CD's
Report
 It
is never a good sign when you leave home in the rain to go to an aerobatic
competition. Whist driving to Lincolnshire from Buckinghamshire I took calls
from pilots in Yorkshire, Warwickshire, Leicestershire, Sussex and Surrey,
with the consensus being doubt that a) they would get to Fenland that day
and b) it would be worthwhile making the effort. However, you have to be an
optimist to fly aerobatics in the UK, and the weather at Fenland seemed to
be better than anywhere else. First briefing was delayed, but by early
afternoon it looked as if it would soon be flyable. At Fenland, having the
wind from the North East is generally not helpful; damp air comes in over
the Wash with clouds condensing over the airfield leaving us wishing the box
could be mover a couple of miles North, or South to “the hole”, and the
judges get frozen!The bare
statistics are that we flew 9 sequences on Friday afternoon, 5 sequences all
day on Saturday but 43 sequences between 09.00 and 15.15 on Sunday. Put
another way, we completed Beginners on Friday, wasted a lot of Andrew
Holman-West’s and Adrian Willis’s fuel on Saturday but flew off all the
scheduled sequences on Sunday, albeit with, overall, a 28% "no-show" or
"gone home to avoid divorce" rate amongst the original entry.
 The
beginners flew very tidily with Simon Barnard the tidiest in the
Super-Stinker, but with John Scott in a CAP and Jonathan Taylor in a
Decathlon not far behind; we will doubtless be seeing more of all of them.
The McAully Trophy Known + 3 can be trying
for the judges but I have to compliment the Standard level pilots this year
for keeping up a superb launch rate. Andrew Barlow had to mend his brakes
(with much assistance from fellow pilots) before flying but, despite this
distraction, headed the field after the first sequence, closely followed by
David Thomson in a Decathlon in 2nd and Phil Burgess heading a group of 10
pilots with scores between 69.3 and 73.5%. The unknown was best flown by Ben
Thompson in Tom Cassells’ Slingsby, followed by Phil O’Donoghue, John
Calverley and Andrew Barlow. Andrew’s lead from the first sequence was
sufficient to retain first place to win The McAully with David Thompson an
admirable and much remarked upon 2nd in the Decathlon and John Calverley 3rd
in his YAK 52.
The three day marathon at Intermediate was
headed for each of the four sequences by David Jenkins; he flew well
throughout (benefitting from coaching?) and I particularly enjoyed his 360°
rolling circle in the 2nd unknown. Colwyn Darlow flew less well than he
knows he can and had a close tussle with Brian McCartney who will, I suspect
be working on his snap rolls as hard as Colwyn will with his rolling
circles. Adrian Willis had hung around throughout Saturday afternoon (and
tested the cloud-base several times), only finally to complete the Free as
first flight on Sunday and I don’t think the long wait helped him much. We
all enjoyed the rumble of the YAK 50 and the sight of Andrew Holman-West
cloud dancing on Friday and Saturday, but he, like Richard Verrall concluded
that a third day was too much. Richard Verrall had one of those moments we
can all remember; "weren’t the last few figures supposed to be on the other
axis after that spin?"
So, my main memories of Fenland 2008? A
good-natured group of pilots calmly waiting for the weather to improve; good
airmanship and sportsmanship throughout. With excellent support from Chief
Judge, Ian Scott and the firm foundation of the BAeA, Nick (judging this
time) & Jen Buckenham (registrar, scorer, organiser, dog walker and
corrector of computer glitches) and Steve Green (CJ’s assistant and radio
operator this time), CD-ing really isn’t that difficult. I must also thank
the judges and scribes; Julie Wood, Phil Atley,
 Martina
Willis, Belinda, John Calverley, Phil O'Donoghue, and Dan Seagrave plus
several other pilots who helped out when we needed it. It was perishing cold
at times on the judging line, despite the sun, and it did drizzle
occasionally.
Last, but definitely not least, I must
remark upon the friendly, professional and positive support of Fenland Aero
Club, its Committee in the shape of Peter Cunningham, Ray Nicholson
unflappable and unfailingly helpful in the tower, ably supported by Simon &
Scott, the refuelers (Steve, Gary & Keith) and the catering staff, Katy and
her team. Good weather or bad, a weekend at Fenland Aero Club is a very
pleasant experience. When the weather’s good, it’s perfect!
Martin Sandford
Contest Director |
