Motoxer--You've got two great clubs in your area, both have some outstanding instructor pilots, as well as members who'd be glad to assist you at the field.

The closest one is Catawba Valley Radio Control, or CVRC, Mark McClellan would be the guy to contact; he's their President, instructor and a competitive IMAC pilot. Their field is off Rifle Range Rd. in Conover. Go to www.cvrcflyers.com and click on: contact. They are a good bunch of people, have a great flying field.

The club I belong to (I am Club Secretary) is West Hickory AeroModelers, or WHAM. We meet on the second Thursday each month at 7pm at the old FSS office at the Hickory Airport, our next meeting is Jan. 13, 2005. Our flying field is off Airport-Rhodhiss Rd about 2 miles past the airport, it's an old 1/8 mile drag strip, we have a 1000 ft paved and 1000 ft. grass runway. Come to the field in good weather most any day of the week and somebody is usually there, except on Sunday we don't fly before 1 pm due to the proximity of a couple of churches. I'd recommend coming to a meeting, someone will be happy to sponsor you ( required of new members/new flyers). We have two big (for us, anyway) fly-ins, a Warbird fly-in in June and our big fun-fly in August. Our membership runs from 7 years old to 82 years old, about 55 members. AMA membership is required to fly, as is club membership. Our website is www.wham-rc.org.

There is a third club, but I'm not sure what their status is right now. Their field will be at the old Catawba County Landfill, about 5 miles south of Newton off NC 16. They lost the field several years ago due to discovery of hazardous waste and seeping methane, they've just regained the use of the field and are in the process of revamping the pit and flightline area. I know a couple of their members, but they also belong to WHAM, and you can find out more about this group at one of our meetings.

You can PM me here if you have questions. I live in Startown, have been flying about 2 years. We welcome you to radio control flying and hope to see you at our next meeting.

Happy Holidays, Ken Hodges