RADIO CONTROL PYLON RACING
Kurt Bozarth, 18699 E. Ida Ave., Aurora CO 80015
NORTH-SOUTH SHOOTOUT
The Rogue Eagles RC Club of Medford, Oregon, hosted this year's North-South Shootout Pylon race August 21–22, 2004. This is the home club of Quarter 40 Nationals Pylon champion Gino Del Ponte and his father Mike. Mike, the Grand Pooh-Bah of Pylon Racing, CDed the two-day event. He cordially invited me to make the drive from Colorado, assuring me that it would not take more than "a few" hours. After driving 19 hours and nearly wiping out a family of Sasquatch just outside of Klamath Falls, I made it safe and sound to Medford.
The drive was well worth it. More than 40 racers attended to compete in Sport Quickie (event 424), Quickie 500 (event 428), and Quarter 40 (event 422). Racing was fast and furious, and carnage was minimal.
Ken Busse took the top spot in Sport Quickie, and Tom Strom took first in Quickie 500. Fast but not forgotten, Richard Verano posted the fast time and a field record in Quarter 40 with a 1:02. However, Dave Presta came out on top in that class. It was a grand time, thanks to Mike and his team of club volunteers. The Saturday-night cookout was terrific, and the socializing was as fun as the racing.
We woke up to gray skies and drizzle Sunday. The skies cleared at approximately 10 a.m. for a brief period, allowing us to complete only one heat of Sport Quickie. Then the rains returned, and we called it a day at roughly noon. Mike has promised that next year's race will be even bigger and better.
Ford vs. Chevy
The choice of which servo to use has always generated good discussion. Some swear by Chevy; some swear by Ford. Besides the name brand, there are some other things to look for. The 2002–2004 AMA rule book states:
"Servos controlling the pitch and roll functions shall be of adequate strength for the weight and speed of the aircraft. Except in 1/2A, whenever a single servo is used to control one of these functions, it shall be designed and built to accommodate at least four mounting screws. When two or more servos are used together to control the same function, as in the case of dual aileron servos or the movable tail surfaces on a 'V'-tailed aircraft, each of such servos may be of the two-screw variety."
Notice that the rule book does not give a minimum torque requirement, as it has in years past. Finding servos to meet the minimum AMA requirements is not an issue. Finding ones that will withstand the severe vibration encountered in race airplanes and will accurately and consistently return to center after a deflection is another story. Digital servos are a great solution. However, some may question their higher cost. I am sure that the top Pattern, IMAC (International Miniature Aerobatic Club), and helicopter pilots would agree that one should use the best servos one's money can buy. In the past I have attempted to take the most economical route, only to find myself replacing cheap, poor-quality servos with more expensive, higher-quality servos, costing me even more in the end.
The foremost indication of a poor-quality servo is its inability to accurately return to center after a control deflection (i.e., poor centering resolution). How will you detect this? It's easy. Your model will need constant trimming and retrimming.
Say you take off and get safely airborne with your new racer equipped with the bargain servos for which you bid and won the right to buy on your favorite online auction site. After trimming the airplane, you feel you are ready to test it out on the course. You bring it down and fly to Pylon #1. After pulling hard around #1, the model seems to need a little down-trim. After retrimming, you get it back on the course and try it again. This time you overpull a bit around #1, forcing you to correct by pushing down a tad. When you release the controls, the airplane pitches down, forcing you to add a few clicks of up-trim.
This cycle can last an entire flight, causing frustration. Sloppy linkages or binding surfaces can be the problem, but in most cases it is the servo's poor centering resolution. Get the best servos your money can buy, and hopefully you will avoid the preceding situation.
Airpark Elite
A small group of isolated yet determined pylon racers who live in and around Denver, Colorado, have managed to create a club dedicated to pylon racing. The pylons are always up, and the sport flyers have to deal with them—but in a friendly manner. The runway is paved with a large circle in the middle, allowing for takeoffs in any direction.
The Airpark Elite R/C Club has held monthly races during the spring and summer months for the past few years and has seen a slow but steady increase in the number of participants, especially in Quickie 500.
In addition to Sport Quickie, Quickie 500, and the occasional Quarter 40 race, five-lap trainer races are held. The trainer races allow individuals to get a taste of racing without having to purchase race-specific equipment. This idea has been successful, with several of the trainer-race participants moving up to the Sport Quickie class.
If you are within a day's drive of Denver and would like to enjoy some good racing, put it on your calendar to attend some of the races next season. The 2005 dates will be posted soon at www.airparkelite.net.
MA
Transcribed from original scans by AI. Minor OCR errors may remain.
