martin collins 1 Posted December 10, 2024 Share Posted December 10, 2024 Our club is going to be running a competitions day this coming year, i am going to be co organising it but haven`t attended one before, apart from spot landing what does your clubs Competition day consist of in terms of events? Which are the most popular, fishing for ideas to help us with putting on a good day, thanks for any replies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Sharp Posted December 10, 2024 Share Posted December 10, 2024 Ours does 4 events during the day. Pilot briefing Spot landing Most spins Lunch break Bomb drop Limbo Micky taking er... prize giving Pilots limited to one aircraft for the events avoids specialist types. Fun but be wary of safety. Have fun don't be too serious gets lots of members together. Here is a video on youtube posted of one of ours. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted December 10, 2024 Share Posted December 10, 2024 Limbo is fun - but can take its toll...good idea to leave it until last! Balloon bursting. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PDB Posted December 10, 2024 Share Posted December 10, 2024 (edited) IME emphasising the competition element hasn't led to the best turnouts. Emphasising the fun element and free food has got more members to the field. Taxing around cones and climb and glide can be entered by everyone. Edited December 10, 2024 by PDB 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martin collins 1 Posted December 10, 2024 Author Share Posted December 10, 2024 Taxing around cones is a good one, hadn`t even thought of that! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cuban8 Posted December 10, 2024 Share Posted December 10, 2024 Times change along with people's preferences. Thirty years ago we had a large and thriving club comp scene, so much so that we had a 'ladder league' with an eventual individual 'Victor Ludorum' across half a dozen or so different events held over the summer and a very nice trophy to go with it. Come the millenium and the signs of a slow down in interest was becoming evident - fast forward to about five years ago and the number of members entering had declined to such a small number that we called it a day to our organised comp calendar. An awful lot of work for our then comp sec. that really went to waste. A pity. General social events like family BBQs with flying were still very well attended though, but the comp element certainly had had its day. After a lay off of a few years it was raised at our AGM this year that maybe we could try again - absence makes the heart grow fonder as the saying goes, so we'll give it a go again in 2025. Not so formal as before but maybe rolled in with a more fun and social approach. Any mention of 'competition' always did scare away otherwise regular flyers even back in the day, so it needs to be presented and sold carefully. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Cooper Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 The mere mention of the word "competition" can make club members stay away in droves. We like to have fun "challenges" where everyone has a go at something but without the competitive element spoiling the fun. The challenges are usually the same tasks as would be expected in a normal Club event: Climb and glide. Spot landing. Limbo. Bomb drop. Combat (streamer cutting). This is organised as a "fun" event, with the barbecue in full swing, plus lots of silly banter. Another fun challenge is to fly a trainer on a buddy box....... but EVERY control on the buddy box is reversed. . The challenge is to fly a circuit. See how long you can keep it flying without getting it wrong. . Lol. Naturally, the master Tx has the controls the right way round. Have fun. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Colman Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 I've proposed such days at my club on many occasions and there's been no interest at all! 😒 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyGnome Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 I belong a very competition-averse club....... unsurprising really as often it feels like a flying-averse club! I'm afraid I belong to the cohort that doesn't really want competition...... I'm too competitive so would take risks with my model to win, and I already have a significant 'to do' list....... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Lee Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 The decline in interest in competitions in the hobby is a phenomenon that I have observed over my lifetime of modelling. I first joined my local club as a teenager in 1966 - I'm still a member - and competitions then were very much a part of club life. Activities at the time were mainly free flight & control line with competitions held regularly throughout the year. The North West Area Rallies at Woodford & Ternhill would attract hundreds of entries, but even that was a decline in the 300+ entries in individual classes reported by the 'Aeromodeller' in the 50's. Entering the Nationals was a right of passage & I regularly competed through to the millennium and thereafter organised flying only RC scale events that attracted up to 30 entries from local clubs. But interest in that faded & they were replaced by popular none competitive fly-ins. My own interest in competitions sort of went on a parallel path of decline. I've no real idea of the psychology of why the interest changed on both a personal & collective level. Now it seems the mention of 'competition' will only attract tumbleweed at the club! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Green Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 (edited) We're seeing the same John, when I was a lad we would be at a slope comp almost every weekend in summer, Tinkers, Ivinghoe, Crook Peak, Clwyd, etc and our own club (SSA) did an annual two-day meeting, the format was always the same, S/C, multi pattern aerobatics & freestyle aerobatics and pylon racing - the turnout would be huge, the mags would be there so good coverage and a chance to see your name in Dave Hughes' column. Proper pylon racing, none of todays one-at-a-time nonsense! We loved it, these were very enjoyable times but as you say there is very little interest these days. We also ran a scale glider event but that wasnt our bag so we just helped out flagging, fetchermiting, etc. PANDAS host out own S/C & Retro R/C event which the locals tolerate because its different, and the chairman's 'fun day' is always well supported/ Beyond these two, anything that interferes with the average club member's Sunday stooge is frowned upon. Our scale event is lucky to draw 2 or 3 semiscale artfs. We did have one thought - we're all retired old gits, so it could be held mid-week? Our 'theme' model is always popular - pick something on Outerzone thats really easy & quick to build, eg Ebeneezer, Pulstar, etc and have a comedy pylon race with them. I really think you'd get more support for a fly-for-fun event than a true comp Martin 🙂 Cheers Phil Edited December 11, 2024 by Phil Green 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cuban8 Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 Back in the mid-80s when I was flying mainly thermal soarers I had a go at entering the BARCS league open events that were held all over the country and were very well supported indeed. I was nothing special, usually coming about mid field in a what I often found was a very competitive atmosphere that sometimes bordered on being unpleasant from time to time. I recall one slot I was flying in that also had a very big and widely known name in model circles flying as well. He won the slot convincingly, but only after a lot of faffing about immediately before the launch, disputing this and that, untangling his towline several times and generally using dealing tactics to upset the other competitors. He didn't need to do it and to be honest that did it for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ace Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 (edited) You also may like to consider - A simple blind timed flight 🤔 No not blindfolded but a wheels up/down flight of say 57 sec without any timing devises for the pilot. Not as easy as you would think but suits any level pilot. Edited December 11, 2024 by Ace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cuban8 Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 3 minutes ago, Ace said: You also may like to consider - A simple blind timed flight 🤔 No not blindfolded but a wheels up/down flight of say 57 sec without any timing devises for the pilot. Why not blindfolded, 'Golden Shot' style but on a buddy box................up a bit........left a bit.........down a bit.........oops!😁 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geoff S Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 It's funny that in all my previous activities (motor cycling, cars, pedal cycling, sailing and even bridge) I've enjoyed competitions (sailing- a lot, cars, the very occasional auto test and one twisty sprint) but I have no interest is competition with model aeroplanes. I've no idea why. I did once intend to enter a flying only scale event at Buckminster but when I arrived I realised I'd forgotten/lost my wallet and immediately returned home in case it was on the drive (it was on the kitchen table). Nothing would put me off going to the field than a competition day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Gaskin 1 Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 Sadly it is a small percentage that will take part in our club competitions, but we do organise these: Hanky Planky using Ron Gray's rulebook Fun fly E-glider RES e-glider We also have an electrified KK Caprice glider comp! The usual suspects (me included) will partake in all of these. Tom 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leccyflyer Posted December 11, 2024 Share Posted December 11, 2024 My two current power clubs don't have any formal competitions at all, but my soaring club has a full calendar of competitions and events, alongside two season long gliding competitions, where pilots accrue points for flights logged, based on duration. The winner for each month gets the maximum number of points and, once the totals are totted up at the end of the season the overall winner takes the trophy. The second competition is for the longest flight of the year. There is a dual date Bungee glider competition, usually with three rounds on two weekends - again, duration is the aim, with all gliders being bungee launched. There is a similar competition for electric gliders. There are two scale trophies awarded each year - one for best scratch, plan or kit built model and one for best ARTF model - these are voted for by the members on the day - the models are laid out on the field, then members are given a card each to put onto the model that they think is the best. This year a new trophy was introduced for best jet model - which means Best EDF, since our sites don't permit gas turbines. Participation in these competitions is usually pretty good. Some other fun events that we've held have included limbo, balloon bursting, spot landing and we did consider a pylon race on the slope, but slope events are really bedevilled by the wind direction for readily accessible slopes. The weather over the summer has resulted in quite a few events being postponed or cancelled. We also have an annual indoor glider competition, where everyone builds a small chuck glider to the same plan and these are all flown, usually on the last indoor session of the year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SIMON CRAGG Posted December 12, 2024 Share Posted December 12, 2024 Our club comps have gradually tailed off no matter how the Committee tried. We deleted the word "Comp" and replaced it with "fun" to no avail really. Somebody had a great idea for 2025 which seems to have caught on: Members can enter any Chris Foss model and take part in 8 different fun events throughout the year (two attempts, one am. one pm).: Lots of banter and general "fun". Spot landing, Timed flight. Loops. Ground handling round cones. Fastest and slowest Using the Sky Rc gizmo: Flying to a max height Flying to a max speed Flying to a set distance So far a lot of CF models have been rejuvenated, and I managed to find two CF Acro Wots for £45, and sold one for £20. Who said the hobby was ded / expensive /etc.? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cuban8 Posted December 12, 2024 Share Posted December 12, 2024 My theory is that it's an age thing. As we get older most of us chill out and take thing easier - competition doesn't fit that bill any longer and a 'been there, done that mindset' does tend to take over. Not everyone, I hasten to add, but usually 'fun flyers' who may well have had a crack at simple club comps when in their younger days, will tend to give them a miss now. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Engine Doctor Posted December 12, 2024 Share Posted December 12, 2024 (edited) One of our member sadly no longer with us made "A Ring of Death" for our funfly earlier this year. As it name implies its a ring of about 6 to 7ft diameter made ftom plastic pipe covered in foam insuation to lessen any dents when hitting it and held uprite on some stout wooden brackets. I attempted it on the day he made it and flew striaght through it on my first attempt with a fast foam glider about 1 M span......beginners luck , i really suprised my self. On the day of fun fly I had manny attempts but always either missed or clipped it . Only model that went through it that day was a model with FPV fitted ... cheat 😀. Its a good game and far more difficult than limbo unless your limbo is narrow. Plane took a bit of a battering but fixed in an hour or so. It still amazes me though that as soon as a fun competition is mentioned how many good flyer back down ? Even the landing nearest to and winning a £10 note . Nowt as strange as folk. Edited December 12, 2024 by Engine Doctor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted December 12, 2024 Share Posted December 12, 2024 IMHO, I think it's the fear of showing yourself up when flying in front of a lot of people. I'm, ahem, 74 now but still fly competition aerobatics. Last year, I managed to come last in every competition I flew in. However, it has spurred me on to try and find out what are the errors I'm making and how do I put them right. This does require a lot of practice including tweaking aircraft set up and that seems to be something most club pilots seem to find total anathema! The atmosphere at all the aerobatic competitions I've ever attended has been wonderful. People are always willing to help and I've never seem any prima donna behaviour or any "super competitive" behaviour. The super competitive comes from practicing a lot so that in competition you are as well prepared as you can be. This, of course, means that you have taken the time to trim out your model properly rather than just putting in a few trim pushes till the aircraft flies sort of straight. I've lost count of the times that someone has handed me a model to check out that was trimmed but when I let go of the sticks clearly wasn't! So, are we confusing just having fun with putting up with a lot of low skills that we can't be bothered to improve upon? Could be something in-between of course. Just my observations. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul De Tourtoulon Posted December 12, 2024 Share Posted December 12, 2024 I will give you a ring if we have a competition at our club, you certainly wouldn't come last, but probably in the top 3 !😇 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan M Posted December 12, 2024 Share Posted December 12, 2024 Funny this is that I've never been interested in competing in power flying or slope soaring, I just fly for my own satisfaction. But where it comes to thermal soaring I've only ever been interested in competition flying, both actual contest (tasks) and postals (duration). Maybe it's because of the nature of the challenge - to stay aloft only by virtue of thermal activity - also because most modern models are designed for very specific classes - DLG, F5J, 2mRES - so one's competing effectively on a very level playing field. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Collinson Posted December 13, 2024 Share Posted December 13, 2024 On 12/12/2024 at 14:26, Peter Jenkins said: IMHO, I think it's the fear of showing yourself up when flying in front of a lot of people. I'm, ahem, 74 now but still fly competition aerobatics. Last year, I managed to come last in every competition I flew in. However, it has spurred me on to try and find out what are the errors I'm making and how do I put them right. This does require a lot of practice including tweaking aircraft set up and that seems to be something most club pilots seem to find total anathema! The atmosphere at all the aerobatic competitions I've ever attended has been wonderful. People are always willing to help and I've never seem any prima donna behaviour or any "super competitive" behaviour. The super competitive comes from practicing a lot so that in competition you are as well prepared as you can be. This, of course, means that you have taken the time to trim out your model properly rather than just putting in a few trim pushes till the aircraft flies sort of straight. I've lost count of the times that someone has handed me a model to check out that was trimmed but when I let go of the sticks clearly wasn't! So, are we confusing just having fun with putting up with a lot of low skills that we can't be bothered to improve upon? Could be something in-between of course. Just my observations. 10,000 hours? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Collinson Posted December 13, 2024 Share Posted December 13, 2024 If you watched the video you’ll see my fingerprints on the event (by default!). Upon club competitions, you can see the subtle differences between the truly competitive pilots and those who thought it a jolly good way to spend an unseasonal Bank Holiday Monday but our emphasis is not on winning but on having collective fun. The club-sponsored bbq is undoubtedly an integral part of our event, which flourishes. Note also the age range, teenager to 80s. We haven’t felt it necessary to alter the course of fire in 4 years. Prizes are largely sponsored by our LMS with fewer bottles latterly. Upon competitions generally for what it’s worth, there’s a small core of classic F3A pilots at NLMFC who try to support the UKCAA. I participate when I can because I decided that the best way I would improve my fairly ordinary flying skill level would be to be judged by peers and be driven to practice harder. UKCAA “contests” are very low key, an intermission in a fly-in day, but still attract a competitive edge amongst the best pilots whilst the rest of us try not to finish last. Whilst a mile away from what Peter Jenkins describes, the motivation is similar. Funny how attitudes to competition vary. BTC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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