District VII members, where did the summer go? As you read this, shortly the littles will be dressing up in their Halloween costumes, the Thanksgiving table will be set with its finest ware with vast amounts of food to be consumed, and before long, snow and the holiday season will be here.
Keeping that in the background, let’s continue to talk of the summer fun. In my last article, I discussed the passion of this hobby being shared by others and enjoying watching the children and their fascination with the magic of flight. I had the opportunity to attend an event where I again enjoyed watching the excitement in the eyes of the families.
The event I attended, although outside of District VII but within arm’s reach, was one I had heard of, as I am sure many of you have as well—Flite Fest 2025, held in Malvern, Ohio. The event weekend started out with a violent storm that sent tents flying, soaking rains, and vendors products scattering. As modelers, you know that we cannot be deterred and through exceedingly hard work, the opening of the event was only briefly delayed.
Upon arriving, the first thing I noticed were the smiles! The energy in the air was amazing, as was the excitement as I got closer and saw all of the airplanes in the air. Walking throughout the facility, I could see the passion being shared. From the build tents with volunteers aiding the youth with their model airplanes, to the high energy exuded from the STEM/Educational tent.
Watching the youth build their own airplanes ranging from hand-tossed and rubber bandlaunched (catapult) gliders to helium-filled blimps. The final step was to fly inside of the tent. It was a day packed with fun and adventure.
Families arrived, entering with no knowledge of modeling at all, by the end of the day, with the help of the many volunteers, purchased, built, and flew their first model aircraft, leaving the event with huge smiles and a new passion for aeromodeling. It was a great time and for those who are wondering, yes, I could not leave without buying a model airplane myself. When finished, I will put a picture in my column to share with you. I want to thank the staff of Flite Test for putting on such a remarkable event.
I enjoy receiving and reading District VII club newsletters. A recent article by Jon Seese, published in the Rock River Aeromodelers Society newsletter, is a good reminder to us all. The title of the article is: "When you should intentionally crash your plane … Yes, there is a time." I cannot place the entire article here, but a key point from it is the following: When traveling to other flying fields, a good habit to get into before your first flight is to survey the field and look for safe "outs" in case an issue occurs. You don’t want to be scanning the flying site looking for a safe place as an incident is happening. Just remember that our airplanes, large and small, can cause damage and the last thing anyone wants is to be on the pilot side of a catastrophic incident.
Thank you, Jon, as a good reminder to us all.
Until next month, keep sharing the passion. It pays large dividends in return.