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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple><div class=WordSection1><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Ron,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>I think I expressed this to you last weekend, but maybe not as clearly as I would have liked. I was pretty focused at the time on putting together a decent flight in the 20+ mph crosswinds we were flying in. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>My opinion, which is shared by at least one other Contest Board Member is that we are trying to get too technical in the wording on rules covering gyros, telemetry, and other such mechanisms. The goal is to prevent cheating through the use of electronic aids that either automatically correct an aircraft’s flight path (gyro) or notify the pilot of an errant flight path through some sort of visual or audible warning (telemetry). <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>The problem with our current rule as well as the one that was proposed during this recent rules cycle is that they’re too specific with the end result being that the rule is constantly chasing technology. What we need is something more generic that simply prohibits any device providing a competitive advantage to the pilot through automatic, visual, or audible means of flight path correction. In short, you have to use your eyes (or your caller’s) to see the flight path deviation and use your fingers to wiggle the sticks to correct it.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>I’m confident we’ll all recognize such a device when we see it in play. The rule also needs to specify disqualification for using such a device. In my opinion, the telemetry features of the Futaba 18MZ and other similar products don’t provide the automatic, visual, or audible means of flight path correction that would be deemed a violation under a generic, “catch-all” type of rule.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'>Verne Koester<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial","sans-serif";color:#1F497D'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><div><div style='border:none;border-top:solid #B5C4DF 1.0pt;padding:3.0pt 0in 0in 0in'><p class=MsoNormal><b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'>From:</span></b><span style='font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif"'> nsrca-discussion-bounces@lists.nsrca.org [mailto:nsrca-discussion-bounces@lists.nsrca.org] <b>On Behalf Of </b>Ron Hansen<br><b>Sent:</b> Saturday, September 15, 2012 6:57 AM<br><b>To:</b> NSCRA Discussion List<br><b>Subject:</b> [NSRCA-discussion] Food For Thought - Pattern and Gyros<o:p></o:p></span></p></div></div><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>At last weekend’s contest I asked several pretty experienced judges whether a gyro that told a pilot whether his wings were level and/or his nose was pitching down was legal in pattern. I know the rules say gyros that automatically adjust for pitch and yaw are illegal. I also believe any other device that tells the pilot the orientation of the plane so that the pilot can manually adjust is also not in the spirit of the sport.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>I got some interesting responses.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal>In my opinion this type of feedback has been technically feasible for many years. It may not have been through direct communication between the receiver and the transmitter but it was certainly doable through a tone in an ear piece or similar feedback mechanism. I’m surprised the rules never anticipated this. Why did we have to wait for telemetry capable radios?<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"'><br><br>__________ Information from ESET Smart Security, version of virus signature database 7481 (20120915) __________<br><br>The message was checked by ESET Smart Security.<br><br><a href="http://www.eset.com">http://www.eset.com</a><o:p></o:p></span></p></div></body></html>