The late Rob Romash captured this image of Joshua Finn with his Cabin model at the 2021 Nats.
By Matthew Neumann
The Indoor Free Flight (FF) events of the 100th AMA Nats will be contested at the Reimagine Recreation sports complex in Pontiac. Michigan. David Lindely, the National Free Flight Society president, speaks highly of the venue staff’s warm welcome during the planning process and as flyers begin to gather. Participants may drop off their boxes and set up their tables on the night of the 9th so they are ready to go when flying starts on July 10th.
The Human Element
One of the aspects of traveling to major contests that I’ve particularly enjoyed is catching up with old friends. I recently asked Ray Harlan what he recalled about his early involvement in the Nats. He lit up as he told me about placing second in ½A FF as a Junior at the 1953 Nats in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. He said when he returned home, he and another boy were praised for their performance in the local papers. The papers said his contemporary had one Cabin with a time of 18 seconds. Ray thought to himself, “I can do better than that.” Indoor events were flown at a separate venue then, as they are today. So, without ever seeing an indoor contest before, Ray decided he was going to win next year. He aged into the Senior category and won C-Stick the following year at Lakehurst, NJ.
A Bit of History
The first Nats was held in 1926 in St. Louis, Missouri. AROG and Cabin are among the oldest events still flown without significant changes to the rules. The AROG rules were solidified sometime between 1927 and 1930, per Joshua Finn’s research. The Stout Trophy has been awarded to the Cabin National Champion since 1925.
