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Bruce & Cass Underwood Memorial SPA Contest
The 2025 Bruce and Cass Underwood Memorial SPA Contest, sponsored by the Fountain City Flyers, was flown in Prattville, AL on September 6-7, 2025. It was a nicely run contest as is normal for the fine members of this club. We arrived around 2 p.m. Friday to find conditions hot & sweaty with a light crosswind from the west. All of the early arrivals were busy practicing or trying to beat the heat by staying in the shade. I got in 3 badly needed practice/trim flights before the heat got the best of me. The highlight of Friday evening was a wonderful chili supper furnished by Gordon Talbot and prepared by Dave Phillips. It included all the fixings - cheese, crackers, corn chips and cookies, as well as Debbie Hoke's wonderful brownies for dessert. This supper has been a feature of this contest for several years and everyone always looks forward to it. Saturday dawned warm and mostly overcast, much to the delight of the fliers because the field faces east. Registration began at 8 a.m. for 16 staunch pilots - 7 from Alabama, 3 from Georgia, 2 from Tennessee, and one each from Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana and Mississippi. These included three newcomers to SPA competition - local Marc Hodge, NSRCA President Monroe Michaelis and long time AMA pilot A.C. Glenn. Old friend Scott Sappington showed up for the first time in several years. Thank you all for joining us. We hope to see you again. Flying got under way shortly after the 9 a.m. pilots meeting. Two rounds were completed by noon, followed by a short recess for lunch of huge BBQ sandwiches, chips and drinks. Round 3 was almost complete around 3 p.m. when everything was interrupted by a heavy thunderstorm. It rained like crazy for about 20 minutes with lighter rain for a while longer. Flying resumed around 4 p.m. and Rounds 3 and 4 were completed. Sunday arrived with brilliant blue skies and BRIGHT sunshine. Things went pretty quickly, as only the Expert and Masters class fliers flew complete 5th and 6th rounds. Several folks opted not to return Sunday for various reasons. The Basic and Advanced class pilots opted not to fly at all and the only Sportsman who stayed for Sunday flew only one flight. AWARDS - CD Jamie Strong started things off by drawing for four $50 gas money prizes which went to Joe Ryan, Greg Hoke, Jeff Owens and Jim Johns. These were much appreciated by the recipients. The awarding of prizes followed with EVERY CONTESTANT receiving a plaque featuring the group photo, regardless of their placement. Each contestant also received a personal photo with his plane. BASIC - long timer Norman Bonnette handily won the class. Marc Hodge unfortunately lost his beautiful Killer Chaos during a Saturday morning practice flight, but did a very respectable job flying his 4 Star 54 to take 2nd Place, including winning the first round. SPORTSMAN - Howard Moore won three rounds to secure the victory in Sportsman, followed by Monroe Michaelis and Scott Sappington. Scott and Monroe did not stay to fly on Sunday. ADVANCED - This class was a real dog fight. Jim Johns won the first 3 rounds and Gordon Talbot took Round 4. Both pilots agreed not to fly on Sunday, preferring not to risk their planes in the incredibly bright sunshine. This gave the win to Jim with Gordon a mere 7.25 points behind. EXPERT - SPA President Jeff Owens handily took the top prize in Expert class by winning all six rounds, followed by Dave Phillips and Terry Boston. MASTERS - Masters class featured 6 pilots, the most in any class. Jerry Black and Greg Hoke battled for top honors in Masters. Jerry prevailed over Greg by only 3.6 points. They were closely followed by CD Jamie Strong in 3rd Place. Joe Ryan, Scott Anderson and A. C. Glenn rounded out the field. Several honored guests showed up over the weekend. Long time friends Larry Hill and Tom Stennis came out to visit with us during the day Saturday, along with Ken and Dee VandenBosch. I'd like to offer a very personal Thank You to Ken for his assistance in getting me to and from the flight line in my wheelchair on Saturday. You are a true friend, sir. Everyone was invited to attend the SPA Masters contest in Memphis, TN on October 4-5. Goodbyes were said to complete a great weekend and most everyone was on the road home by 1 p.m. Jim Johns |
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