District IX Report
- Colorado
- Kansas
- Nebraska
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Wyoming
Russ Miller Vice President 980 N. 3rd St. Carrington, ND 58421 Tel: (701) 652-2321 Fax: (701) 652-2994 E-mail: rumiller@daktel.com
Associate Vice Presidents
- Max Hansen, 1909 Wisconsin SW, Huron, SD 57350
- H. Michael Harrington, 6112 Ashton Ct., Ft. Collins, CO 80525
- Fred Hildebrand, 4015 Somerset Circle, Casper, WY 82609-3161
- Nathan Lancaster, 3597 S. Kendall Street, Denver, CO 80235
- Troy Lapp, 1619 Wichita Dr., Bismarck, ND 58504
- Travis McGinnis, 8027 W. 81st Circle, Arvada, CO 80005
- Don Moden, 410 Hart St., Salina, KS 67401
- Jim Ricketts, 4921 Fernwood Drive, Sioux Falls, SD 57103-5573
- Jack L. Sibert, 3611 Kimberly Circle, Lincoln, NE 68506-4524
- Mark T. Smith, 14632 W. 50th Street, Shawnee, KS 66216
Frequency Coordinator
- Steve Mangles, c/o Radio Service Center, 918 S. Sheridan, Denver, CO 80226
NEWS FROM NEBRASKA
(as reported by Loren Blinde in the Lincoln Sky Knights newsletter, The Clanking Armor)
The Sky Knights' first quiet-flight day went off without a hitch. We had about 25 glider-guiders, electric enthusiasts, curious power fliers, and spectators show up for a little something out of the ordinary.
As soaring days go, 95 humid degrees left much to be desired, both for thermal lift and for comfort. Winds were southwest, so we set up the shade tent and the winch at the northeast (into the wind) corner of the field.
Other than the winch parachute occasionally landing in the pond, the layout worked out great. Enough spare parts to assemble a complete combat airplane were picked up while chasing the parachute.
Larry Bailey, one of our soaring friends from Omaha, Nebraska, brought a winch-line retriever. Picture a gadget something like a big fishing spinning reel, powered by a 12-volt starter motor, that plays out a second line attached to the primary launch line.
Reeling in the launch line mechanically allows many soaring pilots to preserve their old, fat, and happy bodies on days like this.
There were some interesting airplanes flown. I dusted off my Craft-Air Leo, a 12½-foot testament to the state-of-the-art in soaring 30 years ago.
Joe Moritz flew his Olympic II Sailplane on a winch for the first time. Terry Majewski had his awesome collection of 1/12-scale electric warbirds in the air, and Steve Dworsky showed off his Bandit, an electric hotliner that would leave most glow planes looking at his tail in a vertical climb.
Like I said, the soaring conditions weren't that great. I did manage to speck out my Wind Dancer Electric for a 40-minute flight on 5 minutes of run time.
After the traditional burgers and dogs lunch, most folks had enough of the heat and went home, so the field resumed a normally noisy state around 2:00.
Special thanks to Dave Greathouse for taking care of business in the clubhouse and to Bernie Smith for turning 10-cent Sam's burgers into a great lunch.
I hope we can do it again next year.
The Don Neill Memorial Scale Contest
(as reported by Rich Boelts)
The weather dawned beautiful for the Lincoln Sky Knights' Don Neill Memorial Scale contest, but soon crested at "sweltering." Due to the heat and the fact that the State Fair was opening at the same time, attendance was down, but there were still a number of beautiful models to be seen.
Wind was not a problem; it was a beautiful day—if you like it hot! After the dust settled and flying was done, Jim Thurman of Nebraska City was sitting solidly in first place with his Clipped Wind Cub, and Tony Green took second with a beautiful MiG-29. Sadly, Tony's MiG had a flameout and damaged the landing gear, knocking him out of the last round. The damage was not severe and should be repaired soon.
Jim Thurman took double honors, with his Cub being voted a well-deserved Pilot's Choice Award.
Thanks to the various LSK members who did judging, registration, and manned the concession stand. These contests couldn't happen without you! See you next year!
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
