The PDQ Flying Clown winners with their models. (L to R) Bill Bishoff, Mike Greb, Chuck Barnes Sr, Chuck Barnes Jr.
By Paul Gibeault
" Bring on the clowns, I say." was heard early this morning over the PA. Under good weather with light winds, the three PDQ Flying Clown race teams headed off to the flying circle.
On a historical note, this scribe flew in the NW competitions in the very early days. This event originated in the Pacific Northwest many years ago when Joe Just of Waitsburg, WA thought it would be great fun to race this unique design. His idea was to feature a race class with up to .19-powered engines (which is what Joe had at the time). This 1950s-vintage Matt Kania model was kitted by the PDQ Products company. Most racers started out using the popular Fox .15 engine. Little did Joe know, this entry-level race class would become enormously popular all over North America and even Europe! The NCLRA noticed how much fun the northwest racers were having, and before long, made it an AMA Nats event. The Clown racers have been having fun ever since!
A main difference in Clown racing is that it has a 1-ounce tank restriction and is scored on the most laps flown in 7.5-minute heats. Engines with superior fuel economy have an edge by virtue of having to do fewer pit stops. Today, many racers use the popular O.S. 18 TZ converted buggy engine. It is very powerful and yet, it has acceptable range. It is the best of both worlds.
The first heat race featured Bischoff/Greb team with an excellent score of 110 laps, versus Chuck Barnes Jr./Bob Oge team, who gave up with engine trouble after only 34 laps. The second heat saw Bischoff/Greb improve to 116 laps versus the Barns Jr./Oge team improving greatly and posting a 109-lap score.
The last heat saw Chuck Barnes Sr. retire with major engine trouble and he was not able to start. There was only one race incident, where Mike Greb missed a catch and the model hit his ankle, caving in the leading edge of Bill's model. After the smoke had cleared, it was Bill Bischoff/Mike Greb in first (116 laps), the Barnes Jr. team in second (109 laps), and Barnes Sr. team (DNS) in third place.
Today's AMA Super Slow Rat event began with five teams entered. The week's perfect weather was interrupted by being somewhat breezy, but still quite flyable. The first heat saw Mike Greb winning (5:56) over Chuck Barnes Sr. with a 6:36. The second heat saw Mike improving with a 5:43:31 while Chuck posted a slower 6:51. Heat three saw Bill Bischoff posting a troubled 6:22 versus Bob Oge, who posted a DNF. Heat four saw Bill posting a much improved 5:42:80 while Oge finished with a troubled 7:24. In the last heat, five Chuck Barnes flew a solo 6:35, with traffic, then improved to a 6:09.
In the end, Bill Bischoff just edged out Mike Greb by a scant half a second! Talk about close! Third place was nabbed by Chuck Barnes Sr., with Chuck Jr. coming in fourth, and Bob Oge in fifth place.
And that is all she wrote folks!
This year’s Racing High Point Championship was awarded to a well-deserving Bill Bischoff. The award was presented by foreign correspondent and Race Media Relations reporter, Paul Gibeault. After the racing festivities were concluded, NCLRA President Bill Bischoff organized a fine pizza dinner. Pizza and drinks ordering and delivery was graciously volunteered by Bill Lee. There was a brief NCLRA meeting chaired by Bill Bischoff. It was decided to host the same schedule of events for next year’s Nats. All current NCLRA officers and district representatives were to remain unchanged for the next two years. Next year’s Nats are estimated to be held one week later to avoid going through the July 4th holiday. The schedule of events will remain the same. See y'all next year!
