R/C helicopter pilot readies for air show

R/C CHOPPER:
Greg Ruff pilots his model helicopter off the ground. Ruff will demonstrate his model flying skills at an Anderson air show this weekend.

With a radio controller firmly in hand, Greg Ruff, of Anderson, commanded his model helicopter to leap off the pavement as fast as a sprung trap. It rose only a couple feet into the air before careening sideways at an alarming speed to an unitiated observer.

The model is about four feet long and features most of the same mechanics as a real helicopter, said Ruff. An exception, he said, is the fly bar, a smaller blade that rotates in opposition to the helicopter’s larger rotor blades. The fly bar provides extra stability.

Ruff sent the helicopter through a number of barrel rolls, loops, and quick, jerking acrobatics that would have put Airwolf to shame.

Ruff has been involved with radio/control (R/C) flying since he was seven years old. He picked up the hobby from his father, who picked it up from his father as well.

Ruff said he’s owned five R/C helicopters but has only “totaled” one of them.

“Everybody wrecks,” he said. “It’s just a matter of where and when.”

“It’s an expensive hobby,” he said, adding that he has spent $2,800 on his R/C helicopter already.

Ruff will also fly an RC airplane in a race at the coming air show in Anderson next weekend, Friday Aug. 29 through Sunday Aug. 31 at the Super Fun Fly air show on Ash Creek Road in Anderson.

The Northern California R/C Unlimited Flyers will host the event free of charge for the general public. Pilots from around the West Coast will converge at the club field to fly planes modeled after World War I, World War II and modern eras. Some planes are acrobatic specialists, while others will fly at over 200 mph, according to contest director Michael Brown.

At 10 a.m. on Friday, the club hosts a free Delta Dart rubber-powered airplane building seminar where 40 people can build and keep their own airplanes. There will be a group launch of all the planes.

A hat and sunglasses are recommended for viewing the craft comfortably.

Food and cold drinks will be available each day at all times. Flying will take place all three days from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, 347-6777.

Transcontinental flight by model airplane in progress

A radio-controlled (RC) model airplane was 89 days into its flight on Thursday through each of the lower 48 states. The project, called Wings Across America 2008, involves the same model getting handed off to a new pilot. The pilot is encouraged to document the flight and take several pictures before handing the model off to the next flyer.

Although no one in the South County has signed up to the task, the model was being flown in New York as of Thursday.

For sign-up information about the project, go online at www.waa-08.org.