[NSRCA-discussion] Response to Jim Woodward's request for PatternBio

Tue Aug 21 04:08:35 AKDT 2007

John,

That's a serious bio!!

You definately have a well rounded R/C background, I hope to meet you at a 
contest in the future.

Ken
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "John Gayer" <jgghome at comcast.net>
To: "NSRCA Mailing List" <nsrca-discussion at lists.nsrca.org>
Sent: Tuesday, August 21, 2007 12:01 AM
Subject: [NSRCA-discussion] Response to Jim Woodward's request for 
PatternBio

> John,
>
> Please give us enthused readers a short bio of yourself.  Others like me
> may have missed missed getting to know you over the last several years.
> You write with some conviction of the topics to please detail some of
> your participation, district, etc.
>
> Thanks,
> Jim W.
>
>
>
> Jim,
>
> I did send out some info earlier in response to Arch and I've been out of
> town for several days but for an RC bio, here it is as requested.
>
> I first flew RC as a 14 year old while growing up in Switzerland as a UN
> brat(American). It all started when my father brought me a new
> 'controlline" kit from the PX up in West Germany. After looking over the
> plans, I went back to dad and said. "this thing needs  a radio" . so
> after the next trip north, I had a Babcock single channel and an
> escapement to go with my Livewire Trainer. My  most exciting experience
> ever in RC flying was the first time  my plane  turned left when I told it 
> to.
>
> The story then picks up in the middle 60s after college.Failing to ever 
> master
> reeds, I finally learned to fly proportional with Orbit and then Kraft
> single stick in the triple cities(Binghamton,NY) and bought all my stuff
> from George Brooks, then operating out of his garage.. Moved to northern
> californiia in the late 60s and learned to do three rolls without
> dumping it while inverted in the third roll with a kwik-fli
> Then moved to England and continued to fly out of a cow pasture. I
> recall the farmer would not allow us to open the gate so everything had
> to be hauled to the top of the hill a quarter mile away. Did build my
> first retract pattern plane there( a Mach one?)
> In 1974 I changed careers and moved to the mountains of Colorado to
> start a new FM radio station. After settling in for a year or two, I
> started flying again and participated in a pattern contest in
> Denver sponsored by the MileHi Rc club at Lowry Airforce base. I believe
> I placed in Sportsman or whatever the class was at that time. Flew in
> pattern contests in Colorado, Kansas, Nevada and California until 1998
> when we left the mountains of Colorado. In that time I attended the Nats
> in Lincoln twice (advanced and expert) and Reno once(don't remember the
> class) The Reno Nats were interesting because my son and I attended a
> ski race camp at Mount Hood for two weeks and then dropped down to Reno
> for the NATS. I actually had my son convinced for a while that flying and 
> pattern
> were better than other activities he could be participating in. This
> didn't last fortunately and I now have three grandchildren from that
> side of the family.
> Whenever turnaround started in district 5, I participated. I recall
> flying it as a side contest sometime in Kansas(pawnee Rock?). At the 
> Clovis
> meet one year, I actually got to fly both Masters and FAI in the same 
> contest.
> Guess those days are gone.
> In 1998 I got back into flight Simulation engineering(worked for 
> Singer-Link out of college)
> after selling the Radio station in Steamboat Springs and eventually ended 
> up in Australia
> for two years with  a contract to finish a 747-400 simulator that my
> company had bailed out on. While there I flew pattern with the Aussies
> and built planes with Peter Goldsmith in his garage. (I only had a small
> apartment). We attended  a bunch of contests together despite the major
> discrepancy in skill levels. In Australia I was classified as "expert"
> class. This meant I flew the F3A pattern but was was judged separately
> from the FAI class. My classification was a concession by the APA
> Australian Pattern Association) because in Australia you have to earn 
> entry into each class
> stating with Sportsman. I attended two International events while I
> lived there (Kraft Masters) and one Australian Nats, all without any
> noteworthy results. Attendees during those years at the Kraft Masters were
> Chip, Dave Patrick,Greg Marsden, plus others from Germany and Taiwan.
> Upon returning to the States we moved to Phoenix where I have been working
> for Honeywell. I competed very unsuccessfuly in FAI for several years 
> practicing
> some with Rusty Freid and Greg Frohreich, attending the NATS twice, once
> in 1992 and again in 1996. In 1996 Peter Goldsmith and John Payne came
> to Phoenix from Autralia to practice for a week before we attended the
> 1996 NATS. The only one to do any good was Peter who was sixth. I did 
> manage
> to beat John but he had one hand tied behind his back  :-)  . Watching 
> John tear
> down and rebuild a YS with one hand, a stump and his teeth was a
> humbling experience.
> Peter also used my house and the AMPS field as a staging area for the
> TOC for a number of years. I crewed for Peter several times in Vegas
> when work permitted.
> In 1994 I also returned to Australia to fly in a third Kraft Masters and
> to revisit old friends. After 1996 I effectively gave up pattern and
> general flying as well. I didn't have time to practice, needed a new
> airplane, no time to build one so I quit.
> Three years ago I moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico and met up with Richard 
> Lindberg.
> His enthusiasm and pushiness  :-)  has brought me back to pattern. I
> assessed my current skill level as Advanced and flew in last year's
> Roadrunner Classic here in Albuquerque as my first contest in 10 years.I 
> enjoyed it
> so much I did it again this year. I expect to move up to Masters next year
> but I'm not particularly enthusiastic about it.
> My current aircraft is a Focus one with a Webra 160 mixture carb and a
> Futaba 12Z radio.(Excelleron 90 with a 140FZ for backup)
> Planes and equipment I have used in the past for competition in no
> particular order and very incomplete. There were a lot more planes I
> competed with but the mind is failing here....
> Phoenix 6,7,8
> Dirty Birdy(s)
> Atlas
> Tiporare
> Super Curare(s) tail draggers with retracts
> One of Ivan's designs?
> Lotus 4(original 2 meter size)
> Lotus 4+ (revised slightly smaller version)
> Currently on my second Focus one
> Angel's Shadow (now deceased due to my stupidity)
> In the old days I flew Rossi, switched to YS two stroke for a while,
> then YS 4stroke starting with the original small bearing engine.
> Started with Orbit, then Kraft until they stopped the single stick, then
> JR back in the Circus Circus days, then finally Futaba(switched in 
> Australia
> due to many crashes with the JR PCM 9).
>
> While living in Northwest Colorado, I was the hobby shop, flying 
> instructor,
> building problem fixer and pattern advocate for  northwest colorado. It
> was a good time.
>
> This is actually the 50th anniversary of my first uncontrolled RC
> flight in the summer of 1957. I believe I  need to go celebrate.
>
> Sorry to bend your ear for so long but after 60, once you get 
> started.......
> Besides, this is the short version.
>
> John
> NSRCA District 6
> Albuquerque, NM
>
>
>
>
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