July 27, 2021: Outdoor Free Flight

By Rick Pangell

Mulvihill … Mulvihill flew all three age groups of Adult, Senior, and Junior for a wonderful showing.  Junior Caleb Finn flew for 439 for first with Skilly DeLoach, Beckham Reuter, and Wes Reuter following suit.  Senior Hailey Mattson topped William Reuter for first.

For Adult, a special treat was there.  Gerald Brown won first place over 14 other competitors … and three sisters, all granddaughters of the originator of the Mulvihill trophy. They were on hand to present the Mulvihill trophy to Gerald for winning first place! 

A few months, back the NFFS President Dave Lindley received a phone call from one of the sisters and she asked him if he knew anything about Mulvihill.  Well, it’s probably the oldest trophy award, starting in 1923.

And what a special treat it was to have all three women to actually present their grandfather’s award again after all these years!!  A very exciting and emotional experience for all.

In F1Q, the International Electric-Powered event, eight competitors launched their models into the Muncie sky with hopes of becoming the 2021 National champion.

At the end of seven rounds of flying, two were tied for the Championship, Mike Richardson and Muncie’s own Bob Sifleet.  A winner-takes-all flyoff at the end of the day did provide  a champion with a late day max, Mike Richardson.

F1C had only one flier, Faust Parker, with his folder.  What a sight.  The model resembles a cross in a perfect vertical climb with a bunt over into an opening of the wings for a really impressive sight.  Faust flew 5 rounds yielding a score of 855.

Faust Parker.

F1H, the smaller version of towline glider, had 6 fliers including Junior Wes Reuter.  Adult Mike Fedor took first, Jim Parker second, and Brian Van Nest third.  Competition was good with only 31 seconds separated the top 3 fliers.

The noisy gas folks in C Gas are impressive.  The top 3 fliers in order were Guy Menanno, Scott Lapriak, and Neal Menanno.  The two Menanno brothers frequently fly head to head in these gas events and it usually results with one ending on top. This time Guy topped Scott and Neal with a whopping 198 second margin.

ROW.  This is one event that is hard to describe.  The model must “float” on its own on three floats and then with the engine running, lift off the water on its own and fly. Sounds simple, right? 

Well, sometimes the magic just doesn’t go your way and the consequences can be disappointing … but really fun to watch. 

Gentle, gentle ...

Will it float?

It floats!

Dan Berry won the event with a 282 and Mike Fedor followed with a 242.   Former NFFS President, John Lorbiecki flew to third place! To quote Dan when receiving the first place award … “TheFfree Flight sport of kings.”  Well maybe not quite that noticeable, but fun anyway.  Then when you thought it was safe to enter the water, Chuck Powell shows up with an ROW  RUBBER(!) model.  Chuck flew a respectable 237, being the only entry.

Dan Berry. Photo by Rachelle Haughn.

In A NOS gas, with 13 fliers posting scores, Neal Menanno went 12 maxes for 1200 seconds and Gene Smith only 40 seconds behind for second and Larry Davidson for third.

Jetex, a traditional event for since the early years  had four fliers with Chris Matsuno winning again with two maxes, Bobby Hanford was in second and Jon Reuter and Bill Reuter added to the roll. 

Sadly, Jetex is not a readily available event with the lack of fuel and igniter wicks. Those who have a collection of items needed, cherish them.  And it is a challenging event to fly.  All higs have to be working together and the model has to be nicely trimmed beforehand.

The One Design has been an event with rising popularity too. This event has been around for quite some time with the number of eligible models increasing. With all of our models collecting hangar rash in our shops, there is usually one that will be able to be flown in the event. Seven fliers posted scores, with Roger Erridge besting the pack with 335 seconds with the top five being within 31 seconds.

Skilly DeLoach.

OT Rubber Cabin has its traditional entries, nine in all.  Ed Sneed scored 528 seconds with second place, Ted Allenbone at 360, and third and fourth were all within 20 seconds.

Wrapping up the day, the heavily contested OT Catapult Glider event had the usual intrigue of flyers all milling around the edge of the pen, and when one flier would jump in and put up an official … the staring of that “leader” was crucial. Did they find air?  If so we all need to launch!!!  21 fliers gave us no disappointment, with George Dalecki posting a respectable 353 and the top three fliers within 30 seconds.

Again, full results (scores) are available online at: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/e/2PACX-1vQvK5AG4nak53UDqXsc-1yYwALglL6jGa5KE6qemd4m9v4Xqp5HYrJp9DFx2qhrqZ2tYgnGQnaYuM7r/pubhtml?gid=379879557&single=true

Concerned Daddy, Don DeLoach.

Dave O'Reilly.

Gerald Brown, C Nos Gas.

Getting all set up.

Guy Menanno.

Hank Sperzel showing a new style of walker.

Packed up.

Serious blast tube for Unlimited Rubber.

Unlimited Twin Fin.

Yes, Dad.

See more photos from the Outdoor Free Flight Nats at https://www.flickr.com/photos/modelaircraft/albums.

This airplane flew into a pole and got stuck. Photo by Dohrman Crawford.

ROW winners.