scott

7 UPCOMING LOCAL EVENTS August 5 Ribcrackers Club Meeting Ray Field September 9, Ribcrackers Club Meeting Ray Field There are 19 events going on in Michigan in August. Check page of MODEL AVIATION August issue for details. Student Night began Wednesday May 1 at 6:00 pm, and will continue every Wednesday night till October 30, weather permitting. There he goes again, Hank Wojcik talking to Veep Dennis Carpenter Ribcrackers 2013 Board of Directors Club Positions President Scott Cruzen scruzen@me.com Vice President / Field Marshall Dennis Carpenter Dennis.carpenter@bcarp.com Secretary Matt Jerue mdjerue@mi.rr.com Treasurer Dennis Robbins drobbins421@yahoo.com Librarian Ken Hilton Thunderbolt Editor Don Unsworth dunswrth@sbcglobal.net Safety Officer Alex Alexopoulos Alexopoulos24@yahoo.com Chief Instructor Matt Jerue Minute Recorder Gerald Klose Raffle Coordinator Marshall Stern