Events are listed at the bottom of this page...
Spring /Summer 2010
I was intending to update the news for the website before this but it somehow kept being put off. However on a cold and wet Saturday afternoon with nothing better to do I decided to pen a few notes to bring everyone up to date with happenings at the club although with most people out of hibernation you should all be pretty much in the picture.
First of all, a change to the committee. Neil Rochelle who took over the secretary’s job at the AGM unfortunately had to leave the area suddenly due to domestic reasons. He has moved too far away for him to come and fly so he had no option but to resign. Neil had also taken over the membership secretary duties but Bill Kent stepped in and offered to take on this job and the website will soon be amended to reflect this together with Bill’s contact details. This means that we don’t have a secretary at the present time and in truth we don’t really need one as there is very little for a secretary to do the way the club is structured. However we would like another member on the committee to provide back up should the worst happen to one of us so if anyone would like to volunteer I would be pleased to hear from you.
One of the things Neil was looking in to was the feasibility of us hosting the now defunct Pillerton Hersey Fly in at our site. However we have decided to drop this with his departure as I will be away on the date that was proposed so perhaps we may look at it another year. I have heard that there is a possibility of the NOMAC club hosting it but this is not confirmed.
We will be putting on the club BBQ on 4th July. Come and fly if you wish but nothing will be organised, it will just be flying off the peg as usual if you want to. We will light the fire around midday and like last year, bring your own food and family/friends and cook whenever you like. Last year the weather was perfect and we had a cracking day so fingers crossed for the same conditions this year. If the forecast looks dire we will postpone it to the next weekend.
The winter/spring weather was perfect for our runways. We got the first cut and roll the day before 2 or 3 weeks of continuous rain which suited it perfectly and I think they are the best we have had them. As far as the runway extension is concerned this is on hold at the present time. Following the death of our landlord last year the ownership of the farm effectively changed hands. However his will is now being challenged and the result of this may mean that there could be some changes to the way the farm is run. Whatever the outcome of this is it will make no difference to our lease or use and our future there is secure. What it may make a difference to is the use or non use of the rest of the field. At the present time the part of the field that we don’t use is registered as a wildlife haven and the area we use was taken out of that. Until the will is settled the owner is reluctant to disturb the status quo so we must abide by that and take things as they come. As soon as the situation becomes clearer we will pursue it again.
It has been good to see so many new aeroplanes this year and particularly scale ones. One or two have been built from kits and plans so perhaps real modelling is making a comeback. Stand by for another increase in modelling costs as the pound sinks against the dollar and this will inevitably result in an increase in ARTF models as they are all paid for in dollars. One way of keeping costs down is by shopping around and I’m sure that no one who regularly shops at Giant Cod was at all surprised to hear that Rob had been rewarded by being voted RCM&E’s mail order dealer of the year for 2009 The only place cheaper is Hobby City itself and depending on the postage even that is close. If you get hit for duty you save nothing.
The message I got from the AGM was that you wanted a no fuss club with no politics, good runways and interference free flying and I hope we are succeeding in giving you that. I am open to any suggestions you may have regarding the running of the club. We are in a position to do whatever anyone wants but over and above what you are already getting will require some additional input so bear this in mind if you come forward with anything.
On the same theme, I know it is a bit early mentioning this but we would like to organise some indoor flying next winter. None of the other clubs in the area seem prepared or interested in doing this and indeed when we last did it the interest was sporadic to say the least. For us to consider it we would need to know there would be sufficient interest to make it worthwhile and it would have to be self supporting as we could not expect the majority to subsidise a minority interest. A sports hall would be too expensive unless we were prepared to fly at really unsocial hours so we would be looking to a school gym in the local area. It wouldn’t have to be too large as I can fly a heli and my micro indoor in a double garage. If you know of a venue and equally if you are interested in indoor flying next winter let me know. If there is enough response we’ll put the wheels into motion.
Don’t forget the BBQ on 4th July
See you there
John
Events...
If anyone has news of any upcoming events they think others would be interested in please let me paulvertical5000@yahoo.co.uk know the dates and i will post them here for all to see, Thanks.
The Club BBQ will hopefully be held on the 4th of July this year weather permitting, more details to follow.
Wing & Wheels Spectacular on the 26th-27th of June, just about the biggest show of the year with everything from planes to tanks and normally a few Daleks from Dr Who, this is icredibly well supported by Traders and some of the best pilots in the world and there is a massive bring & buy on both days so if you have any old models or bits lying around you dont want anymore take them along and sell them while you look around.
Club nights will be every thursday from the first week in April.