Steve

Barger

, Ohio

, United States

Posted on
2020-02-19 11:48:15
“I am 63 years old and have been flying model planes for over 50 years. I have in the past been an AMA member primarily for magazine and info before the internet. I have never been a member of a club. My primary interest is in rc soaring primarily with a high start and more recently electric. I fly on my property. I fly thermal driven flights, My launch altitude is 300 ft from their I hope to go up if not all I am doing is looking for my landing options. Flights like this are usually less than 6 minutes, however on a good day I can go up and dance around the clouds and flights can be 30 minutes to an hour and 30 minutes altitude is not measured but I doubt that I exceed 2000 ft because of my eyes and nerve. I don’t want to lose my planes and have never had a flyaway. I am not a wealthy man. I cannot afford all the latest greatest new toys all of my stuff is old and reliable. In the early days when the transition came with the frequency issues I bought new equipment and old the old wide spectrum is on the shelf. I flew a heathkit in 70’s and it is on shelf. I now fly balsa withs spectrum radio. The rapid development of the hobby and equipment has allowed anyone to fly this is a good and a bad thing. The world is full of all kinds of people most of which could give a damn about building a wooden airplane launching it with a big rubber band and flying amongst the clouds for hours. I dont have the answers I do have a bag of kites and several thousand feet of dacron line that was my pleasure before I could afford RC. I live in cornfield country my airspace is occupied with buzzards, ultralights, gyrocopters and private ga pilots some of which are friends. Many of these fly below 400 feet. The sheriff looking for dope in the cornfields are at much less altitude. I will fly the way I have until a can’t fly any longer then I will dream of flying. Sorry but thanks for letting me rant.”