ORIGINAL: STLPilot
ORIGINAL: Stickbuilder
Yes, I've been to Oshkosh many times, but there you have older pilots and owners of light aircraft gathering for the annual event. They don't need to try and drum up business, since people who already own, or are looking to buy tend to gravitate to where the airplanes are. We, the hobbiest, don't already have something like the EAA, or the AOPA, to cause prospective participants to look us up. Most of the newbies either go to a LHS, or in the case of the park fliers, go to the Wally Worlds, etc, and next thing they know, they have an RC airplane. Most of them never heard of the AMA, so your constant comparison between the AMA, EAA, and the AOPA is not valid (at least in my eyes).
Come on Bill how can you say that the AMA is not like AOPA or EAA, their mission's are nearly identical. Read all of three of them. I see AMA at Oshkosh every year, they must have something in common.
Also you'll be really surprised to know that MOST EAA member and MOST AOPA members DO NOT own airplanes. Plus the fact that Airventure has 5 times more non members attend then members. Most those people don't attend that event because they are owners or even "gravitators", they attend because they are aviation enthusiasts. The EAA doesn't want more business, ha ... come on you get their stuff and you see how they get their MEMBERS to do all the birddogging and they do a darn good job at it. The only difference is that EAA members care about others and AMA members seem to care more about themselves.
I honestly think that you are just trying to convince yourself and others that you want the NATS on the road to give RC more exposure, when in fact you just want to make it more convienient for yourself, but more difficult for the AMA. But like I said, there are plenty of regional events to give the AMA plenty of exposure and it's up to the SIG's and the members to give the public the exposure it needs. I just think it's better for AMA as a whole to keep their grand event at their home.
Dion,
I don't need the Nats to be more convenient to me. I want the Nats, and by default the AMA to be more visible to everyone. I am too involved with other events to even consider the Nats. Which event would you rather be involved with, the Nats, or Top Gun? I think that if you are honest with yourself, and the rest of us, that answer would be pretty easy.
Combat Pig is correct in that virtually everyone alive in this country has driven past an AMA field, or a hobby shop. What that has to do with the issue is beyond me. Driving past an AMA field is somewhat different than when the Nats was a travelling road show. The excitement was so high, you could almost cut it with a knife. People who did not even participate within the hobby, would attend. Many of them became model builders. Most of those who did, became AMA members. I wonder what percentage of the residents of Muncie are members of the AMA.....I'd bet it's pretty low. In fact, I would bet that there are more members of the AMA in Lake County Florida than in the county which holds Muncie. Any takers there?????
Dion,
Sure there are more members of the EAA, or the AOPA than there are aircraft owners. Oshkosh, has a long history as being "The Event" for general aviation. Muncie does not have that history. From the looks of things, with the attendance of the Nats since the fixed point in Muncie, became reality, it will never get close either.
Look it up....what was the attendance of the Nats (on average) when it rotated around the country? What is the average attendance today? Wonder why?
Bill, AMA 4720