2022 F2D Money Nats

Control Line Combat

By Mark Rudner | [email protected]

As seen in the March 2023 issue of Model Aviation.

SPRING IS HERE for readers, but at the time of this writing, it’s early December 2022 and the 2022 Control Line (CL) Combat season is drawing to a close. For those who are keeping track, at roughly this time last year, I reported on the first running of the F2D Money Nats. By all accounts, the first iteration of this contest was a big success, and I encouraged as many of you as possible to attend the next time around.

The top finishers in F2D Combat at the 2022 LA F2D Money Nats were (L-R): Cary Minor (first place), Andy Minor (second place), Leonardo Silva (third place), and Antonio Giandrini and Jeff Johnson (tie for fourth place).

Staying true to my own advice, I made the trip down to Whittier Narrows Recreation Area in Southern California for the 2022 F2D Money Nats, which was held November 11-13. This was my first contest since the pandemic and an international move put me on a hiatus from competitive flying. It was great to be back on the field and to see many in my Combat family again.

Bill Maywald has been the driving force behind building this new addition to the national F2D circuit, and he has shown that he knows how to put on a first-class CL Combat event. (For those who remember the Riverside Combat Challenge, this should be no surprise!) The Whittier Narrows field in California is in the best condition I’ve ever seen, thanks to the consistent, hard work of the Southern California Combat Team. I want to particularly recognize Don Jensen for leading the effort to nurture and maintain the field.

Although Bill is the chief organizer and promoter of the contest, Arlene Mears is the chief execution officer. She runs a tight ship and manages all of the nuts and bolts of the event, with great help from Tammy Jo Johnson, Muffy Rudner, and Anna Woolsey (see the photo). Anna provided coffee and pastries in the morning and awesome lunches all three days, with help from Wanda Jensen. It’s this total package that altogether makes this a first-rate contest that should not be missed. Do yourself a favor and come in November 2023!

The contest kicked off on Friday with double-elimination F2D Fast Combat and a strong showing of 22 pilots. Greg Hill came out of the woodwork for this one and was flying at a very impressive level, garnering many clean "kills" in his matches with beautiful style. Ultimately, he met his match against Dave Fisher in the finals. Dave was flying strong all day as well, and he came out on top to claim first place. Greg finished in second place, Cary Minor in third, and Arnulfo Delgado in fourth place.

Saturday morning marked the beginning of the two-day, double-elimination F2D Combat portion of the weekend, with 27 pilots entered. We had an international crowd on hand, with Arnulfo, Fred Quezada, Ariel Quezada, and Leonard Silva coming from Mexico, and Antonio Giandrini and Adriano Molteni in attendance all the way from Italy.

Winners of the F2D Fast portion of the contest were (L-R): Dave Fisher (first place), Greg Hill (second place), Cary (third place), and Arnulfo Delgado (fourth place). Photo by Anna Woolsey.

Toward the end of the contest, we saw a lot of really high-quality flying and exciting matches. Ultimately, Cary came out on top with a clean record. Andy Minor finished in second, with Leonard in third, and Antonio tying with Jeff Johnson for fourth. The contest ran smoothly with no controversy, and a great time was had by all.

One thing that was clear from the sidelines was that there is still work to be done to improve the reliability of fuel shutoffs. It’s always sad to see a match lost because of a malfunctioning shutoff. To make sure your shutoff is ready for action, be sure to test it on your slowest-flying model. Use a streamer through tight maneuvers upwind to make sure that it will keep you running through the toughest conditions in a match.

These women worked hard all weekend to make the 2022 F2D Money Nats a smashing success. (LR): Arlene Mears, Anna Woolsey, Tammy Jo Johnson, and Muffy Rudner.

At the same time, be sure that it’s arming properly and that it will be ready to work in the event that the lines are cut. Linetension-based devices often seem to be more reliable than those that are swingarm based; therefore, if you’re having trouble with swing-arm shutoffs, you might consider slowly changing over for the coming season(s).

Nats

Unfortunately, in 2022, we did not have a reporter identified within our ranks to submit a CL Combat section for the Nats issue of Model Aviation. I’ve included a couple of images with this article that were submitted to me. Now that we know, let’s make sure to document the week in 2023 so that we can have our spot in Model Aviation, along with the other events.

Speaking of which, you should go to the Nats. This will also be a Team Trials year, with the trials held the weekend immediately before the CL Combat Nats. Prepare yourselves for a week of fierce competition this summer in Muncie, Indiana, at the International Aeromodeling Center!

(L-R): The author with Greg Hill and Darrin Albert. Darrin had a really tough battle with COVID earlier in the year, and we were all super happy to see him on his feet and flying at an impressive level. Darrin brings a great, positive attitude whenever he’s around.

Dave Edwards brought out his latest creation at the 2022 CL Nats: Septzilla! This oversize model features seven Fora F2D engines running on independent bladders. Dave is a strong guy, and it took all of his might to hold on to the Septzilla in flight!

Winners of the F2D event at the 2022 CL Nats were (L-R): Bob Mears (first place), Dave (event director—thank you for your hard work!), Andrey Nadein (second place), Andy (third place), Rylan Ritch (fourth place), and Austin Minor (top Junior).

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