F2D Combat......Good Sport? (2)
Rules
Different people from different countries have their own views on what is sporting, what is fair, what should be allowed, and what should be penalised in combat. But we cannot fly each competition differently, for example to fly as the Dutch might like one day, then the next competition to fly as the Danes might like, or the Ukrainians or the Brits….all to slightly different rules.
So, we all have to fly to a single set of rules. And we have those already. They are the FAI F2D rules. They are very good rules and we are lucky that we have very good judges to interpret and enforce these rules.
To win at combat it is important to get the best out of all aspects of the sport:
The models have to be very good, previously tested and trimmed to suit
The motors have to go as fast as possible
All the equipment has to work faultlessly and the pit crew have to be perfect
We have to fly the best tactics to give ourselves any advantage over our opponents
And we also have to understand the rules and push them to the limit to get the most out of them
It is my view that a top sportsman will assess all the aspects of his sport, and then push everything to the limit, and that includes getting the best out of the rules and the judges.
And the majority of pilots do most of this already:
We all have motors that are 2.49cc - we would not consider turning up to a comp with motors of only 2.0cc
We all try to use the very best equipment we can make or buy
If our opponent has a sensitive model then we tend to fly low inverted so it is difficult for him to follow us, i.e. we use flying tactics that will give us the best chance of winning
If we see an opponents pit man jump over some lines we shout for a DQ
So we all tend to go to the limit on most of these issues and on some of the rules. It’s just that some people will push some of the other rules further than others.
The rules…the limit…line tangles etc
Some people would maintain that we have a set of rules. They are all there in black and white so all we have to do is stick to them religiously. But I think it is more complicated than that because there are some grey areas as well.
Different people from different countries have their own views on what is sporting, what is fair, what should be allowed, and what should be penalised in combat. But we cannot fly each competition differently, for example to fly as the Dutch might like one day, then the next competition to fly as the Danes might like, or the Ukrainians or the Brits….all to slightly different rules.
So, we all have to fly to a single set of rules. And we have those already. They are the FAI F2D rules. They are very good rules and we are lucky that we have very good judges to interpret and enforce these rules.
To win at combat it is important to get the best out of all aspects of the sport:
The models have to be very good, previously tested and trimmed to suit
The motors have to go as fast as possible
All the equipment has to work faultlessly and the pit crew have to be perfect
We have to fly the best tactics to give ourselves any advantage over our opponents
And we also have to understand the rules and push them to the limit to get the most out of them
It is my view that a top sportsman will assess all the aspects of his sport, and then push everything to the limit, and that includes getting the best out of the rules and the judges.
And the majority of pilots do most of this already:
We all have motors that are 2.49cc - we would not consider turning up to a comp with motors of only 2.0cc
We all try to use the very best equipment we can make or buy
If our opponent has a sensitive model then we tend to fly low inverted so it is difficult for him to follow us, i.e. we use flying tactics that will give us the best chance of winning
If we see an opponents pit man jump over some lines we shout for a DQ
So we all tend to go to the limit on most of these issues and on some of the rules. It’s just that some people will push some of the other rules further than others.
The rules…the limit…line tangles etc
Some people would maintain that we have a set of rules. They are all there in black and white so all we have to do is stick to them religiously. But I think it is more complicated than that because there are some grey areas as well.
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