www.eugenerc.org Volume 9 Issue 2 February 2013 Club Mailing Address: Eugene RC Aeronauts, PO Box 26344, Eugene, OR. 97402 ERCA News and Information President Mickey Cohen Vice President Mike Winklepleck Secretary Al Barrington Treasurer Al Barrington Safety Roger Dahl Flight Training Marty Wittman Webmaster Jim Corbett Newsletter Jim Corbett Field Maint Doug McWha COMMITTEES Events Brad Werneth Noise OPEN AMA# 530 District 11 GOLD LEADERSHIP CLUB Next CLUB Meeting – Tuesday February 26, 7 P.M at Roaring Rapids Pizza. If you have a building project, bring it with you for "Show and Tell". At the January meeting - 18 members and guests attended. "Show and Tell" Several members displayed projects. REMINDERS DUES – Your dues need to be paid by the February meeting. From the Bylaws - Members still delinquent by the February meeting will be advised by mail or email that dues must be paid, along with a $10.00 late fee, by the March meeting. If this does not take place by the March meeting they will be dropped from the club membership and will not be permitted to use any designated club flying area. Winter Flying Rules Attention All Pilots: During November, December, January, February Saturday, Sunday & Wednesday NO FLYING before 12:00 Noon. NO ARRIVING before 12:00 Noon. NOTE: Wednesday the 27th is the last NOON start for this duck season. AMA’s Leader Club award 2012 ERCA Members - If you have not received your official gold level of the AMA’s Leader Club award pin Talk to AL Barrington, Sec/Treas., ERCA. Indoor Flying –See the indoor action at: http://www.eugenerc .org//EEF/EEFindex. htm Oregon Senate Bill 71 A bill to restrict the use of DRONES has been introduced in the Oregon Senate. As it deals with RC aircraft, with cameras mounted on them, you can imagine that it has caused some concern among many Oregon RC Clubs. The Salem club has dedicated a page on their web site to this subject. Our Club President and several other Oregon clubs have been proactive on this subject. There is more related to this later on in the newsletter. You can get involved or not… "PLESE BRING A CAN OF FOOD FOR LANE COUNTY FOOD BANK" At The January Meeting Good turnout. Al Barrington Member of the year 2012. Hats for services rendered! 2013 Meeting Dates - Time 7pm January 23 Wed - EWEB February 26 Tue - Roaring Rapids Pizza March 21 Thurs - EWEB April 22 Mon - EWEB May 29 Wed - EWEB June 25 Tue - Field July 23 Tue - Field August 27 Tue - Field September 23 Mon - EWEB October 22 Tues - Roaring Rapids Pizza November 25 Mon - EWEB December NO MEETING Winter Flying Rules Attention All Pilots: During November, December, January, February Saturday, Sunday & Wednesday NO FLYING before 12:00 Noon. NO ARRIVING before 12:00 Noon. NOTE: Wednesday is the last NOON start for the season. 2013 ERCA Club Contacts - President: Mickey Cohen - 541-953-9902 - mcaviation@comcast.net Vice President: Mike Winklepleck - 541-729-5894 - heidisman1@gmail.com Sec/Treasurer: Al Barrington - 541-935-4960 - albarrington@msn.com Safety Officer: Roger Dahl - 541-579-5959 - roger@artistry-in-motion.com Groundskeeper: Doug McWha - 541-741-3326 - flyduke@comcast.net Newsletter Editor: Jim Corbett - 541-344-5022 - james.corbett@comcast.net President’s Report When I look at the calendar I am in disbelief that the end of February is already here. The time for build more fly less will be coming to an end before we know it. I like many have been working on a couple of new projects in the shop. This is also a great time to be doing inspections and maintenance on our current aircraft in addition to spiffing them up for a great year of flying. If you have had the chance to look at the website you can see there are always some brave souls at the field and in the sky. But soon the foggy, chilly and wet weather will yield some breaks and it will be time to flight test the new birds, validate the winter maintenance we completed, get the cobwebs off our thumbs and find a cure for the RC withdrawals. There has been a lot of activity regarding the proposed Oregon Senate Bill 71. Senator Floyd Prozanski of Eugene drafted the bill. The language in the bill could be very damaging to our hobby and could possibly make a criminal out of you if it ever was to become law. I have been working on the issue and have written letters to every State Senator, the Judiciary Committee as well as the Governor. The Salem club has been very active regarding this proposed bill. There is a link on our website for the Salem clubs “Model Aircraft and Oregon State Law” page where you can see their efforts. I have also been in contact with the regional VP and National AMA who are working on these proposals with all the states that are trying to pass some sort of drone legislation. We have finally established dates for our four events this year. The first event again this year will be on Memorial Day followed by a Swap and Fly on June 29th, then this years Big Bird on August 10th, closing out the year with a Club Fly on Labor Day. This year we are working hard to make the Big Bird the marquee event for ERCA. The club will be doing considerable planning, advertising, etc. with Brad Werneth’s guidance in an effort to attract many flyers from other clubs throughout the state and beyond. It would be great if our club was known for this annual event and word of mouth encouraged its growth every year. Of course these events cannot be successful without the support and help of our membership. This year will be different from last in that we will be looking for more help from the membership to accomplish our goals. To be successful we need YOU to become more involved in the preparation and participation in these events. There will be more information as the events begin to take shape. If you get a chance take a look at “Club Deals” on our website, we are starting to get some vendors to give discounts to club members. Its just getting started and limited but will be growing so if you need something that is offered try to support these folks. I am also looking forward to larger involvement and attendance at our meetings this year. See you at the meetings or at the field. Have fun and FLY SAFE! Mickey Safety Officer’s Report - Roger Dahl I can give you a little bit of my own lesson learned the hard way! I'm including a photo of the night I tried to remove my hand with a model airplane. Another year is underway, and I would like to remind us to ALWAYS restrain your model before you attempt to start it. The benches at the flying field are set up to fit many different types and sizes of airplanes, with different landing gear configurations. Take the time to ensure a proper fit for your plane before turning over the engine! Many times, an extra piece of 2X4 placed in the key spot will create a safer restraint for your plane. The larger planes should be started on the ground in the provided pole restraints, as lifting a large plane is very dangerous! Once an engine is started, do not reach over the spinning propeller, but move to the side to make adjustments, or to remove a glow starter. These simple reminders will enhance the sport, and minimize the likelihood of a trip to the hospital, as I managed to do back in 2001! (See photo) This damage was done with a .60 size engine. Safe Flying is Happy Flying! Treasurers Report - Al Barrington Our membership is up to 60 as of this report. There are still many 2012 members who have not renewed yet. Deadlines are rapidly approaching when late and reinstatement fees will be applied. I'm in the annual time crunch to finalize our member roster to submit to AMA for our 2013 Charter and Insurance renewal. ERCA membership renewals are due on January 1st. We grant a grace period until the February meeting. After the March meeting non-renewed members will be moved to the inactive roster requiring reinstatement. Enough doom and gloom. Thanks to the members who have renewed and are looking forward to a fun filled 2013. Check the clubhouse wall for your 2013 photo ID badge and Gold Leader Club pin or pick them up at the meetings. Wear them proudly to help members identify each other and as proof of your good standing with the club. The following are being submitted to AMA for our Instructor Pilot list. Please advise me if there should be any changes. All agree to the AMA Instructor Pilot program guidelines. Roger Dahl, Doug Devereaux, Jeff Engel, Chuck Jenkins, Wayne Wahrmund, Alan Wellentin, Marty Wittman, Scott Fellman and Craig Canaday. $$$$$$: The club treasury is at $5,783.00 as of this report. This month's bills include $117.68 for PO Box rental and postage, $100 to AMA for 2013 Charter and Insurance, and $50 to the State of Oregon for 2013 Corporation filing. I look forward to seeing everyone at the meeting 7pm on Tuesday, February 26th, at the Roaring Rapids Pizza meeting room. AL Barrington Sec / Treas, ERCA Quad Project Marty Wittman As all of you now, I usually have a project on the boards and I do, but we had a bad house fire in August 2012 so that Cessna 310 will have to wait. And yes, as of February 11 2013 they have started the repair!!! Hopefully we will be back home in June!!! So I can’t do the big Cessna 310. So what know? (I get boarded easily). Went down to the flying field and saw and met a guy Len Stolfo (Upshotz photography) flying a QUADROATER. Got talking to him about them and one thing let into another. You know when your board and can’t get to your big project and need something to do !! Will I found a lot to do. Len sent me some links to look at that had different frame setups and motors and ESC and, KK2 Controller boards, and ,and, etc.… Well, being a motor head and never doing electric before didn’t take long until the confusion set in. What are they talking about? (Now I have to learn a foreign language) . Well ok.. Ordered the frame, motors and ESC and KK2 Controller. Nothing to do but wait? Hmmm.. How do I make it work after I get the parts? HHmmmm. OKAYYY Off to Google.. I spent every day for two weeks looking at YouTube and how-to videos on setting up a Quad and the KK2 controller and programming Esc and started building a folder with this stuff in it for reference when my parts arrive !!?? By this time I could tell you any and all you needed to know about this stuff!!!! But, the parts to make it all work?? There is not a complete kit you can order. So after three different orders and may weeks of waiting I finally got my Quad in the air !!! It’s so much fun!!!!! I am now in the process of upgrading my Controller Board so I can have GPS on it. That will allow me to do altitude and heading hold by a switch and another nice thing is , it will let me via a switch have the QUAD RETURN TO HOME with failsafe or switch. So if you lose orientation flip the switch and your baby will come home to where it started.. I love technology!! I will also have a Bluetooth device hookup so if you have to or if you want to change board setting you can do that via your phone. If anyone is interested in building a Quad. I have a completed list of your need!! Let me know !! Vice President’s Report February marks the end of the winter flying hours and the beginning of one fun flying year! Planning is already in full swing for this years events and flying site clean up/maintenance. Your leadership team spent several hours this past Sunday surveying the field and what we can do to make it better for you. As we discuss the different projects we are asking that you set aside a few hours and work along side us. In short we need you the membership to volunteer a few hour of your time. Please make an effort to attend next weeks meeting and sign up for something. Special thanks to Brad for stepping up to lead the events committee. Brad has done an amazing job in the past organizing the events and will no doubt do a fantastic job again this year. I have volunteered to help Brad with the events and look forward to serving. A special note to everyone that the field is still very wet. It may look dry but it's still very soft. I have first hand experience a few weeks ago as I performed a decent landing then turned at the end of the run way to taxi back only to have my left wheel get buried in the mud 6-8 inches and tear off my landing gear causing structural damage to the fuselage and right wing. It was a sad sight! But it's all repaired now and I flew it last Sunday and had a blast. Also, as you all are dusting off the planes and getting them ready for this year take some extra time to inspect those planes and radios. You never know what has happened from the time you put them all away to now. Somehow my trim for my ailerons was moved all the way right and it made for a very exciting first flight. I had not messed with my trim at all so I had no reason to think that was the problem and my mind raced to the previous flight in which the gear had come off and gone through my wing. All I could think about was something was seriously wrong and I seriously doubted I would be able to land without a fatal crash. I called Al Wellington over in a panic only to discover my trim was off. Whew, thanks AL! That's it for now. See you all at next week's meeting! Mike Club Deals http://www.eugenerc.org/clubdeals.php ServoWires – Use coupon code ERCA for a 10% discount. Due to mailing costs will ask for a minimum $10.00 purchase RCFoamCutter - For a 10% discount and free shipping, mention that you are a member of the "Eugene RC Aeronauts" when ordering. TruTurn - to provide prize awards for our events. At the field in February February 8 - COLD 38 degrees - wind 5 mph from the North February 15 - Not a good day, overcast, cold, and windy Jim Thomas, Jim Corbett, Dwayne Graville and Doug McWha photos SB71 From: Michael Cohen Subject: Oregon Senate Bill 71 Date: February 13, 2013 12:49:49 PM PST To: All State Senators and the Members of the State Judiciary Committee Senators; I am writing you about concerns and the possibility of irresponsible outcomes from the proposed Oregon Senate Bill 71 that has been drafted by Senator Floyd Prozanski. This bill appears to be a knee-jerk reaction and has been drafted with significant problematic language that could have a significant effect on aeromodelers and the businesses that support this hobby in Oregon. I am a retired aeronautical engineer that spent my 40 year career in the Aerospace and Airline Industry. I am a full scale pilot with more than 40 years of experience and have been a radio control airplane builder and pilot for longer than 40 years. I am presently the president of the Eugene Radio Control Aeronauts, a flying club that has an annual membership of 80 to 100 enthusiasts. When reading this bill it becomes obvious that it was written without much research or understanding of drones or model aviation. There are over 45 model aviation flying clubs throughout the state of Oregon. I would suggest that you visit some of the club web sites to get an idea of their activities'. These are a sampling of club websites in Oregon, www.eugenerc.com, www.bamrc.com, www.portlandrcflyingclub.org, www.wvi.com, www.southlanerc.com, www.rogue-eagles.org. These clubs are regulated by a national organization that provides guidelines for operation as well as insurance for its members. The Academy of Model Aeronautics has been in existence for over 75 years and its membership includes great designers, pilots and astronauts. There is also FAA guidance provided for model aviation operation. There are businesses that support our hobby from one end of this state to the other. The aircraft we fly are extremely ingenious and have contributed to developments that appear in full scale aircraft. The people that fly model aircraft make up a large cross section of people from very young enthusiasts who will become our future engineers and pilots to older retired folks like myself that just can't get aviation out of our blood. I am asking that before continuing with the evaluation of this irresponsibly written bill that you look into the effects it will have on the people of the State of Oregon and that it is not just passed along in the system. Thank you Michael Cohen President Eugene Radio Control Aeronauts 541-953-9902 mcaviation@comcast.net SB71 From: Bend Aero Modelers [mailto:president@bamrc.com] Sent: Wednesday, February 13, 2013 1:25 PM To: members@bamrc.com Subject: BAM: Your voice can make a difference / Oregon Senate Bill 71 imposes penalties on UAVs/RC flying Importance: High Dear All, I am reaching out to you to make you aware of a concerning new bill that the Oregon State Senate has put forward, which will impact our hobby. This new bill (Bill 71)—among other restrictions/requirements—is proposing to penalize any activity that involves the use of an unmanned aircraft (UAVs, RC planes) for photography or video recording. The penalty for violating the proposed restrictions is up to 20 years in prison and/or $375,000! This is obviously a significant restriction for UAV operators, but it also would penalize any of us should you use a camera on your RC plane. The true motivation for this bill and its purpose are debatable and different people will have different opinions depending on their role in this matter. However, it is also clear that it will provide the State of Oregon with a mechanism to control and regulate UAV activity AND enable a new income source (through licenses for UAVs), which may be the actual agenda of this bill. Unfortunately, there is no separation between commercial UAV operators and us RC flyers. Currently, Oregon is the only state that has put forward such a bill. However, there is concern that other states might follow and essentially encourage a nationwide restriction on UAV activity, including our hobby with potential further restrictions once this door has been opened. AMA is aware of the potential impact it might have on our hobby and has been communicating with the Oregon State Senate from what I understand. The Oregon State Senate has declared this bill an emergency, which could be an attempt to get it approved as soon as possible before public opinion brings it to a halt. You can review the information and decide how you feel about this bill (see attached snapshot). If you would like to voice your concerns, you can follow below link and sign the petition that challenges this bill. The petition requires 500 signatures to proceed—currently there have been 414 signatures submitted (the last time I checked). http://www.change.org/petitions/oregon-senate-bill-71-protect-the-rc-hobby-aerial-photography- and-fpv-communities I am not imposing any (or my) opinion on you and just would like to give you a chance to inform yourself and decide if it matters to you. Kind regards, Waldemar Frank, President Bend Aero Modelers AMA Charter 2311 Bend, Oregon SB71 http://landru.leg.state.or.us/13reg/measpdf/sb0001.dir/sb0071.intro.pdf --- That's All Folks -- Newsletter Editor 1618 Gilham Rd. Eugene, OR. 97401 February 2013 «FirstLast» «Street» «CityStZip» ____________________________ Renewing Current Member ____________________________ INVOICE FOR 2013 MEMBERSHIP - EUGENE RC AERONAUTS Please fill in the following information and send back with your Dues Remittance Name __________________________________________ under age 17_____ 2013 AMA Membership No._______________________________ I certify that I have paid my 2013 AMA Dues. Initial _________ Check yourAMA Status http://www.modelaircraft.org/MembershipQuery.aspx Member Address ________________________________________________________________ Member Phone No. __________________________ Cell: __________________________ Member Email Address ___________________________________________________________ Newsletter Via: _____ Email ___ Regular Mail ___ Do not need to receive newsletter Please enclose your check for $ 60.00 as a current member renewing for 2013 and Mail to: Eugene RC Aeronauts, PO Box 26344, Eugene, Or. 97402. Or bring this INVOICE and $60.00 to the Meeting. Next CLUB Meeting – Tuesday February 26, 7 P.M at Roaring Rapids Pizza Newsletter ONLINE at: http://eugenerc.org/NL/CURRENTNEWSLETTER.pdf December 2009 2 February 2013 9