SOUTHERN
HELICOPTER
CHAMPIONSHIPS
By Tim DiPeri | timdiperi@caseco-inc.com
THE PAST YEAR was an unusual one for far more than model aviation! Given that fact, while trying to be safe, I decided to drive to Florida for the last formal helicopter competition of 2020—the Southern Helicopter Championships F3C/AMA Contest. It was held October 24-25, 2020, by the Triple Creek Radio Control (TCRC) Aircraft Club in Riverview, Florida, at one of the best model aircraft flying fields in the US. In addition to the organized competition, the club hosted its popular TCRC Heli Fall Classic Fun-Fly on an alternate runway to allow anyone who wanted to fly to be involved.
Nob Muraki, a 2021 USA FAI F3C World Championship team member, manages the event each year with the help of his wife. This flying field has a full flight station for F3C helicopter competition, as well as a separate flightline for the fun-fly.
This configuration allows the attendees to experience the best of both worlds, and I like what the club does to facilitate this event. We were all able to socialize (6 feet apart, of course), and many of the people who enjoyed the fun-fly easily visited the competition area to see what it was all about.
I left Nashville, Tennessee, on Thursday afternoon and arrived Friday afternoon. Driving 11 hours each way didn’t bother me, and I was looking forward to finishing out the year with friends and enjoying the event. And yes, I stayed at a hotel!
Although I have been to this field before, Friday was the first time I was greeted by the “wild” hogs that are protected in the region! In addition to these animals darting out in front of cars, they really damage the open parts of the flying field. Because the hogs are protected, they could not “enhance” Saturday’s wonderful barbecue supper ...
Because most of the competitors fly FAI F3C, we flew the current competition schedule (the maneuvers to be flown at the 2021 World Championship). This is typical for nearly every helicopter competition in the US.
For those who have not participated in a helicopter competition, several classes are normally offered (AMA and FAI). Because of the turnout, F3C was the only class offered this time and two schedules (P - Primary and F- Final) were flown.
Nob has an interesting and exciting embellishment to the competition. A fun part is to introduce a round of unknown maneuvers—almost! Nob prints out maneuvers that have been flown in F3C since the “beginning of time.” In reality, they are likely maneuvers from the last 15 years! Whatever it is, there are a lot of maneuvers. Most of them I have certainly forgotten.
The maneuvers (two hovering, six aerobatic, and one autorotation) were pulled randomly by the pilots. Some of us had not flown these maneuvers for more than 10 years, and others had never flown them at all! The round was lots of fun, and it was impressive to see first-time competitors perform these maneuvers quite well.
As mentioned, all of the time we were flying the competition, the fun-fly portion was booming! There were many great pilots and helicopters to see and enjoy. In 2020, I developed a deeper interest in Scale helicopter models and was fascinated with the good turnout of such aircraft.
Local team pilots Justin Cook (BK Hobbies/SAB Heli Division) and Cade
Ciripompa (Miniature Aircraft USA) attended the event and participated in the fun-fly. Both pilots flew well and were fun to watch.
Cade had his Miniature Aircraft Whiplash turbine 700mm-class helicopter and had no reservations in “sending it!” He did not hesitate to do any of the aggressive maneuvers we see regularly accomplished with nitro- and electric-powered models. This turbine heli is one of the only freestyle models to utilize this type of powerplant. Additionally, Miniature Aircraft offers a complete kit with the turbine included. Nearly every other turbine-powered 3D heli that I have seen requires a conversion kit for completion.
I want to mention the high degree of hospitality from the host club, Nob, and his wife. In addition to providing a wonderful cookout on Saturday, there was always a sense of a desire to help if they could. I have been to many model events across the country, and I can comfortably say these hosts were a pleasure to be around.
Until next time.
SOURCES:
International Radio Controlled Helicopter Association (IRCHA)
www.ircha.org
TCRC Aircraft Club
www.triplecreekrc.com
Miniature Aircraft USA
minair@miniatureaircraftusa.com
www.miniatureaircraft.de/shop
BK Hobbies
(352) 559-8959
www.bkhobbies.com
