Air Land Sea Hobbies

There are many benefits to growing up in the Pacific Northwest, from the fresh seafood to the pristine landscapes, and of course the exciting outdoor activities. When I was little, I lived right next to Lake Sammamish in Washington and within a few miles of one of the regions best parks: Marymoor. The park offers a plethora of activities, including rock climbing, concerts and a velodrome bike track.

One of my favorite pastimes when I was little was going to the park’s airfield for electric RC airplanes. Every weekend there would be dozens of RC planes in the sky, and you could even see them on the water of Lake Sammamish. On particularly busy days, you could even witness a crash or two

For some reason, adults are prone to believe that playing and having fun is something that should be done exclusively by children. There is this belief that you must grow up, mature, get a job, and stop messing around. But where’s the fun in that? Adults would be a lot happier in their day to day lives if they just loosened up a bit and learned to have a little fun again. Everyone was a carefree, happy go lucky kid at one point or another. And it’s not really that difficult to learn how to become that kid again.

Just invest some time and effort into a silly hobby. No matter what it is, just make sure it makes you smile. Maybe you used to love video games. If that’s the case, pick up a remote controller again, and help Mario save the Princess from the clutches of evil Koopa. Or maybe you have always loved airplanes. Purchase several RC planes and feel the stress dissolve as you stand in your backyard doing graceful loops or crazy tailspins. Whatever your interests, there’s sure to be something that puts a smile on your face after a taxing day at the office.

You can have lots of fun flying remote control airplanes with your family or your friends.  There are different planes out there so you can choose which plane to fly.  You can choose bomber planes, stealth planes, acrobatic planes and more.  Some of them are even exact replicas of famous planes and jets.

Some of the remote control plane kits come almost fully assembled so you don’t need to spend a lot of time putting it together.  You can start having fun right when you put them out of the box.  It might take some practice before you can fly them perfectly but with time you will become an expert.  And you will always find time to fly to enjoy your new hobby.

Do you want to fly, float or both? That is an option that you can choose with RC sailplanes. You can simply bring your RC model to a park and let it fly, or bring it to the pond and move it over the water. RC sailplanes are so much fun to play with because there are so many game play options that you can choose.  

Look for high quality brands for hours of flying fun. You also need to check whether your batteries are running low before you leave the house. Better yet, purchase and extra battery pack so you never run out of juice. This is one surefire fun way to spend the day with your family and friends. Then you can end your outing with a fun picnic at the park by packing along a few sandwiches and drinks.

Airplanes are one of modern man’s most amazing creations. Men weren’t originally intended to fly. Now, man has conquered the skies. It is taken for granted that we can all just hop on an airplane and head to a destination on the other side of the earth. Such is the freedom that the airplane has given us.

Even kids can get in the game with a remote control airplane. They can easily send their very own plane right up in the sky. All they need is a toy RC model and a battery pack, and they are good to go. Another flying toy that they can play with is kite. A ball of string, some light paper or plastic material and they are all set to conquer and soar.

Al Kanser will be hosting a Warbird event July 10-12, 2009 at the Polo Field in Gilbertsville. This will be an any size, any era, and any powered warbird event.

Three days of military replica radio-controlled aircraft from all eras flying from the groomed grass runway of the Gilbertsville, N.Y. Polo Field. The aircraft will be any size from small electric powered to giant 30-40 lb. gas burners and replicate WWI Biplanes and tri-planes through WWII heavy metal fighters with jets also allowed. Admission is still $3.00 for all over the age of 12 and there will be onsite food available and raffles. Show starts at 9:30 am and runs until 4 pm.

Onsite camping is alowed, no hookups, water is available to refill your campers and provisions are being made to have the porta john provider available to pump your black water for a fee

See you there,

Flyboy

One hobby that keeps boys, even men, glues is flying an RC plane. These toys are remote controlled and it takes skill to make a toy plane fly.

Sometimes, a plane’s performance may also depend on its RC parts. The motor may be upgraded for more power, or the other gears may be changed. Serious hobbyists actually upgrade their toys for better performance and more enjoyment.

The weekend after Labor Day every year in Rhinebeck NY, there is a Model Airplane event called the Rhinebeck Jamboree. It is held at the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome, and is sponsored by the MHRC club.

This year I flew an Electric Powered Tiger Moth from AirLandSeaHobbies.com. This Tiger Moth has a 32″ wingspan, is 29.5″ long and is colored Red and Grey.  It is the same color as the full size Tiger Moth that is hangared at the Aerodrome belonging to Bill King. I powered my electric powered Tiger Moth with the recommended motor, ESC and Battery from AirLandSeaHobbies. I also used their 5 gram mini servos along with a Y-cable and servo extension leads to control the flying surfaces of this great little EP Tiger Moth. Everything to complete this ARF Tiger Moth was available right from AirLandSeaHobbies.com.

The weekend of the Jamboree was windy and rainy because the tail end of a hurricane was going through the area. I was amazed how well the EP powered Tiger Moth handled the wind. It seemed that the owners of the larger models didn’t want to take a chance flying in the windy conditions for fear of damaging or destroying their planes. I actually flew several times with a fellow modeler and owner of a like Tiger Moth from AirLandSeaHobbies. I tied a ribbon on the right wing strut of my plane so we could tell them apart more easily in the air while flying in formation. Dave’s Tiger Moth is identical to mine in every aspect including the color, so the ribbon helped us both keep track of which airplane we were flying.

Check out the Tiger moth from AirLandSeaHobbies if you are looking for a great flying scale Electric power Airplane. This Tiger Moth might be just what your looking for.

May your landings not bounce,

 Flyboy

Come exploring and bring the whole family to this great flying Field! 

The Leatherstocking R/C Buzzards once again hosted its annual fly in on July 18-20, 2008 with all proceeds being donated to Catskill Area Hospice.  The event was well attended despite the high fuel prices and the less than cooperating weather.  We were visited by fellow Buzzard and AMA President Dave Mathewson and his lovely wife.  Otsego County Court Judge Jill Ghaleb attended the event and spoke to many of the pilots and spectators.  Special Thanks to all of the sponsors, pilots and spectators who attended helping us donate much needed monies to the Catskill Area Hospice.  Gilbertsville-Mt. Upton School students once again supplied some delicious food and beverages to all who attended.

Even thou this is a IMAA event to raise money for Hospice, Please bring any and all of your EP Powered Airplanes to the field with you. In the mornings before the event starts and in the evening after show hours you will see the air full of all types and styles of Electric powered airplanes. Bring your Family and enjoy the great Butternut Valley in Central NY.

The Leatherstocking R/C Buzzards was formed in 2003 by Al Kanser.  The Leatherstocking R/C Buzzards currently have over 28 members. Our mission is to create and foster a love for Radio Controlled Aircraft and Model Building.  Our home field is at the Polo Fields in Gilbertsville, NY and at the request of the owner is open to all AMA members.  With a 125 foot wide runway and 825 foot long carpet of grass there are regular pilot training classes as well as regular events. We think it’s the finest flying field in Central NYS.