Kirk's 2006 R/C Season

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[Combat Planes] [Florida] [FSA] [Detroit] [Dixie] [Ohio] [Nationals] [FSA] [Florida] [FSA] [Salisbury 1 & 2 -- NEW!]

2006 is Kirk's fifth season flying R/C combat. This year he will be competing in Open B, 2610 ("scale"), SSC and a few rounds of a provisional scale class known as 2548.

For B class, Kirk flies the "Mongoose" which he and Kelly designed. For SSC, he flies his own design called a Rapier with a .15 Magnum engine. More information about the Rapier can be found at the MidAtlanticCombat site. In 2610 scale, Kirk is flying his own design of a Blackburn Firebrand.

Kirk's scratch-built Firebrand Kirk's Mongoose


FSA

This contest had B and SSC at the local field. Kirk flew well and finished first in both events. Luckily the weather held, with only a minor spritz of rain during the afternoon. Kelly took second place in both classes. Michael flew combat for the first time, trying out SSC.

Kelly with an SSC plane after a mid-air. Just after a mid-air. The debris is still falling. Open B action against some lovely clouds. L-R: Kelly, Jerry & Kirk preparing to launch. Kirk's Mongoose after a mid-air. Kirk's Mongoose with streamers; Dave launching late; Michael watching the action. All Rapiers in SSC.


Florida

This was a two day event in West Palm Beach, at a field in a park that was created on top of a closed landfill. It was Kirk's first contest of the year, since an earlier local event was cancelled due to rain. After shaking off some rust early on, Kirk flew well and finished first in B and in scale. Both days had variable cloud cover, and on Sunday, there was some kind of small brown lizard running through our shade canopy and then hanging out on the safety fence in front of our tent.

The Open B pilots. Mid-air damage to one of Kirk's B planes. Kirk's red Mongoose and Drew (pictured)'s electric-powered plane in action. Kirk accepting the Open B award from Chris. The scale pilots. The lizard. A bird flies through the combat zone during scale. Kirk flying his Firebrand (on left). Kirk accepting the award for 2610 from Chris.


Detroit

This was a two day event outside of Detroit. Kirk competed in SSC, Open B and some of Limited B before we had to get on the road home. It was unexpectedly cold and windy, and there weren't any pilots photos. Kirk finished 2nd in Open B and 3rd in SSC.

Kirk's Rapier and part falling after a mid-air. Kirk's plane during Limited B action.



This was a two day event north of Atlanta. Kirk had some so-so luck and flying and ended up fourth in Open B. He flew much better the second day and finished first in SSC and 2610 Scale. This was a really fun contest, and features the first photos from the new camera.

The Open B pilots. The SSC and 2610 pilots. Kirk's Firebrand getting a cut. Kirk's red SSC Rapier in a mid-air with Drew's electric plane. A mid-air in SSC - This is a 'full size' image. Chris' scale plane after a mid-air. A severe scale mid-air with Drew and Chris H. Pilots and judges during a heat. Steve and Mark kidding around. Michael getting a cut on Kirk in SSC. SSC action. Chris S's scale plane. The 2610 winners, L-R: Chris S, Kirk, Chris H. The SSC winners, L-R: Kirk, Steve, Dave.



Two clubs in Ohio held a coordinated event, with SSC on Saturday at one field and Open B on Sunday at the second field. Kirk placed second in SSC and third in Open B. We tried some different settings with the camera in an attempt to fix some of the issues from the previous event. Unfortunately the new settings ended up being a bad idea, resulting in many unusable photos. The SSC event was held at a field located on part of a Mennonite farm over the soybean field. There wasn't a pilots photo at the B event.

SSC
The SSC pilots. Kirk's Rapier landing, taken at 12x optical zoom. Kirk in pursuit of another cut. Jay Fromm in his 'Combat Emperor' costume. Bill Geipel shows off his eyes, while others prepare to start their engines. Bob L. returning with his plane. Close flying in SSC. Mark S. pursuing Kirk. Mike Fredricks took first place. Kirk was second. Mark S. placed third. Bill Geipel was fourth. Mark C. placed fifth.


Open B
Part of the flight line. Don V. prepares to launch Keith's plane. Mike F. going for a cut on Kirk. Mark S. and Mike F. examine Mark's damaged header pipe. A cut in progress. Jay with his daughters and Mark S's son. Kirk and Mike F. Open B action.



Nats was a four day event with five different classes flown. Kirk's father came out for much of the event. The weather was iffy early on, but visibility increased each day (as did the heat). Kirk flew ok, but was a bit hot and cold. He finished 2nd in 2610 scale; 3rd in SSC, Open B and 2548 scale; 11th in Limited B -- partly because of mid-airs taking out his best planes for that class. This was Kirk's first time flying his new Hurricane, built for 2548. At the pizza party and ceremony, Kirk received awards for his placement in the 2005 NPS standings: 1st in Open B, 2nd in 2610, and 3rd in SSC.

The 2610 pilots. Some very close 2610 action. The Open B pilots. Kirk's B plane after a severse mid-air. Kirk's Firebrand, top, with streamers. Another damaging Open B mid-air. Yet another mid-air in B. More carnage in B, but not Kirk's plane at least. Kirk accepting his award in 2610. Kirk accepting his award in Open B. SSC action. Kirk with his Dad and the new Hurricane. The Hurricane. The 2548 pilots. An unusual full-scale plane that flew over the field. Kirk accepting one of his 2005 NPS awards from Ed. The Hurricane at the end of the event. The SSC pilots. SSC action. Kirk going for a cut in SSC. Two Zeros in 2548. 2548 action. 2548 action. 2548 action -- Kirk on far right.

A 2548 mid-air, in three parts -- these pictures were all taken one right after the other



This was a one day event at Kirk's home field, with SSC and Open B flown. Kirk flew well and took first in both classes. A photographer from the local weekly paper attended, although we don't know if any of his photos will be published.

Micheal and Dave. Rob and Chris. Kirk launches, while the Laurel Leader photographer works. B action - Kirk on left, Chris on right. Chris getting a cut in B. Kirk and Micheal just after a mid-air in SSC. Kirk just misses a cut on Dave in SSC.



This was a two day event, with B and 2610 scale classes flown. Kirk flew well and took first place in both. The space shuttle launched while we were at the contest, and we were able to see the orange ball of flames from the rockets. Kirk took some damage in B, but his scale gear came through intact. There was a scale pilots photo, but it was so humid out that the camera lens was fogged over and didn't get the shot.

The Open B pilots. Kirk's B plane being center-punched. The pilots and judges gather around the wreckage. The damage to the wing. Foam shower. The wing, minus foam. Kirk flying in the valley. Close, but no cut for the flying wing. The B winners. Kirk's Firebrand being pursued. Chris documenting the demise of one of his twin Mustangs. Scale action. The scale winners.



This was a one day event with eight rounds of SSC. It rained in the morning, stopped just long enough to fly, and then resumed raining during the clean-up. Kirk flew well and placed first. Sam and his son Nick attended, and Nick flew his first combat contest. He did very well, placing third. Chris ran out of planes early in the event, so he flew one of Kirk's back-ups for much of the contest.

Kirk getting a cut on Nick. Chris and Kirk tumbling after a mid-air. Nick with a cut. Kelly flying with a big loop of drag. Nick and Sam. Kirk getting another cut on Nick. Kirk, Chris and Kelly - flying 3 damaged planes. Kirk's damaged plane - and the rain coming.



The first Salisbury event was a one day event with six rounds of SSC. It was extremely windy, which kept scores down and made flying more difficult. Kirk placed first, and only damaged one airplane.

Part of the flight line. Sam starting Nick's plane. Part of the flight line. Kirk's Rapier just after making a cut. Walking back from investigating the 6' snake on the bridge over the drainage ditch. Kirk going after Nick. Stuck in a tree. SSC action.


Salisbury 2

The second Salisbury event was a one day event with six rounds of SSC. The weather was cool, but sunny and with a much lighter wind. Kirk placed first of seven pilots. His planes took some damage, including one that crashed into the very wet drainage ditch (which runs through the over-fly area) after a mid-air.

The pilots. Kirk and James' planes coming down. Kirk working on the plane that went into the ditch - note the water. SSC action. Nick and Sam. Kirk's Rapier has some spar damage after a mid-air. Another view. Getting ready to start. Micheal preparing to launch. Drying out a plane that landed in the water. The pilots with their awards.


More info after the next contest.