ORIGINAL: Electro_Fly
I'm not buying it. You were welcome until they found out you were flying your airplane in a manner that could have cost them their field.
I'm sorry if I sound like I am bashing that guy. I can only imagine in his years of experience how many times he has seen or heard about some kid flying a plane that is to much for him to handle and either almost or actually causing damage to someone or something. I was not flying my toy plane in any way that could cost them there field and I do not believe I gave them any reason to believe so. I showed them the little toy plane I had and I would imagine they know that something that small could not do any damage. Like I said before, I had hit the side of my car with it once and it didnt even leave a scratch.
I'm going to make another assumption here. You might have been more tactful.
I was very pleasant with him even after he was short with me. I listened to what he had to say, informed him I needed to get my day started and shook his hand then left.
I am really sorry if I made the impression on anyone that I was bashing or talking bad about the gentleman at the field.
Here's the deal: There is this big club mentality where you can't run anything on the field, no matter how small, slow, and light unless you have the AMA insurance and pay the club dues. And if all RC activity is restricted in a given community, that leaves only one option, the AMA field. The trouble is, clubs often don't spend the time recruiting new members, and their fees can be somewhat outlandish in some cases. So what is a budding hobbyist with a new plane from Toys -R- Us to do? I guess the toy goes in the closet and eventually turns up at a rummage sale because there's no place to fly it without paying at least three times what the toy was bought for!
And then we have these clubs that don't want to provide a club trainer to give introductory flights with, so the modeler is stuck with spending $299.95 at the local hobby shop for something that at least makes buying the insurance and paying the added fees worthwhile, just to see whether or not they at least want to get into this hobby. Why in the world should it cost somebody $400.00 ($250.00 for a park flyer, and $150.00 for AMA and club membership) to find out whether or not they want to learn how to operate a remote control aerial device? Do people get the point here? Remember all those plastic Tester's, Wen-Mac, and Cox control-line models that used to line the shelves of the local K-Mart? Ever wonder why they're not there any more? What is a model airplane worth if there's no place to run it?
I think offering some time on the buddy box and a club trainer would have helped greatly in this case. Instead of kicking Electro-Fly off the field, couldn't the situation have been handled with a bit more tact? I bet a couple minutes on the box with the trainer would have been a good start, and may have even landed a potential new club member and a few new sales at the local hobby shops. And then there's this issue with finding places to fly. What is being done to promote electric park flying as a safe and fun activity for families to enjoy? How can a 3 ounce foam model be much different from an Estes model rocket (or are those even allowed any more)? Back in the day, the sounds of a Cox .049 engine was a common occurrence, and the plastic models were a LOT harder, heavier, louder and
faster than the typical foamy that's out there now. People had a bit more common sense and nobody that I know of associated the expression "model airplane" with "ballistic missile".
NorfolkSouthern