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Scores

Photos

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The Pilots at GAMA 2023
L-R: Joe Grant, Warren Oliver, John Amerson, Jamie Strong, Dave Phillips, John Wolfe, Jerry Black, Don Rusin, Ken VandenBosch, Paul Higginbotham, Jeff Owens, Greg Hoke (kneeling), Matthew Gibbs, Victor McIntyre, Jim Johns, Norman Bonnette, Jeong Hur and Terry Boston

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2023 Georgia Aircraft Modelers SPA Contest

GAMA, the club that presents the annual Southeastern Model Show, aka the Perry Swap Meet, hosted their annual Senior Pattern Assn. contest September 16-17. Their field is flat with no obstructions, beautifully maintained grass and a 270’ x 30’ GeoTex runway. They have a beautiful clubhouse and numerous metal carport style covered pits.

Modelers began arriving mid-week with their RVs for some early practice. We arrived late Thursday afternoon shortly after a major rainstorm that had everyone holed up in their campers. After a short perusal of the field layout, we headed for our motel to get some much-needed rest following a longer than expected drive.

We arrived at the field about 10 a.m. on Friday to find lots of folks already set up and practicing. The weather was cool and cloudy but no rain. This was a welcome change from last year's contest when heat indices over 100° prevailed. The entire day was spent practicing and catching up with friends.

Saturday arrived with more of Friday’s clouds, wet runway and cool temps. 18 intrepid pilots signed up for the contest. This is the first time in recent memory that we’ve had seven pilots in the Basic class, including four fliers from the local club, two of whom had never flown in a contest before. CD Greg Hoke called the Pilot’s Meeting at 9 a.m. and explained the contest rules and local expectations, which included no running of glow or gas engines before 10 a.m. on Sunday.

Flying went smoothly on Saturday until it was interrupted by heavy rain mid-afternoon. Fly resumed after the rain let up and the day ended with 5 rounds complete in Basic and Sportsman and 4 rounds in the other classes.

Sunday was cloudy again with low ceilings causing a delay in the start of flying. When action finally commenced, the Basic class flew their 6th round, Masters flew their 5th round and the Experts flew their 5th & 6th rounds which were completed around noon. Due to the advanced hour and the long drive many contestants had to get home, the Advanced class decided among themselves to call four rounds sufficient to settle the contest for them. Likewise, the Masters class called it quits after 5 rounds, and trophies were handed out shortly thereafter by CD Greg Hoke.

• Basic class was hotly contested all weekend with John Amerson besting Joe Grant by a mere 6.57 points! Paul Higginbotham finished in 3rd.
• Jeong Hur easily swept Sportsman class as he was the only flier in the class.
• In Advanced class, Dave Phillips won three of the four rounds to take 1st Place, followed by Terry Boston in 2nd and Jim Johns in 3rd.
• Expert Class was a dogfight as usual. Jamie Strong and Warren Oliver each won 3 rounds with Warren emerging victorious by less than 23 points. Jeff Owens rounded out the class in 3rd.
• Jerry Black won four of the five rounds to take Masters class, while CD Greg Hoke won the other round for 2nd Place. John Wolfe completed the field in 3rd.

The day was topped off by the raffle drawing. Warren Oliver won the top prize of a Top Flite Kwik-Fli III kit donated by Greg Hoke. Nine metal sculptures donated by John Amerson were also distributed. Finally $50 in gas money was won by Terry Boston.

Final goodbyes were exchanged and everyone packed up and hit the road home. It was a nice laid back weekend with some fine competition thrown in. Many thanks to CD Greg Hoke, Greg's wife Deb who handled the scoring, and all the GAMA members and wives who helped out. We'll see you next year.

Jim Johns

Final Scores
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