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<DIV>
<DIV>John</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>We don't really have a mentoring "system" in place here in
D8... It just happens. The CD sees there is a first timer
and goes</DIV>
<DIV>to one of the Masters guys and gets them to help... It usually
doesn't take that long though. Whenever someone new shows up, they</DIV>
<DIV>are swarmed with help. We know everyone up here that flys
pattern, so the new guys stick out!!!!</DIV>
<DIV>I do think that some sort of program or awareness needs to be discussed on
this topic... It's tough being the new guy, and</DIV>
<DIV>it's very helpful to have an "old hand" there to help.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Having an "Option" period is a good idea for those who aren't sure if they
are up to the task.... I don't think that it would take a year, possibly
</DIV>
<DIV>one or two contests would be enough. I could see where someone moves
up, can't handle it and wants to move back down. Why make them</DIV>
<DIV>suffer for an entire season? Where this would be most apparent, is
the jump from Advanced to Masters... It's not the sequence that is
deceivingly</DIV>
<DIV>too hard, it's the level of competition. I remember my jump to
Masters... I knew the sequence very well, as I'd been judging it for two
years.</DIV>
<DIV>I jumped at the last contest of that season. Wow! I quickly
realized that being able to win or place high in Advanced had absolutely
nothing</DIV>
<DIV>to do with competing against 10 year Masters pilots!</DIV>
<DIV>I've never been a real supporter of the mandatory move up for any of the
classes. My point of view is that while competing in the lower classes
</DIV>
<DIV>and learning as you go, you are more concerned with gaining abilities
than having to compete against the occasional
sandbagger.... </DIV>
<DIV> It's been my experience that a sandbagger will get heckled to the
point that they won't be able to take it very long! Also, most pilots that
are capable of moving up are generally urged to do so by flyers from the higher
classes that are judging them. </DIV>
<DIV>There is a whole different level of commitment between flying
comfortably in Masters and trying to compete at the international level</DIV>
<DIV>in FAI... there are alot of reasons, but this is one of the things
that makes both Masters and FAI "destination" classes, and why most want
to</DIV>
<DIV>keep it that way. Look at it this way: As a pilot advances up
through the ranks, the competition rises exponentially... The better a pilot
becomes,</DIV>
<DIV>the slower their rate of advancement in abilities. This is exactly
why competition at the top in both Masters and FAI is so fierce. Hence,
the</DIV>
<DIV>"bulge" in numbers at the Masters level.</DIV>
<DIV>Keep the food for though coming!</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Rex</DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
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<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>From:</B> <A title=mailto:jgghome@comcast.net
href="mailto:jgghome@comcast.net">John Gayer</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A
title=mailto:nsrca-discussion@lists.nsrca.org
href="mailto:nsrca-discussion@lists.nsrca.org">NSRCA Mailing List</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, August 22, 2007 9:46
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: [NSRCA-discussion] [Fwd:
Proposal]</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>Rex, Thanks for your thoughtful reply. I agree we would
have to consider any side effects before making any changes<BR><BR>I would
like to make a few comments. <BR>I'm very glad to hear you have a mentoring
system in place in district 8. It doesn't seem to be currently in place here
in western district 6 although it used to be. It would be good to have all
districts participating in the same way. Perhaps you could explain exactly how
it works up there?<BR><BR>I'm getting the impression that most of the
membership agrees with you on having two destination classes. From the bottom
looking up, it appears that there are only two advancement
classes(intermediate and advanced) before you have to go out and compete
against sponsored flyers who are among the best flyers in the world. This
would be either Masters or F3A. Adding another class doesn't seem to be the
answer considering current participation levels.I believe the crisis point in
the system is the move up from advanced but we would have to have a good
database history to prove such a point. In any case, from the feedback I have
received, it appears very unlikely that this proposal will ever be accepted.
However, one point in my proposal is an option year. With this provision, any
pilot that finds himself over his head in the next class, can go back a class
at the end of the year. This should help anyone who jumped too early and also
force everyone to at least try the next class before abandonning the effort,
considering the investment in time and money to be excessive in the next
class. I would like to see this implemented even if the advancement from
masters to F3A is rejected.<BR><BR>John<BR><BR>Rex LESHER wrote:
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<DIV>
<DIV>John</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I'll jump right in and comment on what you propose.... </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><STRONG>Revive the practice of assigning mentors to Sportsman and
Intermediate flyers</STRONG></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>We have been doing this all along, here in District 8. I
would </DIV>
<DIV>hope that this is happening in all districts. It's the best
thing</DIV>
<DIV>we can do as a group, to help the newer/inexperienced pilots...</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><STRONG>Create a National Database for Pattern</STRONG></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>This is an interesting idea... Not sure that I would really keep
track</DIV>
<DIV>of where I stand, but I'm sure quite a few pilots would be
interested</DIV>
<DIV>in this. The only concern would be getting someone to take
care of</DIV>
<DIV>this... I do like the idea of having to be part of the
NSRCA to see it.</DIV>
<DIV>That would create leverage towards joining... You are
correct in the </DIV>
<DIV>fact that a lot of different data could be generated from
this....</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV><STRONG>Redirect the focus to our international team competition
through modification of the advancement system</STRONG></DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I don't care for the idea that Masters gets thrown into the advancement
program.</DIV>
<DIV>There are too many variables that pertain to the ability for all to fly
FAI.</DIV>
<DIV>I like the idea of Masters being a destination class and the ability to
move back </DIV>
<DIV>and forth between any AMA class and FAI at will...</DIV>
<DIV>Here in the NW, I could see where it would be necessary to switch a few
pilots back and forth</DIV>
<DIV>between Masters and FAI just to facilitate the ability to run a contest
with enough judges...</DIV>
<DIV>Also, if forcing an advancement of Masters pilots to FAI is a way
of taking care of the "Bulge" of </DIV>
<DIV>pilots flying in that class, all it would really do is create a "Bulge"
in FAI. Or, pilots that have </DIV>
<DIV>pointed out in Masters would quit....</DIV>
<DIV>The idea that there are two "destination" classes is appealing as it
allows room at the top for expansion without</DIV>
<DIV>forcing anyone UP or OUT.... there's no other way to go!</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Most of all, I'd like to take a moment and thank you for taking the
time to share your ideas, and </DIV>
<DIV>make them available for comment. I hope that you don't feel that
I am attacking you or your</DIV>
<DIV>ideas in any way... I really like the fact that you thought
about what you wanted to say and </DIV>
<DIV>presented them in a fashion as to show your intentions....</DIV>
<DIV>None of this is easy, as changing one thing can have adverse effects on
other aspects if not</DIV>
<DIV>carefully thought through. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Rex Lesher</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
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<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal">-----
Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal"><B>From:</B>
<A title=mailto:jgghome@comcast.net href="mailto:jgghome@comcast.net">John
Gayer</A> </DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal"><B>To:</B>
<A title=mailto:nsrca-discussion@lists.nsrca.org
href="mailto:nsrca-discussion@lists.nsrca.org">NSRCA Mailing List</A>
</DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal"><B>Sent:</B>
Wednesday, August 22, 2007 5:12 PM</DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal"><B>Subject:</B>
[NSRCA-discussion] [Fwd: Proposal]</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV><BR>I'd like to present three proposals that might appeal
to a few if not the many....<BR>Modified from the original proposal .
Apparently not many saw it. The first one has been added
<BR>Comments?<BR>John<BR>NSRCA 632<BR><BR><B>Revive the practice of
assigning mentors to Sportsman and Intermediate flyers<BR><BR></B>At
contests, assign an experienced competitor to mentor, call and advise the
Sportsman/ Intermediate flyers. This is nothing new, but should be a part
of every contest. We should try to provide a connection that will last
past the contest.<BR>As I see it, there are four issues that drasticaly
affect the ability of these flyers to compete effectively: aircraft
trimming, execessive throws, wings level and centering(also known as
flying the airplane, not letting the airplane fly you).<BR>These flyers
have shown the initiative to come out and compete. We owe them (and
ourselves) all the help we can throw at them. <BR><BR><BR><B>Create a
National Database for Pattern<BR></B><BR>The database must contain the raw
scores of all flights for <U>all</U> competitors by class. The only thing
normalized scores are good for is finding the right finish order for
each class at a contest. Raw scores are much better for comparing results
even at a contest. For example I finish round one with a 930 and round two
with a 985, both to competitor A. Now did I fly a lot better in round
two(I thought I did) or did competitor A flop a stall turn in the
figure M in round 2.<BR>Anyway once you have the raw scores by competitor
and class, you can do the following:<BR>
<OL>
<LI>Create a National Ranking for each class based on average points per
maneuver. Once this is in place and on line, we will have a reason for
pattern competitors to join NSRCA. you can't tell me that there wouldn't
be a lot of interest in seeing who is hot around the country and how you
stack up against the competition. I know, the judging isn't always equal
but that's always been true and we have to live with it. <BR>
<LI>The data available on each competitor would include contests
entered, placing, advance points earned. The districts could extract
whatever data is required to ascertain the district champions. We could
archive previous years as well.
<LI>Other ways to specify advancement in class become available,
percentage of average FAI score, even eventually moving the 10 top-rated
pilots up a class. Possibilities are endless when you have the
data.<BR></LI></OL>Since the database would only be open to NSRCA members,
if you want to track your National standing, joining NSRCA would be a
must. If you want to see what the guy nobody heard of that just rolled in
from out of district has accomplished, look him up. We've been looking for
reasons to join NSRCA, I feel this is one that could be big and
would be worth some investment in time and money. I would be willing to
help with such a project although I don't feel like I could take it on by
myself.<BR><BR><B>Redirect the focus to our international team competition
through modification of the advancement system<BR><BR></B>
<OL>
<LI>Modify the advancement process to be consistent through all classes
from Sportsman through to F3A. See section two for possible advancement
criteria
<LI>Advancement can be forced by the advancement criteria(see section 2)
or voluntary.<BR>
<LI>The first year in a new and higher class is an option year. At the
end of the option year you can downselect one class for any reason.
</LI></OL>This has the advantage of being able to try out the higher class
for a year without committing your entire pattern career. If you discover
that the next class is beyond your means( time, money or talent) then you
option down the following year. If you absolutely refuse to fly your new
class, then perhaps you could use the time and money to reintroduce your
self to your wife, girlfriend, etc. If you need a goal for the year, focus
on making your rudder commands instinctive, learn to fly a helicopter,
learn to fly rolling circles. You would probably come back a better
pattern flyer than when you
left.<BR><BR><BR><BR>_______________________________________________<BR>NSRCA-discussion
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