Fly RC Magazine WE LIVE RC
Moonport Modelers R/C Club hosted a completely unique flying event just for the ladies on Saturday, June 7th at their flying field. Historically, remote control model flying has been a male dominated hobby. Over 30 club members encouraged the 20 ladies taking part in this first time event. The event was a great success and the ladies loved it. The event featured a ground school, show-and-tell with many different types of models. This was followed by some exciting 3d aerobatic demonstrations by HobbyKing and Precision Aerobatics Team pilot Michael Wargo, one of the world’s top 3d aerobatic demonstration pilots. Afterwards, all the ladies were able to actually fly the models with a little help from an instructor pilot. The club provided aircraft for the flights and HobbyKing, one of Mr. Wargo’s sponsors, provided three airplanes and radios to be given away as prizes.
Wayne Mendez, President of Moonport Modelers, comments: “The response to this event was very enthusiastic. The ladies just loved it, and the only complaint was that they wanted more time on the sticks. During the event planning, I had reservations about their interest. We really got to show the best side of R/C though. The company of the other pilots and wives to socialize with, and the interesting nature of the hobby won the day. Most of the wives have been around the hobby, we just used this event to get them involved enough to see it might be a little easier than they thought to learn. Michael did a great job keeping the ground school simple and then really wowed them with the giant planes down on the deck.”
Michael Wargo, instructor/demo pilot, remarked: “I had a blast, and it really exceeded my expectations. The original thought was simply to try to demystify the hobby for them and help them relate to their husbands and boyfriends who are avid modelers. I think individually, it is hard for them to get a taste for it. By gathering many together, it gave them a reason to give it a try and attempt to understand it a bit better. To our surprise, they approached it with a very open mind and seemed to love it. Maybe all the women in attendance may not learn to fly, but at least they were given a good chance to learn and see what it’s all about, try it, meet some other modeler’s wives, and possibly give them a reason to spend a little time outdoors with their husbands or boyfriends and possibly learn to fly themselves.”
Moonport Modelers R/C Club has 62 pilots, of which six are Instructors, and four students in training for a total of 66 members. As the result of the Ladies RC Event, two new members joined the club. For more information on learning to fly RC aircraft or to join the Moonport Modelers club, contact Wayne Mendez at 321-505-2361 or go to the club’s official website: www.moonportmodelers.com
