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Thread: Wish List of an Aerobatic Pilot
Message: Re: Wish List of an Aerobatic Pilot
Follow-Up To: ACRO Email list (for List Members only)
From: ACROCHICK at aol.com
Date: Tue, 21 Jan 1997 18:18:44 UTC
In Salvadori Luca's Post "Wish List of an Aerobatic Pilot," he made some suggestions gathered from other pilots about changing/improving aerobatic contests. I may be completely off base here, but it appears to me that the input was gathered by only unlimited pilots who compete on the International level. While the problems he wrote about are a nuisance to some, and he came up with some well thought out proposals to fix them, I unfortunately don't agree with them. I don't feel they are in the best overall interest of all competitors (we need to keep in mind there are 5 categories). "Wish #1: No More Boundary Judges": Although it is difficult to find people willing to do this thankless job, I think boundary judges and boundary infringement penalties are an integral part of choosing the best pilots in a contest. In less than ideal wind conditions it takes a huge amount of planning to keep a sequence in the box. The planning involved sometimes begins 3-5 figures before the actual figure you're worried about going out on. Flying within the marked boundaries also greatly improves the skills and planning of those in the lower categories. Taking away these boundary penalties, and relying on line judges with no real way to determine the actual box boundaries would totally negate even the idea of having a marked box in the first place. Besides, this sport keeps moving toward higher powered and faster aircraft. When I started competing 9 years ago, the vast majority of unlimited pilots I knew were able to compete quite well with a Pitts S1S, or a S1T. The sequences they flew were still very challenging, but were not dependent on 300HP. It is now almost a comedy show to watch a pilot try to get through an unlimited sequence in a Pitts. Boundaries along with a bit of skill are the only advantages us little guys with little airplanes have anymore. I know this is going to sound like I'm a jealous brat (of course those who know me know that I am incredibly jealous and wish that I myself could afford a 300HP fire breathing dragon), but I don't feel sorry for the pilot with more horsepower than he/she can manage in the standard box we have now. "Wish #2: Simplify box": Although it is a pain to lay out a box at some airports, we always seem to get it done (example: Laying out the west boundary at Grayson County at Nationals in knee deep mud, climbing over barbed wire fences...ok, I didn't actually do it myself. I recruited a bunch of guys to do it for me. But I watched them from inside my air conditioned truck and they were having a really tough time!). Since my stand is that boundary penalties are very important, it is necessary that the box at each contest is identical in proportion. Besides, sometimes waivers don't allow the box to be lined up with a runway (just ask the guys in chapter 24 about their box at McGregor, TX), and sometimes the Geography around the airport makes setting up the box difficult (just ask the guys who set up the box at Albert Lea, MN - the box has a friggin lake in the middle of it!). But they manage to get it done, giving the pilots added challenges, and a perfectly sized box. "Wish #3: Change Bauer": Since I'm not a mathematical genius, I'm going to leave this discussion up to those who understand the program. "Wish #4: Include 4 Minute Freestyles, Exclude Unknowns": The very last program that should be excluded from a contest is the Unknown. It is the only program that fully tests a pilots skills, planning abilities, and natural, unpracticed talent. I have never been a fan of the 4 minute freestyle, but if it is the desire of IAC and CIVA to make this sport more spectator friendly, then there is no choice but to keep this program. If any program should be eliminated the regular Free program should be the one. Talk about boring! End box maneuver to end box maneuver, no risky figures (by that I mean limited snap rolls, 45 lines, etc. to make the figures as simple as possible), and for those who have been in the sport a while, most competitors fly the same freestyle year after year. BORING! Please, please, please, don't take away the unknown! "Wish #5: Shorten Contests": I don't think the best way to shorten a contest is by narrowing the field, especially after the first flight. I can not speak for the results of International Contests, but I have seen the results of more than one regional contest completely flip flop after the 2nd or 3rd flights. By eliminating 50% of the field after only one flight, you would be eliminating the chances of too many pilots for winning. OK, I'm done. That's my 2 cents worth. Salvadori, your posting was very thought provoking, and perhaps some of the ideas would be great for some, but I'm not sure they would be for all. Allyson Parker-Lauck IAC # 15590
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