Jim and I will again be doing two clinics at the Toledo RC trade show this year....
Clinics will start at 10am on April 13&14 in room 314.
Our goal will be to provide information about getting started in aerotowing, converting a plane into a tug, Easy Glider tow release, and maybe more important Our Story.
Why Jim and I started HighPoint Aviation Aerotow Team and encourage others to do the same.
Dave
Be a Rock Star
Fly a 2-33
As I look back, the Fall of 2009 was the point where a bunch of things regarding aerotowing came together for me. The 44th Annual Cumberland Soar for Fun was held on the HighPoint Aviation airfield the beginning of November, 2009. This is the event where I first met Len Buffinton and got to see giant scale sailplanes aerotowed with repeatable precision.
I was determined to try aerotowing again and had prepared a Telemaster 40 for the task. I had no idea that Len was coming, or what he had accomplished and neither did I know that serveral young guys interested in DLG's would also bring Easy Gliders equipped with aerotow releases. Well, the results were amazing. I watched Len and company put on a first class how to demo and we copied what they did with our little stuff and had a blast.
The following spring, I bought a second-hand Easy Glider and used it to recruit Dave Darr (a recovering helicopter guy). By the late Summer 2010, Dave and I had recruited Butch Browning and we decided to call our little aerotow enterprise "The HighPoint Aviation Aerotow Team." Dave had shirts made for us and the three of us went to Connecticut to visit Len's home field in Salem where they were holding their Aerotowing Event.
Here we were with our Telemaster 40's and Easy Gliders amid all of these beautiful giant scale birds...but a funny thing happened, we touched a chord that resonnated with the locals and a bunch of guys from the local R/C club in Salem got their first taste of aerotowing...and they liked it!
A Site For Soar Eyes
7 years ago Terry and I said We need to have an Aerotow event at the SKSS
We screwed around trying to Aerotow at the field resulting in many lost planes
At one point we got it and it was time to schedule the first A.T
The first A.T at the SKSS was a blast
Steve P was there with no Len
After the first published reports on that other site I got an email from Len asking Me about the Graupner Taxi electric I had
Next it was LASS's turn and there was Len, He had this huge 4m LOL
We had a great time and that's what got the ball rolling
Now look where We are
Thanks to Terry , Charlie , Len ,Alex both Steve's and many more that got the ball rolling
Chas
New England was a fantastic time....
We were asked so many times "Who sponsors you guys". And the answer is still the same, we do it for the fun, to try and help others enjoy aerotowing....
Be a Rock Star
Fly a 2-33
Amen Charlie, didn't mean to leave anyone out of the story...the point is, you don't have to have high dollar equipment to start and if you come here and ask for some advice, you can avoid the pitfalls and be successful without a lot of bumps and bruises.
A Site For Soar Eyes
I remember showing up at the LASS event with a 3.4m B-4 Pilatus, and a giant 4m Discus. I must say, this was my first aerotow and I was very nervous. Alex was very welcoming as was Charlie, SteveR and SteveP.
After getting the nerve up to fly my little B-4, I really wanted the Discus to fly, but I was not comfortable flying it. Then I met Erich, I asked him to maiden it and he did. The first tow went bad at about 200 ft and he had to bail out. He was able to get it back to the soft rye grass, then the second tow, one spoiler popped up and made the flight a bit interesting. Erich mad it back to the field and we repaired the spoiler, but the battery ( yes ONE battery ) was going down so we opted to put it away and save it for another day. I learned a ton that day, and with the help and encouragement from all those guys, I went to JR the next month and flew the pants off that Discus.
Charlie showed me how to set up a tug, Erich talked with me about sailplane towing and spoiler usage, SteveP stood with me through a few of my first tows, and I also remember Dave Harris showing off his Jr 12X transmitter and all its cool features.
Now, does anybody know where that Discus is now?
LEN
It's not complicated, bigger is better.
Awe Jim no probs, Just looking back reminiscingOriginally Posted by JimD
I use my radian with no motor and a tow release to train the young ins at the field , All thanks to you!
I need one of those shirts please!
Our angle is this, if we can get local R/C clubs (that don't even have soaring on their radar screen) to start an aerotow team within their ranks with a simple Telemaster 40 tow plane and some Easy Gliders, we think that they will quickly want to move on to the next level (at least some of them). This will build the base, increase demand, and result in more and better product offerings for pilots at all levels.
Aerotowing is a team effort, one guy can't do it by himself. Most R/C clubs are not used to flying as a team and tend to find aerotowing a novel way to enjoy flying. With aerotowing, you don't need a perfect soaring site to fly sailplanes. As a matter of fact, a lot of the fun is in the towing and landing.
Image local clubs all over the world starting small aerotowing teams and planting the seeds of growth in the sport!
A Site For Soar Eyes
...and it should say: "SKSS Aero Towing Team"Now get out there and start recruiting team members!
A Site For Soar Eyes
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