ORIGINAL: Thomas B
#3. Not just NO but "L- NO". In true competition there is really no time for such time-breaks. In Fly-Ins or Fun-Flys, you are taking up the time of the paying customers. You obviously are not a seasoned Contest Director, as you would know that such delays will create much alarm among the cattle.
First of all, you are wrong in your assumption. I have CDed six of the past Fort Worth Thunderbird Big Bird events in the1990s, one or two competition fun flys in years pastand I now CD a yearly electric fly in for the same club. I have about 10 years of competiton flying experience scattered over 40 years of aeromodelling as well.I think9 or so CDedevents constitutes some seasoning.Feel free to apologize if you can...
Your resume is impressive, but there ARE other viewpoints that are valid.
OK, I can. I apologize for my assumption which I based on your viewpoint. I still do not consider that viewpoint to be one learned from a result of long administration in all kinds of sanctioned evnts from small club events to the Nationals. I do not apologize for that consideration.
Your experience is mostly in RC Fly-In type events. While that is a difficult task, due to the lack of pilot disciplines found in regular CONTEST fliers, it alsocan be verylax in comparisons to the rigid scheduling of real competitions.
I did not and donot advocate delaying the general flying at an event for a first flight....that is another poor assumption on your part.I am advocating a model inspection and a heads up announcement bythe CD or flight line supervisor. Neitherneed causedelays to general flying. I never advocated this for true AMA competition, only for fly in type events. I am on the fence when it comes to airshows and model demos, as they tend to be more public.
I have safetyinspected models at past Big Bird events and have gone thumbs down, with agreement from other inspectors, on a couple of models that had issues. As long as it is known that the inspectors have the final decision, I see no issue here. Models get safety inspected in certain competiton events, such as line pulls for control line models. Are they not making a safety judgement?
Nope, not ajudgment. The CL pulltest is complying with a directed procedure and list of specifications. "Judgment" is not a well accepted factor in the courtroom. BTDT.
In addition you state "Big Birds". Is that an IMAA event or just AMA alone. Lots of difference. IMAA defines that the pilot determines the final airworthiness of the machine. OTOH AMA does give the CD the final authority.
I do not agree. The rule sometimes gets a wink and a nod and sometimes gets ignored or overlooked. I am advocating consideringfewer restrictions and a rule refinement on this issue, not more restrictions. It gives a way to openlydo what should be done with a first flight at an event. and make things safer than someone choosing to sneak in a first flight.
Maybe so. Makes no diff. to me. If someone places his liability insurance in jeopardy, then so be it. Hope he has deep pockets.
Hoss, why did you snip out my entire example of an event that proves that first test flights at an eventcan be made andoften fail and the event can still be operated safely? I feel this is a very powerful example of the discussion at hand that nicely supports my point of view....
It is in your original post and not germane to my point. Anyone can go read it in your post. Saves bandwidth.
OH, here is an item thrown in for how AMA pursues "Safety". Kind of funny yet displays organizational bureaucracy and maybe KE will get a kick from it.
AMA Pylon Cages</p>
In an effort to make the judges at a pylon event safer OUR AMA spent almost $ 80,000 dollars (yep) INVESTIGATING the possible best ways to construct a safer cage for the judges. After months of this investigation which included trips to other countries by our AMA and paid for by you, they decided on a design. They then spent another 80,000 dollars (yep again) to build, I believe it was either five or six of these structures, that they would place stratigically around the contry so that pylon event coordinators could arrange to pick up the cages and take them to the events - all in the name of safty mind you, which of course is a good thing - right. Well as it turns out that at the first event as luck would have it a pilot lost control and found one of these 160,000 dollar gages. Guess what. It penetrated the cage with ease! Then gues what, the project was abandoned.
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Dave Brown; Pylon Cages 2002
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