Wow, I was wondering when this one was going to come out. I knew it was, but wasn't sure when. Anyway, I know the issue is at the NATS. No one weighs anything at local contests. I will give you the reasoning behind how it is done at the NATS. It is 100% LOGISTICS. Currently, and as far as I know, this is how it will be done this year. All the Masters and FAI guys are weighed the night before the finals. Intermediate and Advanced guys in contention are weighed either the next to last day, or the last day. This is done by guys who are actually flying in the contest, but volunteer to help with the scales and such. The scales are made available all week to competitors to verify the weight of their planes, and if you are overweight, you are DQ'd from the contest. People on this thread apparently want every plane, processed every flight, but I will ask them, are YOU going to be the one to do it. For that to happen, there will have to be paid people, who can not fly in other classes because of time limitations to do this on each site each day. Also, a tent will have to be setup to take every plane to, to verify weight without the wind issues. If you guys are happy paying 300-400 dollars for your entry fee, I'm sure it can be accommodated. Currently, the only planes that get processed are planes that belong to pilots how have a chance to place in any class. There is NO way logistically to do this before each round. I realize, it is done at the Worlds, but look at the worlds fee, and the number of dedicated people who are there just helping. There is no way the NSRCA, or AMA could sustain that without passing the cost along to the competitors. I realize the argument can be made that the pilot can change anything in other rounds and be over weight, and that is true. There is really nothing stopping someone from changing something after being weighed, but there is only so much that can REALISTICALLY be done. If the scales are provided throughout the week for contestants to verify their weight, and are told how it works prior to the contest, then I'm not sure what else can easily be done. There is no way to wait to the finals and just zero that round, because then you would HAVE to weigh every plane, every flight, and its hard enough getting people to help out at the NATS now.

This type of measuring works well in other disciplines. In pylon, only the top planes have their motors torn down and looked at after the contest...Why??? Well, because if you cheat and finish 32, no one really cares. The same is true in pattern. It is to decide the national championship, so it doesn't make a lot of sense to process every single plane.

What amazes me, is the number of people who want to complain about the rules and how things run, but yet, NONE are NSRCA board members, or on most of the committees. If people want to make a difference, or see things change, then run for office, rather than sitting at home on the internet complaining about it. I will openly admit, that the last year of being an NSRCA VP and understanding how difficult and time consuming that is, and then reading people complain about how things work, has really worn on me.

I understand how the rules are stated, the issue becomes enforcing them. If guys are willing to pay 3-4 times their NATS entry fee to justify paying the additional help, I'm sure it can be done, but until that time, there is only so much that can be accomplished. There is NO reason to change the rules, just because you can't enforce them 100% of the time. All you will do then is drive people away. Many VERY good people in the pattern community have already been driven away by the constant bickering of people, and for years, it had mostly gone away, but it is definitely coming back. If you have a complaint, fine, but then have a solution as well and don't make that solution, lets get rid of the rules. Currently, every plane that is in contention to take home a trophy gets weighed, and processed at some point, and people are explained how it works before hand.

If you want more than that, then be willing to stand up and volunteer to do the work. A lot of people give up their vacations in the summer to come help out at the NATS and make it as good an experience as they can on a VERY limited budget. We need to start thanking those people rather than complaining about how it works, unless you want to be the person to take their place.

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