MAAA Wingspan

27 NOVEMBER WING SPAN MAAALogo. IN HIS OWN WORDS, GARY POPE TAKES US THROUGH HIS PERFORMANCE AT THE KOTUKU CUP Round 1 – I got #38 away soon after the round opened. Achieving the four-minute maximum was not a problem. My launch was ok, the model was superb and the conditions excellent. Round 2 – Again, I got #38 away soon after the round opened. My launch was ok, but something was wrong. The glide was far too tight. I suspect a damaged tip. The three-minute maximum was achieved. Inspection revealed some structural problems at the tip joint. The hinge was ok, but there was something amiss in the structures that the hinge was attached to. It was time to retire this model and bring out #10. Round 3 – Once again I got away early, this time with #10. The climb, transition and glide were very good. A few people commented on how strong the engine sounded. Round 4 - I tried to get away early again, but this time there was fuel pouring out of the front end. I suspected a split fuel tank, but that shouldn’t happen as the tank was recently replaced. It was time to stay calm and fix the problem. I pulled out the engine/pan assembly to reveal a tank sealing disc that had slipped. This was promptly fixed and the model put back together and refuelled. I went back to the line, fired up and launched. Again the climb, transition and glide were very good. Round 5 - I tried to get away early again, but this time the engine wouldn’t start. The glow plug had failed so I replaced it. I went back to the line, fired up and launched. Again the climb, transition and glide were very good. At this point my goal of achieving five straight maxes had been achieved. Round 6 – No problems, a max. Round 7 – The wind was picking up. Again #10 maxed but it went a long way downwind. I elected to walk after it for the retrieval. Little did I know the model was 20 metres from the corner of the Orchard. It took a long time to get to it but thanks to a good line and Vin Morgan’s tracker bug system, I walked onto it, about 2.5 kms away from the flight line. The walk back was quite arduous, but I was thrilled that I had qualified for the fly-off.