SEN 1257 28 October 2008

Table of Contents - SEN 1257

  1. SEN Stuff
  2. SEN Contributions
  3. Good news on Autumn Cup/Seguin
  4. Tail-less bunter for MikeS
  5. Coleman on the finals
  6. Fall on your head on the finals
  7. An old timer observes





SEN Stuff

This is SEN - the electronic newsletter of the Southern California Aero
TEAM, a FAI Free Flight Model Airplane club.

At the recent USA Team selection finals some people commented about it
no longer being available on-line. That's not the case we did change our
web site to www.faifreeflight.org so you can go there to get a copy if
you don't it e-mailed to you. Also you can subscribe on that site too.
AND you can change your own e-mail address too. From time to time people
say to me isn't this a lot of work, that's true. One of the reasons we
changed the web site and way of mailing was so you could change your own
subscription information. I do understand that some people have trouble
with doing this and try to help. But just telling what your new e-mail
address is not helpful if I do not know the old one that you used to sub
scribe with. It means I have to do some research so it won't get done
right away and I might forget...

We use a hosting service for both the web site and e-mailing. Sometimes
for operational reasons best known to them the web site might be
temporarily unavailable, try again later. You can always contact us by
e-mail at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Also from time to time various
e-mail providers decide that SEN is some form of Spam. We work with our
provider to get us removed from SPAM lists. This is a continuous task.
For example we have to complain to Comcast at least once every 6 weeks
or so. You can always find the back numbers on the web site. We do not
mail them out again to individual people.


SEN Contributions

Contributions to SEN are made by the readership. The object is to
promote free flight world wide. We want to hear about events, results,
ideas and innovations. As free flight sportsmen we depend on the
products from many cottage industries and welcome information from those
people. You can email your subscriptions to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or to
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Contest results can be sent in Microsoft Excel
format. Contest announcements can be in HTML format but we post in both
HTML and plain text so if you have a very fancy HTML document be sure to
send a plain test version or you may be disappointed with our attempt to
convert it.

Good News on Autumn Cup/Seguin Field
From: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Great News on the Autumn Cup Contest to be held November 8-9 on the USAF Aux Field in Seguin. It is now available for our use that weekend. The day after the contest the Air Force is closing the field to have the Runways resurfaced. It will be closed most of 2009. We will be back on the field in 2010.
 
The gate will be open at 7:00 AM Saturday morning and the first rounds start at 9:00.
 
Saturdays events are:
 
F1A F1B F1C F1P and Open Gas are flown in 7 rounds.
P30 can be flown any time, not by rounds
 
Sunday events are:
 
F1G F1H F1J and F1Q are flown in 5 rounds
NFFS Special event can be flown anytime, not by rounds
 
CD Reid Simpson
903 677-8525




tail-less bunter for Mike S ?
From:This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Does any one have a spare bunt mechanism, please? It's for my tailless
Cdh as it tends to wing over on higher turns which limits its
performance - not F1A or F1C as you mihght be thinking! Costs
reimbursed, or course. Reducing the angle between the wing with its
washed out tips is a simple way to incorporate this 'autstab'!!

 

Regards

Mike S

A real simple thought about who should or should not qualify to make the USA
FAI FF Team.

Coleman on the finals

I started FF in 1946 , so this is 1st hand info on this subject a to z.

When the FAI program accelerated in the USA was when they first flew Power,
Rubber & Glider as separate events. In 1950 when it really began and oh!!
buy the way... every boy in my school wanted on that team. The number of
folks trying to make that team would suggest the system of qualification we
use today would have been most appropriate. Today when it should be easy to
attend a semi final/ final, without making rules to suit those that believe
if they don't see you every weekend that that makes them better. We are the
absolute cutting edge of the FF world. Our rules of competition are the most
"Technical and  Fair" in all of modeling. Please remember we're trying to
grow our hobby/sport, the demographics are already snapping at your feet.

 

Thought or question  for the day. When stuff gets political it turns to
bs... this is because subjective is an accurate definition of politics.

 

Regards,

Roger Coleman

 
Fall on your head into the finals

Hi Guys
 
I probably should just keep my mouth shut but for those that know my history of falling on my head from many years of motocross and ski racing (sometimes without a helmet,SL & GS),  know I am not the brightest bulb on the string.  That said; the following is a format I think would provide a great team although I make a few huge assumptions about the need for rounds flying and the "dead zone".  I assume that our team members models are very capable of making the fly off  if air choices are good and that flying our best models over and over will not make them better and just wears stuff out.  If we are working on something new, then by all means we need to keep testing.  I have never been on a team so am speaking without much knowledge but it seems the team helps pick the air so I do not understand the need for multiple contests, if we stand on the line waiting for someone good like Alex to shoot one up for us to follow.  Our contests are n ot formatted like the WCs, although could be.  Sooo, I am thinking, if our goal is to choose a team that have the best performing models, they have a great chance at making it through the rounds to the fly offs.
 
Here is the idea.  A three day contest at Lost Hills or a 1000 acre sod farm to be found.  Fly to the ground in the early morning for two classes followed by to the ground in the evening for two classes the other to time (help will be needed here like always because of the difference in number of contestants).  Do this for three days which will give each class four results; take the best three total time to determine the team in each class.  I would also propose that the launch window be five minutes and F1 Bs could be prewound.  Times are for example only.
     Day 1               Day 2               Day3
7am F1A               F1 B                 F1 C
7:30 F1 B              F1 C                 F1A
 C times                A times              B times
 
6pm F1 C            F1 A                  F1 B 
6:30 F1A             F1 B                  F1C
 B times               C times              A times
 
I am buckling up my helmet chin strap now and hiding behind my van so "let'r buck"
 
Best Regards
 
Mike Roberts


An Old Timer observes
..

a comment on John's comments
 
Making the team has become as much financial as it has flying skills!There r many excellent flyers who can't afford to flit around to all the qualifying events since essentually they mostly take place on the west coast! Even my dear friend Bob Gutai has confessed to me it has become a financial hardship and he does no know how much longer he can continue. ln the good old days we had tean selection from three areas across the country with a team member coming from each of three districts and not all from flying in California.ln fact it was at these selections where l met Frank Parmenter and the other famous memners of the Brainbusters club.And even as interesting, we still produced several world champions!At that time we had names like Cannizzo,Hatschek,Reich,Hartill,Montplasir,Allen,Gutai,Keck,Wagner,Sifleit,Ehling,Rousanville and so many,many more!This now has become an area only limited to the flyers who are also finacially abled to travel anywhere they care to compete and l know if the thinking in this arena would be changed that there would be more very qualified people picking up the gauntlet........just a bit of food for thought from an old timer!

sincerely,

Krine "Red" Laffler



Editorial comment ..

I could point out that none of the F1C team are from California, on the F1B Alex and Walt are but they fly just about everywhere and anywhere  and on F1A Steve Spence certainly is not! While money is important, it's not the most important thing, preparation is....


Roger Morrell

.............