Barry,

Driving your airplane backwards into a hedge is a good last-ditch way to get a laugh from you buddies, but I don't think it will work out well for your airplane in the long run!

As Dar says, make sure you give it a good strong flip, right through the compression stroke. Your prop should be installed so that you are hitting compression with the blade up at 1:00 or 2:00. Start your flip with the prop at 3:00 and push it right through the compression stroke. The carbon reeds dont like running backwards either, so if it happens again, make sure you kill the engine immediatley.

Of some interest, my buddy's snowmobile has an electronic reverse that fiddles with the spark advance to make the engine run backward so you can back the sled up, no transmission required!