For the above posts concerning IMAA:

#1. The IMAA magazine High Flight is now TOP NOTCH Reading and Study for any Big Bird Flier. It is as good as Aeromodeling magazines get and it caters to the Big Bird Flier.

#2. The IMAA has an obstacle that is holding the organization back big time and the organization is being slowly strangled to death. It is NOT the large amount of Big Birds, the electrics, or whatever that is doing the throat-clincher.

Before I again get too riled up, let me say that at the IMAA Rally of the Giants, last June 2010, as a working flight-line director, I had the opportunity to discuss this with IMAA President, Mr. Bill Hamby. Contrary to some of my earlier convictions, I found Mr. Hamby to be a very nice gentleman and well organized in our discussion. I now well understand his position and I really have no answer for it other than trying to get the AMA EC to become a bit more willing to better support those organizations that support aeromodeling in their own specific desires, wants and needs.

As a long time member of IMAA, I well recognize IMAA is not now trying to lead all to "Big Birds" however anyone may now define "Big Birds". IMAA is the same as any other Special Interest Group, simply trying to provide an Operations Center for those that like to gather in the shade of their own organization be it sport, competition, or whatever.

AMA, IMO, treats IMAA as some out-of-home stepchild. IMAA requires that all IMAA members also be AMA members. OTOH, AMA does not recognize an IMAA Event even though AMA sanctioned, as well as IMAA. An AMA CD could get a sanction on an IMAA Fly-In and plan for a large event. Then 30 days prior, a club on the other side of the hill could also get a sanction for a Fly-In and even limit it to Big Birds. An IMAA Fly-In gets NOT EVEN THE SMALL 50 mile-radius protection of any other Fly-In. (100 miles minimum between like Class C events)

Therefore IMAA, an organization of AMA members that likes to gather in a noncompetitive get-together is not allowed any event distance protection form some neighbor that wants to take would-be fliers from the IMAA event. YES, THIS STUFF HAPPENS. BTDT or better described a victim. So most clubs simply say: "Big Bird Event - OK, but not IMAA." They don't want to take a chance that a non IMAA event will surface around the corner and there is no one there to pay for the burgers, and hot-dogs. Therefore this lack of attention is the noose that is strangling IMAA to a slow death. Of course the other side of the coin says that IMAA could allow non IMAA persons to participate in IMAA events, however that would, IMO, just draw the noose tighter.

Therefore, in my learned opinion, AMA just by sheer stubbornness, is doing its best to kill the IMAA, and do injustice to a section of AMA membership. Of course one could ask the membership to vote AMA members into the AMA EC that have a vision beyond their nose. Would YOU vote for such? I remember an old story that goes "I watched as they came to take the XXX, but I did nothing. It goes on to say so many different groups were taken while "I did nothing." Then it says, "Then they came for me, and there were none left to do anything."

What will YOU do?