Zülpich 2009 - Allard van Wallene

YouTube videos

Ivo Kreetz towing

Allard launching at 37 sec

Eifelpokal, Zülpich 2009

Hurricane Bill traveled over the Atlantic and hit main land Europe to spoil a chain of several years of good flying weather. Luckily it had faded enough to keep the rain gear in our bags, but the wind was fierce at times. This combined with the sunny spells also made the turbulence levels sometimes hard to cope with. On F1B day, models could be seen doing all weird kind of stuff. Vicious power stalls, rolls, vertical dives… Despite the strong wind, thermals were easy to detect, even without thermistors. Sometimes temperature was rising for several minutes up to an additional 5 degrees. Needless to say, some of these trash movers would carry the models a long way: mostly into or even behind the town of Enzen on the far- east side of the field. The maximum duration was reduced to 150 seconds in the fifth and remaining rounds. On occasion the wind direction changed slightly more to the south, making the models land into a horse paddock. Horses, unlike cows, are normally not much of a problem, except for this bunch. The leader of the pack was a rather potent ‘alpha stallion’ and once he got wind of a flyer entering his ‘turf’ he meant business. Some models were kicked to bits, even one flyer got an unpleasant encounter with the stallion’s back horse shoe. It would approach you, turn around and just kick! A total of 8 F1B flyers had a clean score. The wind showed no sign of easing off, so the organizers wisely decided to schedule the fly off for 6.30 AM the next day. In F1C, Pieter de Boer was the only one with a clean score. Gerd Aringer was flying his new folder, but the wings refused to unfold and the ship came down like a cruise missile. The radio-DT saved the model from destruction. He repeated this exercise in round three, then decided it was wise to retire.

Binoculars, streamers and faces in directional synchronicity

Pim Ruyter launching in early morning fly off

Despite the wind forecast promising less wind on Sunday, the dawn welcomed us with a cool breeze. Before the start of the F1A competition, the 8 F1B flyers had to do their fly off. After having assigned all the required timekeepers everyone was soon winding their best rubber. First Mike Woodhouse launched, quickly followed by Pim Ruyter. Others followed in sequence. Despite the early hour there was apparently some good air passing towards the second half of the 10- minute slot. Those who launched last had the better times, with Bernd Silz topping the show with 338 seconds, followed by Rolandas Mackus 11 seconds behind and Michael Seifert only 17 seconds behind for third spot. Between the third and fourth place there was a gap of more than one minute.

French elegance, Myriam Morandini sends her ship off to Enzen

The first F1A round started 8 ‘o clock sharp with Victor Stamov towing immediately upwind. After a few circles he found a solid patch of air. A perfect launch followed and the model was gently climbing away for a safe 3.5 minute max. I was on the same pole, flying my newly designed and built HiBrid 2009. Also I found a nice patch of air. Despite the low turbulent levels, many dropped and the following rounds the wind increased further with gusty thermal in-fills. Only a few circle towed. The wind direction was very constant (straight over the horse paddock), so were the distances traveled by the models. I radio DT’d my model as far away from the horses as possible, but one flight the model landed on the south side of the paddock. I picked up the model and headed back towards the fence when I spotted two other models landing close by. After having picked those up, the alpha stallion got wind of the situation and started approaching, the pack quickly following their leader. Handling three models in the gusty wind was no easy task, and the stallion quickly caught up. I decided, instead of making a quick dash for the fence or scaring the animal away, to do some ‘horse whispering’. After some soothing words the horse apparently quieted down. Much to my surprise the trick worked. It turned around and headed slowly back to the pack. I continued slowly towards the fence. The alpha stallion probably thought this was an act of weakness or thought I now belonged to his pack, so he quickly turned around and headed straight for me again. The fence was still well out of reach, so I repeated the whispering act. Amazingly it did its trick again. I had to repeat this exercise once more to get the three gliders as well as myself over the fence. Mission accomplished!

Walt Ghio and Mike Woodhouse catching up during one of the 20 minute breaks

Starting poles were close to the camp site, Eggiman launching.

After four rounds, only five flyers had a clean score, Siggy Limberger, John Carter, Aurijs Plume, Alain Bochet and me. The conditions were not getting easier, and the wind picked up a few knots. Long periods of cumulus shielding the sun made thermal activity scarce. Then Limberger and Bochet dropped the fifth, Aurijs finally the 7^th. I had to put up a fight in the 7^th round, when the sun was hidden behind grey clouds for almost 30 minutes. Keeping the model on tow in the wind and turbulence, using a thin Spectra towline was no easy task, but finally the sun appeared again and so did the thermals for a clean score. Also John Carter managed well for a solid max.

Allard battling the turbulence (foto from Thermiksense)

The fly off was scheduled for 6.30 PM. While the contest director was counting down towards the start, the air was warming up similar to what I experienced the day before. Time couldn’t go fast enough for me to shoot the model up in this bit of undoubtedly rising air. At the sound of the horn I went up, and sure as hell, the air was there. I made one high circle to check the lift and positioning myself downwind of the starting line. Then, I made a circle to prepare for launch. The model shot up, nicely rolling into its turn to pull out of the bunt at well over 80 meters. John Carter was already on tow, but was too late to join. After a couple of more circles he decided to launch, but the air was not there and the model was coming down. After two minutes however it started climbing again but the air didn’t last for long. My model was gently circling at ever increasing altitude towards a safe max but also towards the woods at the far and of the field. I decided to radio DT the model the moment John’s timekeepers stopped clocking. I pushed the button and the model came spiraling down, in front of the woods and touching down at 5:02. A max doesn’t come any cleaner than that!

Gerard Willemsen launching HiBrid for 5 minute fly off.

At the price giving , Peter Mönninghof was given a poster of himself which every participant could sign to congratulate him with this 40^th anniversary of the Eifelpokal. Trophies changed hands in the orange light of the setting sun. After the price giving I treated myself to a nice schnitzel and French fries at the field restaurant. After I finished, the generator for the frying oil and lighting was shut down. The end of an eventful flying day and time to drive home….

Sweden 2009 - Allard van Wallene

Sweden 2009

All over western Europe, the weather was summer-like with temperatures even passing the 30 degree mark in Scandinavia. Looking at the weather forecast I was in doubt if I should bring my rain gear. And as I was driving up north together with Gerard Willemsen and his girlfriend Menna in his spacious van, I packed all I could possibly need. It proved to be a lucky guess.

I drove up to Gerard’s place in Harderwijk the night before departure. Gerard was still busy preparing his gear, which was scattered all over the living room floor. After a solid night sleep and early rise, we packed our last valuables (model boxes) and were on our way. Soon after sunrise the temperature started rising, a sign that the airco was not doing its thing. After my previous ‘airco down’ experience to Sezimovo Usti, I was thinking that maybe I had some bust airco aura around me. The summer temperatures in the back seat made sleeping all the easier. The ferry to Rodby was a welcome break to cool down a bit.

Thunderstorm in Rinkaby

Close to Rinkaby the sky was packing up with thunderclouds and upon arrival at the military barracks all hell broke loose with fierce rains, lightning and wind. I was glad I had opted to sleep in the barracks, even more so after realizing the mosquitoes were keeping a low profile this year. Gerard put up his ‘throw up’ tent and soon we were driving to Ahus for a pizza. The thundercloud was moving slowly east and we managed to outrun it to the Rinkaby cash dispenser a few seconds before the first drops started falling. Just after confiscating the last available table at the pizzeria, it started to get real dark outside followed by flying parasols, thunder and rain. It didn’t last very long, and after having finished our dinner we could stroll along the harbor docks admiring the pinnacle in sail yachts in the setting sunlight with collapsing thunderclouds at the horizon. We were wondering if the global crisis left this place totally untouched. The high-end restaurants facing the harbor were fully booked with people even queuing. A stroll passed the guesthouse where Anselmo and I passed our time on previous visits and to the beach, left nothing to be desired, although a bottle of cool white wine would have been the cherry on the pie.

Ahus harbour

The next morning I was woken up by a bright rising sun piercing through the window of the barracks, shining right into my face. No alarm clock needed. I took a quick breakfast and had a look at the Saab Draken which was moved to the barrack grounds from the desolate place it had been resting and decaying over the passed years. Soon everyone was gathering for the briefing at the west end of the field. Weather was perfect but thermals not easy to pick. A conventional piggy backing tactic proved to be a risky exercise in the first rounds since thermals tended to collapse. Per Findahl in particular fell victim, after trying to locate his model below that of Rene Limberger already circling at some 150 meters altitude. After about 5 circles and running downwind to keep in the moving bubble he launched but the model soon dropped out spoiling a fly off position. Only 7 each in F1A and F1B made it to the fly off, a clear sign of the sometimes tricky conditions.

The fly off was scheduled at 8.00 PM and since only 5 rounds were flown, there was some time left to get a quick dinner in Ahus. Again, thunderstorms were gaining momentum but kept themselves at a safe distance despite the sometimes fierce sand- sweeping gusts at the beach. We managed to get a quick pizza and some soft drinks. The waitress apologized for the freezer being broke, so no ice. Again my airco aura?

The wind had shifted to the east, so the fly off started at the east side of the east gravel road. The east side of the field was cultivated with some wheat, so our traditional fly off spot was ‘taken’. F1A was first on its way with a 7 minute max. I towed upwind and after some 6 minutes I found a nice patch of air. When trying to launch, the rudder didn’t kick in and the model went off pattern. I aborted the launch making good use of the inertia hook and tried again but a third attempt was needed to get a relatively safe pattern. But the bubble was long gone and some flyers downwind made good use of the air. Rene’s model rode it the best possible way for a convincing win.

Also in F1B, one round was decisive. Rosonoks launched first with a spectacular high climb. But soon after the blades folded, the model started sinking fast. Silz, flying his best rubber on a short motor, went up like a rocket with a burst that didn’t seem to end. Clearly his air was better and the model glided down and into the trees at the north side of the field for yet another win. The following flyers were however very close and just a few seconds behind, most of them also ending up in the trees. Prize giving was traditionally held in front of the barracks with snacks and drinks.

The Danish Nordic cup was scheduled the next day with a briefing at 08.30. The day started overcast, and apparently the forecast didn’t look very good because the contest director Bo Nyhegn already mentioned a possibility of a reduced max. During his talk the wind had already swung to the east, so a move to that side of the field was soon on its way. The max was set at 180 seconds which proved to be a hurdle a lot of flyers could not take.

Masters of tow, Ivo Kreetz and Rene Limberger

Thermal picking was not easy since the arrival of a bubble was often accompanied with hefty turbulence, giving the flyers a hard fight to keep the model on tow. Several flyers had to use a second attempt after towing in the model. After two rounds we had to move in a south direction in order to keep the models within the field perimeters. The max was soon to be reduced to 2,5 minutes and even 2 minutes in the last two rounds. Only a few were brave enough to circle tow to pick the air, most decided to wait on the ground for signs of good air. In the last round it started to rain and thermals were no longer clearly detectable. Dethermalising at 50 meters after two minutes was considered to be good air. Needless to say that under such conditions not many made it to the fly offs, in this case only 6 in F1A.

The fly off was scheduled at 7 pm. Just enough time for drying the models and a quick bite on the camp ground. The organizers were painstakingly consulting the local weather stations to decided when to fly. The short term forecast for dry weather was too optimistic, and the fly off started in pouring rain. The wind speed was however low at some 3 m/s. For Allard history repeated itself. This time not a shifted launch sensor, but not enough spring pull back on the hook causing a pitch up leaving the model inverted. The recovery left the model too low to catch the air. Rene’s model suffered from a heavy tail due to the water build up and his model started stalling spoiling his chances for a second victory. Jaris Zanins from Latvia was the only one making the 5 minutes for a clear win.

Soon the F1B fly off was on its way. Despite the rain, buoyant air was still around and both Gerard Willemsen and Andreas Gey made the 5 minutes. The timer in Gerards’s all electronic model had trouble with the wet and he had to use his back up model to try the 7 minutes. Andreas politely waited for Gerard to prepare. Both launched in the same air, which was particularly negative with the models pulling out of the climb at rather low altitude with Andreas’ model clearly higher and therefore the winner. The water soaked models were quickly retrieved and we all headed for the dry barracks.

Price giving was inside the barracks due to the continuous rain. Everyone lined up in the corridor and the winners collected their ceramic bowls and glasswear.

Nordic Cup F1B winners

Next morning we packed all our wet stuff and headed for the ferry. The long cue before the ferry and the German road works caused some delay as did the navigation system guiding us over secondary roads. The lower temperatures compensated for the broken air conditioner.

Eurofly 2009 - Allard van Wallene

After some criticism in on-line forums on how the competition has been run in some of the past years, the organizers announced in Free Flight media they would stick strictly to FAI rules. This information combined with a near perfect weather forecast and an expected high turn out were the main ingredients for an end of the season show down. For some flyers a lot was at stake, winning or loosing this competition would make or break a World Cup victory. In F1A Roland Koglot and Thomas Slokar were still in the running for a victory in F1A, Andrjukov in F1B and Truppe in F1C.

Figure 1 Hotel Gurnigelbad, view into valley obstructed by layer of clouds on F1B day.

We, Maarten van Dijk, Ivo Kreetz and I, arrived Friday evening in hotel Gurnigelbad, built on parts of the foundations of the once famous 19^th century 600-bed hotel, which is located on the west slopes of the valley at some 1155 meters altitude. Saturday morning dawned with clear skies, but a look into the valley showed a dense cloud layer. We thought this grey mass would reach all the way to ground level and competition site which is situated along the road between Kirchenthurnen and Mühledorf, but when driving down the mountain to the starting area we were well below cloud level. Flying conditions were perfect with virtually no wind. In F1C a proper trimmed model would have no difficulties in maxing, but in F1B this was another story. The buoyant air was present in ‘layers’, and ending up in the wrong layer would make even the best model landing very close to the maximum flight time of 4 minutes. Andrjukov saw his chances for a World Cup victory vaporize, when the controls of the model were apparently not properly set sending the ship down for a disappointing 205 seconds. In F1C maxing was a mere formality provided the model was well trimmed and launched in the right direction. Vladimir Vsychov was flying a completely re- engineered model with some novel features. The stabilizer was flapped for a symmetrical section during climb, and under-cambered during glide. The engine was particularly hot, running the highest RPM on the field. The foldable wing worked reliably and the transitions were clean. He was going strong heading for a fly off spot, when an attempt launching the ship with the wings in un-folded position crashed the model beyond repair.

Figure 2: Vsychov launches new full carbon folder with flapped stab, impressive climb

After having watched the second round, we headed for another spot on the field for some proper practicing. We soon realized that real thermals were very scarce indeed, in fact we experienced only one during the whole day which would actually carry the model to higher altitudes. For the remainder of the day, a good launch and careful air picking was not always a guarantee for a 3 minutes flight. All day the weather allowed watching the behavior of models from a close distance for the entire flight. It was interesting to see the layered nature of good and bad air. In particular, models that would centre well in more ‘normal’ thermal conditions would wonder about all over the field scraping the best air available but inevitably passing through sinking air in the process. Maarten and me launched two identical models in the same air. The first 2 minutes model one was doing better, in the last minutes of the flight the roles were reversed. Just in time to watch the fly off spectacle, we packed up and headed for the flight line. The fly offs were soon on their way.

Figure 3: Truppe launches for winning flight

With the zero wind conditions, the altitude of the models could only be judged from a distance, so we watched the participants from the food and beverage barn. The F1B with the best rubber and the F1C models with the hottest climb had a clear advantage. In F1B no one made the max, while in F1C only Truppe and managed the 7 minutes. Their following fly off was a bit of an anti climax. The Italian flyer who flew consistently all day, launched a bit to the right making the model go off its pattern. The bunt was followed by a fierce stall and he radio DT’d the model to avoid further damage. Truppe only had to repeat his consistency which he did for a convincing win. In F1B Mike Woolner had the best performance with 6:26 closely followed by Tonu Luman and although he now also had 3 first places, it was not enough to knock Silz from the winning spot in the World Cup ranking. He was allowed to do his singing act again at the banquet that night.

F1A day dawned less cloudy and the first round was sunny and windstill. Thermals were absent, so a good launch was practically a guarantee for the 3:30 max. 40 out of 73 flyers managed. In round two the force of the sun created small patches of lift, which could vanish as quickly as they appeared in particular towards the end of the round. Watching other models was just as important as checking the air on tow.

Figure 4: Ivo Kreetz checks rudder while Maarten psyches up for first round

Despite the sometimes tricky air, 24 managed a clean score. Around 4 pm these flyers lined up for the fly off. Maximum time was set at 7 minutes, as announced before the contest.

Figure 5: Cenny Breeman flew this unturbulated ship, but a slight stall spoiled his chances

Both Allard and Bart Rotteveel started towing when the flare shot up. The models were dangerously close and Allard's model hit Bart's towline and crashed into the hard tarmac of the road. An approaching car could not avoid a collision, and the model was heavily damaged. Others were already towing comfortably in the middle of the field where good air was developing. Allard rushed back for his back up ship, and was on tow again 5 minutes into the round. Roland Koglot repeated one of his rocket- launches, and shot his flapper well over 90 meters. The glide was superb, but a landing on top of a downwind barn ended his chances for a victory of this competition and World Cup. Apparently the timekeeper of Aringer saw his model for the full 7 minutes although others saw it land at 6:11. The time was averaged to 6:35 for the victory. Both Pouzet and Kosonoshkin tied with a time of 6:24 and had to fly another fly off to decide the runner up place. Kosonoshkin had the better launch, and although both models were holding well in the solid air, it was Kosonoshkin's short model who did 5:54 against 5:19 for Pouzet. It took some time before the final results were announced, but close to darkness the prize giving was on its way.

In F1Q Andreas Lindner won. His model went up like on rails with no rolling or yawing followed by a bunt. Most of his climbs were followed by a loud applause from the onlookers. Runner up Wolfgang Gerlach was close in pattern but not as perfect and the fly-off made the difference in performance clear. In F1G no less than 24 participants attended. None of them managed to max out, a clear sign of the sometimes tricky conditions. Jean-Luc Bodin dropped the least amount of seconds with a 171 in round two.

Figure 6: Aringer launches for son Luca

This competition was a worthy climax of the season with the best flying conditions imaginable and high performances in all classes. The low wind speeds made it the perfect spectator event, even for the flyers, who could relax in between flights. The competition was well run with plenty of timekeepers from the local ice hockey club, a barn with food and drinks and sanitary. Results were processed with a computer and final results ready soon after the final fly offs.

After an excellent dinner in one of the local 'Gaststube' we drove back up the mountain to our hotel for a well- deserved night sleep. We were woken at 3 AM by howling winds and fierce rain. The storm managed to stay out of our way long enough, but then hit us at full force. Next morning the roads were covered in a thick layer of autumn leaves. But despite the wet, traffic was light and we made it home without delays.

Figure 7: Tame sister of Red Bull

Tustin Indoor Bash - April 9,10,11

Reports from the contest

DAY 1


Posted by Tony Mathews in Small Flying Arts

"A quick note from Ken Bauer from the first day at Tustin:

'Tony - action started today, but most guys are still trimming and not many official flights. I saw Jim do a 95 sec flight in the morning, my best are in the low 80s so far. Stan and Tim lost some gliders and didn't do any record stuff. Stan had some great 12" cat flights up to 106 sec and good looking ulim cat flights. Kurt K and Norm F and Ralph had some good looking cat flights. I did about 92 sec with my new BE5615 cat but still have to get much higher to play with the big boys. Should be more exciting action tomorrow. Will try to send some news.' "

(Full names of participants listed above Jim - Jim Buxton, Stan - Stan Buddenbohm, Tim - Tim Batiuk, Kurt K - Kurt Krempetz, Norm F - Norm Furutani, Ralph - Ralph Ray)

DAY 2

Posted by Tony Mathews on Hip Pocket Aeronautics

" From Ken Bauer:  

'Breaking news. 

Jim just did 103.0 seconds in hlg. Only hit that on one flight however. 

Lots of flights in the high 90's. 

Stan's best around 97 or 97 right now.  

Stan just did 100 seconds.

Stan did 102.6 second.'


Awesome stuff!
Thanks Ken!"

Posted by Lee Hines and Don DeLoach to Small Flying Arts


"Hot Flash!
Jim Buxton sets absolute highest IHLG time ever!

Tustin Hanger Bash report for Sat April 10th:

Don DeLoach & Leeper wrote this report:
 
I timed all Jimmy's flights. He did three strings and had best times of 1:43.0 and 1:42.0 on the first two strings, narrowly missing the record on the second string. Meanwhile Stan was putting up flights of 1:40 to 1:43 and ended up missed breaking his own record by a mere 0.1 second!

About 5:45 pm Ron Wittman and I encouraged Jim to do a third string despite his obvious fatigue. He opened with a several high 1:35s and then a 1:42.7. From then on he had to dig deep and shoot for 1:42.2 or higher on the next eight flights, which would exceed the current record by 0.1 sec. On his seventh flight he did an unbelievable 1:45.9 [the best single flight ever recorded in the world!], then followed it up with a 1:43.5, his two best times of the day, at the END of an exhausting series of probably 75 throws in 7-8 hours.
 
None of us was expecting him do this well on two of his final three throws of the day!
Thus Jim logged the best single flights in the history of AMA HLG and bested the Open record by 4.6 seconds.

The ironic beauty of all of this is that he had Ron Wittman, legendary record holder, as his official timer. It was really a great experience watching Ron encourage Jimmy.

Don & Leeper

Stay tuned for Sunday's report.

We are all joking that Stan probaby skipped dinner and is going to pull an all-nighter sanding his wings! But in my [Don's] opinion Jimmy's record is safe. It may well stand for a LONG time.

-Don"

Posted by Ken Bauer to Small Flying Arts

"It was an epic battle between Jim and Stan Saturday evening.  I sent a bunch of emails to Tony during the event but not sure if he got them.  At one point both Jim and Stan threw up 102.0 second flights virtually back to back.  Jim was flying his glider with the conventional "stanfoil" type airfoil, as early indications were that these were better than the Ishii airfoiled versions so he stuck with them.  Stan was flying his balsa "Holy Grail" type glider of course.  Both guys were throwing incredibly hard and just seemed to keep cranking it up and finding more energy.  I had Jim's best flight at 106.0 seconds, but it was officially recorded as 105.9 as Don / Lee reported, so this record may stand for awhile.  We'll see if either guy does anything more today, the last day, but there may not be a lot of gas left in the respective tanks.  The air seemed to be better late which was the reason for the showdown at dusk.  Sorry I don't have much news on the rubber guys, but saw many great flights there as well with models centered very high."

"Here's a picture of Jim and Stan shaking hands at the end last night, with Ron Wittman standing between them.  Ron was there rooting them on the whole time and kept telling Jim, "just throw higher"!

DAY 3

Posted by Ken Bauer to Small Flying Arts

"The event is now over.  This picture is good except that Stan is sleeping!

Jim and Stan did not throw any more today as expected.  Tim Batiuk flew today and had some flights in the mid 80s before straining a leg muscle and having to quit.  He ended up third and I was fourth.

The news today was in standard catapult glider where Ralph Ray set yet another record with flights about 1:57 and 1:58, almost 2 minutes with a 12" glider!  He did it with altitude making a circle above the catwalks.  He lost and damaged several gliders in the girders over the 3 days but just kept putting more models together until he did it!  Stan was second in this event and Leeper was third and I had another 4th.

Stan won unlimited catapult, I believe Kurt K. was second and Norm Furutani third.

Overall it was a great event and thanks should be given to Ralph and Stan who did all the work to organize it and put up a bunch of money to rent the facility.  Rumor has it that even though they tried to just break even they lost money.  So be nice to them and support them if any of you have a chance."

Posted by Ken Bauer to Hip Pocket Aeronautics

"Here's a couple pictures of Jim and Stan with Ron Wittman standing in the middle right after the epic event Saturday evening.  Ron was in great spirits and was rooting them on.  Every time Jim asked Ron for advice he got the same answer: "just throw it higher"!  (with a smile on his face)

A few observations.  Jim had new models with the Ishii airfoil and tried them but was not impressed and put them back in the box and concentrated on the flat bottomed airfoils.  The record setting glider had an airfoil very close to Stan's I believe, which is also very close to Ron Wittman's Supersweep airfoil and the sections that Lee was using in the 60's, so it is remarkable that not much has changed in 40 years!  I had new HLGs and cat gliders with the undercambered BE5615 airfoil but the negative pitching moment at very high speeds was killing my launch altitude and I could not compete with these guys despite the great glides.

On one flight Jim and Stan's gliders came down together and it was evident that Stan was gliding slightly better.  Both guys were throwing very hard and launching very high but Jim was getting slightly higher and had some smoother transitions at the top which made the difference.  This is where Jim's very strong foam core fiberglass wings paid off.  The extra strength and stiffness probably helped the launch and the slick finish might be lower drag.  There were reports that Stan's balsa wing was fluttering slightly which obviously would slow him down.  I walked to the end of the hanger to judge the launch height.  Both guys were peaking about 10 or 20 feet below the catwalks (130 feet) but really didn't start to glide until they were around the top of the hanger door which is about 100 feet.  But Jim might have had a 5 foot advantage which is all he needed."

On April 12 Norm Furutani posted on Freeflightml that his son Brian has made available a picasaweb album with more photos.



On April 13 Paul Love posted on Hip Pocket Aeronautics links to two youtube videos with the following comments

"I am kicking myself for not taking more video in the hangar, but my hands were full trying to tame my planes and the hours pass quickly in there.   As you lose planes in the war, you get kind of freaky knowing your army is dwindling and you can’t afford any more casualties.   Anyway, I did manage these two.

Most importantly, this is one of Ralph’s flights in his series of 9 flights going for the record.   This one is about 1:55.   Truly amazing.  Sorry about the poor quality of the video."  Click here to view

"This is a low power launch (probably get’s about 120 feet high)  of my dolphin foiled glider, called flipper.   It glides nicely, but launches with max power prove to be a bit hard to control as you can see that just after release it pitches nose down for a few split seconds before it bleeds off enough speed for the stab to counter the pitching moment of the foil.   The plan form is also somewhat responsible for this I believe so the jury is still out on dolphin foils.   I do think it glided as well as anything else I brought at comparable weights, but no definitive data to say much more at this time.  My best flights were with this glider:  1:32 using a pretty strong catapult (estimate 16 ft lbs of energy resulting in launch altitude of about 125-130 feet), but by this time she weighed 8 grams instead of her earlier flights at 7.2g.   Xfoil does show that this foil has higher drag than optimal on the climb and I think this is true from what I saw.  Other planes I had launched with the same power were getting higher."   Click here to view

"This event was something I'll never forget. Our community has to make sure it happens again! I can tell you from experience now that getting times like Ralph and Stan are getting in there is at least 10 times more difficult than I ever imagined it would be. The hangar is a glider eating monster, and as you get higher, there is no room for error. Tiny mistakes in judgment quickly lead to the loss and/or destruction of your gliders."

On April 14 Norm Furutani reported the final results on Freeflightml

Tustin MCAS Blimp Hangar Cat. IV Contest

April 8-11, 2010 Tustin, California

AMA Sanction Number 10-0710

Organizers – Ralph Ray and Stan Buddenbohm

Contest Director  - Norm Furutani

Two extraordinary national glider records were set at this contest.

Jim Buxton broke Stan B’s HLG record with a 1:45.9 and 1:43.5, totaling 3:29.4 min.

Ralph Ray, also breaking Stan’s record in Standard CLG, with a 1:55.0 and 1:57.3, totaling 3:52.3

A special thanks to all who donated to the raffle. We had products from Ray Harland, DuBro, the Tyson’s, Jim Buxton, and many goodies from Tim Goldstein and A2Z, including one of  the new CNC winders!

Is it going to happen again? I don’t know. It was a lot of work, Ralph did a lot of talking  and paper work to secure the building, Stan put up the money and it looks like the operation went at a loss. A few complained about the cost, the inconvenience of the gate etc. The majority had a great time!

Here’s the results.

- Norm Furutani, CD

A-6

1. Don DeLoach            9:04

2. Andy McFarland         5:30

3. Chris Borland          4:34

Mini Stick

1. Larry Norvall          8:50

2. Chris Borland          5:39

Limited Pennyplane

1. Leo Pilachowski        14:46

2. Don DeLoach            14:40

3. Chris Borland          13:03

4. John Alling            12:08

5. Jim Sonnenmeier         6:02

6. Andy McFarland         DNF

7. Robert Loeffler        DNF

8. Yuan Kang Lee          DNF

Science Olympiad

1. Leo Pilachowski        5:11

2. Chris Borland          4:11

3. Yuan Kang Lee          4:09

Unlimited Stick

1. Istvan Botos           33:32

2. Aurel Popa             DNF

3. Zoltan Sukoso          DNF

F1L

1. Yuan Kang Lee          19:44

2. Dave Saks              18:16

3. Chris Borland          11:54

F1D

1. Aurel Popa             35:27

2. Zoltan Sukosd          35:19

3. Bud Romak              34:38

4. Istvan Botos           34:04

5. Chris Borland          DNF

6. Larry Norvall          DNF

7. Steve Brown            DNF

8. Brett Sanborn          DNF

Unlimited CLG

1. Stan Buddenbohm        3:44.2

2. Kurt Krempetz          3:25.7

3. Norm Furutani          2:58.8

4. Ron Wittman            2:26.6

5. Dick Peterson          2:00.2

6. Ralph Ray              DNF

7. Larry Norvall          DNF

Standard CLG

1. Ralph Ray              3:49.0

2. Stan Buddenbohm        3:30.6

3. Lee Hines              3:16.4

4. Kurt Krempetz          3:10.8

5. Ken Bauer              3:04.7

6. Paul Love              3:04.3

7. Norm Furutani          3:03.7

8. Jim Buxton             2:52.7

9. Jim Sonnenmeier        1:40.9

10. Gerald Keck           DNF

11. Chris Borland         DNF

HLG

1. Jim Buxton             3:22.8

2. Stan Buddenbohm        3:18.2

3. Tim Batiuk             2:50.9

4. Ken Bauer              2:36.4

5. Lee Hines              1:51.8

6. Phedon Tsiknopoulos    DNF

7. John Alling            DNF

8. Kurt Krempetz          DNF

9. Dick Peterson          DNF