Hey Fellows

How it going, Listen here's the deal, I'm a giant scale 3D pilot and have been for the past 1 1/2 years and I must say I'm having a blast, but here in the past 4 or 5 months I couldn't figure out to save my life what I was missing in my flying ability's I mean I'm very blessed when it comes to my job I get to work when I want to and I fly about 2 to 3 hours a day, And please I'm not trying to blow smoke up my on butt but I have several well done 4 minute routines that I have, and my free style work is very good, But there is still something missing. I have my friends video tape me for hours and when I look back to critic myself I go out of my way to show no Mercy because I don't think judges are in the mercy business but anyway I break everything down piece by piece and everything to me is just very sloppy well I don't know if I would use the word sloppy lets just say my transactions are not smooth but when its at normal speed it looks fine or if someone who hasn't been flying long it looks fine to them, but to a judge or any other good pilot they would just eat me alive with technicality's.
The planes Iv been flying are my H9 33% Sukhoi, My Extra 330s, My 35% Carden and my sweet flying H9 Cap, I would say 75% of my flying is with the Carden, But one of my goals in the near near future is to compete in as many IMAC and any other 3D event as I can, My Job has worked out well with me and I'm able to fly as much as I want to but until I figure out what the hell I'm doing wrong I want get anywhere, Now don't get me wrong what I mean is I have a lot of practice time and I spend a lot of time going over just about every maneuver I do in great detail and even though I have some very nice tricks I'm always trying to improve on my entry's and exit's because lets face it if your doing a routine and your starting your entry in the trick/maneuver or what ever you were going to perform and you mess up a little chances are your exit will reflect how your entry started out unless your really concentrating and can get you sh_t back together.
But to get to my point I spent a lot of time in the past 5 months going to over 11 fly inns all over, and my point was not to take my planes and fly at these places but to watch and ask questions, and after writing down so much information from all these great pilots all over the place the one thing that I noticed when I got home after setting down and going over all this information and notes I had written down , what popped out and slapped me across the face was 85% to 90% of those incredible ALL AROUND pilots I had been talking to all had a PATTERN FLYING background, and now that I think about it, it makes so much since to me I mean just imagine being a great over all 3d pilot and on top of that being a great Pattern pilot, If I thought kicking myself in the butt awhile ago would help I would but I guess its never to late to learn, Now I wish I could find a very good one, and knowing me knowing what Iv already been missing I'll find one. But I'll be honest with you at first I really couldn't care abit about pattern flying, But now I have a whole new found respect for these guys.
But anyway about 2 months ago I went out and bought a basic cheap Pattern plane which was a SKYLARK at Hobby-Lobby and put a saito 72 in it, and it flew fine but all it did was make me long for a real pattern plane, So I went ahead and bought a YS DZ 140 engine, and 7, 5945 Hitec servos, and I cant make up my mind which pattern plane would be the best, So all you pattern fliers, please I'm open for all your suggestion and knowledge, But before I go I must say the 3 little months I have been flying my small Pattern plane and just working on my lines and timed 360 degree turns and just your basic stuff, My 3D flying looks more like I'm flying it opposed to 6 people flying the same plane if you know what I mean.
And last my apologizes go out to all the pattern fliers, I remember saying Hundred's of times that this is the dumbest flying I have ever scene in my life why do you guys waste your time, Well I was a fool who happens to love it now, So anyway all your help and info would be great, Take care and I look forward in hearing from you guys...

Randy
p.s I hope you guys don't ask me you need to check around your area for a pattern flier, I have done that and I didn't have any luck at all, in-fact when I started getting into the giant scale birds I had to travel the South Eastern US to find help from so many people