The Haught Corner
My involvement in this hobby is a bit unusual in that I really don't have a great love for full-scale aviation.
Most modelers seem to have dreamed about flying since birth, or flew in the service, or were byproducts of the Lindbergh era. Models are an extension of that interest.
I am fond of a handful of "real" airplanes — the XB-70 is an all-timer — but by and large it's models and their history that get my attention.
Maybe the fact that I grew up during the Space Age automatically made me more familiar with the Mercury astronauts than the Granville brothers. I spent a lot of time reading old model magazines, so I'm more familiar with Fixit Wright than Jimmie Allen or Admiral Moffett.
In contrast, I roomed with Jay Mealy, AMA's PR director, for a few months in Reston prior to our move to Muncie. For Jay, modeling came well after his involvement as a pilot with both civilian and military full-scale aircraft.
Every time a plane passed overhead, he would immediately search the sky until he found where it was. Almost every evening he watched reruns of Wings, even though he already had all the shows on tape.
We flew electric CL models in the hotel parking lot, Mini-Sticks in our living room, HLGs in the dining room, and went out in sub-freezing temperatures with his RC sport models. I suspect a check of his brainwaves during REM sleep would doubtless find something subconsciously aeronautical, too.
Different slices, same pie.
When the Shark Bites
I just took a call from a modeler who is upset that we published the 2-Meter Jouster (March issue).
It seems that the problem is the aluminum "shark's teeth" on the model's nose. They're used for precision landings in competition — if the landing spot is missed, points are lost.
"Publishing a model like this promotes unsafe flying, and is irresponsible," he said. I replied that this was not a new topic, and that it has been raised in print several times before, both in this magazine and others. Until or unless there's a formal rules change, however, many models will use shark's teeth or something similar to guarantee spot landings.
It can be argued that any contact with a moving sailplane can be dangerous; there's also the idea that you're not really supposed to be in a position where you can get smacked by any aircraft.
Are we making a mountain out of a molehill, or is there real likelihood of someone doing a "Mack the Knife" on an incoming sailplane?
Influences
Why did you become a modeler? Who helped you along the way — showing you little things to help your building and flying, and offering critical encouragement and support when things got tough?
I was fortunate to be raised in a modeling family. My father taught me the basics of building and trimming; my older brother's success gave me someone to emulate; and along the way, a number of other people gave time, effort, and help that allowed me to reach higher competitive levels.
It's amazing and unusual that the help was given freely by those whose assistance often allowed me to equal or surpass their own abilities. This doesn't always happen in other hobbies or sports, and it remains one of the biggest appeals modeling has for me.
I know that when I step onto the contest field it will be as fair a competition as any. I feel the intensity of the competition, yet it's remarkably free of malice. We all want to beat each other, yet someone else's excellence that brings victory is respected and admired.
We never want a contest to be decided by anything other than superior performance. I've been defeated by my own props, loaned to someone else; I also won Nationals even though the second-place flier found my lost model.
When a group of us travel to contests, we know that we will compete against each other, but we're friends before, during, and after the flying.
There's a lot of talk these days about role models — who is and isn't, who should be or who shouldn't — but I submit that kids could get a good deal of positive reinforcement from time spent on the contest field.
Keep that in mind the next time a youngster — or a beginner of any age, really — is struggling or appears to be in need of a helping hand or a kind word.
And to all of you who did so much for me, I can only say thanks. It meant a lot then, and it means even more today.
Shaddap
That's my reaction to free flighters who would complain about the Muncie site.
I recently visited the new FF launch/setup area, which will add another 30–40% (my estimate) to the length of the field in the prevailing wind direction.
There should be no problem now with Category III events under any type of reasonable weather conditions. A large area that was planted in wheat is now orchard grass, and what little wheat remains will be cut by the end of June.
Yet there are still those who feel that since everything isn't immediately perfect, disaster is at hand.
To those who complain, a story: I spent the first part of the 1993 flying season in Virginia, and flew in a couple of FF contests while there. What a rude awakening!
I hadn't flown in the East for many years, and to say I was surprised by the flying conditions is putting it mildly: postage-stamp-sized fields, lots of trees and fences, and plenty of wind.
It made me stop and think about Muncie, Wright-Patterson AFB, and other places we fly in the Midwest. I also remembered the reaction of most Easterners when they came to the "old" Muncie: by comparison, it was a terrific place. What will they say now when it's larger, and has fewer crops?
It is a fact that AMA is losing potential income by not replanting some of these fields. Free flight — a very distinct minority in the makeup of AMA — stands to benefit most from this decision short-term.
So come on out and fly! Sure, it's not Taft or Lost Hills, but in my opinion, Muncie is the best Category III site in the East or Midwest.
Jim Haught Managing Editor
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
