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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Hi all:</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I'm new to this list, having decided to get into
pattern in '04 after about 7 years of IMAC competition. I find
the comments on Artisitic Aerobatics very interesting, especially
coming from this background. There are some fun aspects of the IMAC
Freestyle that can certainly spice up a competition, but it can also become
the center of attention by a CD and materially interfere with the
quality of the precision sequence flying, which is all that most IMAC flyers
usually participate in. I never even competed in Freestyle until '03, when
we were socked in by low ceilings at a contest and the only flying we could do
was down low, hence my plunge into the event. I could never really get my
mind around how to properly coreograph a performance to music, so I stayed
away from it in competition. I also didn't much like the idea of the
pure subjective nature of the event, the way pure WOW factor could spell a win
over superior flying etc.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Later in the year, I took one more whack
at Freestyle and actually won the event, but I couldn't rationalize
why. I thought my performance was mediocre at best. After that, I
think I finally made peace with myself over this and figured that it was just
another chance to put the airplane up, show off if you are so inclined and
generally have some fun. FWIW, if you can approach it this way, Artistic
Aerobatics could be a nice addition to pattern events if you don't want to be
too serious about it. </FONT><FONT face=Arial size=2>A few will be able to
really do it right, i.e., coreograph something that somehow captures the mood of
the music, accentuating it as much as it accentuates the flight of the model,
displays precision where it seems like precision should have been achieved and
fully exploits the performance envelope of the model at the right moments. They
should rise to the top.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Incidentally, there may be a misconception that the
IMAC freestyle is mostly about low torque rolls and dragging the tail in the
grass. That trend is well past. Excessive time spent doing TRs, or
for that matter staying in a pure 3D flight mode and not showing the full
capabilties of the model, displaying precision aerobatics at least part of the
time and making good use of the aerobatic box is generally not a winning
formula anymore. Lastly, although I can't say that I'm intimately
familiar with what's being proposed for AA, it seems that
one challenge that deserves much attention is to try to have as much
objectivity in the judging criteria as possible. That's not an easy thing
to do and is probably not fully achievable. IMO, if you can accept
the idea that your scores may be strongly influenced by moods and
style preferences, then it seems that you may be able to enjoy Artistic
Aerobatics.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Ed Alt</FONT></DIV></DIV></BODY></HTML>