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
Happy New Year!
Start 2018 off right by attending AMA Expo West, January 5-7 at the Ontario Convention Center in Ontario, California. Bryan Wood, the newly elected District XI vice president, and I will hold a meeting for District X and XI members on Saturday.
We’ve held this District X and XI meeting for the last few years and it’s a good time to learn about AMA programs that can help you and your club, get the latest news, and maybe win a great radio we will raffle off. Raffle tickets are free with your attendance to the meeting. We’re working on another nice giveaway too, so come to the meeting and have a good time.
AMA Expo West will have some great vendors, keynote speakers, and lots of fun so make your plans now.
For the third and final part of our 2017 District X AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame retrospective, we’re going to pay tribute to a team: Jim Shinohara and Dave Shadel. These two were a legendary team in RC Pylon Racing. Dave flew and Jim was the caller, helping with building and maintaining these rocket-fast aircraft. They were so much of a team that when Dave was elected into the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame, he refused to accept the honor until Jim was recognized too. Well 2017, marks Jim’s posthumous induction and Dave will join him on our wall of champions.
Jim and Dave first met at a National Miniature Pylon Racing Association (NMPRA) in 1976. It was Dave’s first year competing in Formula 1. Jim had a reputation of helping young racers who were long on talent, but short on funds.
Dave had a midair early in this competition and his backup equipment was not very fast, so he sat dejected in the pits, pondering his options when up walked Jim. Jim asked if Dave would like to borrow one of his competitive engines. Dave jumped at the opportunity to use the beautiful new engine and one round later, he returned it in pieces with an apology for blowing it up. As Humphrey Bogart told Claude Rains in Casablanca, it was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.
A few weeks later, Jim called Dave and asked if he needed a new airplane. After losing one at the race, Dave surely did. Jim showed up a month later with the finished model. Jim knew you could never have enough airplanes and they spent that off season building and flying.
As time went by, Dave and Jim became a force with which to be reckoned. Together they won every significant event many times more than once. They competed on all seven F3D Pylon teams for the US between 1985 and 1997, were world champions three times, and stood on the podium for the US six times. Together they won the NMPRA Formula 1 National Points Championship 10 times. They were AMA Formula 1 national champions seven times, and the NMPRA Formula 1 national champions eight times.
1986 was their finest year together when they lost only the first heat race of the year and went on to win 96 heat races in a row, the AMA Nats, the NMPRA Formula 1 Championship, and the NMPRA National Points Championship—the triple crown. This feat will never be equaled because Formula 1 racing no longer exists.
Throughout this timeframe, Jim was building 30 or more airplanes per year for Dave and other fliers, often only asking for building materials or a kit in exchange for a finished race winner.
Dave worked for Astro Flight producing RC airplane kits and a remote-piloted drone for Northrop Grumman. He worked at Kraft Systems and Airtronics before starting his own company, Performance Specialties, which sold engines for Pylon racers.
Sadly, Jim had a heart attack at the 1997 World Championships in the Czech Republic. The hardest thing the team members had to do was say goodbye to him as they returned home with him still hospitalized. With his family by his side, he died there on October 5, 1997.
The 21 seasons that Jim and Dave had together have never been equaled in terms of success, camaraderie, and good times.
Let’s salute them both and welcome them into the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame.
(L-R) Richard Verano, world champion; Dave Shadel, caller; and Jim Shinohara, aircraft builder, at the 1993 F3D World Championship in Notsch, Austria.
The first-place team and top three individual contestants: (front row, L-R): Dub Jett, third; Dave Shadel, world champion; and Brian Richmond, second; (back row, L-R) caller Jim Shinohara; caller Bruce Richmond; and team manager Bob Wallace.
Until next month, 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; rebbhf@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.
