Newcomer to competition Chris Nicholls of Glide, Ore., flew his biplane in Navy Carrier events at the 49th Regionals. Flying Lines photo.
It was postponed in May of 2020 — then again in September of 2020 — then again in May of 2021 — then again in September of 2021. But, finally, the 49th Northwest Control-Line Regionals made its return to the contest circuit with 53 contestants accounting for 134 event entries over a successful Memorial Day Weekend.
The biggest challenge was weather, with periods of rain all three days and some wind on Saturday afternoon. But all events were completed, thanks to some strategic thinking by event directors who managed to keep one eye on the weather forecasts and get their flights in when possible. Adjustments in the Scale, Combat, Carrier and Stunt schedules made it all possible.
Attendance was down a bit from the 67 people who flew in 2019 — not surprising considering the pandemic, advance entries carried over from postponement years, and the weather forecast. But those who attended seemed to have a good time and many expressed eager anticipation for the 2023 Regionals. Paperwork is already underway with the city of Roseburg for the 2023 Regionals, which will be the contest's 50th, and the seventh of this stretch in Roseburg.
Weather was a challenge, causing competitors to cover up their airplanes on Saturday as rain and wind moved in. Nevertheless, all scheduled events took place. Flying Lines photo.
The work of putting on the Regionals was handled by the Eugene Prop Spinners, the Western Oregon Control-Line Flyers, the Umpqua Valley Modelers, Roseburg area control-line fliers and many individuals who volunteered as event directors and workers.
Chris Cox bested a field of 17 world-class competitors in Expert Precision Aerobatics, flying his 2019 Concours d'Elegance-winning Hellcat to a 4.5-point win over defending champ Paul Walker. Jim Aron's Systrema 2 captured the Concours honor this year as the most beautiful Stunt plane.
Field setup and teardown was again under the direction of Eugene Prop Spinners' President Mike Denlis, with strong worker support from the Prop Spinners, the Umpqua Valley Modelers and Roseburg control-line fliers, along with a number of contestants on Thursday and Sunday. Events were directed by Paul Walker (Aerobatics); Gene Pape (Combat); Mike Potter (Navy Carrier); Doug Powers (Racing); Walter Hicks (Scale); and Will Naemura (Speed). Registration and tabulation work was done by Robin Gearn and Barbara White.
Excellent lunches were provided by The Bun Stuffer food truck.
The contest offered trophy plaques through third place in all events, plus huge grand championship trophies in all events. An array of high-quality merchandise prizes was given away on a "door-prize" system, so every contestant came away with a good prize, win or lose.
The trophy and merchandise prizes were made possible in part by generous donations from Regionals contestants and supporters.
Trophy sponsors were: Dave and Angela Gardner, John Knoppi, Orin Humphries, the Northwest Fireballs, Don Chandler and Craig Bartlett. Merchandise donations came from Don Chandler, John Lickley, Northwest Skyraiders, Eugene Toy & Hobby, Bob Parker, John Knoppi, Steve Helmick and Chris Nicholls. Cash support was provided by Jim Aron, Craig Bartlett, Floyd Carter, Eric Conley, Flying Lines, John Knoppi, Jim Rhoades and Howard Rush, among others.
Elsewhere on the Flying Lines website, see updated Northwest standings, Northwest records and Regionals records.
Jim Aron's Systrema 2 won the Concours d'Elegance award for Precision Aerobatics airplanes, selected by a vote of the contestants. Here it is in flight on the way to a sixth-place finish. Flying Lines photo.
By Gene Pape
Another great year for Combat at the NW Regionals. The weather wasn’t perfect, but mostly OK, and turnout was low for many reasons, but those of us who attended had an opportunity to really enjoy ourselves.
While the largest entry in any single event was only seven, we had different winners in each of the five events. A huge thanks goes to Dave Lefever and Gary Weems for judging all weekend and to Doss Porter for judging Fast so Gary could enjoy some of the other events. Field prep turned out to be a huge ordeal this year when a very light shower came by, fusing all of the hay left by the city of Roseburg’s mower into a mess that our riding mower refused to mulch and blow off. Robert Smith and Gary Weems removed most of it by hand and Jim Corbett was finally able to finish it off with the mower. Thanks so much, guys.
Because of horrible weather forecasts for Saturday and Sunday, we tried to get in as much Combat as practical on Friday Starting with our largest entry event, Northwest 80 mph. Robert Smith and Russ Hester started out hot and won all of their first three matches, which left them as the only two contending for the win. Robert finished strong by beating Russ two in a row with John Knoppi placing third.
Half-A was not supposed to start until Saturday. With fairly nice weather and the forecast for Saturday threatening to be much worse, we decided to fly all but the final few matches on Friday. We left the final two matches for Saturday morning in case someone showed up and entered at the advertised time. Andy Prior won this one, beating Russ Hester with Jim Green placing third.
Vintage Combat started with a display on Saturday morning with appearance voting for models on display in the registration area. Ken Burdick’s T-Square, finished in the color scheme from the box, won this closely contested part of the event with John Thompson’s Sneeker done in clear dope over colored tissue second and Mike Hazel’s translucent red Monokote Sneeker third. There were many other very nice vintage models on display. Ken and Mike decided not to fly in the actual Combat part of the event. The Combat part of the event was flown with only two entries at the end of the day Friday with John Thompson beating Doss Porter for the battle of T-Square supremacy on the West Coast. This contest indicated the rules package I came up with was terrible and needs to be radically changed for next year. It was, however, great seeing two T-Squares briefly flying Combat.
As soon as we finished ½-A on Saturday, we went right into Northwest 15 Fast. The weather started out OK but got steadily worse until the wind made the final match of the day a disaster and we decided to postpone the final match until Sunday morning. Russ Hester won this one with Andy Prior second and Doss Porter placing third.
The weather held up much better than expected on Sunday and with only four entries in Fast we finished before noon for the first time I can remember. Jim Green won this one with Russ Hester second and Andy Prior placing third.
Here’s hoping the turnout is back up to normal next year. While there was a large interest in the Vintage event when the contest was originally planned for 2020 many of the people who were planning to enter the event were not able to make it to this year's event. I’m hoping to see a much larger turnout in Vintage next year and a much better rule package.
See you in 2023!
By Mike Potter
Watch this space for the event director's report.
Carrier deck action: Chris Nicholls starts the engine on his biplane while Mark Schluter holds. In the background are Event Director Mike Potter (at table) and timer Kris Millard. Flying Lines photo.
By Walter Hicks
This year's Scale event featured two first-time fliers, Jeral Godfrey and Gary Dowler. The other pilots were Orin Humphries and Pete Cunha.
There was one entry in Authentic Scale, which featured a unique aircraft a Boeing XP5B-1. This aircraft is now in the Oregon Air and Space Museum in Eugene. The model was flown well by Jeral Godfrey as well as being the winner of Authentic Scale. There were two entries in Profile Scale, Orin Humphries with his Beechcraft Staggerwing, which was a good flyer and placed first, closely followed in second place by Pete Cunha with his F8F Bearcat which also doubled as a Carrier airplane. Both flew well and it was very close scorewise.
Event director and judge Walter Hicks watches as Pete Cunha makes a Profile Scale flight with his Bearcat. Flying Lines photo.
By Will Naemura
It finally happened and the 2020/21/22 Northwest Regionals is now in the record book. The Speed event entry was above my expectation, but slightly lower than in past years. I would say that any lack of entries was overcome by the enthusiasm of just being together and the determination to post a decent flight.
As the event director, it seemed that I was always busy with someone on the circle, processing planes or just doing the normal chit-chat … oh, technical discussions….
I need to give a big shout-out and thank you to Doug Powers and Darrin Bishop from the Northwest Fireballs club for doing the majority of timing on Friday and Saturday. Their investment of time made the event much better as it allowed the competitors to focus on their equipment and to enjoy the social environment that was truly missed over the past years.
Jim Booker launches his Northwest Sport Jet Speed plane as Brad Anderson assists. Flying Lines photo.
On Friday, we started the official flying a bit earlier than planned because the weather was turning a bit misty. As usual, the 1/2-A Proto fliers were first up since it’s typically the calmest part of the day. As usual, Jerry Rocha put up a blazing fast time and set the pace for the rest of the field. Brad Anderson had some fast flights with Mel Rogers, Scott Newkirk, Paul Gibeault and Ken Burdick making up a tight but second tier of speeds. Mel, being a fairly new Speed competitor, was an inspiration of excitement as he took the counsel of the more experienced competitors and put the results on the board! It’s both interesting and encouraging to see the popularity of the 1/2A and F2D Proto events.
New Northwest Control-Line REGIONALS Records were set in FAI Speed at 178.68 mph by Paul Gibeault and F2D Proto at 111.97mph by Jerry Rocha. Jerry earned the Speed Grand Champion by winning five events (all that he entered!).
All of the results are posted in the overall Regionals report.
Now is the time to plan and prepare for the 50th Annual NW Regionals in May 2023! Hope to see ya there!
By Paul Walker
Stunt at the 2022 NW Regionals went off amazingly smooth. It is amazing considering the weather predictions for the three days of competition. Competition started Friday afternoon with Old-Time Stunt. Unfortunately, there were only two entrants. They completed their patterns, and it was time for others to practice for the next two days of competition.
As mentioned earlier, the weather for Saturday was to be very breezy. The Scale community wished to fly on Friday as opposed to Saturday, as their models do not fare well in the wind. Stunt gave up one of their allocated circles so they could fly. Just about on cue, Tim Just and Howard Rush arrived at the field after dinner and just before sunset to fly. They flew, and then Howard put a few practice flights in after sunset!
Joan Cox and Walter Hicks study Bruce Perry's Scarlet Witch during Precision Aerobatics appearance judging. Flying Lines photo.
Saturday weather was predicted to be winds at 10 to 20, with intermittent rain. Fortunately, it did not get much past 10, and with an occasional drizzle to make things interesting. After the pilots' meeting, flying started with Classic/Nostalgia 30. There were 12 entrants in Classic. The wind made it interesting for them, and there were many passes in the second round. Bruce Perry flew his Gordan Delaney-designed Two Much with two Aero Tiger .36 engines. It was the class of the event, and won easily.
Because the Scale crowd flew on Friday, the circle they were going to use was available, so Profile Stunt was flown concurrent with Classic. There were some struggles with the wind, though. Bob Welch had a twin profile Tigercat that was gorgeous. He bailed from his flight as the line tension got too high for his liking. Flying continued until all had either put in two flights, or opted for safety. Soon after completion of flying on Saturday, the wind did increase, and all flying for the day ceased.
Sunday was Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, and Expert Precision Aerobatics. The weather forcast was for light winds, but building to higher levels as the day progressed. Rain was also forcast. Flight orders were posted and the pilots' meeting was held. It was still surprising that after two days of competition, some did not know about the new entry into the cloverleaf. I guess paying attention in the pilots' meeting pays off! The planes were grouped and appearance scores were generated during the pilots meeting. This all happened during a nice drizzle. After the meeting, ballots were handed out for the Concours voting.
Flying was to start at 9:00, and right on cue it started raining. Flying was postponed for about half an hour, and started after it stopped. Most of the first round was in light drizzle with VERY minimal air movement. The second round commenced after lunch, and the wind started to build. This led to a number of bailouts and passes in the second round. Highlights of the day included Chris Cox winning the Northwest Regionals for the first time, David Shorts finally beating his dad Lanny for the first time, Dennis Nunes winning the Grand Champion Trophy for Stunt based on his placings in the events he flew and finally, Jim Aron winning the Concours trophy.
Thank you to all the helpers. They were:
Bruce Perry's Two Much, powered by two Aero Tiger .36 engines, makes the winning flight in Classic Stunt. Flying Lines photo.
Robert Smith (left) and John Knoppi battle it out in 1/2-A Combat. Flying Lines photo.
Sportsman Clown Race pilots at work in a three-up heat: From left, Leighton Mangels, Chris Nicolls, Ron Howell; in the background are timer Will Naemura (left) and pitman Doug Powers. Flying Lines photos.
Precision Aerobatics airplanes lined up for appearance judging. Flying Lines photo.
Mark Schluter launches Chris Nicholls' biplane for a Navy Carrier flight. Flying Lines photo.
Orin Humphries flies his Beech Staggerwing in Profile Scale. Flying Lines photo.
Classic Stunt planes are covered up as a squall passes through on Saturday. Flying Lines photo.
A new event in 2022 was Vintage Combat, which started with a static display. The T-Square in the foreground, by Ken Burdick, was the People's Choice award winner. Flying Lines photo.
Some other Vintage Combat planes were displayed but not entered in the competition. All those on display were Gene Pape's replicas of designs from the 1950s or 1960s, except the "nostalgia" 1985 Undertaker on the lower right by John Thompson. Flying Lines photo.
First of two 1/2-A Combat action shots: In this photo, John Knoppi's plane lines up for a kill against Russ Hester. Flying Lines photo.
A second or two later, the floatding streamer indicates that John scored the kill. Flying Lines photo
Bruce Perry flies his Scarlet Witch in Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photo.
The Scarlet Witch was beautiful in the air and on the ground (see another photo in the gallery below). Flying Lines photo.
Jim Green watches an 80mph Combat plane fly out of his launch. Flying Lines photo.
Navy Carrier pits were busy on Friday as contestants rushed to beat the forecast blustery weekend weather. Flying Lines photo.
One Class I Mouse Race plane is in the air as another is tuned before launch. Flying Lines photo.
Chris Cox launches his Canadian teammmate Alan Resinger's Rare Bear for an Expert Precision Aerobatics flight. Flying Lines photo.
Paul Walker flies his electric Impact to second place in Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photo.
Robert Smith (left) and Doss Porter battle in an 80mph Combat match. Flying Lines photo.
Scale planes lined up for flights. Flying Lines photo.
Exotic designs in John Newton's Speed pit. Flying Lines photo.
Classic and Profile Stunt planes await flights in the damp pit area on Saturday. Flying Lines photo
Always the hardest worker at the Regionals, Contest Director Mike Hazel (left) does double duty as a Racing pilot in a Clown heat against Ron Howell. Flying Lines photos.
Bob Welch pilots his Chimpact in Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photos.
Alan Resinger at the handle of Rare Bear during an Expert Precision Aerobatics flight. Flying Lines photo.
Paul Walker's Impact in flight. Flying Lines photo.
Racing planes await action. Flying Lines photo.
Paul Gibeault pits a Clown Racer. Flying Lines photo.
Ken Bird flies his D'arcside in Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photo.
Bruce Perry tunes the engine on his Scarlet Witch as Ken Bird holds. Flying Lines photo.
Two Sportsman Flying Clown racers in flight. Flying Lines photos.
Doss Porter heads to the handle after starting his engine for an 80mph Combat match, as launcher Andy Prior holds.Flying Lines photos.
AMA Fast Combat action. Flying Lines photo.
Jim Green (left) and Robert Smith battle in AMA Fast Combat. Green was the Fast Combat winner. Flying Lines photo..
Jim Aron flies his Systrema 2 in Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photo.
Judges Joan Cox and Walter Hicks concentrate on an Expert Precision Aerobatics flight. Flying Lines photos.
Tim Just flies his PTG Special in Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photos.
Tim Just's PTG Special, based on the designs of the late Phil Granderson in flight. Flying Lines photos.
The PTG Special is impressive from the bottom, too. Flying Lines photos.
Russ Hester (left) and John Knoppi battle in 80mph Combat. Russ won 15 Fast Combat and also took the Combat Grand Champion trophy for overall performance on Regionals weekend. Flying Lines photos.
Robert Smith shows perfect form in launching Russ Hester's 80mph Combat plane. Flying Lines photos.
Ken Bird's D'arcside in an Expert Precision Aerobatics flight. Flying Lines photo.
Left: Jeral Godfrey's XPB5B-1, Authentic Scale winner. Right: Gary Dowler's PT-26, Sport Scale winner. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Pete Cunha's Profile Scale Bearcat. Right: Orin Humphries' winning Profile Scale Beech Staggerwing. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Orin Humphries' winning 1/2-A Scale XF5F-1. Right: Humphries' winning Fun Scale Monocoupe. Flying Lines photos.
Bruce Perry's Scarlet Witch for Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photo.
Left: Dennis Nunes' Gladiator 35 for Classic Stunt. Right: Ken Bird's D'arcside for Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Alan Resinger's Rare Bear for Expert Precision Aerobatics. Right: Pat Johnston's latest Expert Precision Aerobatics warbird. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Jim Booker's Pod Racer for Northwest Sport Jet Speed. Right: Bob Welch's Oriental for Classic Stunt. Flying Lines photos.
Bruce Perry's Two Much for Classic Stunt. Flying Lines photo.
Left: Mark Schluter's Magician for Classic Stunt. Right: Dennis Nunes' Circulas 61e. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Ken Bird's Shark Caprice for Classic Stunt. Right: Pat Johnston's Shark 35 for Classic Stunt. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Jim Rhoades' Apteryx, flown in both Classic Stunt and Expert Precision Aerobatics. Right: Pete Cunha's Skylark for Classic Stunt. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Pat Johnston's Epiphany for Profile Stunt. Right: Bob Welch's Twin Tigercat for Profile Stunt. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Walter Hicks' Extra 330 for Profile Stunt. Right: Marshall Palmer's Skipjack for Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Tim Just's PTG Special. Right: Brett Buck's Infiinity. Both are for Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Pete Cunha's Legdacy. Right: Mark Schluter's Vector 40. Both flown in Advanced Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photos.
Left: Bob Welch's Chimpact for Expert Precision Aerobatics. Right: David Shorts' canard, flown in Advanced Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photos.
Chris Cox' Hellcat, the winning Expert Precision Aerobatics plane. Flying Lines photo.
Howard Rush's Impact for Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photo.
Paul Walker's Impact for Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photo.
Bruce Perry's Scarlet Witch for Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photo.
Ground view of Jim Aron's Systrema 2, winner of the Concous d' Elegance award. Flying Lines photo.
Some of the time, the weather at the 49th Regionals was more suited to water fowl than model airplanes. This family seemed quite comfortable with the conditions. Flying Lines photo.
Results of this contest are included in the Northwest Competition Standings.
This page was upated June 4, 2022
