Another successful Jim Walker Memorial Spring Tune-Up was held in Portland on the second weekend of April. Near-perfect April weather welcomed 18 fliers registered in 47 events. In a permanent change, this event, sponsored by the Northwest Fireballs, is now two days, Saturday and Sunday. 
 
Contest Director was Jim Cameron.  Event Directors were Jim Cameron, Racing; Mike Hazel, Speed; Gary Harris and Niels Madsen, Combat; Tim Wescott, Stunt; and Kris Millard, Navy Carrier.
 
Thanks to all of those mentioned and to all of the other volunteers who made this a successful contest.  
 
From Gary Harris:  A 'Huge Thank You' to all who helped make this two-day contest a happening. The Northwest Fireballs provided a barbecue lunch both days; our club President, Doug Powers, showed his cooking skills and made sure everyone got enough to eat.  Thanks to Barbara White, assisted by Robin Gearn, for running the main headquarters.  Thank you to Jim Cameron for being the CD. 

Speed

 
This year the turnout for the Speed events was once again fairly low, but an improvement over last year. It was good to see a new guy, Mel Rogers, now residing in Washington having recently moved from Utah. Mel has a killer engine for the 1/2-A Proto class, and now just needs to sort out details for the airframe.
 
The events were once again split into two categories.  The AMA events are flown against the national records for the record-ratio format.  And the Northwest-region specific events are flown against our own regional records.
 
Per usual in the first meet of the year, there were some new planes to test and tune. Some of this went well and some not so much. The weather cooperated nearly all of the afternoon, with only a couple of minutes of very light sprinkles. Hey, it is springtime in Oregon after all.
 
Thanks to Doug Powers, Leighton Mangels, Mark Crouse and Niels Madsen for helping out on the stopwatch duty, etc. And thanks again to the Northwest Fireballs for including Speed flying in the event lineup.

Navy Carrier

 
A warm sunny day on the Carrier deck. The day commenced quietly at the Carrier circle, with our team getting the deck set up early before many of our fliers had their initial flights at the Stunt circle. After a delightful lunch courtesy of the Fireballs, who served a classic fare of burgers and hot dogs, we got down to business.
 
In the early afternoon we delved into NW Sport .40 class planes. Flights logged by Mike Hazel, Jim McCartney, and myself, along with our enthusiastic newcomer Mike Dukes, got us all on the board. Though none of us achieved phenomenal speeds or exceptionally slow flights, the competition is always close in this class. 
 
Next up were the AMA Profile planes, piloted by Mike Hazel, Mike Dukes, and myself. Mr. Hazel showcased his skill with the venerable Cro-Magnon, reputedly the oldest carrier plane on the West Coast — it might have even preceded the Wright Brothers! True to form, his flight was steady and reliable (has he ever missed a landing?). Mike Dukes continued with his Sport .40 plane in this class, delivering a cautious performance that concluded with a landing on two wheels and a spinner. I flew a borrowed Nelson-powered MO-1, putting in a respectable high-speed run, but lost it tripping the slider. Perhaps I should slow down more before an abrupt lesson in the volatility of flight dynamics.
 
As the day drew to a close, we all had a ton of fun and laughs. We couldn't help but miss the presence of Mike Potter, Steve Holt, Jim Schneider and Chris Nicholls — perhaps next time, guys.

A heartfelt thanks goes out to the Fireballs for organizing this event. We look forward to your opener each year.
 
Happy landings to all!

Stunt

 
We had a good two days of Stunt at the Tune-Up, with fair weather and good flying.
 
On Saturday, we had five contestants show up for Old Time Stunt. Mike Hazel put in an excellent performance, taking home the trophy. Jerry Eichten and Jim Cameron won second and third place, with just a quarter of a point difference in their scores. John Thompson and David Baxter placed fourth and fifth, respectively.
 
Jerry Eichten and David Baxter were new competitors for Old Time — welcome to the game! David Baxter provided trophies for Old Time, using Fox Red Heads.
 
After Old Time, we had four competitors for Classic Stunt — Jerry Eichten, Jim Cameron, Mike Hazel all put in excellent flights. John Thompson suffered from problems with his airplane in both rounds, coming in fourth.
 
Sunday saw eight competitors in Skill Class, flying in three events. Jim McCartney flew Beginner, putting in flights that are much improved since last year at the Regionals — good job, Jim. Advanced saw the heaviest attendance, with Gary Weems taking first, Mike Hazel taking second, Randy Ling taking third, followed by Jim Cameron and Jess Walls. Expert only had two competitors: Jerry Eichten and John Thompson battled their way to first and second place, respectively.
 
I extend my thanks to Dave Royer, Robin Gearn, Jerry Eichten, Leighton Mangles, Barbara White and Mark Crouse. Dave, Robin, and Jerry pitched in to judge. Leighton kindly allowed himself to be drafted as pit boss for both days, and Barbara, Robin, and Mark tabulated both days.
 
Thanks to all who helped. Niels Madsen and Terence Bardue jumped in to help officiate Combat by counting cuts and tracking air time and Darrin Bishop pull-tested the model airplanes before each match. 
 
1/2A combat at the Jim Walker Memorial Control-line Spring Tune-up.  On Saturday morning, the 12th of April 2025, it happened at E. Delta Park in Portland, Oregon, among friends. The weather was inviting; just what we like for Combat with no rain, a very slight breeze, temperature in the 50's and on the way up, and switching back and forth between sunny and overcast.
 
It’s too bad that medical problems are taking a toll on us, the aged Bumper Babies and Baby Boomers. Yes, medical problems are a nuisance to us. It was known that two of our friends couldn't make the contest because of medical interference. Even this writer had planned to compete but a skiing accident two weeks prior changed those plans. I was lucky to be able to waddle around like Frankenstein and help officiate. The point is that we had three 1/2A cCombat entrants when at least a few more were expected.
 
So, we got to see some good combat matches. A good time was had by all.
 
NW 80mph Combat. Four entrants at a contest like this is a low number. Again, we had anticipated several more carbon-based life form humans to gather at East Delta Park this weekend to enjoy control-line Combat fun.
 
All competitors, officials and spectators had fun and were entertained. We get together at these activities and enjoy reuniting with old friends.
 
We got to see some good Combat flown. There were some good matches. And then there was the match that threw a curve ball to determining the correct result. At every contest there is a good chance that you will witness some twist in a match that hasn't been seen or heard of before. Live and learn, and hindsight is 20/20.