Control Line is the code that really got started in Portland , Oregon in 1940 when Jim Walker invented and patented the ' U ' control system that C / L flyers use today . Some consider the heyday of C / L to be the 1950s . From about the mid 1960s reliable proportional R / C was becoming available and nowadays the vast majority of ' Sport ' fliers choose R / C . The stronghold of C / L is now Europe , with most international competitions held there .
In N . Z ., North Island clubs , such as New Plymouth and Hamilton , regularly stage C / L competition meetings . Since the demise of the South Island Champs and the Otago / Southland Champs , meetings in the S . I . that include C / L are sporadic at best . I recently flew C / L at the Mandaville meeting and loved the atmosphere and just being able to fly at such a gathering . Peter Salmond , the organiser , allocated an area for C / L . In Dunedin there is a circle at the D . M . A . C . site . Jeff Smart , the President of the D . M . A . C . asked me late last year if I ' d like to run a C / L meeting at the club . This came as a welcome surprise .
So on a hot February morning our first competitor , Don Burt , flew a ' Sportsman ' pattern minus the Vertical and Overhead 8s . Dons ' Pizzaz ' runs an L . A . 46 and weighs 60 ounces . The manoeuvres were big , but he got through them O . K . Kevin Thompson followed with a Bob Palmer ' Thunderbird ', an elegant elliptical plan-form aircraft from the early 1950s . Kevins loops were close to perfect , his inverted erratic at 45 degrees . Mike Watt from Timaru , with a P . A . W . powered stunt trainer , got into the air well and scored the highest Straight & Level run of the day , with a rock steady groove at 1.5 metres . The two stunt rounds were followed by speed runs with the same models . Don was fastest at 59 m . p . h . with Kevin ' s ' Thunderbird ' 1 m . p . h . slower . Overall winner was Don Burt who won the club C / L trophy . This is officially the Speed cup , last competed for in 1951 . The first winner , in 1949 , was Jack Coker . Jack still flies with the Dunedin club . The afternoon was dedicated to sport flying . Kevin Thompson cranked up 2 E . D . Racers in his 43 year old Heinkel . Two R / C flyers came over to watch as soon as the second ' Racer ' cracked into life . There is something intriguing about the sound of twins and Kevin ' s flight was as good as the sound . Les Pilgrim , from Timaru , attempted to get a Classic ' B ' Team Racer into the air but a blown plug and snagged lines had the final say . There were some more aerobatics and a solo 10 km run with a Slow Goodyear . We finished at 5 p . m . Although our gathering and events were modest , everyone , flyers and spectators , had a great time . Thanks to our grounds ' Staff ' Don Nisbet and Colin Chalmers for all the circle work they have done in the last decade .