AH1G

I got into airplanes when the Cox PT19 came out. It was a birthday present & I went though a lot of wings, fusalages and rubber bands.
I didn't know anyone who flew models at that time, so I was on my own. It wasn't until there was an AMA meet at the Sandpoint Navel Air Station a year later that I met someone just down the block that helped me out. I transitioned to freeflights, fuses and timers. Then with help, I started building C/L's. I don't know how many I built and crashed, but it was a bunch.
During HS I discovered boats not models, but fast race boats, my first was a 5x10' cat with a 110 merc on it, it barely floated but boy was it FAST!
It was also during this time a freind of mine introduced me to 1:1's and at 17 learned to fly in a Taylor Craft. A short time later the draft was going catch up with me, so I joined up. At one point I was in Virginia (Ft. Eustis, MO school) and got caught with a SE 5 in my locker.
After I was rif'ed I returned to models and R/C as a way to kill time between jobs, I only worked about six months a year as a Commercial Diver.
A neighbor turned me on to sailplanes and man did it get in my blood. A guy I flew with told me to buy a Maesto, I did and flew the heck out of the first one until, I launched one day with lots of lift, the plane was on rails. As it flew south I discovered I hand'nt turned on the radio...
I started built another then another then one for the designer, Bob Dodgson; then for Dave Banks. I think I built about thirty Maestro's for Bob in the next year or so. I built a small sailplane for an Allied Van Lines commercial, sold winchs and quit a number of power and scale models for various folks.
An event in my life happened and one day I gave away everything R/C. Kraft , Futaba and EK radios, batteries, kits, winchs and all.
In 2000 I "retired" and moved to a small town (23 people) in Eastern WA.
Last year I got the R/C bug again. So... I'm back collecting everything I can get my hands on, mostly off the web, thanks Tower. The nearest hobby shop is about 160 miles away.
I consider myself a beginner, again, a beginner with some OLD knowledge and just enoughknowledge to make myself dangerous.
I gleen information and links from RCU and enjoy the heck out of it. The hobby has changed considerably in the last 35 years or so. Weed wacker conversions were just being talked about and I had just heard about 4 strokers. ARF's and RTF's were unheard of. I think we called them "modlerers models" all custom built!

Now I sit hear with 3 flyable planes, 2 sailplanes and one power, damn I need to build those floats. Two on the boards, a Hostetler 206 and a Super Skybolt. Four kits on the shelf and I only "need" a few more things...

The only thing I really need is, to put in that runway on the back forty!