[Quadzimodo]

Looks great... anyone want to write a summary of how it went?? Any lessons learnt for next time??

I was just about to pull the SD card from my Phantom and look at the footage from today when I saw your message. I also have some DVR footage which I can upload when I get to it.

All went extremely well I think. Dave was happy just to have the day go off without a hitch.

Bob was indispensable, as usual. First there in the morning, diligently managing parking as the cars piled in and generally being a proactive watcher of all things; stepping in to assist wherever possible. I was still (rather foolishly) screwing around updating PCs and installing RAM at 4:40 this morning and somehow put my head down without setting an alarm, waking up to a great fright at 8:57am; when I had agreed to let Dave in at 8am. Dave didn't even bother calling me, because Bob was there from 7am. I arrived 25-minutes after waking to find the track complete and the pilots commencing the circuit briefing. Thank you Bob for saving my skin and helping the day go so smoothly.

Frankly, our field is far from ideal for such competitive racing. Dryer ground really is a necessity as it would afford the pilots far more comfort and allow the circuit to be pushed further south. I really wasn't happy with the separation between the track and the pilots/spectator area along the northern treeline. This aspect simply must be improved if we are to do this again. The close proximity between the pilot area (mostly netted) and the start/finish gate made for some exciting experiences. Having said that, the guys maintained excellent discipline throughout the day ensuring people were behind the flight line when pilots were in the air and keeping pilots out of the air while people were on the circuit.

A number of the pilots commented about how (I am paraphrasing) out of their element they felt flying above such swampy ground. As with all fpv racing events, there were consistent crash outs throughout the day. Many fell on relatively dry ground, others ended up in the quagmire; with the result ranging from unscathed to completely submerged and out for the day.

A number of our boys turned up, but none of us flew. The schedule of heats and classes was extensive, with racing beginning by 10am and running continuously until after 5pm. Unfortunately I lost my main 250 sized quad to the bottom of a mountain lake last weekend, so had nothing suitable to race. I did fill a gap on the start line in two beginner heats towards the end of the day with my tiny little 90mm micro, but didn't get far from takeoff due to lack of RX range and talent.

It was a good turnout; so much so that we would have made a few hunge extra if we had snags and water to offer. Maccas on Abbott Road was the solution for many. All wonderful people though. Great culture, everyone lovely, very friendly atmosphere. I think our youngest pilot was 15 and the oldest around 60. Nice to see so many people there.

The biggest and perhaps only major disappointment was the fact that council chose today to catch up on the mowing. With us in there and the track set up so early our field missed out on a much needed mow.

Bump out was quick, with a relatively thorough cleanup possible just before we lost light. Barry, Bob and I shut the gate in the dark. A fun day had by all.