RE: How did you decide what catagory of RC to specialize in?
I would say just fly for a while and see what you find yourself naturally doing. If you like to see how precisely you can fly you are probably a pattern/imac guy. If you like to just fly around you will probably like warbirds or even a Big old Cub. If you like to chase the other pilots around,,, Combat. Or you may like scale aerobatic planes like edges and extras but just want to fly a big ol pretty aerobatic plane around in circles. If you like to see how crazy or how close to the ground you can get then you will LOVE 3D. Some guys build so that they can fly, others fly so that they have an excuse to build..
It wont be hard, you will naturally head towards what interests you.
I personally like flying a trainer and just boring holes, it relaxes me. I also like pattern because it helps me to perfect my skills. Then I REALLY like 3D, its just fun to see what I can figure out how to do, 3D is the sport of men who arent afraid to crash. Then,,,, back to trainers so I can relax.. Oh yeah! I LOOOOVE foamies, little electric 3D planes. They fly incredibly well and will do most everything the big aerobatic planes will, but the risk/fun factor is way higher!
Mike