Indoor Free Flight

Back To Johnson City!

By Don Slusarczyk | [email protected]

As seen in the January 2023 issue of Model Aviation.

Indoor flying at the ETSU Mini-Dome in Johnson City TN, is again a reality, thanks to the work of NFFS President Dave Lindley.

IT HAS BEEN more than 10 years since the last Indoor Free Flight (FF) contest was held in the East Tennessee State University (ETSU) Mini-Dome in Johnson City, Tennessee. The 121-foot ceiling site had been the home of the U.S. Indoor Championships starting in 1986 and was the yearly contest that many looked forward to. My dad and I used to plan our entire year around it, even getting permission from my schoolteachers and professors to take finals early.

That was many years ago for me; in fact, it has been 18 years since the last time I was able to attend a contest there. I honestly never imagined I would be able to fly there again. It had become a pipe dream, based on my memories of the past.

Well, that dream has come true and was made possible by the work of the current National Free Flight Society (NFFS) president, David Lindley. He contacted the school after so many years and was able to secure flying dates for the weekend of July 4, 2022. The three-day contest was hosted by the Brainbuster Free Flight Club and was named after one of its members, Abram Van Dover, who was the competition’s contest director for many years.

With no Indoor activity at the site for so many years, there was some concern about the condition of the building and the flyability of it. The major concerns were the hanging scoreboard in the middle of the site and the banners that were suspended from the main girders. These obstructions meant that the full open space of the floor was limited to an approximate height of 60 feet for the scoreboard and roughly 80 feet to the bottoms of the banners. Going higher would mean flying between these obstacles and worrying about air drift pushing models into the obstructions. I recall the air being rather good at the site years ago, with minimal drift. Would that still apply?

The contest itself was two full days of flying on Friday and Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m., and a partial day on Sunday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The earlier ending time was so that final scores could be tallied before the awards ceremony at 5 p.m. and still leave enough time for contestants to pack and load their cars.

Concurrent with the three-day event was the USA Junior F1D Team Selection finals. They flew three rounds per day in the afternoon and evening, with practice allowed during the earlier part of the day.

So, how was the flying? It was spectacular! The site was as good as I remembered. I had worried that I had built the site up in my head to be better than it actually was, but that was not the case. Those who flew first flew low or just up to the banners to see how the air was. The drift was minimal. Depending on where you flew, there was drift—sometimes toward the bleachers but then often drifting back as aircraft got lower.

It was not long before Josh Finn put his Pennyplane up high in the center of the building between the speaker cluster and the banners. We watched to see what would happen up high. It did drift a little, but it was manageable.

The USA Junior F1D team (L-R): Guha Ekambaram, Quinn Sorbello, Odessa Wignall, and Elijah Rose. Photo by Dean Giacopassi.

Generally, only a small steer or nudge with the balloon was needed up high. Sometimes all you needed was a nudge with the pole on the way down to get away from the handrails on the bleachers.

As people were getting used to the site, more and more models were going up to the top. Yes, there were some hang-ups. I managed to hang my autogyro on a girder at the top. I did get the model off the girder, but I also managed to blow up my latex steering balloon a few moments later when it bumped something sharp on the ceiling.

Fred Rash and his unusual, annular wing, electric-powered model. It flew very well. Giacopassi photo.

Elijah Rose gets ready to hook up the motor to his F1D before an official flight. Giacopassi photo.

L-R): Brothers Andrew and Alexander Welter wind up their motors. They have each set multiple AMA national records. Giacopassi photo.

I have used 36-inch latex balloons for steering since I started flying Indoor FF. Throughout the past few years, more modelers have been using specially made Mylar balloons. When my balloon popped, I was able to borrow Tom Sova’s Mylar steering balloon setup, and I was hooked. I felt less lag as I moved around because of the lighter mass of the balloon and less drag from its shape.

I decided that because my balloon needed to be replaced anyway, I might as well swap it out for the Mylar balloon. Fortunately, Indoor Free Flight Supply was on-site, and Dave had brought a supply of them to the contest, so in a matter of a few minutes, I had it filled and used it for the rest of the contest. Dave sells two sizes of these Mylar balloons. The one I bought is the small one shown on his website.

The three days passed by so fast. The site was very flyable, even with all of the obstacles. There is some talk about having the banners removed for next year. If that happens, it would be great, but honestly, if it doesn’t happen, the site is still very flyable and I will attend regardless of the banner situation.

If anyone was hesitant about going this year because of the banners or speakers, I suggest coming next year and flying anyway.

USA Junior F1D Team Announced!

At the end of the meet, the USA Junior F1D team was selected. The team members are Guha Ekambaram, Odessa Wignal, Quinn Sorbello, and Elijah Rose. Congratulations to each of them. It was great to see them in action flying for team selection. They will represent the US well at the FAI F1D World Championships for Indoor Model Aircraft.

Upcoming Indoor Contests

• April 1-3, 2023: Jim Richmond Open, West Baden Springs, Indiana
• April 22-23, 2023: Kent State University Indoor Contest/Record Trial, Kent, Ohio

Contest flyers are available on the IndoorFreeFlight.com website.

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