SCAT Electronic News 5 November 1999 - Guy Fawkes day
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SCAT Electronic News 5 November 1999 - Guy Fawkes day
"SCAT - 40 Year's of FAI Free Flight Competition"
Table of Contents
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Onward to Deutschland - Parker
Thanks for the info Jan - Brooks
Jimmy Allen Bluebird. -O'Reilly
Onward to Deutschland
=====================
(the USFF Team Ausfarts Israel)
Well its Thursday morning after the World Champs and a motley looking
group of U.S. free flighters has amassed in the lobby of the Shulamit
Gardens Hotel along with all their "stuff". As one would expect at
such a gathering the "stuff" one acquires far exceeds what one may
unload upon others. At any rate our folks were desperately trying to
figure our how to bundle things up in such a way that the airlines
would accept their treasures. My parting memory of our stay in Ashkelon
was George duct taping folding chairs, a canopy and God only knows what
else to the outside of another piece of luggage. Once everyone had loaded
the vehicles the caravan departed for Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv
in anticipation of our new adventure in Germany.
The airport was a piece of cake except for the very long wait in security.
It was so strange because they seemed to be very concerned about
potential problems, yet they never really opened anything up to
look and see what we were carrying. We handled the delay with grace,
for our minds were on our destination; all green, with pork chops,
real coffee, real beer, and those great sausages! After a four hour
flight to Frankfurt, a 20 mile (more or less) cavort through the airport
to our rental cars, and a short drive to a Wiesbaden hotel, we
were ready for our first German beer and some shut eye.
Bright and early the next morning, after a very good German breakfast (not
that the Israeli food wasn't good, we'd just had enough)
that actually presented too many choices of meat, excellent brewed
coffee (not Instant) and wonderful (chewy) German breads, we were
on our way to Zulpich and the Eifel Polkal. We arrived at the flying
field mid morning after winding through the German countryside, crossing
the Rhine River, and just generally enjoying the beautiful scenery. The
flying site itself was not exactly what one would expect. There were a
lot of TREES in the immediate vicinity and they would come into play
as things progressed. The headquarters area had a club house, port-o-cans,
washup facility with a tank truck of water and an already established
tent and RV community. After checking out the contest logistics and
getting everyone signed up we headed into Zulpich for lunch and to try
and locate our prearranged lodging. Lunch was great, our first schnitzel
and more beer. The lodging on the other hand was a bit more illusive, so
we returned to the field for test flying and more input on where
we might find a reasonable place to stay. Fortunately Tassilo Schwend,
whom I had met at Lost Hills, was there and offered to find us a B&B in a
town near his home in Nettersheim. After the testing was over
he led us to a grocery store, and then on to a wonderful place in
Marmegan that was set in a very picturesque valley and provided
fantastic rooms for about $50 a night. The couple that owned the place
were genuinely interested in what we do in our hobby and they
even provided us with special early morning breakfast service on
the two flying days.
Saturday morning broke early, breezy and a wee bit chilly. Power and
Wakefield today. The TREES loomed large on the horizon. The first
round went off on time with the normal four minute max and most people
stayed out of trouble. Remember that we still have no chase bikes, so we
were hoofing it. Thank God that Steve Spence had volunteered to chase
for me, since he did not fly until tomorrow (young legs are a
wonderful thing!). Ron McBurnett and I are the only US power fliers
and we both max in the first round. Same in the second. We have now had
a chance to see everyone fly and its obvious our main competition will
come from Aringer (AUT), Stabler (GER) and Schwend (GER). The third round
bites Aringer, Schwend and unfortunately Ron. In fact seven dropped
in the third as the wind picked up considerably. The CD decided that the
Max would go to 2.5 Min. in round four, where Stabler dropped. I did
not know that I was the only one clean at that point and just kept
on with my routine, which included several serious prayers as my ship
drifted toward the VERY TALL trees downwind. Steve came back after
one of the early rounds and told me how lucky I was when he picked
up my model in the middle of the forest, on the ground. When he looked
up his thought was "no way he made it through that". I was extremely
lucky and maxed out the rest of the way to take my first international
win! Pretty exciting and Ron finished in fourth with only one drop.
The rubber guys were doing very well during all of this. Four of our
five made it to the flyoff. Vladi had dropped 20 sec in the third round
and then did not make it back from his 5th round chase to take a
zero in the 6th. John Sessums had put his wake in the highest tree I've
ever seen (150 - 200 ft), short of a redwood. He and George spent the
rest of the day trying to confirm what the finder was telling them by
getting a visual on the ship. Only after a trip in an ultralight by one
of the Germans and spending the next day in the woods did they
finally convince the tree climber that it was in the top of
that particular tree.
The F1B flyoff occurred the next morning under ideal conditions, although
it was chilly, there was light wind and little drift. Kulakovski
finished first with 7:50 , followed by Alex at 7:24. Both George and
John had great power patterns, but their glides were a little under
incidence and a touch tight in the turn (this from a power flier!).
They finished fourth and fifth with 6:35 and 6:28 respectively.
I did not see Blake's flight as he flew while I was timing for John, but
he finished 9th with a 4:30. Great going gum banders!!
The Germans and Austrians seemed to be having a really great time
during the contest and they appeared to be far less serious than we
were. It was interesting that they had an hour lunch break scheduled
and took complete advantage of the time to consume not only the normal
stuff, but plenty of beer. In fact the lunch break on the first day
lasted more like an hour and forty five minutes. Now you have to
understand that they had arranged for a meals-on- wheels kitchen to be
at the field from late morning, until we finished in the afternoon. And
the food was fantastic from the brachtworst, reinenkleinkugle (sp. A
polish sausage), cole slaw. potato salad to the french fries, German
rolls and cold beer. Even the timers partook of the brew. Different strokes!
By the way the absolute best that the Spences and Parkers ate while
in Germany was at a hospital café! A rehabilitation facility was
located right across the valley from our villa in Marmegan and housed
the only two restaurants in town. They were cheap and the food was out
of this world, very typical German fare we were told. With my lousy
knees I fit right in with all the inmates as I hobbled around their facility.
Day 2 (Sunday) was much calmer and set the stage for a real
battle in glider. Seventy Six fliers competed with Steve and Brian
representing the U.S. I was an "official" timer this day, so
I was somewhat tethered to a pole, but I did get to visit with most
of the fliers during the rounds. By the way, these guys furnished
timers by paying them (about $10) and giving them free lunch and a coffee
mug. Brian and Steve Max in rounds one and two. Unfortunately Steve
drops in round three - just nasty air. They both max 4,5 and 6. Six
however turns out to be the TREE round. Now, the contest directors have
been watching the drift toward a relatively close group of fairly tall
trees for several rounds and even though a slight shift of the
flight line to either side would avoid them, no move ensued! Round
six was the time when it caught up with them. Almost everyone that
when out in air and Dted were either in the trees or very close. Bryan
was very close and unfortunately Steve was in the top of a tight group
that made it almost impossible to see the model. Bryan made the flyoff
with 22 others, while Steve failed to get back for the final round and
took a zero. Julie and I loaded up the van and headed down to the trees
to help get models out and bring water, etc, to the “Fetchers”. The
tree climber was already at work doing his magic, at this point
without actually climbing, but rather with sling shot, monofilament
line and ropes. While we were in the woods the flyoff was on and we keep
track with the radios. After the first flyoff there were ten left, then
five for the nine minute flight. Bryan ended up third with some great flying!
We got four models out before it was Steve's turn and his model had
gotten so personal with the tree that the tree climber had to be hoisted
up to were he could get a pole to the glider and coax the bird from
it's aerie. Everyone was happy and exhausted by this time, but one more
daunting task lay ahead. Remember John's Wakefield from the previous day
was still in the BIG WOODS and it was, according to the tree climber, time
to go see. Steve, John, several of the Germans including the tree dude
headed to the "spot". There it was! Way, way, way, up there in a very tall
tree. When we had asked our tree expert earlier about getting the other
models out his standard reply was "no problem". In this case his response
was "very big problem". Dark was rapidly approaching and Steve and
I had been told by the wives that we were not going to miss the awards
ceremony so we apologized to John and headed to the headquarters area.
George and Ron headed back down to the trees and the crew managed to
get the stage set for a morning retrieval before darkness fell.
The awards ceremony was conducted in an impressive portable building
which had been erected next to the flying field headquarters. It was a
cross between a wood cabin and a tent. Apparently modular, bolted together
and complete with a wooden floor. Tables with white linen, a bar with
wine, beer and other beverages, a genuine German band, and an awards
podium complete the scene. We had originally planned to go back to
the casa to clean up and change clothes, but the tree fun dictated
that we went as we were. Nobody cared! The Introductions were long, with
the mayor of Zulpich talking of the storied history of the Eifel Pokal
contest, flowers being handed out to distinguished ladies of importance
and all of this in German. So we drank lots of beer and nodded a lot. We
did hear them say Texas several times, but we have no idea whether they
were cursing us or not. After the trophies (and we're talking TROPHIES),
were handed out, we were feed what I would describe as a German
barbeque plate, and then came the belly dancers ala the World Champs. Now
the Germans gave trophies through five places, so out of the 15 available
the Americans had stacked six on a table and it looked pretty
impressive. John, George and Ron had returned from the forest in time to
be feed and enjoy some beer and the dancers. One rather interesting side
to the festivities is that the Germans actually ran out of beer early in
the evening and had to run to town for more. Must have been our
fault! By the way, John did get his model out of the tree the next morning.
Well the flying is done and the ladies have our next two days of
sight seeing mapped out. A good nights sleep, an early rise and we're
off to Trier, which claims to be the oldest town in Germany. We visited
the Roman Porta Nigra (Black Gate),the Dom Cathedral (WOW!!), the
Amphitheater and other sites too numerous to mention. Trier was truely
a beautiful city and the drive to and from was extremely enjoyable.
We got back to Marmegan in time to pack all our gear for our departure
the next morning. The plan was to head to the Rhine Valley and work our
way back to Weisbaden where we would spend the night prior to our
Wednesday departure for the States. Early Tuesday morning we headed to
Koblenz where the Mosel and Rhine converge. We saw Ron, John and
George driving into Koblenz, so they obviously had a similar plan for
the day. Our first point of interest was the largest fortress in
Europe, Festung Ehrebreitstein, which overlooks the confluence of the
two rivers. We took a cable car to the site which offered quite a
view. Next on the itinerary was a visit to the only unconquered castle
in the Middle Rhine Valley to have survived the centuries intact, the
Marksburg. Quite an extensive and tiring tour. After that we continued
to wind our way up the Rhine Valley stopping to take photos of castle after
castle and making one pit stop for the dreaded SHOPPING! I'll have to
admit that the Rhine and surrounding area were about as beautiful
as anything I've ever seen and I'll certainly jump at the opportunity
to go back for another visit. By the way the whole area is just covered
with vineyards and the wine is to die for, much more impressive than
the beer in my opinion.
We finally arrived in Wiesbaden and the Merkur Hotel where we enjoyed
our final German dinner and good nights sleep before we embarked on our
journey home. Thank goodness we were returning on Lufthansa for our
eleven hour flight. They are a first rate airline, whereas United is
not! The whole World Championships and Eifel Pokal were an experience
that I wouldn't trade for anything. Thanks to my Team Members, our
supporters, all of the sponsors and the AMA for making this rewarding
experience possible! Onward to Australia!!
'And now you know - "the rest of the story",
Faust
[Thanks for the articles - I hope this encourages more to take
part in 'the program' and travel to contests outside their owm
countries]
Thanks for the info Jan
=======================
Author : This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Jan. My intent was to spark a response from someone with practical local
knowledge, and in no sense was induced by panic or any other variant of
disproportionate fear. On the contrary, I spend my summers picking
blueberries amid the "millions" of rattlesnakes that populate the shores of
Georgian Bay in Ontario--locals will report that snakebites in these areas
rarely if ever make it to the news--might have something to do with the
local tourist trade.
I am dismayed by the ed. comment following Jan's reply however. I
have read several pieces which have appeared in this space which were at
best frivolous and were treated far more kindly. Lesson learned: when
composing a message to SCAT be warned against pricking the sensibilities of
the p.... who runs the site. Perhaps you could publish a list of topics
that would produce a put down response.
Jim Brooks
Jimmy Allen Bluebird.
=====================
Author : This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
If Dr. Gaozza will send me $7 plus $2 postage I will send him a plan of the
Jimmy Allen Bluebird.
Alternately, if he will send me $3, I will send him a copy of my catalog
which has a (much) reduced scale picture of the plan.
Jim O'Reilly
4760 N. Battin
Wichita, KS 67220
USA
.......................
Roger Morrell
