We had an awesome impromptu turnout for some EDF (Electric Ducted Fan) Jet pylon racing this past Sunday. We had the intention of racing the pylons on Saturday but rain and a strong cross wind ran everyone off. There were about 5 of us standing around talking about how awesome the weather was going to be on Sunday, so we decided to leave the pylons up and do an exhibition race in preparation for the next time trials coming up on August 22nd, 2020. We had nine pilots participate as seen the picture above and everyone had a blast. (Pictured above from left to right, Steve Ramonczuk, Ralph Doyle, Dave Harrington, Ralph Grant (squating), Steve Pokorny, Charlie Pokorny, Don Wilman, and Dustin Whitrock)
In the picture above are the top 3 fastest jets from right to left (T-33, BAE Hawk, and Avanti-S). The difference in the 2 fastest planes was only 2 tenths of a second.
Dustin Whitrock’s two viper runs were only 1 second apart, even though one landing was conducted “Inverted”! It is shown above upside down so that everyone can recognize it!
We didn’t close the field either so if you had to navigate traffic, that is part of the fun!
What the Heck are EDF Jet Time Trials ?
Picture this: Two 20′ tall pylons with flags on the top are placed 660′ apart and one racer drives his electric jet around those pylons for 3 laps as fast and as smooth as he can without cutting (flying short of a pylon) and his time is recorded. Every time he cuts a pylon 10sec is added to his time and if he cuts more than 2 times he is disqualified. The total travel is about a mile of flying and average speeds as high 90mph are achieved using out of the box factory equipment. If they miss the runway completely on landing they are penalized 5 seconds. You do two runs and your fastest time of either heat is recorded as well as the deviation between the times of your two runs to measure how consistent you are.
What kind of plane do I need?
Any EDF jet of any size that they sell at Mark Twain Hobbies, MotionRC, Hobby King, etc works great! It doesn’t have to be blazing fast either, more on that below!
What kind of skills do I need?
All you need to be able to do is pilot your bird around the pattern in a counterclockwise fashion. You’re flying by yourself so no worries about Steve Ramonczuk flying his jet through the middle of yours.
What do I get if I win?
The fastest airplane/pilot (lowest time) gets $25.00 and bragging rights. The most consistent airplane/pilot (Pilot who has two heats with the lowest standard deviation of time) gets $25.00 as well. So you don’t have to be fast to get cash, just be consistent.
