Pilot Lane "BULLDAWG" Person

The Contender takes flight for the first time with Roger on the sticks.

What did you think of flying the Contender vs. the NexSTAR: "My first reaction was WOW.  Going from a trainer to a pattern aircraft was amazing and so much more fun to fly.  On the first flight I was trying a tail slide, doing loops and rolls".

Roger enjoys his first flight, plus he won $200.00 form his wife!

Roger and his Top Flite Contender after it's first flight.

Was there anything different about building and flying the Contender: For many years, Roger had built many R/C aircraft, but never flew them.  "The Contender was the first plane that I built and flew.  The others I built I knew I wasn't going to fly them...  not that I built them any differently.  I just knew I was going to hang it up, give it away or sale it when I was done building it.  But with the Contender I knew I was going to fly it from the start of construction".

What would you recommend as a second air craft:  Roger's choice for his second air craft to fly was a low wing with a symmetrical airfoil with no dihedral.  "This was a major change from flying the NexSTAR.  It's flight envelope was so much broader.  The major problem in flying the Contender was my lack of flying experience.  It was easy to take off, land and easy to do simple loops and rolls.  Still, it was so mush more fun to fly and a good plane to learn from.  Now I wasn't happy with just learning to fly around the field.  I wanted to learn aerobatics".

Roger takes off and heads into the traffic pattern.

What advice do you have for someone looking for a second air craft:  Roger's trainer had a flat-bottomed airfoil with allot of dihedral.  "New pilots need to realize that the things built into trainers to make them so stable actually hinder the aircraft from being a good aerobatic performer.  I could do simple loops and rolls with the NextSTAR but it would fight me.  With the Contender, it went where I wanted it.  If I released the sticks, it remained in that attitude.  If this happened when it was on it's back, it will stay in that attitude and not want to right it's self.  Knowing and understanding how an aircraft is going to fly helps.  Again get the advice from an Instructor and other pilots".

What area of basic flying did you have the most difficulty learning: Although Roger learned from an Instructor and had the basics down, he later worked on perfecting his basic landing skills.  "There were several areas I had trouble with.  The first was take off and dealing with engine torque.  But the one I am still working on is landing.  Not just bringing it in, but landing exactly where I want it to touch down". 

What technique did you use to learn a better landing: "The first thing was to use a more gentle continuous turn onto final.  It was hard for me to get a grip on where the aircraft was going when I made multiple turns from the down wind leg to final.  Then using the flight line fence to help line up my approach helped.  Thanks Shane for that".