you guys are reinventing the wheel here.

you can (and will) be downgraded if you yaw the airplane sufficiently to lead the direction of the spin if the nose loses track. so, yes, you can be downgraded for leading the direction of a spin. however, in a crosswind, you will have to yaw the aircraft at the entry. the trick is to keep the yaw consistent with the track, if not the departure is downgraded one for ten. in many years of CDing/judging/flying/rules and/or sequence committees i have never heard anyone remark that the spin entries for pattern and imac are different, nor have i seen so called imac pilots scoring higher in spins than the guys that come over from pattern - which, incidentally, includes almost all the TOC pilots - several of whom I have judged, and most of whom I have watched. you guys want to tangle yourself up, discuss the entry/scoring of a cross-over spin.

if the spin entry is scored, an autororation must follow. if not, zero.

A forced entry is not downgraded, it is zeroed. the difficulty is catching it, which is not that easy, and has been the source of more than a few disputes. A spin has three components, and any one of them can cause a zero for the entire figure, they are not downgraded individually. if the plane snaps the entry, it is a zero, if there is no discernible stall it is a zero, if there is not autorotation, or if the autorotation exceeds or is less than the desired exit it is a zero.

last...in the lower classes a spin is a low K figure - contests are not going to be won or lost on spins. it makes for interesting conversation, but i would spend more energy understanding the judging of any figure that goes vertical.

aresti 2004 (bill) wrote the judging summary, i am sure that if you have some questions about content he will respond.

PK