before and from there the four of us could see the dihedral increase as he pulled around the base legs. No bets were taken but we all agreed that there would be a failure really soon. A prophetic discussion.
In between all these“ more interesting” events the scale classes were run on two flight lines. The events were similar to what we have here … when we have them! A Sportsman Class, Team Scale and Expert Scale. Conditions varied as did the wind direction but the whole event seemed to run like clockwork. My Miles didn’ t seem happy, in fact it was a push to get it there after a couple of whoopsies at Highbrook the week before,- undercarriage damage only involved but work I didn’ t need.
As has always the case when I’ ve been to an event in Australia, there were some excellent models there … from WW1 to F- 16’ s. Of particular interest to me were a couple of Vampires, both of which flew very well. Arguably the most impressive model was a very large Catalina, displayed by Steve Thomas. He was unable to fly it as he had been waiting for final certification. With this now in his hands this 20 foot span monster will be flying very soon. The level of detail is outstanding and I can only imagine how realistically its flight characteristics will match the full size.
The final night was a sumptuous dinner at the site with all the presentations. Included was a Q & A session with Ali and Mike and they both spoke freely about what they see for the future and how much they enjoy and feel privileged to be doing what they’ re doing.
My impression of Australian modelling is that their interest in competitive scale modelling is much higher than here. I sense a much higher level of enthusiasm and energy along with a willingness to travel long distances to participate. It’ s true that the field was limited by invitation but none the less they really go for it in a bigger way the we do here.
I can’ t close without thanking Air New Zealand for all the assistance in getting a pretty large box to and from Australia. It was all managed very well and without damage and with what turned out to be a modest charge.