=============== ACMA Irvington Field Activities, Dec. 12 –
Dec. 13, ‘09 ===============
………………... All photos and videos
by Frits Jetten unless otherwise indicated ………………....
Saturday, Dec. 12 — A total washout, at least for me! I didn’t
even go to the field. But here’s a safety item I thought I’d
pass on by Andy
Anderson. The accompanying e-mail message said: “All I can
say is, damn, that hurt!!! A Saito .82 turning 10,000 rpm does a lot
of damage! The last bone on that finger is in about four pieces. I
think I need to stick to jets! … PS There were some parts they
could not stitch back together.”
Andy was working on his 310 Cessna and got the tachometer into the
prop and then his hand. When the tachometer hit the prop it knocked
his hand in also. Goes to show you that it can happen to anyone, even
longtime modelers. I have always known Andy to be a cautious and safe
pilot, but you just never know. One split second of inattention can
do it. Always be aware of that spinning prop!
Sunday, Dec. 13 — Very cloudy and humid. In spite of that I
was pleasantly surprised to see a small crowd at the field. When I
got out of the car I realized I had forgotten my trusty ol’
Kodak camera. I have only done that about four times in the last fifteen
years, but I hate it when that happens!
But now at least I have my iPhone as a backup, albeit its puny 2
mega pixel camera is not as good as the Kodak’s 6.1 mega pixels.
I miss my Kodak’s long zoom (and I DO have an app for that…)
and its flash. At least the pictures are acceptable. And I don’t
mind “borrowing” pictures from the Internet and from Alvin
Reed’s own supply of photos on the Mobile Area R/C Model Aviation
Forum.
Robert Sanderson had some soup cooking and other goodies on
the grill. Yep, Alvin sniffed out the food just as soon as he
got out of his vehicle.
He doesn’t do much cooking any more, but he still dreams about
it, as shown here in his latest computer
collage.
Looks as if Russell has acquired one
more plane. Is it another addition to his fabled “aircraft
museum”? It’s a Cessna 182 Skylane.
Will we ever see it like this, in
the air?... Henry Waltman was back and — are you surprised?
— his lovely companion
Julia. Robert quickly slipped next to Julia for a picture when
Henry wasn’t looking.
Joe Krebs and Henry were discussing some shiny new
engine. Not sure who it belonged to… Max Needles and family
showed up. Max flew his “new” Revolver.
It transferred ownership between him and Lee Hughes — remember
Lee? Max also flew and hovered his Craptech GroundPounder.
Paul Kelly brought three airplanes. He flew the profile U-Can-Do
3D and Funtana
90S. The third one, a Hangar 9 Piper Pawney, changed hands between
Paul and Ed Callen. Ed is Mike Callen’s brother.
I think I heard Paul once say that he was scared to fly the Pawney…
Mike McLaughlin flew his blue and white Four Star 40. Mike tried to
be very discrete about it, but I noticed that he was mixing in some
practice pylon laps as he flew around. Look at his sneaky
smile…
Russ Green flew one of his many combat planes around a couple
of times. Combat will be on Sunday, December 20… Another
airplane changed owners, Justin Peacock’s unfinished Fokker
D.VII biplane. It went home with Katt
Connors. Your boat will get crowded again, Katt! With all those
plans, that must be a helluva complicated project…
Scott Gayle and his young son Chris showed up with a nice T-Rex 600
Nitro Pro helicopter.
Chris is getting quite good at hovering and flying it around. I didn’t
see any nose-in stuff yet, but I know we’ll see it soon…
Al Ayler took his Douglas SBD Dauntless up for a short flight. Al
did his little dance and yelled “Oh, Baby!” after the
smooth landing.
That’s a very nice
warbird!
Now the next picture needs some ‘splainin’!
Jon Koppisch was making fun of Al, who recently bought himself a big
Mac. No, not the kind you eat! We’re talking a HUMONGUOUS, 27”
iMac computer.
That beautiful thing even made Frits drool when he saw it. (Frits
only has a 20” one.) And the new button-less, gesture controlled
Magic Mouse was pure magic to use. Sorry, I’m getting carried
away… Anyway, Jon accused Frits and Al of skipping around hand-in-hand
like two happy Mac fan boys — which both definitely are!...
I think Al sleeps with his new Mac…
Pylon Racing is coming back to Irvington Field in 2010! – Well,
not anytime soon, but perhaps in March/April. Pylon Race Coordinator
Russ Green presented his final rules and recommendations at the last
ACMA club meeting.
The races will follow Club 40 type racing, used at AMA sanctioned
pylon racing events.
Racers can choose from two planes and five engines. The Sky
Raider Mach II is one of the planes. The other is the LA
Racer 40. Eleven pilots have signed up so far. Here I’m
showing you some older pylon racing pictures from about four years
ago, to show you that some of the old racers will be at it again.
Signed up so far are: Russ Green, Mike Mclaughln, Tommy Shields,
Frits Jetten,
Mike Callen, Andrew
Smith, “EltonJohnny” (Elton Sullivan & Johnny
Jones), Bill Culberson, Rob
Baker, and Johnny Turner. The team of “EltonJohnny”
will alternate pilots depending on who is in town that particular
weekend…
I wonder if the other old racers will join? Still waiting to hear
from Andy Anderson,
Justin Peacock,
Tony Farmer,
Tim McLeod,
Homer Anderson
and Jon Koppisch.
(Well – Jon has already said he’d just watch…)
If any other ACMA member wants to race, please send Frits an e-mail
> Frits Jettenfjetten@aol.com. He will send you the racing rules. And you should
read them. These races will be controlled closer than in the past.
Essentially nothing can be modified on the airframe or engine to increase
performance. And yes, you’ll need a hardhat to race.
Speaking of hardhats. Rumor has it that Kenny Morris is coming back!
Remember Kenny, the Coroplast
man? (I’m just kidding about the hardhat, Kenny. Really!…)
Look, the weekend’s flying was kind of slow, I didn’t
take any videos, so here is a bonus video. This is of a HUGE, 20 ft.
wingspan RC aircraft, called an Aerions Caudron Air Racer. They flew
the full-size ones back in
the 40's. This plane has an electric starter, a JPX320 reduction
drive motor, and turns a 42”x12” prop! It has an on-board
camera. This model weighs 264
lbs!
To my readers throughout the world I have some special messages.
First to my friends in Norway.
And to my friends and family in the Netherlands.
And a cousin in Germany.
And to my friends from Mexico, Puerto Rico, Guatemala, Cuba, and those
in Spain and Colombia.
And a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyboy!
Advanced notice — Feb. 6, Annual Swap Meet, Pensacola Civic
Center Gym. Northwest Florida Modelers, Inc., Pensacola, FL.
That’s all for now. I’ll see you at the field. Fly safe!
========== Advertising Your For Sale Stuff in the Swap Shop/Flea
Market===========
You know that you can advertise your For Sale items in the Mobile
Area RC Model Aviation Forum’s Swap Shop/Flea Market. You can
even include photos, which is always helpful when you try to sell
RC stuff.
To use this feature, go to the main menu
shown on the left of this report and select Swap Shop.
First-timers must register with a username and password, but that’s
free and it is very easy.
New rule! - Inactive topics will be pruned when 160 days old. Listings
will be displayed for about five months before being pruned. Please
edit your topic to reflect any changes, if the item(s) sold, or if
they are no longer for sale.
======== If You Have Any Comments About These Pits Reports…
=====
I welcome any comments regarding these Pits Reports — good
or bad.
E-mail me > fjetten@aol.com.
Azalea City Model Aeronautics Website > http://www.acma-rc.com/index.html
Frits Goes Hollywood - Click For Details
