Re: The Problems with Indoor FF from Bill Gowen on 2009-06-02 ([Indoor

From: Bill Gowen <b.gowen_at_comcast.net>
Date: Tue, 2 Jun 2009 12:24:43 -0400

Here's a not so optimistic view of the future.

Van Dover told me that the AMA is trying to kill the indoor NATS. He also told me that the District V VP (my district) was in favor of this idea. I don't know what will happen but I can say that the attendance this year was really sad. In F1M (well supported and growing in past years) there were only 3 people who flew.

Clearly this trend has to change. If it doesn't, then we might find the Nationals being held in a Cat 1 gym somewhere not too far in the future.

  ----- Original Message -----
  From: Don DeLoach
  To: Indoor_Construction_at_yahoogroups.com
  Sent: Tuesday, June 02, 2009 1:11 AM
  Subject: [Indoor_Construction] The Problems with Indoor FF

  Don,

  How would you describe the average indoor flyer? Progressive? Forward-thinking?

  Not *all* hardcore indoor FF modelers are exclusive-leaning old farts, but most seem to be. But, no matter, my original point remains: The indoor FF community needs to get on board with the larger community of Free Flighters/NFFS. There is strength in numbers, with AMA, FAI, the magazines, the public, the mass media etc. Indoor FF-the smallest of all of the tiny factions of aeromodeling--is on the thinnest of ice. Would you not agree?

  "Don't touch!" "Slow down!" "Control your kids!" The average person off the street visiting an indoor FF meet must feel like a visitor in an asylum. Weird-looking, high-strung people telling me where to stand and how fast to walk. I'm outta here! Indoor FF will never survive unless its leaders work quickly to turn this absurdly introverted culture around. This is not why we "do" Indoor. We do it to have fun playing with toy airplanes!

  Some evidence that indoor FF is generally very obscure and exclusive, and by this very nature quite unappealing to the mass market:

  --in the old days the average Free Flighter was also an Indoor flyer in the winter months. Nowadays the big indoor meets are held in the summer, when 90% of Free Flight activity is outdoors. Scratch most of your target market.

  --virtually every indoor event has been loopholed to death and taken over by expert flyers. The only remaining rays of light are A-6 and LPP, and perhaps F1L. Two of those three are not AMA events. Is the ICB doing its job or just protecting old turf? Bottom line is there's the perception that most indoor competition events are the dominion of esoterics and experts. Negative perception equals non-participation. "Let's see, maybe I'll try badminton."

  --Many Indoor FF models are generally too challenging for the average non asylum-dweller to construct, let alone have fun doing so. How many Intermediate Sticks, R.O.G. cabins, and HL Sticks are there left in the Universe? A dozen?

  --How many people on the planet are capable of building a competitive (sub-0.5 gram) Easy B? Easy B is now the cautionary tale for indoor rule-making. The 0.6 gram minimum weight rule was a ray of light but soundly defeated by the turf-guarders on the ICB.

  --the prohibition on high tech materials in many of the indoor events has now backfired on the rules-makers of the 1970s/80s. Boron/carbon would make Easy B, Ministick, and other events infinitely easier to construct and adjust. A lot easier than hoarding 100s of sheets of stiffness-tested balsa!

  --there has got to be an honest discussion about the BOM rule in indoor FF. For some events it makes sense, absolutely. But, in all events? Has a recent survey been done of active indoor flyers on the BOM rule?

  --there has got to be more cooperation with slow-fly RC clubs who are doing a heckuva lot more flying than we are and are growing by leaps and bounds. Many sites don't permit simultaneous FF and RC, but some do.

  I wonder how many people know the largest Free Flight contest-by far-in history just took place last month.and it was an indoor contest Actually, there were 617 qualifying contests in virtually every country on Earth, which culminated in the World Championships where the top 253 contestants competed head to head. The total number of registered contestants worldwide was 37,017. There were no ballons, boron or May '99 in use and the average age of contestants was in the mid-twenties

  Any guesses?

  Don D.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  From: Indoor_Construction_at_yahoogroups.com [mailto:Indoor_Construction_at_yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Don Slusarczyk
  Sent: Monday, June 01, 2009 6:45 PM
  To: Indoor_Construction_at_yahoogroups.com
  Subject: Re: [Indoor_Construction] Indoor FF team

  Perhaps just living up to the label you branded all indoor modelers, something along the lines of "old farts" where "EXCLUSIVITY" reigns. Maybe that has something to do with it.

  Don

  Why the "us versus them" attitude?



------------------------------------------------------------------------------

  No virus found in this incoming message.
  Checked by AVG - www.avg.com
  Version: 8.5.339 / Virus Database: 270.12.50/2150 - Release Date: 06/02/09 06:47:00
Received on Tue Jun 02 2009 - 09:24:46 CEST