2003 VMAA Trophy

Doncaster Aeromodellers put in a stunning performance on the weekend of April 12 and 13, 2003 to take a third win in a row!  And as with 2002 the theme was consistency -- but this time with 1st place in 4 events and 2nd in 2.  This is a credit to the depth of skill and experience within our Club.  Also worthy of note is we had team members aged from 13 (well done Daniel in your first competiton) to 84 (thanks for your efforts Stan).  And special thanks to Cliff McIver who took on the critical role of Team Manager and organised the people and many of the models to be in the right place at the right time.

The Doncaster team faired as follows:

Seven Cell Glider -- 1st  place to Neil Spencer
Fun Fly -- 1st place to Cliff McIver
Fun Scale -- 1st place to Noel Whitehead
Old Timer Duration -- 1st  place to Kevin Fryer
ARF Scale Aerobatics -- 2nd place to Daniel Travassaros
Musical Landings -- 2nd place to Boz Student
Club Racing -- 4th place to Graham Kay
Thermal Soaring -- Stan Newell not placed
Most Unusual Model -- DNF

Overall team score was 35.5 points, with Northern Flying Group second on 25 points.

As commentary on the results:

• The benefit of regular competition practice:

  • Neil Spencer's win no doubt helped by the intensity of competition from the regular Seven Cell competitions at Bulleen, where Neil has helped organise the event and participated come rain or shine.  So get involved now -- you don't have to wait to next years VMAA Trophy! 

  • Similarly with Daniel Travassaros who did an excellent job in his first ever aerobatics competition thanks to many hours of practice in the disciplines of flying straight and level (sounds not much like aerobatics -- but if you can get that bit right the rest is relatively easy) and taking on board much advice from dad Dennis and coach Cliff McIver. 

  • Noel Whitehead, Kevin Fryer and Cliff McIver are also regular competitors in their chosen 'Interests' within Australia -- and Noel on the International stage.  You will find more from Noel in the Scale Interest Group section of this site, and on Kevin in the Old Timer section.

• The Musical Landings plane, complete with 'stop dead' flaps that Boz quietly developed and tested over the past few months, lives to fly again -- a relatively rare outcome for this event!

• It is really tough when an excellent 4th place in Club Racing, against some close to 'purpose built' models, doesn't quite make the cut (only results in a Club's top six events are counted).  Graham flew extremely well -- and we will work on a few enhancements for next year!

• Start thinking About our Most Unusal Model for next year -- it is time we has a serious go at winning that event.  This year Northern won it with a Martian Spaceship and two real Martians (but they were red rather than green!).  Geelong's Witch on a Broomstick came in second, closely followed by a flying pig!

• Stan's result in Thermal Glider was disappointing to all involved -- he flew very well in the first round, but an unfortunate confusion over which model to watch in the second round (by Stan's caller!) led to a crashed model and no further participation.

The VMAA Trophy event isn't just for the competitors -- it is fun for all involved.  It was great to see a solid turnout of supporters (most of them suitable attired in Doncaster Aeromodellers merchandise, all equipped with mandatory folding chairs) to support the competitors efforts -- and enjoy the spectacle.

The Doncaster Aeromodellers cheer squad (and some competitors) enjoying Sunday's proceedings

Full results for the VMAA Trophy for 2003 by event and club are as follows:

Thankyou to the VMAA for organising such a great event, and for all the Clubs who participated for making it a truly fun weekend.

*** 10 January, 2010 10:26 PM +1000 ***

Last updated 10 January, 2010

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