CONTROL LINE AEROBATICS
WIND, WIND,
AND MORE
WIND!
By Joe Daly | stunt38060@gmail.com
WEATHER WAS CERTAINLY THE STORY at this year’s Control Line (CL) Precision Aerobatics (Stunt) National Aeromodeling Championships. Every year, many of the pilots make their way to the International Aeromodeling Center in Muncie, Indiana, for the Nats and to crown the Walker Cup champion in the Open class. This year, the CL Nats was held in late June, which is approximately 4 weeks earlier than usual—and it started on Father’s Day!
The unofficial events began on Sunday at the grass circles, where Beginner and Intermediate contests are held. Many of the Open and Advanced pilots were at the L-pad at Site 1, practicing for qualifications.
The Beginner class had a good turnout, with seven in Adult Beginner, one in Junior/Senior, and one in Basic. Congratulations to Angstrom Eberenz for winning Junior/Senior and to his sister, Xyndi Eberenz, who won Basic. In Adult Beginner, Al Rohrstaff took first, Andrew Vasilik was second, and Bill Gray rounded out the top three. Andrew was flying an airplane that I gave him last year, and he nearly won with it! That same airplane came in second place in the 2016 Advanced class, which was when I last flew it at the Nats. It was great to see that, and I am glad that he is getting good use out of the aircraft.
Intermediate also had a good turnout, with eight pilots flying in that event. Did I mention that it was windy that day? Congratulations to Leonardo Silva for coming in first, with Justin Anger in second, and Rick Osborn placing third. We really must thank Mike Stinson and Bob Brookins for being the contest directors of these events, as well as those who donated to the Beginner prize pool!
Monday was appearance judging day. It took place on the L-pad—and did I mention that it was windy? It was so windy that we decided to only present the airplanes then put them back in the cars instead of placing them in rows for all to see. Mike Londke and Mike Eber stepped up and did the judging, which was no easy task because the lines were long and the wind was blowing. The airplanes were all so shiny and beautiful. This year there were a few 19 pointers, and the concours d’Elegance award went to Todd Lee and his gorgeous P-51.
Tuesday was Classic, Old-Time Stunt (OTS), and N-30 events on the grass circles—and did I mention the wind? Joe Gilbert again took first place in Classic and OTS! Second in Classic was Mike Schmitt, and Craig Gunder placed third. Second in OTS was John Paris, and third went to Jim Lee. John took the win in N-30, with Mike in second place, and Bruce Jennings placing third.
Wednesday started qualifying for Open and Advanced, and it was probably the best weather day of the event. Little did the competitors know that the competition was going to be shortened by a couple of days because of the Friday and Saturday forecast, which would not have been flyable. It was a tough decision for Event Director (ED) Dave Trible to make based on what might happen, but he made the best one. We ended up with only one qualifying day to determine the Top 20 in Open and Advanced.
Thursday was the Top 20, the Top Five, and the Walker Cup flyoff—all in one day! It was the windiest day of the week so far. In the morning, the wind was approximately 10 to 15 mph, and during the Top Five, it was blowing 15 to 20 mph, with some gusts up to 27 mph—but just not long enough to stop the competition! They were certainly challenging flying conditions to say the least.
The Top 20 in Advanced determined the Advanced National Champion. This year’s honor went to Mike Schmitt! In second place was James Mills; third went to Enrique Diez; fourth went to Dennis Nunes; and fifth went to Will Davis. After two rounds in Open, with no throwaway
flights, the Top Five were Paul Walker, Dave Fitzgerald, Orestes Hernandez, Joe Gilbert, and I. Joe and I enjoyed our first time in the Top Five! The 2021 Rookie of the Year recognition went to Rick Huff.
Next up were the Top Five and Junior/Senior Open finals, and the wind decided to pick up. Unfortunately, my son, Steven, was flying in Senior Open and lost his airplane in an overhead Figure Eight when the wind pushed it backward and he was unable to save it. It was too bad because he was putting up a really good flight and had a chance to repeat as Senior champion.
When the dust settled, Orestes took home the Walker Cup for the fourth time, winning it back-to-back! The Junior and Senior Nats champions were Gabe Alimov and Luca Alimov. It was nice to see both brothers win! Congratulations to all!
Final Thoughts About the 2021 Nats
Attendance was up—more so than the last few years! Although the weather was challenging, we got to see some of the best Stunt flying in the world, hands down! We owe the volunteers a big thank-you because they really made this event happen. Without them, there would have been no show! A huge thanks to Dave Trible for being the ED and Michelle Lee for being the assistant ED. And much appreciation to the judges, pit bosses, tabulators, and runners.
Another Nats is in the books!
SOURCES:
Precision Aerobatics Model Pilots Association (PAMPA)
www.pampacl.org
AMA Nats
https://amablog.modelaircraft.org/nats
