AMA Nats 1983: CL Speed
Author: Gene Hempel
Westover AFB and overview
This year's Nats site, Westover AFB, MA, has a very historic past and is today considered one of our major national defense resources. The base's primary mission is to support the 439th Tactical Airlift Wing (Air Force Reserve), headquartered at Westover. Colonel Roy E. Ayers, Base Commander, went out of his way to make this year's Nats something special. My thanks to him and his staff — I personally enjoyed my stay at Westover very much.
The number of contestants in Control Line Speed was up from previous years, attributed to many fliers coming from the eastern U.S. and the emergence of a few newcomers.
Monday, July 25 — FAI Speed, Formula "40", A Speed
FAI Speed
- 1st: Carl Dodge (Richmond Heights, OH) — 152.79 mph
- 2nd: Ed Gifford — 130.90 mph
- 3rd: Glen VanSant — 118.90 mph
Notes:
- Most FAI Speed fliers used old-style Rossi .15 engines. Carl Dodge used a homebuilt .15. I did not see any Nelson .15 engines.
- The majority of FAI models used a single-blade style prop as described in previous Control Line Speed columns (Sept 1982; May & July 1983).
- The U.S. FAI Speed team trials will be held in Houston, TX on October 8–9.
Formula "40" (Open and Senior)
Open (20 entries)
- 1st: Glen Lee (Batavia, IL) — 157.42 mph
- 2nd: George Brown (Staten Island, NY) — 152.22 mph
- 3rd: Carl Schaefer (Westfield, NJ) — 150.70 mph
Seniors (4 entries)
- 1st: Peter Lee (New York, NY) — 142.24 mph
- 2nd: Joseph Gruber (Glendale, NY) — 136.10 mph
- 3rd: Michael Kladins (Bethlehem, PA) — 121.49 mph
Notes:
- Speeds in F-40 were relatively close; the K&B .65 dominated the event.
- Most F-40 fliers used glass props (Kelly 8 x 8 or 8 x 7); a few used homemade glass props or Rev-Up 8 x 9N pitched down to 8 x 8.
- Formula "40" is one of the easiest speed events to fly. Fuel is furnished by contest management, it is a two-line model with no wing area restrictions, and there are several 6.5 cc engines available.
A Speed
Open
- 1st: George Brown, Jr. (Staten Island, NY) — 171.20 mph (X-15 Supertigre; modified 6 x 8 Rev-Up prop)
- 2nd: James VanSant — 156.19 mph
- 3rd: Leland Morton — 155.65 mph
Seniors
- 1st: Peter Lee — 97.10 mph
- 2nd: Joseph Gruber — 78.33 mph
Juniors
- 1st: Jimmy Ricketts (Sioux Falls, SD) — 101.03 mph
- 2nd: David Silversmith (Woodhaven, NY) — 77.52 mph
- 3rd: Jeffrey Silversmith — 75.53 mph
Notes:
- A Speed had 13 entries, a good turnout compared with previous Nats.
- Some Open Speed fliers had trouble getting engines to come up on the pipe; waiting until later in the day sometimes helped.
Day Two — B Speed, Half-A (1/2A) Profile Proto, 1/4A Speed
B Speed
- 1st: Nick Sher (Langhorne, PA) — 204.33 mph (new B Speed record)
- 2nd: Dave Layman (Houston, TX) — 186.83 mph
- 3rd: Chris Sackett (Burnaby, Canada) — 184.57 mph
Notes on Nick Sher's record:
- Setup: Supertigre X-29 with piston/sleeve prepared by Gene Hempel.
- Fuel: 78% nitro, 20% castor oil, 2% alcohol.
- Backup flight (as required) was 0.10 mph faster than the original.
- Prop: Rev-Up 7 x 10-1/2 with rounded tips.
General B Speed notes:
- Most models used metal suction tanks and the Supertigre X-29 engine; Rev-Up 7 x 10-1/2 speed props were common.
- Less test flying seemed necessary this year — many were well prepared. Weather improved (lower humidity, front moved through around 10:00 a.m.), ideal for record attempts.
- Only Senior with an official flight: David Hooke (Mountainhome, PA) — 154.72 mph.
- Junior 1st official B Speed in three years: David Silversmith (Woodhaven, NY) — 86.35 mph.
Half-A (1/2A) Speed
Open
- 1st: Al Stegnes (Cleveland, OH) — 125.65 mph (open-faced Cox TD .049)
- 2nd: Warren Kurth (Davenport, IA) — 117.60 mph
- 3rd: Dub Jett (Humble, TX) — 111.20 mph (homebuilt .049)
Seniors
- 1st: Joseph Gruber — 55.16 mph
Juniors
- 1st: Jeffrey Silversmith — 75.79 mph
- 2nd: Jimmy Ricketts — 67.39 mph
- 3rd: David Silversmith — 66.49 mph
Notes:
- Al Stegnes' model was a fine instrument, finished with yellow Hobby Poxy. Warren Kurth is still credited with having the smallest 1/2A model.
Day Three — D Speed and Jet Speed
D Speed
- 1st: Don Benesh (Copiague, NY) — 207.05 mph (OS Max .65; Rev-Up 9 x 13 prop)
- Fuel: 78% nitro, 3% alcohol, 19% synthetic oil
- 2nd: Nick Sher — 206.10 mph
- 3rd: Nick Arpino (E. Patchogue, NY) — 198.10 mph
Notes:
- Don Benesh set the pace; Nick Arpino indicated he is still casting speed pans for all categories at reasonable prices.
Jet Speed
- 1st: Chris Sackett — 194.13 mph
- 2nd: George Brown — 190.20 mph
- 3rd: Don Benesh — 187.62 mph (original design)
Notes:
- Jet speeds were respectable though not the fastest seen at Nats.
Final notes and meetings
For speed modelers who missed this Nats — you missed one of the year's highlights. There were plenty of opportunities to swap stories and debate the state of Speed flying and the need for more Junior and Senior participation.
The North American Speed Society, in conjunction with the Speed Advisory Committee, held an informal meeting at AMA headquarters during the event.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
