This was posted by Archie Stafford on the NSRCA discussion list:

"There are still quite a few people attending the NATS who have not taken the judging certification test. You are REQUIRED to be certified to judge at the NATS. If you are not certified, that means you miss a judging session and will lose your highest round.



Please take the time, if you have not done so, to go to the NSRCA site and complete the judging test..."

Go to nsrca.us. The test is free for NSRCA members, and $5 for non-members.

There will NOT be a certification class at the Nats site, so you MUST do it online if you have not already been certified.

Jon Lowe
NSRCA President

I've been trying to sign up for certification, but I can't find the link to take the test. Getting only as far as the PayPal page and no further.

EDIT: Never mind... I figured it out.

BUMP. There are still people coming to the NATS who aren't certified yet. Remember, you lose your top score since you can't judge if you are not certified!

I can't get past the PayPal stage either. I've tried everything. Please help. Thanks, Toby

Make sure to log in first.

I have some automatic log-in software (Norton) on my computer and thought I was logged in. However, I was not logged in because of the NSRCA website upgrade.

Jon, not to nitpick but rather to possibly save some time/frustration and maybe prevent the need for a re-test or two...

I responded to one of the questions with the answer "same" and it was indicated as incorrect, with acceptable answers being "equal" or "identical", so perhaps "same" should be added to the list of correct responses.

You have to login to the NSRCA website first. You do not have to be an NSRCA member to get a login and password, but you must have one to take the test. So login first.

If you are NOT an NSRCA member, go to Judging/Certification/Sign up for certification, and pay the $5 fee. If you are a member, you skip this step.

Then go to Judging/Certification/Download Certification Materials. This will download the rules, etc. you will need to take the test.

Then go to Judging/Certification/Certification Tests, if you have never been certified before, and take the appropriate test.

If you have been certified before, go to Judging/Certification/and choose the recertification test you need, either FAI or AMA.

Take the test. Once you pass, the website will let the Judging Committee know, and you will be manually added to the Certified list.

I passed your comments along to the test makers.

I missed one because I misspelled the correct word by one letter. The way you have to enter multiple words exactly like it is the guide book is challenging, I missed one because I used different words (I believe there were 5 words to be entered) but the meaning was the same.

If you were certified in a seminar last year 2012, do you have to take this test and recertify for this year?

Yes, for AMA because sequences changed. No, for FAI (if you were certified for FAI last year) because they are still on the 2012-2013 cycle. AMA and FAI are on different 2 year cycles.

Jon this is a just asking question. If say I was certified for FAI 13 which I amand that's what I'm having to judge at the Nats then why do I need to take the AMAcertification again if in fact it doesn't pertain. Just asking OK? Thanks, Mike

Mike,
If the judging matrix was final, I'd agree with you. However, it isn't, and Archie may have to reassign you. Also, if you don't make the finals, you may be asked to judge Masters finals.

I'm taking it and I agree. Plus I usually judge the Masters Finals. This year I really hope I don't have to judge the Masters finals for a better reason. Hope you can have the same problem with me Jon. Mike

What happens if you put NO (not observed) as a score - how does that affect the pilot?

The average score from the other judges on that maneuver is used.

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How it affects the pilot shouldn't be your concern. You're an evaluation machine when you're in the chair. Like the Terminator but without the machine gun. Just write down what you see and let the CD and scorekeepers sort it out.
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Well, I guess you could pretend your pencil is your machine gun . . . if you're bored . . .
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Oh yeah, and I only got an 86 on the test (all of my missed answers were fill-in-the-blanks, BTW). So before anyone asks me why I gave them the score they got. . . . Its because I only scored an 86 . . .
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I will take an 8.6 per maneuver

Why must I join NSRCA to be a judge at the Nats? I am an AMA member isn't that good enough? Why must I pay $40 dollars to go sit in the sun and judge all day?

I guess I won't be flying or judging at the Nats.


It's really getting bad when you MUST join an association to enjoy the hobby.

Frank

Frank,

You do not have to join the NSRCA to be a qualified judge. You merely have to join the website (free). For the NSRCA, there is a difference between having a login for the website and being a dues paying member as Jon stated above in post #7. Non-members pay a $5.00 fee for the material. Paid members receive the material at no additional cost.
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You Don't have to join the NSRCA or pay $40 to be a certified judge. You can register at no
cost with NSRCA and take the test for $5 ... If you are not certified your highest scored round will be dropped...
Rules...

Thanks. A few more:

1) #10: flight path and track are not the same?
From the AMA guidebook:
Track: The trajectory or flight path of the center of gravity of the model with respect to fixed ground reference.

2) #23: the answer should allow for more than terms of percentage. While that is the word used in the AMA guidebook (If it is flown partially out of the area, the downgrade assigned should be proportional to the percentage of the maneuver that is out of the area.) the previous section talks about fractions and not percentages. I used the word "portion" and was marked wrong.

3) #32: snaprolls within a loop must be flown to preserve the loop _______ . Geometry is not an acceptable answer. It should be. "Radius" and "circularity" are acceptable - radius is part of the geometry and circularity describes the geometry. The geometry of a loop does not involve varying radii.

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I agree, if "they" are going to use fill in the blank format, it needs to be word for word out of the rule book.
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In reality we should not have to recertify if the sequences have changed. It only should be if the rule book changes. If the rule book does not change, the criteria for judging the sequences whether its new or old does not change. In my book that is more important. All you need to do is familiarize yourself with what the sequences are or for that matter you should be familiar with the sequences anyway if you have attended a contest or two. Afterall, one does not have to get recertified twice again before judging the unknowns in FAI when judging an FAI finals.

And I guarantee you this, if you are a Masters pilot, you've been in the chair for every damn sequence, AMA and FAI, several times already.

Oh, I took the test and scored I think a 92.5%. Guess what, typos and fill in the blanks got me (ie percent vs percentage and upcomong vs upcoming as two examples(i and o key right next to each other))