Hmmm....not sure I have any words of wisdom. But just a couple of thoughts.

Mainly, do it. Don't just practice and play, get out there and compete. That's where the real fun is, even if a person isn't a competetive person by nature, they'll find out fast how much fun it really is. And moreover, how much they'll learn in 2-3 days....it's amazing. Even when you're at the upper levels, one competition will push you past your normal limits. And you will get better.

For a beginner, I'd say this. As far as the airplane, you don't NEED a modern 2 meter plane, but once you fly one you'll never look back again. So I'd say get all the plane you feel comfortable getting, and learn how to set it up and trim it from day one. You never stop tweaking, because as your flying changes, your plane will have to change slightly as well.

Power is key, size is not as important. Even the sportsman pattern can get fairly power hungry in a coupel of places, and you'll find yourself needing that punch over the top occasionally. So whatever you get, make sure it has enough power.

Practice: Straight lines. I can't stress this one enough. Every manuever in pattern begins and ends with a straight line, and it's one of the most difficult things to do consistently. If you can control your line, you can control your pattern in general. Never stop practicing this. When I get to a contest, even in advanced, the first thing I do on my first flight of practice is fly straight lines back and forth. It gets me familiar with the field, the box, and sets up everything else. it's simple, boring, and immensely critical. If you can control your line, you have more than half of the competition beat from the start in just about any class. It just gets more difficult the higher you get as the complexity increases.

Know thy box. Get to where you can FEEL center, each end and the top. This comes with time.

Learn rudder and throttle control from the very beginning. Nothing is more nasty than the dreaded inverted rudder for a new guy. Even if it looks punchy, do it. It takes years to get that rudder and power down pat, so start early.

When you practice your pattern itself, envision a top and bottom line fixed in the sky. Stick that plane on those lines every time. Consistency will get you everywhere.

When you have the manuevers down and begin to try and perfect them, work on sizing. It doesn't really matter what the size is too much, but size the manuevers about the same in respect to each other.

Verticals should be dead straight up and down, and all looping segments should have a nice circular look. FLy a perfect circle. It's not easy. on the loops, watch the exact point where you pull on center, and when you come back through the bottom, fly through that exact spot. A common mistake is to make it egg shaped...pay close attention. You'll need a good bit of power and a bit of rudder correction through the top, and work on keeping your wings level.

Lastly, but most importantly, have fun. ALWAYS make sure you're enjoying yourself. It's will amaze you how quick a person can get sucked deep into the "seriousness" of pattern and forget we're flying toy planes. If you find yourself stressing and feeling yucky aboutt he whole thing, back off or you'll bake to a crisp. Pattern guys are obsessive by nature and tend to burn out hard and heavy. be aware of this going in and you can avoid it.

Dunno what else to say, really. Just jump [8D]

-Mike