I have had 2 members of our club asked me to call for them and the question is basically what does a caller do or what are they responsible for.

All the caller is responsible for is informing the judges when the pilot is "entering the box", "exiting the box", and calling each maneuver for the pilot. The pilot should give you a written list of each maneuver to be read during the flight. If you are uncomfortable calling, the pilot can inform the judges entering and exiting the box and telling you when to read each maneuver. Just try not to lose the order or where you are in the call sheet. The best thing to do is before the flight, go over with the pilot on exactly what he expects from you as a caller. That should clear up any confusion.

I would say the two main rules for a good caller are 1) have a good discussion with the pilot beforehand as to what he wants you to do, and 2) do not lose your place in the sequence once the plane is in the air. The pilot can help the caller by giving him a printed call sheet with text large enough and spaced well enough that the caller can keep his place with thumb or finger; also by phrasing the maneuver descriptions with the exact words he wants to hear. Other than that, some pilots like a little encouragement, a little settling down on fluffed maneuvers, and some like no distractions, just the words on the call sheet. If there are two or more flight lines going, a caller can also be useful as a spotter, watching out for impending collisions--but that needs to be discussed with the pilot beforehand as well. Well practiced pilots have been known to tune out the caller, and use him mainly to get the plane out on the line and retrieve it after landing. Calling box entry and exit to the judges may be done by pilot or caller, but should be agreed in advance who will do it.

Callers can either be picked out of the audience and asked to read a script - in which case the result is equal to the effort, or they can be one half of a wining combination - doing everything but moving the sticks. I would never have a caller who didn't read aresti, and i wouldn't call for anyone that wanted me to read text. if you are asked to call, (1) learn aresti (2) understand the sequence (3) learn the pilot's bad habits and discuss a strategy to correct them (4) work with the pilot and see who he communicates and follows your instructions (learn the rules/execution for the figures, including unknowns) calling can be very rewarding, or it can be a waste of time, it depends on how interested the pilot is in having a good caller.

p

Thanks guys. I worked with a friend of mine yesterday and we did basically what you have described. Entering the box, then Bob asked for constructive criticism on each manuver and he got it then leaving the box. I noticed after a few practice sessions he had to have a play break before we tried it again. It should be fun. Again thanks for the info.

AMEN!!

And I'll see that AMEN!! and raise you one Hallelujah !!

Reading Aresti is fun, and it is so easy to do. Go to the [link=http://www.mini-iac.com]IMAC Website[/link] and download the Aresti Made Simple and Aresti Dictionary and you too can learn to read Aresti in less time than it takes to type a really good RCU rant!!! [>:]

It was just mentioned briefly:

"a caller can also be useful as a spotter, watching out for impending collisions"

The caller is responsible for calling a "break" to make sure we don't have mid-airs. We just had a mid-air at the Cactus Classic a week ago. Neither caller called a "break", and the result was the loss of a Composite-ARF Super Extra and a Composite-ARF Giles. The Giles was only a week old.

It isn't the pilot's responsibility to watch the other airplanes. The caller must be the spotter, and must feel comfortable calling a "break" to save the airplanes. In the situation at the Cactus Classic, both pilots had experienced callers. Both callers failed in their "spotter" duties.

When you're calling for someone else, don't be afraid to call a "break". I've never seen judges get upset because a "break" is called to protect the airplanes.

See you at a contest somewhere,

Dean Bird
Sun Valley Fliers
Phoenix, AZ

I disagree completely. The caller cannot be both a "spotter" and a "caller" particularly in a contest situation.
What happened at the Catus Classic was discussed by several experienced contest fliers and the conculsion reached was that the caller and spotter need to be separate individuals. Yes, the caller will always call for a "break" if he sees that there is any chance of a midair but if the individual is doing their job as a caller it can happen that he will be unaware of another model. Most pilots have their own unique call sheets that the caller must refer to insure that they complying with the pilots requirements as to what to inform them of. What happened in this case ( at least for one of the callers) was that he looked down at the clipboard to check for the next instruction just before the midair. I know this for a fact since I was one of the callers. It is a full time job to be a spotter when you have up to 4 models in the air at one time.


John Wisniewski
Scottsdale, Az.

In a pattern contest the caller is worty about 20% of your score, he is your eyes, the big picture is what the judges c and what yoyr caller sees, your working relationship with your callers is critical as you have 2 trust his judgments on position, Learn to trust him.....but it goes withohgt saying that he needs to be a proficaint pattern pilot as well

if possible, always practice, fly, and compete with the same caller.....it helps if they know the way you fly...

I guess I'm an easy pilot to call for.

Here is what is required of my caller:

Call the maneuvers from the call sheet I have written out, in a soft voice.
Move us out of harms way if an airplane is going to hit us...
THAT'S IT!!!!

Don't talk to me during the flight other than above, don't call break, don't call entering or exiting the box, don't tell me if there is another airplane around mine, don't fuel my plane, don't assemble my plane, don't work on my plane (without me asking), don't get my radio or frequency. These are all MY responsibilities. My caller has enough on his mind to keep up with my flying and doesn't need to be bothered with these other things. Besides, how else am I going to keep myself from getting nervous before each flight ?

JAS