Saturday, June 13, 2009

First Racing Experience

Well, I went to my very first race and had a blast there. It was at Competition R/C in Oklahoma City and the people there were really nice about everything and all the competitors were great as well.
The way everything works is there are 3 qualifying heats and 1 main. All are 4 minutes long which is shorter than what I have seen at most places but with all the classes running there, it needs to be short or you wouldn't be able to fit in 4 total races for each class.
I ran in the Slash class which was combined with the other 2wd trucks and buggys since there were only 4 Slashes in the field. They scored us separately which was nice to see as they are different types of trucks.
In my very first heat, I came in 3rd in the Slash class but 5th overall in 10 vehicles. I was pretty excited about it seeing as I have never raced competitively. Maybe it's all that hand eye coordination from video games when I was a kid and from playing the piano and drums.
In the second heat, I was 3rd again in the Slash class but 7th out of the 10. I wasn't as smooth and crashed more so that explains it. Kendall had a great time laughing at the video I made since I was getting stuck everywhere. It was kind of funny to see her laughing so much at an r/c truck.
In the third heat, I came in 2nd in the Slash class and 3rd overall. That felt really good. I really ran well and had a good time on that run. I didn't realize it until the end as you will see but there was a guy trying to catch me the whole race and he got close but I eventually made it without getting passed.
Then came the main. I qualified to start in the 5th spot which I was pleased with but my nerves got to me and I finished 4th in the Slash class and 9th overall. I felt really bad about it more because I kept running into people without meaning to and knocked them off course. I was actually out in front of the Slash class for a lap or two and then just fell apart. Hopefully I can stay calm the next time out which will be a while still.
I took two videos (heat 2 and heat 3) from my hat cam and they turned out just fine. They are posted below.
Thanks go to Competition R/C again for a nice atmosphere and a great track for the Slash.
Enjoy!



http://youtu.be/veeFF7YLyjo

Length: 4:51



http://youtu.be/A1BB_eMwpWY

Length: 4:43

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Longest Vapor Flight

Okay, it's been a really long time since I updated anything (5 months). I took this video on a rare calm day here in Oklahoma. I can't fly the Vapor in any wind so the weather was perfect for it. It was right after Thomas was born and I was home for a good week that I got to go and fly. I didn't edit it much as I don't have much time to spend on it right now but hopefully you'll just go through and watch any parts that you like.
The plane is a fun little plane to fly. It only weighs about 15g so it's very light, hence why I can't fly in any wind whatsoever. It flies slow enough that I can even fly it indoors if I have enough room. One of these days, I might get a video of me flying inside the church gym.
Anyway, enjoy the video. Skip through to whatever you want as it is about 17 minutes long.



http://youtu.be/BkRIUXDUp5Q

Length: 16:49