Nats Radio Control: Helicopters
Walt Schoonard
WE ARRIVED in Dayton on July 30 to get set up for the Helicopter Nationals. The flying site proved to be a perfect place to hold the meet. Wide open space with good runways and clean grass areas. The local sparkplug, William Hager, met with me at the site and arranged with the Parks Department for us to park on the grass and to camp out at the site. The city of Dayton has a very progressive Parks Department and had provided an excellent RC flying site. I want to give credit for their help in coordinating the use of the flying site.
On Friday afternoon we had a two-hour judges' training session that really proved its worth during the meet. We had consistent judging and not a single complaint.
About judging — contestants and judges came voluntarily at their own expense and did other jobs to help. Most contest reports give praise to contestants; little is said about the help. Help can make or break a contest. The help made the contest run smoothly and was done well and with enthusiasm.
In all, 29 contestants flew — Novice, Intermediate, Expert, Scale. We flew five complete rounds (two rounds Scale). Two days' time, judges' breaks, lunch breaks, and time for in-depth pilots' briefings on the first day enabled us to close down at 4 p.m. The two-day format proved worth it because contestants got multiple flights to improve after crashes.
Some well-known, otherwise highly respected helicopter pilots came to the meet to protest the use of gyros in competition. They have the right to object, but I am inclined to be convinced that, rather than participate in the contest, they went around trying to gain support for the elimination of gyros from competition. The dissension caused by their actions is serious and will take a long time to heal. It would have been much better if they had competed and submitted a written critique of the use of gyros in competition or had submitted the matter to the rules committee for a proper vote. Finally, the helicopter membership must express their feelings on the subject.
Following is the list of winners:
- Novice
- U. Gasowski
- John Clark
- Dave Hale
- Intermediate
- Bill Reed
- Bill Youmans
- Dave George
- Expert
- Ernie Huber
- Ron Wiensch
- Faye Peoples
- Jr. Scale
- Bill Ellis
- Kirk Krest
- Dan Daugherty
- Most Outstanding Helicopter
- Novice — Dave Hale
- Intermediate — Dave George
- Expert — Kirk Krest
- Scale — Bill Ellis
- Scratch-Built — Faye Peoples Jr.
Highest Single Performance: Ernie Huber — 28,786 points. About judging from any contestant. The judges all came voluntarily and at their own expense as did all the other help. Most contest reports give all the praise to the contestants and little is said about the help. The help can make or break a contest, and at this contest they made it a smooth success. Not only did they do their job well and with enthusiasm, but they were there on time!
We had 29 contestants who flew Novice, Intermediate, Expert, and Scale. They flew five complete rounds and two rounds of Scale in two days. We had time for judges' breaks, lunch breaks, and time for an in-depth pilot's briefing the first day, and we were able to close it down by four p.m. on the second day.
The rules that we flew by proved their worth because the contestants got multiple flights to improve on, and there was only one crash in two days, and that did not come from executing the maneuvers.
The only "fly in the whole glass of milk" was that some well-known and otherwise highly respected helicopter pilots came to the meet to protest the use of gyros in competition. They have every right to object if they are so inclined and so convinced, but they did not participate in the contest but rather went around trying to gain support for the elimination of gyros in competition. The dissention caused by these actions is so serious that it will take a long time to heal, if ever. How much better it would have been if they had competed and then submitted a written critique of the use of gyros in competition. Then I could have submitted it to the rules committee for proper vote and finally to the helicopter membership for them to express their wishes. The way that the protest was conducted was detrimental to the conduct of the meet considering the time, effort, and financial strain it has taken to keep this event alive until it is accepted by AMA as
Nats Radio Control: Helicopters
official. I will not use this space to express my opinions as to the use of gyros in competition, but I will say that in the great number of flights put in at this meet, not a single helicopter so equipped won a single event except Scale. If you have an opinion about this subject, please write to me and tell me your feelings, and I will see that the problem is settled diplomatically.
The following is a list of the winners:
- Novice: 1—G. A. Gasowski, 2—John Clark, 3—Dave Hale.
- Intermediate: 1—Bill Reed, 2—Bill Youmans, 3—Dave George.
- Expert: 1—Ernie Huber, 2—Ron Wiensch, 3—Faye Peoples, Jr.
- Scale: 1—Bill Ellis, 2—Kirk Krest, 3—Dan Daugherty.
Most Outstanding Helicopter
- Novice—Dave Hale
- Intermediate—Dave George
- Expert—Kirk Krest
- Scale—Bill Ellis
- Scratch-Built—Faye Peoples, Jr.
Highest Single Performance — Ernie Huber, 2878.6 Points.
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
