Having had the opportunity to witness 3 SPA events this year I came away with a few conclusions. First, like AMA pattern SPA is competition and fun. The camaraderie and fun factor is just like the AMA events I've attended for years. Many in SPA will tell you SPA is much less competitive than AMA precision aerobatics but I've personally yet to attend an AMA pattern event in 15 years that was anything but fun, even with my move from NSRCA D1 to D3 and an SPA event is a competition, make no mistake. AMA or SPA, everyone is out for a good time, I've made instant friends here in the south. Second, the 3% rule for modification was dropped in favor of "if it looks like a duck, it's a duck". Tail moments are lengthened, tail dragger's dominate, tail surfaces are enlarged in some cases. The SPA legal World Models Intruder shares only it's name with Jim Kirkland's design. At least 50% of the flight line consists of Daddy Rabbits, though today's Daddy Rabbit is far different animal than the original. Dennis Hunt has done a masterful job of bringing this design into the 21st century with plug in wings, tail dragger stance( although there are a few trike gears ones out there ) and is slightly enlarged to accommodate the engine of choice in SPA, the OS 91 four stroke. He kits the Daddy Rabbit in various stages which ultimately feeds it's popularity. He's done a wonderful job with it and is now doing the Panzer so it may soon become the standard in SPA, time will tell. SPA power-plant rules are such that unless you fly a smaller, lighter plane, the OS 91 is a distinct power advantage over the .61 2 stroke un piped. Noise consideration has some bearing on this as well as power-plant availability. SPA provides a venue for those unwilling or unable to compete at today's ever escalating AMA levels and to do it with some nostalgia by flying mildly updated planes from the golden years of precision aerobatics. That being said I intend to have an OS 91 four stroke powered updated Deception ready for 1 or 2 SPA events in '07 in the Expert class. I read with interest the forming of the BPA, however I wonder if precision aerobatics in general is going the way of open wheel Indy car racing in this country. With AMA pattern, SPA and now possibly BPA, with the already relatively small group of precision aerobatic competitors available, will there be enough to go around ?? Or will the 3 distinct choices of pattern venue help stir interest again and increase the numbers overall that compete ??? Personally I wish SPA would allow quiet .61 two stroke tuned pipe setups ( propped to turn 10 to 11K ) and retracts. The pipe would put the .61 on a more level ground with the 91 four stroke ( and is more in keeping with the early planes original power ) and the retracts, whether they really afford a performance improvement is debatable would also add to the nostalgia of the event or cool factor of the event. I guess if SPA allowed those 2 things there wouldn't be a BPA ??????
Ed Miller.