Not to jump in in the 9th inning, but I have to agree with the sentiment that the new planes fly better....I got back into pattern three seasons ago after a 23 year break, with an equally old 1.2 OS powered turnaround plane called the Persuasion. I was amazed at the dominance of electric down the flightline, and bought a BJ Nuance from a fellow flyer. Then, I built an EU1A and put a YS .61 Classic, so my 'fleet' had representation from 3 distinct era's: Ballistic, Turnaround, and Electric. Hands down, the electric flies better...not even close. The other two have their allures (not the plane!), but in ease of flying, gracefullness, maintenance, cost, I believe the modern craft is state of the art.
But the perspective on the sport raised in this thread is accurate. We have 7 contests in D2 this year (VA-SC), dropping one from last year...but still a lot. The participant numbers a much smaller than in the past; a big contest was +40, now it's +20. And, yes, we're old men! Every chance I get, I'm trying to promote, which is something I've not had to do before. Pattern used to naturally attract competitors with talent. Now the main difference I see is that there are too many options for those individuals; quad racing being the biggest. It draws those stuck behind tv screens playing games their whole upbringing quite naturally - there's hardly a difference! When I see 4 guys sitting at a picnic table with helmets on flying the bumble bees somewhere in the woods, I wonder why they got off the couch? - Anyway, bit of a rant, but we do need to do something....if every pattern pilot did just one thing, we'd get out ahead, and bring those young guys up. I joined a local club upon returning, and started an aerobatic series that has 1/month events for Club, Sportsman, and Intermediate. We practice/coach Thursdays for those interested. We've had up to 8 pilots participate, and two to travel to local AMA events. Seems to be working!