Power Hungry Part#1

[Troy Newman]

Again the intent of this was not to bash Eric or the NSRCA.....guys please remember this. Eric has done a great many things to support his mission. As with all leadership some people don't like what he has done....and some love it. I think overall Eric's stint as president has brought a good many solutions to the problems of the NSRCA. The most important of which is the organization is solvent and running in the "black." This was I believe number one for group. Some dues had to go up and some of the support the NSRCA gave to the Team and other sectors went down. That's what happens when the books are showing lots of red! Also the first major revamp in the rules came since the change from turnaround over 10 yrs ago.....Did I agree with all of the changes no....Did I offer or work toward a better solution at the time NO! Therefore Kudos Eric! You're still considered in my book to be a friend...we just sometimes disagree...I won't hold it against you man!


OK power hungry and judging issues

I will grant that the figure 9 requires good power but with the 2/2 up and not the 3/2 in the F3A sequence this is manageable....Reason being we tried it with some under powered machines at 6000ft on a hot day. The 3/2 is too much. But a 2/2 was not and should be cake going down in elevation. This is similar to the current schedule of a 1/2 sq with 2/2 up. Instead of a  1/4 loop its merely a 3/4 loop....the addition of the extra 1/2 loop is all going with gravity....If your radius was good going in and you maintain the radius at the top of the 9 then the power requirement is no different. than 1/2 sq with 2/2 rolls up.


Ok my beef with the reverse Avalanche.....Number one the best and most controlled snaps are those done at low speeds. For a pilot to consistently perform a snap with proper rotation the speed of the airplane must be controlled not too fast and not too slow....This is the key to snaps. I think all will agree with me on that one. So we are inverted at the top of the box we pull 1/2 inside loop to the bottom....then perform an inside snap roll. By definition the loop must be round so if we take the snap and integrate it into the loop this means that there is no flat spot...and since the plane is still moving in the arc as the snap is taking place....the snap must start before center and must complete after center......So since a snap is a stalled condition the plane must prescribe an arc that is anti gravity right.......nose down at the start and nose up at the end.....all this and travel the proper arc length to have the snap centered.....Not my favorite thing to do but its possible my DZ powered Smaragd does it pretty good. Now your in a nose high even slightly nose high attitude and the plane has just been stalled and come back to flying. Energy from the 1/2 loop down has nearly all been killed during the snap...Not saying the plane is falling out of the sky merely that some if not the majority of its energy has been expended in the snap. And if the plane is truly stalled means that you have lost the oooomph so you need to throttle up...Right.....Not only throttle up but you have to have some power to pull you from a stalled condition (snap remember) to the top of a loop and maintain the radius of the loop as that of the same as before.

Can it be done YES! most certainly.....Its creative and I seem to like it maybe I'll stick in an AA routine! For a required sequence for a Masters level flyer......Why are we adding this degree of aircraft performance requirement. The idea in my mind is to see who flies the best! Most precise, most accurate, and with the most grace! I consider myself to be a good flyer...not a great one like Chip, Jason, Sean, Kirk and crew......and for me I have never gotten straight 10's from a regular old plain jane avalanche. This maneuver has been defined for years....the pilots know what's its to look like. The judges with any experience have judged then a bunch of times.....and never, to my knowledge, has someone received all 10's in the Nats for this maneuver. The regular avalanche used gravity to help the plane and the pilot. not working against gravity..The arc during the snap roll is maintained by a proper snap and then gravity assists the pilot to make the radius constant. In fact this is the most difficult thing to do on an avalanche and its probably the most common downgrade is a flat or a pinch after the snap. By adding this snap at the bottom of the loop the difficulty of the constant radius went up by a huge margin.....because of the forces at work in the natural world are not helping the pilot they are working against him.  

So judging load is increased because of the new questions that arise...we are doing in backwards right?

Ok what does that mean...Ok that means this this and the other thing....Then look at the questions that have already come up on the list......Like why does it have to be a positive snap? Well that answer is logical your right side up.....but the original Avalanche doesn't care if its inside or outside?....Some of the older planes handle the maneuver better if done as an inside or outside....This allows the pilot to choose based on his skills and the performance of his plane....The reverse tells him which way he has to snap to maintain the arc.....When we have already told him he must snap 1 pos on a 45 down line. Then the issue of the judges having to review the issue either with the book (my suggestion) or as most commonly done in his head whether or not the arc and constant radius must be preserved. It takes some thought.....and if passed should be addressed in the Judging seminar...and perhaps by every CD at the Pilots/judges meeting of every single contest.....So Don Ramsey's little NATS chat just got longer and opened up for some bozo to argue with the ruling...that if you're stalled then gravity is pulling you down and your not flying so how can you maintain the arc.....or wind drift or something because its not as cut and dry a definition that has been accepted for years......as the regular old avalanche.

Not saying its not workable just that it has too many negative impacts for me to support it....And I'm stating my opinion. I encourage you all to form your own opinion.


continued on the next email......part#2

read them both before you blast me guys!
TN






Get more from the Web. FREE MSN Explorer download : http://explorer.msn.comGet more from the Web.  FREE MSN Explorer download : http://explorer.msn.com
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.f3a.us/pipermail/nsrca-discussion/attachments/20021024/df0e8c86/attachment.html