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Created on Friday, 25 September 2009 17:39

Last Updated on Friday, 25 September 2009 17:45

Written by David Engleson

Builder’s Challenge and Fun Fly 2010

September 25, 2009

Winter is quickly approaching and some of you are beginning to line up you building projects for the
season. Now is the time to make plans for your entry in next spring’s Builder’s Challenge. All club
members are invited to participate in the contest scheduled for next spring and all the entries must be
sailplanes or gliders. The event will most likely be held on an early Saturday in May. We will display and
judge the models at a flying field prior to a fun fly which will begin immediately afterword. There will be
prizes for the winning models entered. There will also be a raffle for all who enter a model and or who
enter the fun fly event. Lunch will be provided as well so this should be a great day for all.

The rules and plans for the event will be developed further but here is the preliminary plan…

• There will be a $10 entry fee for each participant in the model building portion of the event. The fee will be returned upon presenting their model/models at the event. Whether you enter one model or three, the entry fee will still be $10. If the contestant does not complete and show the model at the event the money will go into a pot to pay for the food, or event prizes or whatever. This will be worked out as we go here. We will develop a “pledge card” to email out to you to fill out and return with your $10 entry fee and what you plan to build for the event soon. We will keep track of this and send out reminders periodically. You will be able to change your mind on what model you plan to build but you will not be able to back out of the contest without losing your entry fee. All models must be finished after September 24th 2009. The goal is to build something this season not enter a plane you built three years ago. We also want to give you impetus to finish up models you have started in the past.
• We might open up the contest to other clubs. I can see getting our friends from Iowa, Wisconsin and South Dakota involved.
• There will be no entry fee for the fun fly portion of the event.

• So far there will be four classes or categories of models to enter.
  o Best Kit Built or Kit Bashed Model – Built a kit of any sailplane you wish or use a kit or part of a kit to build another aircraft. (ARF’s and RTF’s can be used in the bashing segment only).
  o Best Scratch Built Model – Use drawings or plans developed by someone else…and you do the rest.
  o Best Own Design – Build a model from your own plans and drawings.
  o Best in Show – Voted on by all who participate in the building and flying contests.

• If there are any rulings to be made about whether a model is eligible for the contest or not, contact me and let’s talk about it. It is not a big deal. We are doing this for fun and we want as many people to participate. That being said I do not want to get bogged down with this aspect of the contest so use your best judgment and I will reserve the right to make the call.
• If you want to help out with this contest please contact me and we can scheme.

We held this contest every year for the longest time and it was very popular. I hope it gets your creative
juices flowing again and spurs you on to build something new this season. We are not talking Top Gun
quality ships here just trying to give folks the opportunity to stretch their legs and build something new this
winter or finish up an old project. Try something new whether it’s a new model type, construction type, or
a building technique. As an example, I am going to try covering a foam wing with brown paper and see how
that goes.

Look for more details in the coming weeks and months and start to think about what you want to build. If
you have any questions, concerns, or ideas you wish to share, please do not hesitate to contact me. This
will be fun.

Thank you, - David