Ron_Osinski
Senior Heliman
Location: Russellton, PA
| Yup, the Bell 47 crash did put a damper on the event. Heck I even started a few races to keep things moving along. Standing in the middle in front of 2 spooled up helis at the start of a race is a little un-nerving. 
RonK has a great flying heli. I thought he'd win for sure.
Being a drag racer at heart, I agree that winning is winning no matter how much/little you edge out the other guy at the end of the strip by.
However, in defense of the ION, if you speak with Tom E. - one of the officials at the end of the drag strip - as well as the other guy, can't remember his name...there was no smoking involved. ALL the heats I ran the loaned ION in, which was set up for 3D and not drag racing, were photo finishes. I ran it in both the 61 class and 91 class on the same single set of charged battery packs as well. Both fellas at the end said it was almost too close to call in each heat. I won at least 1 run in each case which forced 3 runs each time. VERY EXCITING! That was great racing!
Personally, I enjoy this type of close racing the most, CLOSE CALLS! It just shows how much each guy is consistant and how badly he wants to win. The 50 class was super competitive this year! Quite a guys came out and participated in that class and had very fast helis too.
Great job to everyone who participated! It was a lot of fun and everyone was super nice to compete against.
Maybe next year we can hold the drag racing in another slot during the day? Maybe early morning? With the noon-time demos and auto contest, it makes for a long time with lots of frequencies being shut down so others can't fly. It's not a big deal when you are competing in those events but I can see for others it can be frustrating...
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Best regards,
Ron Osinski
aka - GMRO |
