Baitshack

I’ve been flying for a year and a half now and have been reflecting on my time in the hobby. I learned to fly quickly. After much simulator time and one buddy box flight, I went solo and haven’t looked back since.

I’ve gone from flying every chance I got (10-15 hours a week), to thinking that I wanted to impress everyone doing all sorts of crazy 3d stuff (never learned), to just being happy making it out to the field once a week and spending a few hours flying/bs’ing with everyone. I hardly read the AMA magazine, and unlike a year ago, I toss the tower hobbies mail outs in the trash after a cursory look.

I can loop, roll, spin, go inverted 6” off the field and all that stuff but that’s the extent of it. Sometimes I think it’s bad that I’ve lost the desire to learn to do all sorts of crazy stuff in the air. Other times not.

In the end I guess all that really matters is that I still enjoy doing it and I’ve made some good friends at the field. I can see myself still doing this 10 years from now, but I have no desire (or money for that matter) to build a 1/3 scale extra and hover a foot off the ground.

SMALLFLY-

My Feedback: (19)

Your not stagnant, your content. Some people love the challenge of new stuff, you need to buddy up with a hot dog flyer to get a new attitude if you ever want to move on. But no one is saying you need to or even might want to move on. A buddy pushing you helps a lot if you want to get jiggy with it.

FLYBOY

My Feedback: (11)

Ditto. I built the big G-202 because I had to have something that hovered and all that. I have been flying 27 years and after flying the G-202 a bit, it is boring. I much prefer the heli or sloping or sometimes just doing touch and goes on floats at the lake. Never take the 202 out any more. Its a fun hobby. Best part is there are a lot of things to do in it to keep it interesting.

Have fun, if you get tired of one thing, do something else for a while.

Cactus.

My Feedback: (1)

get sommit you dont care about,,, SPAD's are good for this, then let the fun flow. i go though stages, i normally fly a diffrent plane for a few weeks. im started to get bored with prophang, so im getting a diffrent plane to try propper aerobatics and propper 3D as well as looking a bit scaleish

Tattoo

Yep...build a $7 Spad PQHOR and hover less than a foot off the ground instead

http://www.spadtothebone.com/SPAD/

...if all else fails...try combat

JohnW

My Feedback: (6)

After learning the basics (takeoff, pattern, landing) there really isn't a predefined progression of new "tricks" to learn. Many are very happy and take great pleasure in the social aspect of a flying club an the occasional lap around the field. My advice is to do whatever turns your crank. If you have no interest in learning new tricks, that is fine, don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

Everyone is different. I personally always need a constant challenge and take great pleasure in flying well. That is why I compete in pattern and IMAC. If you do want to dabble in new areas be it racing, scale, pattern, combat, whatever, I agree with smallfly's advice: find a mentor if possible. A mentor will aid greatly in the learning process not to mention you'll gain a friend with similar RC interests.

Cheers

Deadeye

Which lake is that, Flyboy? Over on this side of the divide, lakes are few and far between.

MinnFlyer

My Feedback: (4)

Ok, so you can do a loop.

Is it ROUND?
Do you exit it at the same altitude as you entered it?
Can you do 3 right on top of each other?

You can do a roll.

Can you do 3 in a row keeping the plane in a straight line?
How about 1 slow one?
How about a 4-point roll?

One last thing... Ever try smoke?

ilikeplanes

For me it's all about learning. Right now, I'm working on precision aerobatics and rudder control. Next year it may be gasoline power or dope finishing or building landing gear for an F4 Wildcat.

I encourage myself to take on this hobby as a never ending challenge. I don't just go to the field and say "OK lets do some precision aerobatics" and proceed to randomly bore holes in the sky. Instead, I print out the IMAC sequence and learn to fly it. In both directions, in a cross wind, with various airplanes, etc. I even read the judging criteria so I have clear-cut goals.

It's the same with building projects or learning a certain technique. Try to establish some goals that stretch your abilities. Don't give up and take the easy way out either. Try to stick to it.

You may also find inspiration in some of the hobby greats. Chip Hyde or the Nick Ziroli, for example, have really advanced the hobby with their dedication and focus.

What about a completely different facet of the hobby. Have you seen a modern discus hand launch glider? Utterly amazing. Glider tow can be fun. Aerial photography, multi-engine, electrics, racing, indoor, scale, jets, the list goes on and on.

That's the beauty of this hobby. It can be whatever you want it to be.

TexasAirBoss

My Feedback: (22)

I know I experienced plateaus and I think that I observed the same thing in others as well. I think you can expect the learning curve to go up and level , go up and level, etc, for ever.
I believe that what you are experiencing is normal. When you feel like challenging yourself again, you will. For now, simply flying and enjoying what you have learned so far is good enough and enjoyable. I wouldn't worry about it.
There is no nirvana . There is no see all, can do all, state of perfection , at least not in this life. Over the years, 24 now, I have flown a little pattern, flown lots and lots of sport planes with friends. I think I enjoyed that the most. We would fly in formation and do touch and goes together. We would all fly over and one person would pull up and roll like the missing man formation pass. I would say that flying, or learning how to fly, is only the ticket that gets you into the party. The party is being able to play with your friends in the air. Playing follow the leader, or chase is fun also. Good friends are what really make this hobby. And good friends come and go.
Times are lean in the friend department now, that is just how things ebb and flow. Lately I have been challenging myself by building scale airplanes. I don't need a large crowd to WOW , I just enjoy how the airplane looks in the air.
One trick that has worked for me for years is this:
Keep a very diverse fleet of airplanes. I had a outrageous aerobat, a twin, a slow touch and go plane, a high speed cruiser for playing chase, and a limited scale aerobat. Instead of flying the same airplane all of the time until you are razor sharp with it, switch back and forth between them. It makes the differences in the planes very noticeable and you are constantly adjusting. Everything stays fresh and I believe that you grow as a pilot.
Having said all of that, let me also say that I have observed many many people come into the hobby and seemingly fall in love with it. And two years later they are gone, burned out or having decided that they had done it all ,(which was only the plateau where you are). And some people realize that they are supposed to move around from interest to interest. They simply aren't supposed to spend their lives mastering one interest. They dabble in this for a year or two and then move to something else. That is how my brother is. Nothing wrong with it. That is as good an approach to life as any. In fact he thinks my interests are too narrow. So there. Maybe RC modelers are narrow.
And maybe its just a plateau.

GrnBrt

My Feedback: (5)

One last thing... Ever try smoke?

Marlboro light 100's!!!!!!

My fun comes from building and the challenge but like to fly also. I just compete against myself and for the most part try to fly the plane as it was meant to be flown, especially scale. Just go to the filed and watch the deer in the tree line, or the Eagles floating over head.

FLYBOY

My Feedback: (11)

My boat is on Flathead and my friends is on Noxon Res by Trout Creek. Both are fun, Flat head usually isn't very smooth though. All that much more interesting.

Robby

My Feedback: (18)

MinnFlyer..
I am with GrnBrt...
Damn him anyway ....

Shortman

My Feedback: (21)

What you are experiencing is the after effects of winter syndrom.

Bob Peterson

Bored? Been there, done that. I discovered combat late last year. The adrenalin is flowing again. After trying combat and pylon racing, burning holes in the air is just plain boring. I even look forward to a few of the combat guys showing up on Saturday and getting in a few practice rounds. Try it, You'll like it.
Spads are a really cheap way to go.

MarkNovack

My Feedback: (3)

For me, competition is the key to keeping things interesting. It provides solid goals and surrounds me with great company. In this small country it is as much a great social time as flying. I get to fly with some of the best...enough...time to go out and test the new FI...the sun is shining but probably not for too long.

Mark

FLYING MOUNTIE

HI, I HAVE BEEN FLYING FOR A WHILE AND FIND IF YOU DON'T BUDDY UP WITH SOMEONE SO YOU CAN GIVE EACH OTHER THE MUCH NEEDED ENCOURAGEMENT YOU MAY WELL FIND YOURSELF IN A BIT OF A LULL. I LIKE TO SEEK NEW CHALLANGES SUCH AS SCRATCH BUILDING - THE MYSTERY AND FEAR IS OVERATED FOR THIS AND IT WAS ACTUALLY VERY ENJOYABLE. MAYBE YOU SHOULD TRY SCRATCHBUILDING THAT CERTAIN AIRPLANE YOU WISH TO TRY NEXT YOU MIGHT ENJOY IT. JUST A SUGGESTION.

F.Ciccarello

My Feedback: (60)

Try competition flying that will spark your interest. IMAC or Pattern. There is alot more to this hobby besides doing loop and circles.

mjd3

you need a goal. Learn this:

http://www.mini-iac.com/Sequences/20...sman_Known.htm

Then if you like, go compete!

scottrc

I have family that live at Proctor and Polson
Family had a dairy at Charlo
Dad was born at St.Ignatius


Boy this is becoming a small world.

Homesick for the Big Sky

hilleyja

My Feedback: (3)

Are you bored????

Try this with a .28 or larger engine:

*** WARNING ***

Be very observant of your throttle. This little jewel on a Magnum XL .28 BB engine will dissappear in the ether before you know it. It took 3 flights before I ventured beyond 1/3rd throttle -- who needs a Tequila Sunrise, Wholly Smoke, Diamond Dust, or pilon racer.

Airlon rolls and loops are quite tame, even at full deflection. For the most part it is very stable and I can roll and loop without care (I've seen other Pizza Box flyers that are like floppy hats in the air -- this one, because of its center support and shape, flexes very little). For a really fun time, run it up to several mistakes high and turn on max rudder deflection. This will send it into a wild axial giration. This giration does not immediate abate when you neutralize your controls and on at least one occasion it continued into the ground from 500' in front of a fun-fly crowd -- I fought for control (opposite airlon, up and down throttle, elevator, etc.) for more than 15 seconds. The upside of this episode was that all I needed to do to send it back in the air was to straighten out the fuel tank under its rubber band mounting and restart the engine, no physical damage after a 500' out-of-control dive -- that gave the crowd more gape than the flight itself.

Goinstraightup

My Feedback: (26)

I've lost interest in building at times, but never flying. To combat the lack of building interest, I try to accomplish something on the plane under construction every day. When I start working on it, I usually end up staying in the basement for a while and getting a lot done.

Jim_McIntyre

Competition. :thumbup:
Variety. :thumbup:

Once you've accomplished rolling circles with fixed wing, move on to heli... no time to get bored.

The plateau comment is also on the money, the time I advance the most is after a plateau, now I look forward to them because I know what follows.