Uncle Sydney's gossip column - 17
Dateline: November 2002
Finland recap and F3J's future.
At several UK F3J comps since Finland, regular F3J winners are still slightly unbelieving of the narrow margins at Lappeenranta's 2002 world champs. How does anyone score 9 minutes 56 seconds, far less 14 minutes 56 seconds plus?
Antonis Papadopoulos, who ran Corfu's 2000 WC so successfully, collected all the Lappeenranta scores in the nine preliminary rounds and produced startling statistics. For example, more flyers scored 100 landing points than 95, (37% compared to 27%) and 65% of landings scored 100 or 95. In all 684 flights, only 46 scored zero landings, and they were mostly risk takers not poor landings.
Times were also impressive. In the first nine rounds, 11 flights were recorded as 9 minutes 55 seconds or more. But 346 flights out of 684 were recorded as between 9.50 and 9.54. Personally I cheer when my time is between 9.40 and 9.49. (I only do it when practising alone!) There were only 123 of these so-called low scores. Only 80 flights recorded less than six minutes, which is the sort of time I like to think my HKM Space Pro does in still air.
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Feedback since the World Champs gossip report has been divided on widening the gap between winning scores at international level. David Greer (from Zambia) believes it only logical that cream pilots should get jammed together at the top. "These folk are meant to be the best in the world. So if it ain't broke, don't fix it," he says. He would accept dropping the throwaway score in four round fly-offs. But if you do away with drop scores, why allow them in the prelims?
Inge Balswick from Norway and FAI Soaring Digest was radical. If you're going to have a spearing contest, why not make the winner the first man down with the fastest vertical speed. If you get a high launch, you can dive vertically down at highest speed and get a solid spear landing. But that takes longer than a short launch with less height, forsaking extra speed. His proviso is that you are still allowed only three models. Then he asks us to accept that his idea is a joke!
Rob Ashley-Roche came up with another anti-spear solution: put the landing spots on Tarmac or concrete runways. He and others reckoned that the time has come for the landing tape to be continuously graduated in single points rather than fives.
Carl Strautins from Australia makes the simple undeniable point: the huge difference between 1 and 2 metres from the spot in a tight slot penalises disproportionately. Carl (he who got two 1,000s in the Finnish fly-offs) gets my "best reader of air - 2002" award, for I have now heard him several times spotting for pilots and coaxing them to new lift when their thermals have disappeared.
He summed up Lappeenranta air as follows. Basically the air was too good. The thermals had a range of lifting air 200-300 metres wide or more, and flyers were not forced to find a core; most times they could bumble into 10 minutes. The sink was not great enough to warrant extensive thermal searching. The thermal cycles were quite regular and predictable, and it helped to have the flags near the pits, the flag down at the far end at the airport terminal and the multitude of birds.
Carl spotted several slots in which launch heights from one end of the flight line to the other differed far more due to thermal presence rather than to any launch techniques. And I always thought that my tow-men were past it or slacking!
Another debate is whether to count preliminary round scores in with the fly-off. Carl believes that all scores should count, and that makes it more testing than counting the best three of four scores to determine the best pilot in the world. More to the point, he reckons that flyers would work harder for their 1000s in each and every round. There are those who land ten seconds early, knowing that they have won the slot, rather than trying to punish rivals by flying out the slot.
Finally, how much sense did it have measuring flight times in Finland to two decimal places of a second? NONE.
As several respondents pointed out, few people can time the end of a slot to within 0.1 seconds never mind 0.01, so the second decimal place is irrelevant and probably liable to distort results occasionally. But that's as nothing compared with the errors inherent in any timekeeper pressing the buttons exactly when the glider leaves the line, especially with a dip and zoom. Timekeeper support or generosity is probably worth at least one full second. If the next door line happens to release with a bang, as it often does, that could be worth staying another second on your own line, knowing your buttons have been pressed as a natural reaction.
On the positive front, several readers urged that the fly-offs at least should have two independent timekeepers, as in F3B speed runs, splitting the difference between times. It does not matter if all the timekeepers happen to have the same reaction times - highly unlikely - but it is important that they are consistent. One or two people advocated some sort of electronic timing device. God forbid - that really will be the end of our supposedly relaxing hobby.
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The biggest puzzle facing F3J must be how to get THERMAL skills to count for more in good weather contests when so many flyers are flying the full time within a second or so. Thermal soaring, after all, is what F3J contests started out trying to test.
Last time I mooted having two sight lines at each end of the flight line, with a bonus of 250 points for those flyers who at some stage of the slot crossed both lines. The idea was simply to force flyers to abandon the super lift that would normally do for 10 or even 15 minutes, and encourage searching for another thermal. In good weather, too many pilots catch their lift, often joined by others, then off they fly miles downwind to enormous heights, patiently waiting for the two-minute signal.
Big snag with my first idea was identifying 12 models as they crossed the sightlines.
Somebody has had inspiration, and it is simple. Bob Owston has flown F3J since its earliest days and combines his hobby with earning a living as an engineer and an architect, a sure sign of ability to think laterally.
His brilliant idea is to use the launch line to define a plane across the skies. Each launch spot would have a circular hoop (as used by individuals in F3B and F5B) sighting along the line. Each flyer would be required to cross the launch plane and circle through at least 360 degrees between a three minute hooter and a four minute hooter say, and then the same again between seven and eight minutes.
The spotter for each pilot would be required to raise a flag as his pilot was completing the circle. Independent checking of the turning circles would not be needed during a run-of-the-mill competition, except perhaps on a random basis. In important championships it could be. For each of the two completed circles over the launch line, the pilot would score 150 points say, a value rather more than a spot landing.
Why is 150 points chosen? Sharp guys will quickly recognise that a maximum score would then become 10 X 60 duration plus 100 landing plus 150 X 2 circles equals 1,000 points. This would allow a far easier guess at normalised scores when seconds are lost to a rival.
In good weather, the two circle tasks would merely add a little zest to each flight. Typically it could force flyers to find a second and third patch of lift. In scratchy conditions, the pilot would face the choice of staying in good lift and forget the circle bonus points. If the two baseline circle risks are taken, the pilot might fail to find lift and be forced to land before the end of the slot.
Another big bonus to this "new-look F3J" is that the models returning to the start line and would become "spectator-friendly" and visible. Flying an efficient path back to the line, turning through a circle and then setting off again upwind or downwind to regain height would make our competitions more exciting to watch. (My wife reckons: F3J flying is only slightly more interesting than watching paint dry.) Our sport might become more attractive!
Any more ideas, or any better ideas? How about someone putting these ideas into a set of rules for Tomas Bartovksy and Sandy Pimenoff to chew over, and someone to organise a trial comp!
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First months of 2002 brought lousy weather in UK, which spoilt practice days and forced abandonment of the first league event. But by the end of October, we'd had seven valid events, with the best four counting towards the three UK team places for next year. Four or five contests were held in enjoyable weather rather than the usual dodging between showers and gusts of high wind.
One of the nicest Finns to meet in Lappeenranta was Tommy Westlin, assistant contest director in the trannie impound, who started the slots and the timing device. He ordered a Sharon Pro 3.7 after the contest, having been impressed by Tobias Lammlein and several others with this model during the champs. He wrote asking for my settings.
With job pressure, he expects to have his Sharon ready for testing after Christmas. Initial flights will be on a nearby frozen lake with a blanket of snow on top. And we complain about British weather.
Feedback from all over the globe shows that most countries do not enjoy more than one annual F3J competition and that is how they select national teams. In several countries F3J flyers are so few that they can't cope with two-man tows if they want six or more in any slot. So they use winches. Perhaps we in the UK don't have it so bad after all!
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Let me tell what excites me most in model soaring's future at this time. I have become hooked by hlg, particularly since the advent of SAL - side arm launching - which thank goodness is now settling down to the name of "discus" launching.
Two years ago I wrote about it, courtesy of US and German articles. This year at Dortmund I bought my first model, the SAGA produced by Vladimir Gavrilko in the Ukraine. It flies like a French mistress or a Citroen car - as touchy as hell to keep going, but when it does, then out of this world.
At the end of a late summer holiday in France, Austria and Germany, I travelled past Kirchheim am Teck, famous as home town of Graupner. A few people know that it is also close to where Claus Schnarrenberger lives, designer and producer of Murphy. This hlg with moulded two-servo wing, flown by his mate Ralph Mittelbach, has won the F3K Eurotour in 2000 and 2001. Claus has also won many F3K contests.
I collected my new model and we enjoyed a couple of hours flying his Murphy and my Saga at the back of his house. He had 12 flights. Apart from the first, which he said was for trimming, he caught thermals small and large each time, bringing Murphy down at two or three minutes as declared before each launch. My Saga hit lift most times too, but I got away only three times out of 12. Murphy is magic! (How come Herr Schnarrenberger calls his model Murphy? He tells that everything that could go wrong during its development and kitting did, so only one name was possible.)
F3K, the hlg class, is sure to reach full FAI recognition soon. In fact Lausanne is pressing Eurotour and hlg supporters to make proposals for regional and world championships, fix the rules and get on with it. In contrast to the F3J supporters in the early 1990s, the F3K advocates want to proceed slowly. What they favour, says Alex Wunschheim who is current manager of F3K Eurotour, is to run a two-day trial event in conjunction with an F3J world champs.
I'd cheer that super idea, for that means Calgary! Having the whole CIAM/FAI circus already assembled in Canada with top flyers from all over the world, you would certainly get a fiercely contested hand launch event. F3J plus F3K surely adds up to a sum greater than the total of its parts.
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UK's senior team for the 2003 European Championships - July 20-27, in Deva, Romania - will be Tony Vale, Adrian Lee and Dave East. They placed first, second and third in the UK F3J league to win team places, subject to BMFA ratification. Congratulations.
Tony and Dave will be flying for their country for the first time. All three played hard for the UK team in Finland, gaining valuable insights into what they could face in Romania - sore heads, irregular meals and yes, soaring too. So top level competition and the strain of a five-day event will not be foreboding.
Tony Vale is in the Fairlop club, same as me. He, Pete Weston, Gill Doonan, Nuno Canteiro and Richard Yates set out plans as early as 2001 to put every effort into getting Tony into the team. Everyone in the team gave first priority to their man. Flying Graphites, their launches were UK's highest on each and every event. Lines were always in prime condition, checked regularly and replaced if suspect. Time was always made for more practice and retrimming, and they have height and data collection devices to measure rather than guesstimate.
All their efforts have come good. Tony scored 400 points to win the league, a perfect score. His lowest dropped score was 96.52. So he had a good year thanks to a good team: here's hoping next year is even better.
Adrian and his wife Fiona are old international hands and have spent time in a tent ten times at Hollandglide. He has been in the UK team thrice before, Deva in 1999, Corfu 2000, and in the fly-offs at Holic 2001.
He will be building yet another High Five this winter in his garage, it will be red on top and blue underneath, and he will consistently refuse to fly any ready-built moulded model. He does not believe it, but if only he would try other models, then he would surely become an international winner, 'cos he's by far the most consistent exploiter of thermals around in the UK.
Dave East is this year's surprise, winning his place at the last moment by the narrowest of margins (0.7 points). Everyone in the CATS team has now gained UK team places. He spotted for Mike Raybone in WC 2002 and for me in the Wild Man's trophy, for which I awarded him "top spotter 2002". He talks with a warm economical and beguiling style, and more often than just by fluke, he guides you into lift. He flies for fun and is often funny, and long may that continue!
Having two dedicated teams in support helps the success of all three team members. It also highlights that if all flyers in one team are potential winners, and they don't fly against each other in the league events, then top pilots are not tested as thoroughly as would be best. At present, that's an in-built weakness in our league team arrangements.
What are UK's chances? They will depend in part on how seriously other teams are taking 2003, for some pilots might be tempted to concentrate on winning places for Canada 2004. Watch this space for team news, gossip and betting.
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What's not decided yet is who will be running the UK F3J league next year, how many and where the rounds will be flown. BMFA's silent flight technical committee had its October meeting but didn't resolve matters. Committee chairman Chris Bishop proposed that he should run it, and wants to include all the big BARCS events plus the Scottish Nationals. Rumour has it that further bids might emerge.
SFTC did question whether the UK team should be appointed on the simple basis of topping the league. There are those who reckon that the team ought to be selected on who is most likely to win in the following year. That surely means having selectors who presume to know best, as in cricket and football. I have a suspicion that simple placings have a lot of merit, but what are your views?
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So goodbye to Kevin Beale and Nick Evans after just one year managing the UK F3J league. Both deserve a big vote of thanks, along with the usual team of helpers who give a hand each time on the day - too few by the way. Kevin bore the brunt and did well to place sixth. Nick coped well despite trying to move house, and paid by slipping places in the league.
The powers that be should feel chastened by events. Kevin and Nick were brought in to satisfy the hobby's "politicians" and to bring BARCS and F3JUK closer. Neither Kevin nor Nick promised more than one year cannot be blamed. But management of the league needs continuity, at least a phased hand-over, and two years if not longer because experience does count. It bugs me that an established proven willing team was sacked a year ago to make way for the joint BARCS/F3JUK effort.
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This gossip column has been circulating recently around the worldwideweb by courtesy of FAI Soaring Digest and in the US thanks to Judy Slates and R/C Soaring Digest. The column started in BMFA F3J News, the newsletter of the UK's F3J league, which is not, I should make clear, an official communication of the British Model Flying Association. Any errors, comments and views are solely the responsibility of the writer, who is simply trying to add to the enjoyment of our hobby.
End of gossip.