Radio Control: Pylon Racing
Bill Hager
Off-season maintenance
It's December in Houston, TX, and the temperatures are in the seventies and even the eighties. For those of you up north, eat your hearts out. With the bad weather, most of you will be building new racers for the '86 season. But don't forget to take care of your engines and radio gear.
Now is the time to go through the radio system, checking the wires, connectors, batteries, etc. If your radio gear needs to be sent in for repairs, now is the time—don't wait until it starts to warm up and everybody else sends in their gear.
If the radio is OK, keep your batteries charged through the winter. I charge mine every two to three weeks—or at least once a month. If you don't, you could end up with a bad battery pack in the spring.
For the engine, take it out of the airplane. Clean it up and oil it thoroughly. Don't use WD-40 or similar products; they tend to flush parts and then dry up, leaving components subject to rust. The best thing I've found is plain motor oil. Then wrap the engine in a rag, but don't seal it up airtight.
With a little caution now, when spring comes you'll be ready to go with no effort at all.
Now, on to some racing. This contest report was sent to me by Dub Jett.
The Southwest Pylon Racing Championships — Dallas, Texas
August 31 and September 1, 1985
What always promises to be a hot race gave us all we could handle this time. Official temperatures of 105 degrees produced runway heat well in excess of 110 degrees. Those who didn't get zeroes were rare (and winners)!
Saturday had Quickie and Quarter Midget run simultaneously. A round of Quickie was followed by a round of Midget. Congratulations to Hubert Wills and Phill Bussell, who won Quickie and Quarter Midget, respectively. The races were run quickly and efficiently by the Dallas RC Club, with Matt Smith flagging. By 2:30 p.m., the skies were filled with F‑1s practicing for Sunday.
Since noise is always a problem in Dallas, no test flying is allowed before race time; thus we all jumped at the chance to come early on Saturday, brave the heat, and trim our airplanes, engines, and bodies. None of us had much experience with that much heat, so we wanted to know what would happen. We know now—props break, engines burn up, airplanes crash. Sounds like a typical day at the field, doesn't it? Karen and Wayne Yeager came down and found out much the same—thanks for coming, guys. As far as engine setup, a little more rpm (about 500) and a little more head clearance (.002") is about all you need to survive.
The race started Sunday at 9:30 a.m., had one course change (we always have at least one), only one refly (a midair), and was finished by 2:45 p.m. Again, the Dallas RC Club did a good job with Scott Kalmus flagging this time. We had 25 entries—low for Texas, but the heat scared a few away.
A much-needed reprieve for us also-rans occurred in the first round with George Parks, Phill Bussell, and Norm Johnson all getting zeroes. Ed "Cuts" Rankin became the man to beat, posting a 1:19, while the rest of us were in the mid-twenties. In the second round the times fell some as a few found the needle; both Norm and Ed turned 1:17. Zeros still prevailed, though, and only four emerged with perfect scores: Dub Jett, Bruce Richmond, Ed Rankin, and Fred French.
After turning the course around, Rankin and Bruce Richmond headed for a clash in the third heat. Bruce jumped Ed early and fought him off five laps, Ed gaining a few feet per lap. Finally, superior speed won out over tenacity—Ed, 1:17, and Bruce, 1:19.
In the fourth heat perfect scores fell. Ed met Fred French and Dub Jett to see if he could keep up; Ed, Norm, and Fred raced 10 exciting laps with the lead changing hands several times. Norm won; Ed finished second.
Beginning the fifth heat, Bruce, Fred, and Rick Oliver were tied—one point down—followed by Dub two points down. Rick "Thumbs" Oliver nosed over racing Ed, who posted his fourth sub-1:20 time. Dub and Norm headed out next for what promised to be one of the best of the day.
Six hard laps followed with the lead changing hands at least six times. Neither gave in, not wanting to lose in only their second meeting this year. Suddenly, Norm's engine blew and forced him to land with the prop freewheeling. Dub got fast time with a 1:16—thanks, Norm! In the meantime, Phill Bussell and Gary Heithold met for another exciting race. Both broke 1:20, with Gary winning by a nose.
The race marked the debut en masse for Jerry's Shoestring. Those who are flying them say they fly great (we know they are fast) and build in about eight hours. Jerry had one built for Dick Ritch that looked like a million dollars.
The only other excitement was Bruce Richmond and his "beeper." Seems a "little" Richmond (God help us) was due, and he had equipped wife Sandi with electronic gear.
Things to look for in '86:
- A new Formula One engine?
- A product list for the racer
- FAI racing developments
- Props and fuel improvements
- Lots of contest reports — and lots more
If you have anything of interest, please send it in—directly to me.
See you at the races!
Bill Hager 706 Glen Haven Dr. Conroe, TX 77385
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
