E_Integral 2011

Latest Build Comp-ARF Integral, test flown 7/2/2011
6th place 2011 US Nationals in Masters
Motor - Hacker C50 14XL
ESC - Castle HV 80
Batteries - TP 5000
Radio - Futaba 14MZ

Space City 4th Annual Pattern Classic

The fourth annual Space City RC Club’s Spring Pattern Classic event was held this past weekend. Many thanks to the club and the members who made it possible to hold a very successful event for the 4th year in a row. This event has grown each year in sheer numbers of participants attracting an incredible talent pool of competitors and contestant judging. We are fortunate to have access to some of the top flyers in the country participate along with an extremely knowledgeable and experienced list of current certified judges among those who compete.

Flying conditions were challenging, wind gusts on both days were in the high 20s according to weather reports however the level of flying was some of the best I've witnessed all classes. The last several weeks it has been very windy in this part of the country leading up to the contest. Competitors came very well prepared for the conditions. We had 34 compete on Saturday with 30 returning on Sunday. There were 12 FAI which is an unusually large turnout. FAI flew 3 rounds of P and 1 round of F throwing out their lowest P round. In addition our Intermediate winner was 14 years old and we had 3 other young men in their late teens early 20s participate…Pattern is alive and doing well in this part of the country. To my best recollection 16 out of 34 flew glow remainder was electric.

If you’re ever in Houston Texas around the first weekend in May be sure to bring an plane and plan to attend the Spring Pattern Classic at the Space City RC Club located in Katy, TX a west suburb of Houston.

Additional pictures http://cindywick.smugmug.com/RCAirplanesandFlying/2011-4-30-Space-City/16849020_JDRh9L#1271898061_CnF5g2T

Also wanted express thanks to the event sponsors:

F3A Unlimited
Morgen Fuel
Randy's Hobbies (Ritch's Brew)
YS Parts and Service

...Glo vs. Electric Power continues

The Texas 2010/2011 winter months allowed many flight hours. The majority of these flights were spent flight trimming, battery break-in, and trying different props on the Visa. I've ended up liking the APC 22x12 prop, the least expensive I've tried to date. Flew this in 20mph+ wind in the 2011 D6 season opener with great results. As for YS power at the end of the 2010 season, I was very confident with the YS Integral setup. It proved very competitive in the final two contests in 2010 placing first in both. I still feel the Integral design is the best windy condition plane I've flown to date especially in quartering and crosswind conditions.
Because of the favorable wind handling characteristics I've ordered another Integral with the goal to ePower it either with a Hacker comp 14xl or perhaps the Q80 11S out-runner. I was fortunate to fly a well-trimmed local F3A competitor's Integral with the Hacker Q80 11S out-runner combo with a 22x12 APC, all I can say is I am extremely anxious to get my own ePowered Integral in the air.

Glo Integral vs ePowered Visa

Visa

Glo vs. Electric Power

This past Saturday 9/11 I had the opportunity to practice with my YS powered Integral and Hacker Comp powered Visa. I am still in the battery break-in and flight trimming phase with the Visa so at this time it is not fair to truly compare performance and flight characteristics. The Integral is a contest veteran with wins in Masters in D-6. the last win was in June against the 2010 NATS 2ND place finisher flying a Neu powered Visa, hmmmm. I will post more as the Visa begins to come into it's own.

YS power aircraft have been very good to me over the years never costing me a contest. I am experimenting with ePower for a couple of reason, one to see if there is a competitive advantage, the other is equipment maintenance/longevity.

2010 Space City Spring Pattern Classic

Fantastic weather, 30 competitors plus a wonderful facility with very supportive club members made for a successful Space City 3rd annual pattern event.

Visa after polishing ready to be shipped

Visa

Glen's new Hyde/Colombo Visa fresh from CA Model's paint shop waiting for clear coat...

SCRCC 3rd Annual Spring Pattern Classic (Houston)

May 1st & 2nd Space City RC Club a west Houston TX suburb is hosting their 3rd annual Pattern Spring Classic. Any AMA legal aircraft can participate in Sportsman class plus FAI will fly P11 and F11 sequences.


See flyers below for more details.

YS powered Integral

Newly completed Comp-Arf Integral with custom color scheme...

RTF weight 10lbs
Equip List:14MZ FASST
R6008HS FASST
9252 - ail
9650 - elev & throttle
BLS151 - rud
Lipo RX battery 2100 2S
Jaccio 6.0v regulator
YS DZ-170
Hyde ARA mount
Hatori 823/821 exhaust
ZNLine landing gear
GraphTech wheel pants

Tru-Turn red anodized spinner

Space City RC 2nd Annual Pattern Classic

Pattern activity in D6 appears to be thriving. This is based on the recent attendance at my clubs 2nd annual pattern event recently held May 2nd and 3rd. This year’s event we had 3 more in attendance than last year, 29 in all. The surprising thing was 1/3 in attendance this year were not at last year’s event. That being said if personal schedules permitted there is the potential to have near 40 in future events.

Texas weather can be brutal and unpredictable. Monday before the event the Northwest and West Houston areas received 11 inches of rain in an 8 hour period. Tuesday morning the news was all about roads and homes that were inundated with flood waters stranding motorists in high water on Houston roads. The club field is located in Katy, TX an area hit hard by the rain. The surrounding area mainly cow pastures is very flat which drains very slowly. I planned to meet Jim Sheffield Wednesday evening to setup the center poles and paint the box lines. As I drove to the field the drainage ditches along the road sides were filled to the brim some were spilling over onto the roads even though it was 48 hours after it had rained. I was certain the flying field would be under water and unusable. To my surprise all the hard work the club membership had done in the past to facilitate drainage worked optimally. The runway was wet in some areas however there was no standing water. With no additional rain forecasted before the weekend, the runaway had the opportunity to dry out by Saturday morning.

There has been chatter on the NSRCA list recently about how to manage time especially with a high number of Masters entries. We had 8 Masters this year. What worked for us was dedicating a resource to run and maintain the flight order and judge assignments. This ensures you keep a plane or planes in the air throughout the contest. Both Saturday and Sunday flying started around 10am four rounds were flown on Saturday with a finish time of 6ish. Two rounds were flown on Sunday and including the awards ceremony attendees where on the road around 2:30. Other tangible elements that impact the flow of the event is the great job our area of D6 does in training contestants to judge any class, (thanks Don Ramsey). This reduces unnecessary time spent negotiating whether someone feels qualified of judging when asked. In addition familiarization and preparation of the scoring system, we used PACSS. Contestants are there happiest and most cooperative when raw scores are available soon after their flight and the round status is posted in a timely fashion.

Special thanks to:

Leonard - field preparation

John Underwood - chef

John Blackmon - line chief

Kyle - score runner

The Space City Club is looking forward to hosting a bigger and better 3rd annual event in 2010.