SCALE Aircraft Society president John Rolfe coordinated a successful event last week at the State Flying Field on Gundagai Road.
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The inaugural Invitational Scale Classic Down Under ran seamlessly with 25 model aircraft pilots and close to 40 planes converging on Cootamundra for the event.
And as for the weather, “absolutely perfect; you couldn’t have asked for better conditions,” Mr Rolfe said.
Blue skies, little to no wind and warm days set an ideal backdrop for the low key event.
“It’s a laid-back competition; the pilots enjoy it but they still treat it very seriously,” Mr Rolfe said.
According to Mr Rolfe Anthony Ogle was a standout competitor worthy of an honourable mention due to his versatility and finesse.
“I’d confidently say that he’s one of the best 20 pilots in the world,” Mr Rolfe said.
Competing in three events Mr Ogle from Richmond, NSW, flew a scale US WWII fighter plane, a scale German WWI fighter plane and a scale British Miles Messenger.
A range of spectators dropped in to see what all the fuss was about, particularly on the weekend.
“Though we were competing with the Coota Show people wandered in throughout the day, and a lot of people stopped on the side of the road to watch.”
At the gala night on Saturday many reflected on the country hospitality experienced in town.
“It’s the fourth time we’ve been to Coota for various events,” Mr Rolfe said.
“I stayed at the Gardens (Cootamundra Gardens Hotel); they bent over backwards to help out.”
The Invitational Scale Classic will take place in Cootamundra biannually.
“They’re going to be coming back bigger and better with more people when we run the event again in 2016,” Mr Rolfe said.
He says that rallies are easier to organise than competitions, so he’s organising a rally for 2015; ‘Warbirds Over Wattle.’
The vision is to run a family oriented event to attract the broader community.
“We want kids to come up and have a fly,” Mr Rolfe said.