District IX

Edition: Model Aviation - 2025/10
Page Numbers: 107

Model airplane flying with a large American flag

District IX

Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming

In July, the Rapid City Propbusters held the inaugural Vintage Radio Control Society (VRCS) event in District IX.

The event drew 20 pilots from a three-state area. More than 20 prizes were in the pilots’ raffle, including a vintage RTF Pronto electric-powered model built from plans. Warren Malone took home the Pronto.

Three VRCS-defined events were held. Best Vintage Scale went to Josh Gollnick flying Gailen Strumbaugh’s Diamond Demon. Bob Evans earned the Vintage Open plaque, and Clancy Kingsbury scored highest in the Vintage Pattern event. A fourth award went to Josh Gollnick, who was voted event MVP.

This report, from Colorado Associate Vice President Sean McEntee, covers the Magnificent Mountain Men (MMM) club and its contribution to the Science Olympiad competition in Colorado.

The Science Olympiad committee changes some rules for models (weight, span, chord, etc.) every year to present a fresh challenge to competitors.

The 2026 rules feature a helicopter event. For people in the MMM club, this new set of rules made for some head-scratching. Many in the club had never built a rotary-wing Indoor model before; however, with the abundance of talent in the club, the learning curve was short. Our local kit maker at Laser-Cut Planes (www.laser-cutplanes.com) developed an easy-to-build and competitive kit named the Neapolitan for first-time modelers.

Other club members held build-trim sessions at our monthly scrambles and helped those who attended get in the air.

In March, John McGrath led the charge as event director of the Southwest Region Science Olympiad (SciOly) Championships at Colorado State University in Pueblo. Many other club members registered participants, processed models (to ensure compliance), timed flights, and tabulated scores.

Two Science Olympiad competitors holding a model and trophy — Two competitors with their model at the Colorado State Science Olympiad Championships in Colorado Springs.

In April, this well-oiled operation lent its services again at the Colorado State SciOly Championships, held at the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs. John did an incredible job as event director, employing effective rules interpretation to ensure that the events were officiated as equitably as possible.