District IV—Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia
Jay Marsh
Vice President
jaymarsh@ama-d4.org
3227 Pine Needles Rd., High Point NC 27265
tel: (336) 687-0972; www.amadistrict-iv.org
www.facebook.com/amadistrictIV
Clubs helping clubs.
During the FAA shutdown in the Washington, D.C. region, many clubs outside of the affected area offered their fields to those members to use. Now that the area has reopened for most, here is an excerpt from a letter I received:
“The Skylarkers of Washington (SLOW), a Control Line (CL) club, flew in Greenbelt, Maryland, which is located just inside the Flight Restricted Zone, and we have now been grounded permanently. The Prince Georges Remote Control Club (PGRC) offered us the privilege to fly on their field at no cost through the end of this year and full membership after that.
“These guys are a great and welcoming bunch and we SLOW flyers are very grateful for the way the PGRC guys have welcomed and made room for us. After all, it doesn’t matter what you fly, we are all in this together. Thank you, PGRC.”
—Tim LaNore, SLOW president
District IV forms a new club.
It is always a great thing when a new club gets formed. We added four new clubs this year. Be sure your club has rechartered. Here is a report from Jim Boccckinfuso about a new club that has formed in Virginia.
“A group of CL enthusiasts have come together in District IV to form a new AMA chartered club, the Southwest Virginia Control Liners. We started out with six members and now have
Jim Bocckinfuso, president of the Southwest Virginia Control Liners, and his Oriental.
eight very active members who fly on a regular basis at the Smith Mountain Lake Airport in Moneta, Virginia.
“We are a combination of Free Flight, Control Liners, and RCers who all flew CL back in the day and remembered all the fun it was and how little space and money was needed to have a great time. Some of us had been flying CL at various schoolyards and parks, but always had to contend with the activities there. I discussed it with several guys, and we decided to form a club and find a regular field.
“Our club secretary, Bob Sowder, District IV Free Flight (FF) associate vice president, thought about this small airport near where we all live and spoke to its management. They felt it would be great to see this type of flying at the airport and, because we are limited by the length of the lines, we would never be any problem with full-scale airplanes. We do not fly any RC or FF at the airport, although the airport holds two open houses a year where it invites the public and allows us to give demonstrations of all types of model aircraft.
“The club worked closely with airport management to establish a safe and suitable area for parking and flying. We have one main circle and one overflow circle, both grass. We have access to the main hangar about 300 feet from the main circle. There is electricity, bathroom facilities, and a soda machine. We will probably have some fun events like the Ringmaster Fly-A-Thon in the future.
“For more information, visit our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/swvacontrolliners, or email me, Jim Bocckinfuso, club president, at easyrider@centurylink.net.”
Go fly and have fun safely. ⛽
Associate Vice Presidents:
Delaware: John Kirchstein, (302)731-2831; johnk@kirchstein.net; Mark Weiss, (302)547-4917; markw@ama-d4.org; North Carolina: Rick Cawley, (919) 630-1649; rcacbge@embarqmail.com; Mark Smith, (704) 798-2776; mark@ama-d4.org; David Trogdon, (910) 654-1220; frogman28472@embarqmail.com; Maryland: Richard “Rick” Moreland, (301) 261-7366; moreland1@verizon.net; Virginia: Nic Burhans, (540) 219-9646; nic@ama-d4.org; Randy Elliott, (540) 239-0645; Randy.Elliott@nrdsincalary.com; Rusty Kennedy, (757) 812-2812; rusty2ama-d4.org; Terry Terrneoire, (412)760-4593; terry@ama-d4.org; FF AVP: Bob Sowder, (540) 525-7086; bsowder@rbnet.com. CL AVP and FF/CL Contest Coordinator: John Tate, 10 Hanbury Ave., Portsmouth VA 23702; (757) 399-5376; jtate22@cox.net. RC Contest Coordinator: Andy Kane, 305 Natic Ct., Silver Spring MD 20905; (301) 785-3022; andykane01@gmail.com.
Webmaster: Jack Upchurch, webmaster@ama-d4.org. Government Relations Coordinator: Ray Stinchcomb, (443) 618-8998; govrelations@ama-d4.org.
