AT A BEAUTIFUL flying site right off of Folsom Lake in Sacramento, California, the USA FAI F2B Team Selection for the 2026 F2 World Championships for Control Line (CL) Model Aircraft, which will take place in Perth, Australia, was held—in one of the boat ramp parking lots, to be exact. The site had three asphalt circles and a beautiful view of Folsom Lake. For me, it was one of the most scenic flying sites at which I have ever flown!
This year, the team trials ran right after the 45th Annual Golden State Stunt Championship (GSSC), which is one of the largest Stunt championships on the West Coast. There were also a few extra fliers from the East Coast who attended the team trials this year. I will give highlights of both events, starting with the GSSC.
45th Golden State Stunt Championship
Quite a few of us showed up on Thursday to help set up and practice. When I arrived in the afternoon, much of the site was already set up thanks to the contest director, Dennis Nunes, and his right-hand man, James Dean. All of the circles were marked, and the site was well protected from anyone driving through the contest. Once we were done setting up, I put in a couple of practice flights along with a couple of other fliers.
The weather looked great through Sunday, which was good for the GSSC; however, for the team trials on Monday, it appeared that strong wind was coming. We were all hoping that the weather people were wrong! Friday was a practice day at the site, and there were quite a few fliers taking advantage of it.
On Saturday, the GSSC started with Classic, Old Time Stunt (OTS), and Profile. The conditions were nearly perfect for CL Precision Aerobatics. There were six competitors who participated in Classic, five in OTS, and five in Profile. In Classic, Dennis took first, with Page Peterson coming in second, and James in third.
In OTS, Jim Aron took the win with his Ringmaster. Jim Hoffman came in second, and third place went to John Wright. In Profile, Dennis came in first again, Page in second, and Tim Wescott in third.
On Sunday, Precision Aerobatics Model Pilots Association (PAMPA) Precision Aerobatics was flown, and there were fliers in all four classes. The wind was very light and moved around quite a bit, making for some interesting flights. It was quite a turnout; they had 22 competitors participate in Expert, seven in Advanced, two in Intermediate, and one in Beginner. It was very nice to see such a good showing at this event.
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In Beginner, Robin Gearn won. In Intermediate, Colin McRae came in first and Todd Stimpson in second. The Advanced winner was Angstrom Eberenz. Mike Alimov took home second, with Jeremy Schulz taking home third.
Expert had quite the field, with more than half of the participants having finished in the top 10 at the Nats this year, as well as three who were in the top five, plus several who were world and national champions. In fact, between three of them, there were more than 30 Walker Cup champions! The results in Expert were Dave Fitzgerald taking first, Paul Walker second, and Brett Buck securing third.
Late Sunday afternoon, the GSSC wrapped up with the awards ceremony, where a special award was given to my favorite judge, Joan Cox, for her dedication to CL Precision Aerobatics—well deserved, for sure!
USA FAI F2B Team Selection
Now for the USA FAI F2B Team Selection contest, which was held on Monday, October 13. There were approximately 11 fliers who entered for the chance to represent Team USA next May in Perth.
The weather conditions were less than perfect. In fact, the conditions were terrible. The wind was blowing 15 to 20 mph most of the day, with gusts up to nearly 28 mph. To top it all off, we even had some rain in the first round. At least the rain cleared up after the first few fliers, although many of us wished the wind would go away too!
As it turned out, only seven of the 13 participants flew, and two of the seven were Juniors. Both Gabe Alimov and Angstrom did an outstanding job in the challenging weather conditions. The five Seniors who braved the conditions were Jose Modesto, Joe Daly, Orestes Hernandez, Dave, and Paul. I’d also like to give a special thanks to the judges who stood out in the rain, wind, and cold—Chris Cox, Brett, and Joan!
After three rounds of flying, the USA FAI F2B Team is Paul, Dave, and Orestes, with Gabe as the Junior member. Congratulations to the team! Go for the gold in Perth!
I am so glad that I had the chance to attend these two well-run events, and all of the credit has to do with the many people who volunteered their time. Without them, there would be no events. Special thanks to Dennis for running such great events.
SOURCES:
Precision Aerobatics Model Pilots Association (PAMPA)
FAI
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