NMPRA: Championship Race
—Bill Hager
Introduction
Wow — another year has gone by and here it is: NMPRA Championship Race time again. Q-500 and QM-40 are holding championship races within their districts, while Formula fliers have traditionally had a single championship race at the end of the season, usually in October and usually in California, Texas, or Florida.
For those just getting started in racing (or who don't know what NMPRA stands for), NMPRA is the National Miniature Pylon Racing Association. This organization is responsible for most of the rule-making and organization of racing as we know it.
To be eligible for the race, you must be a past champion, qualify in the top 20% in your district, finish in the top ten at the AMA Nationals, or be an NMPRA officer. You must be invited to compete.
Event details
- Date: October 28–29 (some competitors arrived to practice on Thursday, October 26)
- Site: Westover Air Force Base, Chicopee, MA (also site of the 1992 AMA Nationals)
- Contest Director: Irv Thurrott
Competitors (selected)
- Stu McAfee
- Dave Chapdelaine
- Bill Hager
- Dan Tips
- Mike Masi
- Richard Verano
- Darrol Cady
- Travis Flynn
- Lloyd Burnham
- Mike Helsel
- Ralph Rinaldi
- Jessica Thurrott
- Others
Friday: registration and scale judging
Friday night was final registration and scale judging for Formula I airplanes. Even with takeoff order 1–3, 2–4, each pilot tries to have the best-looking model. There is a trophy for Best of Show; whoever wins it always takes off first. Dave Chapdelaine took top honors with his beautiful Tom Cat.
Saturday: rounds 1–10 (high winds, fast times)
Saturday morning brought high winds and the threat of rain, but everyone still got off to a good start. The windy conditions didn't seem to bother many competitors.
- Round 1
- Mike Masi won a heat.
- Stu McAfee placed second in another.
- Travis Flynn suffered a flameout.
- Dave Chapdelaine flew a 1:08 to win his heat.
- Richard Verano won a heat in a refly with 1:07.22.
- Mike Helsel won a heat with 1:11.
- Round 2
- Lloyd Burnham won a heat with a 1:08 and followed with a 1:09 win.
- Bill Hager (I) won a heat with a 1:09.
- Mike Helsel won another heat.
- Richard Verano cut out in a heat; Mike Masi took another win.
- Rounds 3–4
- Richard Verano returned with more 1:07s, beating Dave Chapdelaine in one heat.
- Ralph Rinaldi flew a 1:09 to edge Travis Flynn for a heat win.
- Mike Helsel had a dramatic race with 1:09.28, narrowly beating Lloyd Burnham's 1:09.35.
- Stu McAfee flew a 1:09, surpassing Dave Doyle's and Darrol Cady's 1:11 marks.
- Mike Helsel crashed a beautiful Kaze.
- Jessica Thurrott turned a 1:07 in one round for a win.
- Round 5
- Lloyd Burnham crashed; his backup never got going and he fell out of contention.
- Bill Hager was in first place at the end of Round Five.
- Round 6
- Richard Verano beat Bill Hager with a 1:08.
- Jessica Thurrott (1:11.33) was beaten in a close race by Darrol Cady (1:11.23).
- Round 7
- Stu McAfee crashed.
- Richard Verano slowed to a 1:08.
- Round 8
- A very close race between Bill Hager and Travis Flynn — Hager finished ahead by only inches.
With the threat of really bad weather on Sunday, Irv decided we needed to get in as many rounds as possible. Times slowed as it grew almost dark, but we completed ten rounds. Hats off to the people working the start/finish line — they did a fantastic job correctly calling races where models crossed the finish line inches apart.
Saturday night
Saturday night’s banquet was well run by contest management; the food was great. Discussion centered on what was going to happen next year (1997), and a comedy routine by Dave Doyle rounded out the evening. Everyone seemed to have had a great time.
Sunday: final rounds and results
It was raining early Sunday morning, but we all went out to the race site anyway. The rain quit, the wind died down, and the sun even came out. We started racing again; Irv said everyone would fly four more rounds.
- Round 11 (Heat 3)
- Richard Verano 1:07.83
- Bill Hager 1:08.36
- Mike Helsel 1:09.96
- Dave Doyle crashed in his heat.
- After this round, Bill Hager was tied with Richard Verano for first place overall.
- Round 12
- Bill Hager raced Travis Flynn; while leading by a few feet Hager clipped the number-two pylon and cut inside, giving Richard Verano the edge in the standings.
- Richard Verano proved consistent: except for a couple of cuts, he flew 1:07 and 1:08 times in virtually every race he flew.
Final standings and flyoff:
- Richard Verano — Champion
- Darrol Cady — second (won the flyoff by a nose)
- Bill Hager — third (tied with Cady for second before the flyoff; both had 1:08s)
Bill Hager describes the flyoff: he got the jump on Darrol, but halfway through Darrol put it into overdrive and won by a nose.
Conclusion
What a great weekend of racing! If you missed this competition, now is the time to start getting prepared for next year's race — it will be held in Texas. Maybe I'll see you in Dallas!
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
