The Carolina Criterium, Huntersville, NC, October 2013

Great Account !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
REALLY like the description of Shawn's match !

As you know I've met Shawn and Ken in person. They truly are a great couple of guys. The Philly fliers are a generous bunch and helped to get me started. All items donated are still in use!

I have yet to see a contest in real life although I have seen a lot of contest flying. Waiting patiently for the second report. Very happy for you!

Ron

Hey Rusty!

Congrat on your hardware! It was a lot of work but you did! You like that Power Master, good stuff. I hope you were able to film your pattern.

Hey Rusty!

Congrat on your hardware, you did it! Hard work does pay off!

You'll like that Power Master, good stuff. I hope you were able to film your pattern, i'm looking forward to seeing it...did u save your score sheet?

Congratulations buddy!!! You deserve it!!

WOW!!!! Way cool, I found you a set of wings!

Nah, I don't have the score sheet. I didn't know I could have it. They didn't have a copier or anything. I scored 236 or 263 or something like that. I missed second place by 2 points. I never nose over on my landings, but I did on my second one. I came in too hot trying to avoid bouncing in the grass and right before it stopped it tipped up up up aaaaaaaaaand over, dangit!
My son videoed it. Maybe I'll upload it. I haven't written about my official flights yet.

Hey, thanks for the wings, Crank!

Right now I'm uploading another video that's pretty cool. Shawn Cook and Dan Banjock tandem flying two twin engine warbirds. They entertained us with that after all the official stuff was over. I'll post the link in a few minutes before it finishes uploading, so keep checking on it.

I'll tell more stories tomorrow. Meanwhile I have to get rested up for my excursion with Bullit tomorrow morning out at the Jackson Flyers field.

Rusty

Shawn and Dan capped off the whole weekend with this one last entertaining flight.
Tandem flying a pair of twin engine warbirds. Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-LRl6y9MP0&feature=youtu.be

I had a most memorable time this past weekend. Rusty, it was a great experience meeting you and your family. I wish I could've assisted in your flight. I thanked my flying partner Larry whom you flew against for helping you. Good fun but I have to say that after my 10.5 hour drive home yesterday I'm pretty wiped out. Shawn and I would trade turns driving after a few hours in hopes that we could both rest a bit. I certainly would do it again though . Ken

RknRusty wrote:Shawn and Dan capped off the whole weekend with this one last entertaining flight.
Tandem flying a pair of twin engine warbirds. Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-LRl6y9MP0&feature=youtu.be

That's a COOL video Rusty! Were the planes P38's or F82's? I couldn't exactly tell. They seemed pretty well matched for a tandem. I can't imagine a B-25 or C-47 "stunting" that well. They both looked to be "twin-boom" planes.

Shawn flew a P-51. I'm not sure what Dan's was. That was a cool sound.

I found my score, it was 233.2. Three and change behind second. I don't know how many points are possible in beginner, so I don't know if that was about average. I would happily settle for average. I'll start practicing the intermediate pattern with one of my new planes. Maybe by May l can knock out a nice one. Much less sense of urgency this time around.

After playing with Bullit, I was too tired to write anymore of my story last night. I will soon though.

Rusty

Did the judges give you your score card? Seems to me that it would be nice to know what you scored high/low in.

Cribbs74 wrote:Did the judges give you your score card? Seems to me that it would be nice to know what you scored high/low in.

No, doofus me didn't know I could have them. I should have asked. I did look over two of them, and now I think I was comparing two different flight scores from two different judges. It was pretty busy at the table where they were stacked.

Remember your score is based on what that judge(s) thinks about that maneuver on that day, so it hard to compare flight to flight, but a score sheet will reconfirm a poor maneuver and let you know what you need to work on, its also good to ask them if possible, for advice.

Here is a video of Saturdays Speed Limit Combat. Mike Londke worked all weekend getting some great footage and it  features some of our favorite forum folks. I love the way the contestants laugh and talk with each other while they try desperately to "kill" one another. My wife was completely smitten with the sport and the fun loving attitudes of the participants.

I highly recommend clicking the link and watching directly on Youtube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kZxk3aJoqaw&noredirect=1



I'll post some more of my personal experiences this evening.

Rusty

Rusty, I just watched the video which is really neat to recap. I really enjoyed in the beginning where the fellow John Gibson is holding his wrecked plane. When asked what happened, he explains how a large heavy foamy and a F2D plane don't get along well. He made a bad decision to fly in front of me. He flies top notch equipment. I learned a long time ago that when attending big events like this one, you best be certain to bring your battering ram as I chose to do. Ken

It was truly a great weekend of flying and meeting people. I enjoyed myself a bunch. Rusty I expect to see you in a combat match in the not too distant future. Ken it was great to meet you and Shawn and Larry and Dan, Hope to see you at the spring contest. Mike

Mike did a great job with the video. I didn't realize he'd been working so hard at it all weekend. Very enjoyable. I got a good laugh at my brief appearance in the closing shot.

Sunday was my big day. I made sure I laid off the Irish Car Bombs being served up freely at the poolside Saturday night. I did slam a few Irish Whiskey shots Friday night though. I left out the Bailey's and beer, and opted for Irish whiskey, neat. Smooth stuff. I sat around both nights with guys from every class of competition. Lots of them were people I've become familiar with on Stunthangar and Stuka, a couple of which cross over to here at CEF too. I did more listening than talking, but being the gregarious nut I am, I had to jump in too. Mostly starting with questions, but it was great. I felt like I got just as much respect and thoughtful consideration for what I had to offer as they afford their more experienced peers. That sure did make my final approach to walking out onto the circle a surprisingly relaxing experience. I was less nervous than I am before I go out to practice. This whole event was much more about fun loving people bonding and sharing, than about competition. Not to say that they weren't all dead set on performing at the highest level they were capable of. But the fact that everyone's levels of capability are different isn't lost on them and is met with equal respect. This single fact is just an unbelievable anomaly in today's selfish world. Sure I had heard it, and been reassured that all I had to do was try my best, and let that be the whole point of competing. No posturing and strutting or seriously edgy smack talk or even poorly disguised ire. But to actually experience it, really was still a jaw dropping pleasure. Like an isolated capsule of all sorts of different types of people who only wanted the best for each other. If I'm sounding mushy, I can't help it. I'm so in awe of how this culture can even exist, and how lucky I am to be a part of it, I can't even find a good place to insert a paragraph break.

Maybe I'll put one here.

Rewind to Friday afternoon... Holley and I strolled around looking at planes and speaking to pilots and other onlookers. It wasn't uncommon for me to recognize some names from the forums and a surprising number recognized me.  Being the attention seeking showoff that I am, that was sort of a thrill too. I kept getting into spontaneous 1/2A conversations. It seems my Youtube presence precedes me.

We made our way to the picnic shed where I found a guy at a table with a clipboard. For the first of many times, I uttered the same phrase that I would repeat many more times, "Hi, I'm Rusty Knowlton, what am I supposed to do?"  So I had a seat while he found my name on the list and I filled in the obligatory personal contact information. And he asked to see my AMA card. Hot damn, I'm cool now! That's the first time I ever had to show it to anyone... all seven digits. Talk about screaming noob, I have yet to meet anyone else with a number that long. I handed him $10 bucks to enter my one event, PAMPA Beginner Stunt. I think that's what it's called.

So now that I was officially official, I just relaxed and looked for people that I wanted to make sure I would meet. I had already met Mike Londke at the combat field because that's where we parked, and pretty soon after that I found Ken and Shawn. And then I started meeting the Philly Flyers who were a big part of the combat crowd as well as Mike's group, the guys from Nashville. Sorry, their club name slips my mind right now. Finally we moseyed on over to the Motel, got some supper and as the sun set, the pool crowd gathered.

Saturday was drizzly, but not at all cold, and the drizzle was so light and intermittent, we didn't really even get wet, and all of the circles were busy. There are three main stunt circles, two paved and one grass. And over in the area where the RC club flies(but not this weekend) the control liners had laid out three more circles to be used for Old Time Stunt, Navy Carrier and Combat. Those were busy with Saturday's official competition while the three on the CL side were being used for practice for the PAMPA Stunt events scheduled for Sunday. Those were Beginner on the grass, intermediate, advanced and expert precision stunt. Profile was not separated as a different class. At least I think I got all that PAMPA stuff right.

During the morning and into early afternoon we watched Speed Limit Combat and Carrier, and kept checking Weather.com, hoping the drizzle would cease. I didn't really want to get the Shoestring out until it cleared up. I could only hope Holley would enjoy all of this, and my fears were for naught. As I mentioned earlier, she was hooked on both of those sports immediately. She was so impressed with how every one participating on every level was so easy going and welcoming of each others' efforts, and how they were so helpful and interested in me and the other first timers. And how excessive competitive animosity was non existent. She loved how the combat guys laugh and talk while they're trying to "kill" each other. And how someone would stay in the pilot's circle and help the more feeble of our older guys stay on their feet while they flew. And I really would have had a hard time getting through the weekend without her. She made lots of friends and loved every minute of it. What a babe.

Finally the rain stopped and I broke out the SS and headed for the lower paved circle. There were 8 or 10 guys taking turns flying their big beautiful full bodied professional looking stunt planes and I walked up lugging my box and my little old  profile kit plane and a pint bottle full of some of my new Powermaster 10/22 juice. Gooood stuff! The big boys use it, so It's gotta be good, right. One of them looks up and says whoa! I froze. Ah crap, I almost walked right into their lines. I didn't realize they all had their lines strung out onto the pavement, their handles laying in a row outside of the pilot's circle. How long did it take Rusty to do something doofy??? Noooott too long.  Then I realized he was chuckling and the ice melted. Come to find out he was Gene Martine, who I believe is the AMA district V contest coordinator(hope I got that right, Gene). Boy, when it's time to be a doofus in front of somebody, I can really pick 'em.

So anyway, I made it through that without fainting, walked around the outboard side of the gleaming beauties and uttered my weekend mantra... "Uh, what should I do?" I found a place to un-reel my lines, filled my tank and took a seat on the picnic table. I looked right in front of me and there was the Matrix, featured and on the back cover of the Sep./Oct. issue ofStunt News.

You can't see it in this picture, but Neo is the pilot.

I spoke to the dude next to me and it was Derek Barry, the builder of the matrix. Needless to say I complimented him on the plane and told him I was hoping it would be at the contest so I could see it in real life. He remembered me from SH and it seemed like he knew of my Shoestring saga. I think he even said I had a nice looking plane. Ha! How 'bout that.

It wasn't long before I got a turn to fly and had someone help me get my plane in place and my lines laid out. I reached in my box and got my glow driver, which is half of a 25 year old Cox clam-shell battery box with the D cells and old bent up copper contacts bungeed in place with 20 rubber bands, six feet of blue painters tape and a wooden clothes pin with the contacts and wires held in place by about 5 different colored zip ties. I primed the Thunder Tiger with my time proven routine, 12 flips with the venturi choked, point the nose up and 10 more un-choked flips and she's ready to crank. I love the way the Thunder Tiger always cranks right up on the first couple of flips. Hooked it up and flipped and flipped. The damn thing wouldn't even sputter. I'm pretty sure it was Gene who said , "Here, try this," and handed me a real glow driver. I pushed and twisted it to lock it on. First time I ever used one of those. Gave it a flip and she roared to life. He held the plane and I took the handle and gave the wave. I already wrote in my first post that I flew the two cleanest patterns I have ever flown. The engine ran better on the new fuel than it ever has on my usual fuel. Everything was falling into place... other than my goofy old battery box, which would get an overhaul at the Motel that night.

So, all full of confidence and with a thick buzz of everything great that had happened for the past day and a half, I felt really good about what was to come Sunday morning. I fueled up for a third go and was waiting for another turn when my son and his GF arrived. I wanted him to watch me fly the SS since he's never seen me fly anything other than a 1/2A. But I started feeling that dropoff in energy that tells me not to go again. I've been dumb enough to ignore it before, but I'd used all of my dumb up for this day and reeled in the lines. He could watch me on Sunday.

Now it's 1:00am and time to wrap this up. I'll continue with Sunday's events in my next installment tomorrow. I hope y'all find this entertaining and not too long winded.

Good night,
Rusty

Good read Rusty! Just like you to leave us hanging...

Control line 101: Don't step on the pro's lines!

That cracked me up.  

I have a clothpin with 6 ft of electrical tape holding the electrical doodads on. I think it has lamp cord for leads.

Good stuff.

Phil

Hi dudes. Sorry for the suspense. After helping 66malibu load his car with most of my old race car engine, I'm whipped. Just woke up in my chair with the TV blaring a rerun of Chopped on the Food Network. I promise I'll post the final wrap tomorrow, along... reluctantly... with the video of one of my contest flights.

Goodnight,
Rusty