Sure. It really comes down to style and presentation.

A "tracker" (that's not official BTW, just what I call it) was a plane designed for the older sequences, which had a lot of box exits in the lower classes, and the sequences themselves lended themselves more to a very fast, large, clean style of flying. This also has something to do with the older power limitations, as a 120 4 stroke simply wouldn't pull a plane as large as some of the more current designs. A 60 size 2 stroke SURELY wouldn't. In pattern, function dictates form to a great degree.

Along with the newer large power plants, namely the 140L and the large 2 strokes, this allowed the planes to be larger and flown slower overall. Momentum wasn't nearly as important with all that power at your disposal. Therefore, you are able to climb into a vertical at a lower speed and maintain that speed through the top without mushing and stalling out (wallowing). This also worked well with the newer schedules.

With some of the criteria for judging pattern being "grace" and "presentation", at upper levels good pilots discovered the advantage of a smoother, slower and more constant speed flight. Soon a lot of lower class pilots relized this too.

There is a lot more to it, but that's all that concerns us.

For the lower classes, this same thing holds true. If you're flying sportsman or intermediate and you have 6 pilots of all VERY comparable skill, the outcome is very often determined by 1/2 points. If you're flying about the same as the other guys, what sets you apart? Style, and presentation. If you have a good flowing style and presentation and your opponent does not, you will likely beat him. By 1/2 points, but remember....a good judge starts at 10 and counts down from there. If you're jerking and cranking to keep it in the box, you're naturally going to drop those 1/2 points faster. So, the larger plane along with the smoother slower style is an advantage. Period.

UNLESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's very windy, and then all bets are off, everything goes the other way. By very windy I mean over 20MPH. Then a tracker really shines in the lower classes, as the wind correction skills are usually not up to high enough levels to handle a large plane in a lot of wind. That takes a LOT more work. Have you noticed what kind of plane has won intermediate at the nats for....oh as long as I can remember? Do some research, trackers always win that class at the Nats. It's also always very windy at the Nats. Actually this year the wind layed down for ONE round. Guess who won that round? Bryan Kennedy, with a widebody plane Check for yourself.

This is also why you'll notice most people praising prophecies and boxers for current day pattern also hail from very windy districts. Like the midwest for instance.

These are just my observations, nothing scientific, and the human encyclopedias of pattern will probably say I'm full of it. That's fine, to each his own. If you can match your style to a tracker and put it together at a very windy contest, you have a great shot.

BTW this debate over design didn't start with the current shedules, it started with the very beginning of pattern and will be going until the end. It's ever changing, this is just a small slice from right now, 12-04.

-Mike