I just came home from competing in my first Aerobatic Contest. What fun !! Challenging, exciting, educational and nerve wracking all wrapped up in one.
The contest was held at the Rocky Mountain House (CYRM) airport up here in Alberta. I think it?s division 7 and a few guy from Division 8 showed up to compete and help.
I fly an RV-7 with a 180 hp Superior engine, Hartzell prop, no inverted oil. I had the aerobatic restriction removed earlier in the year and then had some dual instruction time with an instructor. Some of our final lessons included some ground critiquing as I was being groomed for the contest.
Being my first contest I wasn?t sure what I was in for. To ease some of the competition day nerves I flew to the site to practice in the box and also to try on the mandatory parachute. I wanted as few ?new? things to deal with on the day.
Local flair - Sportsman Category
I believe the box is 1 kilometer square but it sure looks small from 1500 agl and at the speeds the RV?s travel it doesn?t take long to get from one end to the other. The box is marked with white corners and a big ?X? in the center.
Practicing at the site was a great help to me as I was able to iron out some positional things and get an idea where to start pulling manoeuvres.
The day begins with registration and a pilot briefing. Safety is stressed through out and as the Chief Judge said, ?I don?t care if you do you do your figures 5 miles high, just don?t go low. I?m zeroing you if you go below the low line?. Ok note to self??.Don?t go low?.. more on that later
RV6A in Sportsman
There are two frequencies that are used. The airport frequency is for taking off and landing and anytime you are out of the box. Once airborne you are to switch to the box frequency and then head to a predetermined holding area. There are guys on the ground monitoring both frequencies and if there happens to be a stray plane entering the box the Chief will shout over the radio, ?Knock it off, Knock it off, Knock it off?. At which point the pilot is to fly straight and level and await further instructions. The airport is NOTAMed for the contest but we all don?t check NOTAM?s
The low line or the floor of the box for Primary is 1500 agl and the contest begins with a competitor fly this line to show the judges where the floor of the box is. Gives them a mental picture of where the plane should be.
Never too early to train an aerobatic pilot
My sequence in Primary consisted of: 45 degree up line, one turn spin, half Cuban 8, loop, 180 degree turn and a roll. Sounds simple enough don?t it ?. Until the stress hits you and you brain fart
The day was hot and beautiful and no wind. I practiced from a right to left direction and was glad when the Chief picked this as the direction of flight. I did practice from left to right but in the -7, since I?m not sitting in the center of the fuse, I found it hard to see the box markers from the left seat when flying that direction. I know there are box markers at the rear but I still found them hard to see.
The higher classes were flown first and then Primary. So after a 4 hour wait I was finally up to bat. I couldn?t eat because of nerves so all I did was drink and pee, drink and pee, drink and pee.
This -6 has 4 seat (two rear facing) and an IO-540 !! Cool.
Ok so here we go?.. Take off, switch to box frequency and head for the hold area. I?m hot and sweating and death gripping the stick. Finally I get the call from the Chief that the box is mine. Level off at 1800 agl, 23.5 MP and 2490 on the prop with 10.5 gph burn. Feels good, last minute trims, 3 wing wags and wait till my left wing hits the edge box marker. From practice I know this is where I should pull my 45 degree up line.
A quick pull up to a definitive 45 degree stop and watch for my IAS to hit 80 knots. In round two I brain farted and started to pull power on the way up. Never did that before. Nerves got to me. I lost speed rapidly, botched the spin as a result and was messed up for the rest of the round.
Next is a quick push of the nose to define the top of the up line. Maintain a nose high attitude.
By the way, it?s a good idea to vacuum out your plane before hand because all the grass and dirt that?s sitting on your mats will come flying in your face with any negative G pushes
I now know.
I maintain that nose high attitude to prevent sinking which would happen if I went to a cruise attitude (ground critiquing). Next I pull power, maintain altitude and wait for the stall. As soon as the nose breaks, full right rudder and stick in the gut. Hold it ?? ? rotation and then full opposite rudder and nose down. Point the nose straight to the ground so the judges see a nice vertical line. I?ll be the first to admit that it?s a bit scary pointing your airplane straight at the ground, but it?s something you get use to the more you practice. At this point I better see that big ?X? marking the center of the box.
Whew?. There?s the X? so far so good. A two count, full power, pull out level, define the horizontal line and give a 3 count. The RV?s are fast and in no time I?m at the end of the box and moving fast. There is no penalty for going out of the box in Primary but it hurts the presentation if you do your manoeuvres way out in the bush.
First Aerobatic Contest :)
I can assure you the 3 count does not take 3s!
Linear Mode
