“I did Model Rockets and Control Airplanes as a kid in the late 1960’s to 70’s. Always wanted to get into RC Planes, but the cost was out of my range at that time. In the Fall of 1996 my wife, son, and I moved from a city in Indiana, to several miles out into the country, of a small town. Our home was on 2 acres, surrounded on all 4 sides by farm fields. I chose the place, because it had the right conditions to get into the RC Plane hobby, that I always dreamed of doing. Within a few months of moving in, I was to a Hobby Shop in the city, buying a Plane Kit, Engine, and Radio, to get started in the hobby. I tilled and then graded two dirt Runways for the Planes in our back yard. One was around 90′ long running North to South, the other around 150′ running East to West. Not having been in the hobby before, I didn’t know how small of an area that was to take-off, and especially to land on. But my Son 10 years old at the time, and myself, made do with what we had. My Son doing much better then me. Then a couple of years later the Farm Land to the East of our property, and behind us to the North went up for auction. They broke it up into 3 Plats, with one of the Plats being a 9 1/2 acre Plat that went down our East side, and behind to the North. With signs up advertising the up coming auction, lots of people would stop and walk the fields looking over the land. The property had woods at the far north end, and I saw people walking back in front of the woods, and I could tell they were thinking of buying the 9 1/2 acres, and building a house in front of the woods. If that happened, that would end us flying off our little runways, and flying over the fields at the time that surrounded us. I was on a mission, that I had to get that 9 1/2 acres. I had never been to an auction before, and there were lots of people there. It came so very close, but I won the bid on the Plat I wanted. So now we have around 11 1/2 acres, and our property is still surrounded on all 4 sides by farm fields, because the remaining two Plats purchased, are still being farmed. After the field on the land I purchased was harvested in the Fall, I had a large pond dug in front of the woods. Because I like ponds, and the pond could also be used for Float planes. The next Spring I started working the new acquired land, and making 2 large grass Runways. One 400′ X 30′ running North to South, and my main Runway used 376′ X 35′ running East to West. They made a big difference in taking off and landing. My Son now a man still comes out occasionally and flies with me. He likes to design and build his own aircraft. He also has a Drone, and has at times filmed our flying from the Drone. I run my own business so I haven’t had a lot of time to spend at the hobby I love, but I’m now not that many years away from retiring, and was looking forward to spending much more time building and flying in this hobby. But now if the FAA Proposal goes through as written, I won’t be able to legally fly the Planes I want to build, on my own safe property, that I have invested so much money and time in, for this very hobby. I have no plans to pay club fees, and have to load all my Planes, and every possible other item I might need into a vehicle, and then have to drive to some other location, and wait my turn to fly. That is why I didn’t get into the hobby earlier, and waited until I was able to acquire the right land to do so. So much for The Pursuit of Happiness.”