Congrats to the team! This was a hard fought battle. Not just the people who were there flying but Saturday's winds were really harsh at times. But we trudged through it and got the final 10 sorted out for Sunday flyoff.
Sunday the weather was really nice. The winds were gone and temps were nice all day. Matt David and Orestes were on it all 3 rounds. Good shapes sizes and damn near perfect flat bottoms. You can't argue with it.
Orestes was a machine - Joe Daly, Jose Modesto, and Orestes worked together and they helped each other get ready. Orestes is a Robot. On Sunday in the nice air he was the same 3 times in a row. It was fun to watch.
David looks like he always does. His mechanics body position and footwork really help him take that plane and fly it exactly the same over and over and over. He mentioned he is using basically the same prop from 2006 on. That is a testament to his building skills over several different planes over the years.
Matt surprised the hell out of alot of people. His daughter is 4 months old. We all know what that does to your sleep and energy levels. He also has to travel 2 hours EACH way to practice. He hasn't had much leading up to the contest. The last practice session was not in his favor. His motor was running weird and surging. Pull up to Scobee field and it never missed a beat. I commented to Steve several times that I felt he had the smoothest running motor there. On Sunday he was camped out on 5' and his big long plane showed it off. He earned some well deserved scores and found his way onto the team. Congrats Matt!
Todd Lee and the Mustang looked great all weekend. My son, Max, said that one was "Really Cool!" He liked the rumbling sound of his muffled RO Jett 67. It was fun talking with Todd and his wife about planes and other stuff as well.
Joe Daly and his borrowed Shark were on point all weekend. My son and I got there Thursday evening and we saw him flying and he had that plane working. It was like a machine all weekend. Wind calm and in between he was all over the pattern making it look easy. He let me get a test flight on that plane and I could not turn it hard enough to make it falter in any way. It was eye opening for sure. Thank you Joe.
Howard Rush, once again he edged me out. I have tried for the team 3 times. The last two times he has beaten me. His bottoms were always right on the money. They put posts out around the circle. You miss it high or low and they all know it. He was very consistent on Sunday.
5 Weeks ago my then current plane decided it no longer needed an outboard wing. The plane on the paint stand at that point was covered and that is all. With the support of close friends and family I spent many nights working on that plane finishing, assembly, and trimming in the new plane. That included breaking in a new motor finding 2 new props and getting about 15 patterns on it. It was a whirlwind for sure and by the time the contest got here I was exhausted. But it was the TT in my own backyard and not going not go when the WChs is going to be in the USA! Me and Max headed to Houston and did the best we could. I finished out in 7th and I am good with that. I know what I need to do to get ready for the next one.
Joe Gilbert flew his Blue Max right into the top 10. He had that plane working and was really flying well in the heavy winds. On Sunday he put in some very nice flights but couldn't quite get the scores he was looking for to climb the ladder. Colleen was there pitting and supporting as well. They are a fantastic team and even better people. It was very fun being with them this weekend.
Steve Moon - this is a pretty damn impressive showing if you ask me. Steve was without a plane about 2 months ago and asked me if he could fly Bob G's 2003 Bear in the TT. Now this is an incredible plane and anyone who has the pleasure of flying will agree it's just easy. He broke in a new motor and between a hectic work and personal schedule I could never imagine keeping he was able to get around 20 good patterns prior to the contest. He and Jake showed up on Thursday and he proceeded to put in patterns that just kept on getting better. I know the heavy winds on Sautrday were nerve racking for everyone but maybe even more so for Steve as he was flying a plane that is very near dear to us in Dist 8, and even more so to myself. There is always that "don't mess this plane up" in the back your mind. But he powered through it and put in good flights.
Frank McMillan - Steve said he took top honors in the OVER 80 category! Hahaha there isn't really an over 80 category but he is over 80 and he flew through some nasty stuff on Saturday to put himself into to the top 10 in a very loaded contest. This guy is a machine. He has done it all in stunt and his experience shows and it paid off! Good show Frank!
After the flying was over and it was all sorted David let me get a ride on his plane. The new one he had at the nats. It was a very fun flight for sure. It grooves very well, almost like it's nose heavy but when you turn it just turns. It isn't loaded like a nose heavy plane would be. It turns very evenly inside and out. It was a very fun flight. Thank you David.
David took a flight on Bob's plane. He was only a few maneuvers in and he was already tightening it up and getting very good with it. He said 10 flights and he is ready to take it anywhere. He said "its very honest and does exactly what you ask of it." It was cool to watch him fly it.
The crew was top notch. Frank Williams, John Hill, Tom Fluker, David Gressens and the LADIES really outdid themselves. Everything went off without a hitch. We can't thank them enough for putting in their time and efforts so we can fly around in circles. Thank you!!!!!!
Lodging, Matt decided to setup an AirBNB for us. That group was Matt, Joe and Colleen, Steve and Jake and Me and Max. This was really the best. We had a great time and slept really well. Joe and the group would look through the stunt books and talk stories at dinner. We even watched some formula one on Saturday and with F1 gurus Steve Jake and Matt on the scene it made it fun for all of us to watch and understand more about the sport.
Good friend and local flyer Phillip Nickels came down to do some spectating and take in the festivities. He and Mike Scott and have helped me out alot over the past several weeks getting ready. It was great having him there giving my pointers on my flying and my setup.
On the way home while Max was driving, he's 15 and I can't get him out of the drivers seat, I asked him about the pattern. Over the weekend he went from not knowing much about it to being able to recite the entire pattern and what to look for when watching fliers. He really took it all in. Today I found him working on a Twister!!!
All in all it was a great time! Looking forward to more.
Topic: Congratulations Team USA (Read 2468 times)