ErichF
Key Veteran
Location: Odessa, FL 33556 (Tampa Area)
| I can't get over the comment, "I just wanna have fun."
Like, I'm doing this stuff to satisfy some masocistic bloodlust  If that were the case, a hammer to the fingers is a lot cheaper.
If you have the capability to take pride in a job well done, every small improvement in man and machine is very fun, IMO.
Some say that the adrenaline rush of 3D is where it's at. To that, I say adrenaline comes from within, no matter what the task at hand is. If you truly care about holding over a flag in high winds just as much as not crashing doing in funnel, then the adrenaline is there just the same. It's a matter of perspective. Then, there's the climax from a flight well performed in front of peers and judges. And if you prepared well, the pride in taking home a trophy.
Also, I think some people are missing out on the rush of flying 80 mph manuevers that reach 400-500 feet in altitude.
I guess FAI is the geeks and nerds of heli flying, whatever. You kinda have to like working with your heli as much as flying. It satisfies the tinkerer, looking to get rid of that silly little vibe in your tail fin, or that sloshing in the fuel tank. Then it's taking a machine from stabile, solid hovering to 80mph ripper doing complex, multi-segmented aerobatics on center and on time.
I do have to agree that a major silent killer of the precision sport is the simulator. It used to be that new pilots practiced the AMA or basic classes because they needed to learn the basics somewhere. Now, they can by-pass the basics so long as they can take off without rolling over. Simulations take the new pilot from 0 to know-it-all in a matter of weeks.
I have seen a steady flow of pilots interested in the sport, but have only seen a few new faces at any of the local and regional contests. I think what happens is, people get interested, practice the maneuvers, then get stage fright and cancel the trip or find an excuse not to get to a contest. People these days are either too proud risk losing, or think they have to fly the manuevers perfectly to compete. This is NOT the truth, however. FAI contests here in the US have some of the world's best pilots in attendance, many former and current World's Team members. However, unlike 3D "contests", you aren't competing with them. You are competing with your peers in the same class. Each class is broken into standard manuevers. They are NOT intended to be flown perfectly. If you are flying them perfectly, you are in the wrong class.
When I started competing several years ago in IMAC, I went to my first contest with the mindset that it's just a well organize fun fly. Not the typical helicopter "do whatever you want" funfly, but the good ones from years past that had fun little contests to fly in...you remember, something with purpose and reward? With that proper mindset, it's just another funfly. Most judging is done by other contestant pilots. They are your friends and mentors, not there to bring you down and critisize you.
It's a tight-knit group of guys that I have grown with in the last couple of years since I started competing in RC Heli aerobatics. We all go to dinner together, and work on eachother's helis to help make the next round. These guys even work into the night under headlights to rebuild an engine and get you flying the next day.
How could anyone deny themselves of all this, I have no clue. I just assume it's because they haven't tried it. It's not like you have to stop flying 3D altogether to at least try a contest. All it takes, really, is a dedicated helicopter to setup for the type of flying. Some folks try to make one of their 3D birds try to fly this stuff. It sucks, and they get discouraged. With a proper setup, this stuff isn't hard to do at all.
All food for thought. Too bad this isn't in the Main Forum, as people that frequent this forum already know most of this.
Cheers,
Erich |
) I just tend to ignore because they don't really know what there are talking about. Some 3D manouvres, such as the haymaker for example are very technicle, and wouldn't appear in an F3C schedule. Having said that F3C is about smoothness, even stops in the hovering, keeping everything the same speed in hovering manouvres, and having centred aerobatics etc. In some respects 3D turns into a contest of how low you can go, this is why I am a big fan of the 3D Masters, because it has the set manouvres round, where you need to be more accurate, and then you have the freestyle and music rounds which are very enjoyable, this tests a pilots ability in all aspects of 3D flying and is a great format. Basically F3C takes a little more time than 3D to improve, and it doesn't have that same wow factor, which is why I think more people prefer 3D. I think flying F3C can also help you to become a good 3D pilot as well and can overall make you fly a lot better.
Great control, flowing lines with bursts of "WHOA! Did you see that one!?" well placed here and there.
