District X

District X—Arizona, California, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada, Utah

Lawrence Tougas
Vice President

ama.district10@gmail.com
Box 276, Fairfield CA 94533
Tel.: (707) 480-2053; www.ama10.org

September brings us Labor Day and the unofficial end of summer. Labor Day was first celebrated as a public holiday in Oregon in 1887 and became a federal holiday in 1894. So, as you’re enjoying your Monday relaxing, remember all of the people who worked hard to get the 40-hour work week, weekends off, and the other benefits we enjoy today.

In early July, I hosted a Precision Aerobatics or Pattern contest at the Woodland/Davis Aeromodelers’ field slightly north of Davis, California. Davis is near Sacramento in the Central Valley, and it was hot. Saturday had a high of 107°. We worked hard to finish flying ahead of the hottest point in the day, which helped a lot.

There are five classes in Pattern flying. In increasing order of difficulty, they are Sportsman, Intermediate, Advanced, Masters, and FAI. Each class flies its set of maneuvers and they are scored from 0 to 10 for each maneuver. Six rounds are flown, and the four best rounds comprise the final score.

The morning started on a sad note when Gary Banducci and Derek Koopowitz had a midair collision. They were both flying versions of the Oxai Ascent. Gary had the monoplane and Derek the biplane version. These were two of the nicest planes at the contest that were unfortunately rekitted into a $20,000 pile of wreckage.

Gary and Derek are two great guys, and it is always a gut punch when something like this happens. Derek will rely on his backup airplane when he goes to the Pattern Nats in Blytheville, Arkansas, in late July.

Please enjoy my favorite photos from the event. You can see all of the scores at www.patternscoring.com.

A competitor kneels beside a model airplane — Derek Emmett finished first in Masters. He finished second at last year’s Nats, and will be returning this year to represent District X.

Derek Emmett finished first in Masters. He finished second at last year’s Nats, and will be returning this year to represent District X.

Model airplane landing on a runway — Peter Vogel brings in his Allure for a perfect three-point landing. Peter won Intermediate with a 4,000. He will be traveling to the Nats, too.

Peter Vogel brings in his Allure for a perfect three-point landing. Peter won Intermediate with a 4,000. He will be traveling to the Nats, too.

Two model airplanes parked on the tarmac — The before picture of Gary Banducci’s Oxai Ascent monoplane and Derek Koopowitz’s Ascent Biplane. I can’t bear to show you the after photo.

The before picture of Gary Banducci’s Oxai Ascent monoplane and Derek Koopowitz’s Ascent Biplane. I can’t bear to show you the after photo.

Patriotic model airplane on a runway — Jon Carter’s patriotically themed two-meter airplane launches for another round.

Jon Carter’s patriotically themed two-meter airplane launches for another round.

Tyler Johnson standing behind a model airplane — Tyler Johnson finished second in Intermediate and is sure to be a future threat to us old men.

Tyler Johnson finished second in Intermediate and is sure to be a future threat to us old men.

Frankie Capone with his model airplane — Frankie “Da Fingers” Capone with his super sharp Angel’s Shadow finished third in Masters.

Frankie “Da Fingers” Capone with his super sharp Angel’s Shadow finished third in Masters.

Russ Nichols holding a model airplane — Russ Nichols took first place in Sportsman with a perfect score. He’ll be flying my old, trusty Venus II at the Nats.

Russ Nichols took first place in Sportsman with a perfect score. He’ll be flying my old, trusty Venus II at the Nats.

The Pattern Nats was scheduled to be held outside of Muncie, Indiana, for the first time in decades. The goal is to move the event around from time to time to generate additional interest in the sport. The credit for this big effort goes to the officers of the National Society of Radio Controlled Aerobatics, Mike Harrison and Al Glenn.

Until next month, I wish you all happy landings.

Associate Vice Presidents: Tim Attaway, Chula Vista CA; (619) 427-6392; trattaway@cox.net; Forrest Barton, Woodland CA; (530) 383-9019; cbarton328@aol.com; Richard Bonnardel, Kailua HI; (808) 261-7046; rebbbf@hawaii.rr.com; Kurtis Chandler, Phoenix AZ; (602) 647-8342; azpm@cox.net; Alan Friedman, Eloy AZ; (520) 876-0232; pooralan@aol.com. Dan Johnson, St. George UT; (435) 619-3112; dkjohnson@gmail.com; Kevin Houser, Oro Valley AZ; (520) 490-7657; khouser@rocketfarmers.com; Tim Johnson, Rancho Santa Margarita, CA; (562) 965-4288; timothy@johnson.us.com; Mike Lee, Redlands CA; (909) 792-8424; mlee8249@msn.com; Scott Malta, Merced CA; (209) 723-4202; scottmalta@comcast.net; Jim Mohan, Phoenix AZ; (623) 434-1351; jmohan351@cox.net; Todd Sheridan, Pleasant Grove UT; (801) 358-8345; sheridan.todd@gmail.com; Greg Stone, Laguna Niguel, CA; (949) 413-0920; gstone4@cox.net; Gil Terzo, Las Vegas NV; (702) 523-9897; gterzo@aol.com. Peter Vogel, Santa Clara CA; (408) 569-7067; vogel.peter@gmail.com; Roger Willis, Murrieta CA; (951) 249-9688; willisasoc@aol.com. Event Sanction Coordinators: Tim Attaway, Chula Vista CA; (619) 427-6392; trattaway@cox.net; Forrest Barton, Woodland CA; (530) 383-9019; cbarton328@aol.com; Kurtis Chandler (Arizona and Utah), Peoria AZ; (602) 647-3842; azpm@cox.net; Christopher Sullivan, Waipahu HI; (808) 853-8863; rccombat808@yahoo.com.