EMAC

[Andy540T]

No that is not a typo! There is a group of people mostly from the San Diego area that are flying in 1 day contests with electric aerobatic planes. I went down to the SEFSD field near Sea World to check it out. When I arrived there were about 20 pilots with planes that ranged from 30" extras all the way up to 30% Yaks. All electric power. Now I don't know much about electric powered airplanes other than they typically are quieter then their gas counterparts and the throttle responds a little different, but these planes and the people that fly them are every bit as competitive as our giant scale gas planes we fly in IMAC.

Steve Dente (1Bwana1) organizes the events with the help of CD Tim Attaway and Pedro Bruntuas (sp). They really emphasize fun at this contest and with the smaller size pilot roster, they only need a single flight line. For now there are only 2 classes offered, Basic and Sportsman, and anyone that is flying at the Sportsman level and above compete in Sportsman and the rest fly in Basic.

Steve was kind enough to lend me one of his planes as I don't own an electric powered plane (yet). I threw my hat into the ring and signed up for the sportsman class. I have not flown a plane that small in over 4 years and that Fliton 330 Freestyle, flew just as good as my 40%er, only a bit faster. I tightened up my box footprint and flew. I have never had more fun flying to 5th place at a "local" event.

A big thank you needs to go out to Tim Attaway, Pedro Bruntuas, Steve Dente, and Horizon Hobbies. This is a great way for someone who is interested in IMAC to give it a try without feeling like you need a big investment, and for those that already fly IMAC, this is a lot of fun and a great chance to fly with some really fantastic people.

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