Colin Leighfield Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 Did anyone else listen to PM on Radio 4 between 17-00 and 18-00 tonight? I was listening to it in the car on the way home when they featured an attempt by Bridge players to get their card game registered as a sport. For comparison, they quoted the examples of model aeroplane flying and life-saving, both practiced as sports. Martin Dilly spoke very well on behalf of BMFA, describing the different disciplines of free-flight, control-line and radio control model flying. He had a generous time-slot so was able to give a clear description which I felt did us no harm at all. Well done Martin. I don't know if this was a first or not, it was certainly the first time that I have heard BMFA featured in a radio programme. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Jones Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 Link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Hooper Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 Model flying is a sport? I need to go and lie down immediately...... tim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leighfield Posted September 22, 2015 Author Share Posted September 22, 2015 Having once heard professional golf players described as athletes (!) on the radio, I can definitely live with it. Don't lie down Tim, you might counted out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Jones Posted September 22, 2015 Share Posted September 22, 2015 It must be a sport , My son was complaining that his neck hurts after looking up at the sky all afternoon , and i was out of breath after running around after him all the time Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leighfield Posted September 22, 2015 Author Share Posted September 22, 2015 It certainly raises my heart rate and I wonder if I'm going to make it to the finishing post every time that I fly, so either it's a sport or a likely cause of cardiac arrest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Not a sport? When I was flying 1/12 scale combat, there was a 10m sprint from the ready line to the flightline before you could start and launch! Getting in the air quickly was a real advantage as models launching late were sitting ducks! In reality, I'd agree that most, if not all disciplines of competitive flying are legitimate sports where there are elements of hand/eye co-ordination as a major part of the activity. I do agree with the rejection of games such as Bridge and Chess which are purely played in the mind (albeit with positioning of cards/pieces but there's no significant skill element in this aspect). I suppose this reasoning admits Tiddlywinks to be a sport? The 64 thousand dollar question is whether the majority of model flyers are participating in the sport of model flying - or indulging in a pastime which involves considerable skills and co-ordination... I'm happy to regard my normal activities as a hobby - for no better reason than that sports fields are assessed much higher for rates than those used for miscellaneous pastimes - although it seems that there may be changes in the offing here. Edited By Martin Harris on 23/09/2015 00:28:47 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Privett Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Posted by Colin Leighfield on 22/09/2015 22:24:49: Did anyone else listen to PM on Radio 4 between 17-00 and 18-00 tonight? You can listen to it here (for the next month or so, and possibly for UK audiences only?) starting at around 35:30 into the programme. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cuban8 Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 This is all about money and obtaining funding from central government - Sport England, for example. AFAIA, a sport is an activity that is competitive and requires physical exertion and we usually think along the lines of recognisable games as 'sports', but I suppose the definition could be construed as including any manner of physical activity. Perhaps competitive wallpapering or tree branch lopping would be considered for funding whereas chess, bridge or speed reading, being sedentary activities, would not. From our own position, I can see that control line flying with all that turning around, would exceed a minimum threshold of exertion to be called a sport but standing still and flying R/C aerobatics would not. Maybe a minimum energy expenditure needs to be set (average calories per minute or whatever) and be exceeded to define an activity as a sport? On the other hand, defining any competitive activity as 'sport' would simplify matters greatly, whether those involved are physically exerting themselves or not. As money is involved, those holding the purse strings will set the definition to suit themselves. Edited By Cuban8 on 23/09/2015 08:34:20 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Christy Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Some of the glider classes (both free-flight and RC) require considerable physical exertion to get the models up to the required height. I recall being told that in one of the RC glider classes, it is not uncommon to employ a sprinter alongside the pilot in a team (think Usain Bolt!) just to tow the thing up to height! And again, a lot of sport is about hand/eye co-ordination as much as physical strain. If darts can be classed as a sport because of that, then model flying should be a shoo-in....!!! -- Pete Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ernie Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I did feel sorry for Martin, trying to justify our hobby being considered as a sport. He was struggling a bit to compare control line combat to sword fencing. Generally, sport is described as requiring physical exertion, so three fat guys waltzing around in a circle with strings in their hands hardly qualifies. Pastimes like cricket are games, not sports, as are horse riding, car racing, darts, etc. ernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Braddock, VC Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I seem to remember it was a few of the free flight categories that received "sport" classification and the rest of the disciplines were automatically included. I wonder if the bmfa have a protocol established for testing for illegal substance use? I know I have to have a couple of shots of glyceryl trinitrate under my tongue before I go off in search of another crash site...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Cotsford Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I'd have thought that competitive horse-riding and car-racing both involve considerable physical effort and co-ordination so they easily qualify as a sport. As I don't compete anyway I'm quite happy to be taking part in a hobby where the only requirement for physical fitness is carting the gear from storage to car and back - plus the odd session lobbing objects into the flora in order to dislodge errant models. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john stones 1 - Moderator Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I was on the free flight line at the Nats, some of these lads are great distance runners, Mo Farrah couldn't live with em John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn K Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Posted by Tim Hooper on 22/09/2015 23:16:07: Model flying is a sport? I need to go and lie down immediately...... tim IIRC, back in the early 80's there was a campaign to get Model Flying registered as a sport so that funding could be gained from the Sports Council. Personally, I saw that as the beginning of the end of model flying as it was then, because to qualify for sport status, the requirement for a competitor to build their own model was removed - the justification was that Javelin throwers did not have to make their own Javelins.. And yes - you had to be fit - 7 flights on a windy day could easily lead to 10-15 miles of retrieval activities at a F/F competition - and you had to get back in time for the next round. I know Martin Dilly from my free flight days, a lovely guy, he occasionally picked me up and took me to comps. A very dedicated BMFA Fellow. Martyn Edited By Martyn K on 23/09/2015 11:24:53 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FilmBuff Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Posted by Ernie on 23/09/2015 08:53:58: I did feel sorry for Martin, trying to justify our hobby being considered as a sport. He was struggling a bit to compare control line combat to sword fencing. Generally, sport is described as requiring physical exertion, so three fat guys waltzing around in a circle with strings in their hands hardly qualifies. Pastimes like cricket are games, not sports, as are horse riding, car racing, darts, etc. ernie Cricket not a sport? What a ridiculous thing to say! Effort of bowling, batting and modern fielding demand huge levels of physical and mental effort. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ernie Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Huge levels of physical and mental effort? As I understand it, nearly half of the participants sit drinking Tea in the clubhouse. Another one throws a ball at a batter, who hits it as hard as he can. The rest stand around trying to catch the ball. They should try riding the tour de france ernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Brooks Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Posted by Colin Leighfield on 22/09/2015 23:38:32: Having once heard professional golf players described as athletes (!) on the radio, I can definitely live with it. Don't lie down Tim, you might counted out! To quote Sid Waddell, legendary darts commentator - "Jocky Wilson! What an athlete!!"........ If you're not familiar with the gentleman watch this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff S Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I thought Martin Dilly made an excellent and very succint case in the short time he had. He selected an example from each of the 3 general areas of aeromodelling (free flight, contol line and radio control) and they each demonstrated either hand/eye coordination or physical effort. What brought up the topic was if bridge should be classed as a sport. I've played a lot of bridge in my time though mostly of the fun variety every lunch time at work and it's great game to play but no way is it a sport. I would argue that games like bridge and chess come under a different category of (say) mind games. I think for something to be described as a sport there has to be a physical element involved. I do think that it should also involve getting out of breath but I guess with things like snooker, darts or even a lot of motor sport that isn't necessarily the case. However, having ridden some pretty energy sapping off-road motor cycle events I've been totally at the limits of both energy and strength at times Not as hard as pedal cycle racing, though by a long chalk. I personally favour only competitions with an objective means of deciding the winner but I think I may be in a minority. Geoff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Evans 3 Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 I remember Phil Taylor ---ex world darts champion being asked if darts was a sport or a game He replied along the lines of "ask the tax man ,it must be a sport as he takes an awful lot of money from me " . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy48 Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Our club is registered as a Community Amateur Sports Club (CASC). It helped us get planning permission, and a grant for trainers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Leighfield Posted September 23, 2015 Author Share Posted September 23, 2015 There's no question that registration as a sport is an important factor in being sensibly recognised at national and government level, very important to our long -term survival and ability to defend ourselves against negative influences. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 Posted by Ernie on 23/09/2015 11:48:26: Huge levels of physical and mental effort? As I understand it, nearly half of the participants sit drinking Tea in the clubhouse. Another one throws a ball at a batter, who hits it as hard as he can. The rest stand around trying to catch the ball. They should try riding the tour de france ernie On that definition, riding round France on a pedal bike can hardly be considered as a sport - half the time they're just sitting on the bike coasting down those big mountains... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted September 23, 2015 Share Posted September 23, 2015 ...and if I was standing around 50 yards from where Malcolm Marshall was starting his run-up towards me, just the quivering in my legs would be enough to satisfy any requirements for energy expenditure! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ernie Posted September 24, 2015 Share Posted September 24, 2015 The've got to get to the top Martin ernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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