'81 AMA Texas Nats: CL Scale
Dick Byron
Overview
The scale entries this year were down in numbers from previous Nats. Sport Scale had a total of 16 entrants. Precision Scale had a total of 7 entrants across the Junior, Senior, and Open divisions.
Open Precision Scale
Only three entries competed in Open Precision Scale:
- Jeff Perez with his B-17
- Dick Byron with his SNJ-5
- Steve Ashby with his MU-2 (a new airplane on the scene)
Steve Ashby's airplane suffered engine problems and was able to complete only four airborne laps. When the aircraft bounced, the inboard wing split off and Steve was unable to repair it at the contest.
As of this moment, only two people are qualified for the FAI Scale team in Control Line: Jeff Perez and Dick Byron. It is hoped that a third member will be added by whatever means possible.
Sport Scale
Competition was very stiff in the Open age category as well as in the Senior and Junior divisions. Some new airplanes were evident, and some older models were also on hand. Jack Sheeks brought a beautiful Me-109 which had some retract problems but should prove to be a real winner after more flying.
The weather was extremely hot, with Friday being one of the hottest days of the year. Heat caused some problems, but overall the contest went quite well. In one incident a bounced landing stopped the plane in a quarter lap; the pit crew had to retrieve the model to pit it, costing vital seconds and putting Richard in third place with a 5:43.03.
Most of the flying was completed on Friday while the weather was tolerable. A few aircraft remained to fly Saturday morning, and all flying was completed by about 10:15 a.m.
Event Organization
The event director, Bob Underwood, was informed just a few days before the Nats that he would have to run the CL Scale event in addition to those for Free Flight and RC. This was a tremendous task for someone not experienced in the CL event. Bob was assisted by his daughter Cathy and by Bill Pepin, Bob Adair, Bert Dugan, and Bill Wisniewski.
To do as well as he did under the pressures of no previous CL experience was remarkable. Several minutes were spent thumbing through the rule book to confirm procedures, but everything proved to be quite well run. As a competitor, I was astounded by Mr. Underwood's efficiency and abilities. He performed to the maximum of his capacities and ran an absolutely smooth, perfect, unprotested CL Scale event.
A special note of appreciation is due Bill Wisniewski for his efforts helping contestants, judges, and Bob Underwood with his CL expertise.
Teams and Attendance
There seemed to be more "team" efforts than in past Nats. Several regional and international groups were present:
- The Mexican team was there in force
- Northwest competitors
- Chicago competitors
- Detroit competitors
The Texas group actually consisted of three separate factions:
- The Houston area team (Stubblefield, Buckstaff, Cleveland, etc.)
- The Dallas–Fort Worth group (McKinzie, Thomas, Smith)
- The Plains people (Wooten, Mears, Jaden)
Although attendance was sparser than hoped, the event turned out to be a very pleasant experience for almost everybody.
World Championships and Future Plans
It is unfortunate that the CL Precision Scale Team selected was only filled to two places; there are many more excellent aircraft in the United States that could compete. It is this columnist's feeling that because the event has not been held in the last two sessions of the Scale World Championships, this may have been in the back of competitors' minds and a reason for not attending the Nats.
There is a strong effort by Monty Groves to put together a proposal to host the 1982 Scale World Championships in Reno, NV, at the airfield where the Reno Air Races are held. Monty will be prepared with entry forms, housing costs, etc., when the United States' FAI representatives attend the meeting in Europe this December.
It is the author's opinion that if the Scale World Championships are held in Reno, the chances of including CL Scale are very slim.
(Editor's note: The U.S. will certainly propose to host a CL Scale World Championship as well as an RC Scale World Championship; however, a minimum of five nations must indicate their intentions to compete in order to have a recognized World Championship event. Without participation from Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and Russia, it may be unlikely that five national teams could be mustered for a CL World Championship. For whatever reasons, the Communist Bloc countries chose to boycott the Ottawa WCs — hence there was insufficient participation to have a CL Scale WC there. — R.C.M.)
With Russia's proposal of holding just FAI Precision RC and CL Scale, I personally hope the event can be held in Russia — because I would like to see CL Scale held again on a World Championships basis. It would be nice to travel close to home, but I am afraid the European countries may not want to send a CL Scale team to the United States after having the World Championships (even though it did not include CL Scale) held in Ottawa, Canada just last year. Time will tell whether CL Scale will return to the World scene and to the international arena again.
Closing
In the meantime, I am planning on building a new aircraft to compete. The 1981 Nats was a success.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
