B.O.M. for kids

[Tom Weedon]

I have a 12 year old grandson. He told his mother that he wanted a model airplane for Christmas that flys on strings like grandpa has. His mother (my daughter) called and told me. I said, "Don't worry, grandpa's gonna get him a nice kit and help him build it". My grandson is very good athletically, so I don't expect I'll have any trouble teaching him to fly it. In fact, I think I will take him to a contest next summer and enter him in the beginners routine. HOWEVER - the problem is when the CD asks my grandson, "did you build your plane?", should he answer, "My grandpa helped me"? That would violate the BOM rule, and he would be disqualified, yes?

Can you see the dilemma? 

Tom Weedon

[RC Storick]

I have a 12 year old grandson. He told his mother that he wanted a model airplane for Christmas that flys on strings like grandpa has. His mother (my daughter) called and told me. I said, "Don't worry, grandpa's gonna get him a nice kit and help him build it". My grandson is very good athletically, so I don't expect I'll have any trouble teaching him to fly it. In fact, I think I will take him to a contest next summer and enter him in the beginners routine. HOWEVER - the problem is when the CD asks my grandson, "did you build your plane?", should he answer, "My grandpa helped me"? That would violate the BOM rule, and he would be disqualified, yes?

Can you see the dilemma? 
Tom Weedon

There is no dilemma! No BOM in beginner I believe. The only classes the have BOM are Junior,Senior and OPEN at the NATS

[Bob Reeves]

Sparkey is correct, never been to a contest that had BOM in beginner. We have too few beginners as it is why limit them in any way.

[Bill Little]

Not a problem as the others said.  None of the PAMPA classes require BOM.  You can fly anything, you just give up Appearance Points if you didn't build it in Intermediate, Advanced, and Expert.  Beginner does not have Appearance Points, even at the NATS, where it's an "unofficial event".

BOM is only required in the Age Group competitions at the NATS.  There are bought/donated planes flying at every contest around I would bet, and ARFs/ARCs, too.

it's interesting that Jack Sheeks, back in the '60s, threw out the question of dropping BOM for Juniors in an article on one of his *thousand* published planes!  Seems Junior participation (pre-PAMPA) was dropping off. 

Bill <><