THE GREAT HAND COTROVERSY

[EddyR]

There has been a lot of interest on here about HANDLES and what position the arm is in during stunts.  I am not going to get into what is best or correct. I will show you what I saw this weekend at Huntersville. Also here are some things that I observed. Over 90% of the flyer's use a almost straight arm.  I didn't take anyone flying level. Many of the shots are square loops vertical eights. One thing that became apparent very quick was new to me and I have coached body position when flying for years. Almost every flyer tips his handle in a square corner. The bottom of the handle goes in the opposed direction of the plane. The handle is not straight up and down then the turn is made. It show up in a lot of the pictures. People even do it in loops.
 The pictures are poor as they are cropped a huge amount and I had to take most of the picture from well back as my poor knees were worn out from judging all day Saturday and I could not move around much.
 I will start with a few pictures and keep adding them.
NOTE  the second and last picture shows the hand tilt
Ed

[EddyR]

Here are a few more. Most of these flyer's have flown at the Nats.
 If you look close it is also apparent that many are flying over  there right shoulder. They are not flying in front of themself.
EddyR

[PerttiMe]

Over 90% of the flyer's use a almost straight arm.

Depends on what you mean by "almost straight". In these photos, I see people with the arm more or less bent. At a rough guesstimate, 20 to 40 degrees, typically.

[john e. holliday]

Before I got to where I could do maneuvers I used to sit and watch other people flying combat and stunt.   It was amazing the different flying styles and body movements.   I hate to see a shot of me flying as I probably wave my hand all over the place. 

[EddyR]

Only one person is looking up the lines. In the thread about handles  some people said that holding the handle up so you could look up the lines would be a good method. Also it is under stood that flying in front of youself gives better results. I only say one person held the handle up so he could looks up the lines,that was Steve. Most flyer's flew off to there right and that make the stunt larger on one side every time. Intersection are difficult  to hit when standing sideways to the stunt. Watching flyer's and not the plane for two hours was very reveling. Also almost everyone turned his handle sideways at 45% when entering a turn. Picture 2,3,4 all have there hand turned over on its side?
Ed

[FLOYD CARTER]

Thanks for this interesting study!  Makes me really self-conscious about my flying posture

(but being a "leftie", I'm authorized to look funny while flying.)

Floyd

[EddyR]

Floyd
 I remember many years ago this guy none of us had ever seen before enters old time stunt at the KOI. Ok great we say.He flyes left handed clockwise and enters  all the stunts that allow it from the center and ways that no one has ever seen before. He got lost and invented a few new ones at the end. The other judge and I fell over laughing and were going to give him another flight as soon as he told us what he was going to do. He didn't fly again. One wise guy entered the old time event and flew the pattern backwards.    Hmmm seems like that was me