The 2025 Northwest Control-Line Regionals
Roseburg, Ore., May 23-24-25

Paul Gibeault's 1/2-A Scale SR-71 makes a rocket-assisted flight to entertain the crowd waiting for the trophy celebration at the 52nd Northwest Control-Line Regionals. Mark Schluter photo.

Control-line modelers gather for 52nd celebration of tethered flight

Pacific Northwest modelers once again hosted one of nation's biggest control-line model aviation events over Memorial Day Weekend, with enthusiasts from all over the western United States and Canada gathering in Roseburg, Ore., for three days of flying and socializing.

Weather was good for CL flying, with mild temperatures, though variable winds did create some flying challenges at times. A little drizzle on a cool Sunday morning was not enough to affect the events. Attendance was good in all events except Combat, which was down to a minimum number of fliers. Forty-four individuals accounted for 127 event entries, compared with 49 and 122 at the 2024 Regionals. Participation was strong in Aerobatics, Navy Carrier, Racing, Scale and Speed.

This was the 10th time the Regionals has been held in Roseburg in this current stint (it also was held here from 1996 to 2001), and plans are already underway for the 2026 event.

The work of putting on the Regionals was handled by the Eugene Prop Spinners, the Western Oregon Control-Line Flyers, the Northwest Fireballs, the Northwest Skyraiders, the Umpqua Valley Modelers, Roseburg area control-line fliers and many individuals who volunteered as event directors and workers.

David Fitzgerald bested a world-class field of competitors in Expert Precision Aerobatics. Jim Aron took the Concours d'Elegance trophy for the most beautiful Stunt plane. Event grand champions were Steve Harris (Aerobatics), Chris Menicou (Combat), Mark Schluter (Navy Carrier), Mike Hazel (Racing), Tim Wescott (Scale) and Howard Doering (Speed).

Field setup and teardown was again under the direction of Eugene Prop Spinners' Gary Weems. Events were directed by Paul Walker (Aerobatics); Niels Madsen (Combat); Kris Millard (Navy Carrier); Will Naemura (Racing); Terry Mitchell (Scale); and Doug Powers (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 unique inscribed line reels 3D printed by Fred Cronenwett as trophies through third place in all events, plus 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 first 30 door prize recipients also received inscribed 3D printed line reels by Alan Resinger.)

The trophy and merchandise prizes were made possible in part by generous donations from Regionals contestants and supporters.

Trophy sponsors were: Don Chandler, Brian Massey, the Norm McFadden family, Orin Humphries, the Northwest Fireballs, Mark Schluter and Chris and Joan Cox. Merchandise or cash donations came from Alan Resinger, Don Chandler, Fred Cronenwett, Mark Crouse, Pete Cunha, Mike Denlis, Jerry Eichten, Eugene Toy and Hobby, Mike Hazel, the Norm McFadden family, the Northwest Skyraiders, Mark Schluter, Flying Lines, the Western Oregon Control-Line Flyers, John Knoppi, Randy Ling, Steve Helmick, Wynn Paul (PAMPA) and Jim Rhoades.

Elsewhere on the Flying Lines website, see updated Northwest standings, Northwest records and Regionals records.

Jim Aron's Wile E's Curse was declared winner of the Concours d'Elegance award after a vote by the Aerobatics competitors. Flying Lines photo.

Event directors' reports

Aerobatics

By Paul Walker

The stunt event started on Friday afternoon with Old Time Stunt. Seven pilots flew in nice air. Seeing that this was the one of the first OTS events of the year, there were several that got mixed up and did not complete all the maneuvers. It was nice to see two new (to me at least) pilots entered. Those being Stan Olzaski and Michael Dukes. Stan did well enough to finish third. Nice work Stan! Jim Aron won flying his Ringmaster.

Saturday was Classic/Nostalgia 30 and Profile. N30 was combined with Classic for the first time. To help level the field, Classic was given a 10 point bonus to compete against the newer designs that were at least 30 years old. 10 pilots competed in this event. The weather was nice in the morning during this event. Steve Harris from Southern California attended the NWR for the first time and bested the field flying his Hawker Hunter. Dennis Nunes flew to a second place finish and Pat Johnston took third.

Saturday afternoon Profile (sportsman and expert) was flown but by this time the wind had increased enough to make it challenging. In Sportsman 7 entrants competed and there was a close battle for the top three spots. Walter Hicks finished with a 469.5, Stan Olzaski earned at 468.5 and Mark Schluter scored a 463. For Stan's first NWR, he flew a nice flight with his profile Spitfire. Being one of the judges of the event, I was totally impressed with his plane and how he handled it. Keep it up Stan! Of note, David Shorts flew a profile A-10 with ducted fan motors with electric power. It flew amazingly well, but suffered some issues with the power system and didn't complete the entire pattern. I certainly enjoyed watching it fly.

David Fitzgerald's Thunder Gazer 3 makes the winning

flight in Expert Precision Aerobatics. Flying Lines photo.

Also expert Profile was flown with five entrants. The wind played havoc with the experts as well. They all received pattern points, but all suffered some shape issues in various places. This time Dennis Nunes finished first with Steve Harris placing second with Jerry Eichten taking third.

Sunday was PAMPA classes day. The weather was totally different than the previous two days. It was cool, overcast, some drizzle and still air. The only wind came from the occasional gust that passed, and the direction of the gust was quite variable. This made it difficult for both the pilots and the judges.

Beginner had three entries with Jim McCartney finishing first. Lynette Lickley was second and Michael Dukes third.

Intermediate had 1 entry. Charles Jenks won that trophy.

Advanced had eight entries. There were four that battled for the win. Randy Ling finished fourth with a 449.5. In third was James Dean with a score of 450.5. Second was won by Stan Olzaski with a score of 458.5. In first was your PAMPA Stunt News editor David Shorts with a score of 464.5. Nice work to all the Advanced pilots.

Expert stunt had 10 entries. As in the past, there was a close battle for the win. David Fitzgerald and Brett Buck traded punches all day and in the end David prevailed over Brett by 3 points. Of note is the fact that Brett hit his wake in the outside rounds on his last flight, which was his high score as well, and that event likely cost him 3 points. They both flew very well. In third was Chris Cox 9.5 points behind Brett with a 586. In fourth was Steve Harris with a 569.5. In fifth was Ken Bird from Alberta with a nice 566.5. There was plenty of good flying going on even with the less than ideal conditions.

After appearance judging, concours ballots were handed out. The votes were tabulated and Jim Aron won the Concours with his very nice model.

The grand Champion who accumulated just a couple more points than second place was Steve Harris. Congratulations, Steve.

This event could not happen without all the volunteer help involved. Barbara White and Robin Gearn were the tabulators all three days. The weighmaster was Randy Ling. Pit boss was also Randy Ling with help from Steve Helmick and Bob Welch as needed. Flight judges were David Fitzgerald, Steve Helmick, Brett Buck, Paul Walker, Chris Cox, Joan Cox, Robin Gearn, and Walter Hicks. Steve Helmick, Jerry Eichten and Robin Gearn also ran scoresheets. Appearance judges were; Classic/N30, David Fitzgerald and Brett Buck. PAMPA classes; Walter Hicks and Paul Walker.

Hope all had a good time! Hope to see you again next year, and bring some additional fliers with you.