Scott,

Do you guys want to have a "pattern primer" sometime soon...I was thinking even this fall, and also one in the spring. I can work around you guys,

Arch

I'll ask around to see what the interest is, Arch. We had five...no, wait, six club members flying in this weekend's contest and the scoresheet runner is planning on flying next year so there are lots of guys who would benefit.
Looking at our calendar for the rest of the season it looks like spring might be better than fall, we're pretty booked on weekends up until the weather gets iffy.

Arch, I'm sure Ken and I as well as a couple of others from the Columbus area would be interested. We would travel to St. Clairsville or maybe we could do it at our field. Remember the year we had the bad turnout at the Ravenwood contest. We had everyone fly in front of everyone and we all provided constructive criticism rather than run a contest. I thought that was real helpful. Even to the upper level pilots. It even helped train your eye for judging.

Let us know.

Ron

Hey guys we could have shared the wealth from the St Louis contest in Masters. We had 12 flying in the class. Our wind conditions were not as bad as yours.
Rick congrats on having a viable successful contest. Also I really like the contest report here on RCU with all the great pictures. I wish there were more contests with this type of reporting.
1 More thing. Get Mark Radcliffe to the D4 Championships!!! Man is that great to see him trying it out again. I was in Advanced when I made my comeback too. Trust me it takes a while to get back in the groove. See you guys soon at what should be a huge contest in Hebron Kentucky in 3 weeks. Mike Mueller

I had a great time at the contest myself. The food and company were excellent. We flew a little too. Mark Radcliffe and I talked quite a bit throughout the weekend and over dinner on Saturday. I flew at the St. Clairsville contest in 1983 and Mark was the CD. After that we both took a long time off. Of course, he was missed more than I was. Most of the guys there didn't realize that he was on four world championship teams and finished as high as third in the world. There were a few surprised faces when it came up in conversation. It was pretty obvious watching him fly that he could get it back pretty quickly. He still has it! He said that he had a good time and gave the impression that we would see him again! He said that he has another committment for the D-4 championship weekend, but Mark Atwood and I were working on him for next year. You will see his picture in the Kfactor. I bet he will get one of those in the mail..........

Scott, Thanks for the great reporting job.
Dave

Arch,
I agree with Ron. A little coaching from better pilots is a big help.
And coaching the judging can help both piloting and judging.
Ken

My Mark Radcliff story:
Sometime in the early 80's the Pittsburgh ARCS sponsored an AMA symposium with meetings at the Holiday Inn in Weirton and flying demonstrations at their field just a few miles into Pennsylvania. Dave Brown, who was near the height of his Pattern prowess at the time was supposed to do a Pattern demonstration, but his daughter was injured in a gymnastics accident and Mark stood in for him.
I'd never seen pattern flying before and I was just blown away by the smoothness and precision of it all. I remember like it was yesterday seeing Mark fly a rolling circle, three rolls to the outside, perfectly spaced, perfectly smooth, like it was the easiest thing in the world.
So it was a big deal for me, almost thirty years later, to fly in the same contest as Mark. Thanks for coming!

BOOBOO!!!Either Ken Thompson lost a bunch of weight and got better looking or that is Ken Alexander taking 3rd in Advanced Sorry about the mix up.
Sorry Kens. Actually both Kens are X Chip n Dales and are frequently mistaken for twins.
RC

Wanted to say thank you to all who made this weekend possible. Rick, Dave, awesome. It was great getting to see you guys that I met last year and the new people I met this year. "A GREAT BUNCH OF PEOPLE". Thanks to all who gave me many tips and pointers. It was great . I'm really blessed for this being my home field and the folks I get to hang out with. This weekend was a major accomplishment for me. This is my 2nd year of flying and only tried the pattern a few times before the contest. Never thought I'd see the day that I would be flying in crosswinds that were blowing lawn chairs over. You guys make it look so easy, but we all know that it's not. Looking forward to doing it again with a much better plane next time . Hope to see ya all again, Bob. H.

Hey Rick, Make sure you tell the "PUNK" congratulations and we're proud of him.

I corrected the Thompson/Alexander error. Sorry to either or both!
Scott

Just wanted to move this thread to the fore front and make it accesible for the curious. These pics and comments are from 2009.
Thanks and check it out.
RC

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