SRQ at Top Gun - 2008
Top Gun Magic!
By Tom Smith
Images by Tom Smith
Sunday evening after a week of flying and a year of preparing for Top Gun we packed up and headed back to Sarasota. When I say we I am speaking of Mike & Eva Winter, David Barry, Nick Ziroli, Vince Veltri, Kirby Cole, Paul Jantzen, Greg Tracy, Kim and myself. One of us was loading up a trophy cup as well……..
I do not have this writing thing figured out so bear with me. As many of you know I lost my Skyraider at the Warbird Fly-in last December at our field. This was a major setback as I was preparing to add more goodies to my plane like Drop tanks and more stuff under each wing for those easy points in a contest. That was going to have to wait because I was faced with resurrecting the “Midnight Cowboy” from a pile of dust if I was going to make it to Top Gun 08.
In just two months I had the plane back in the air, I could not have done this without the help of many of the people I mentioned earlier. Nick was very instrumental in the process of getting me back in the air, it cost me though, his services are not cheap! Dinners, Wine, having to put up with him laughing at my selection of building tools… I never knew that I should have more than a Tuff Grind Cutting wheel and a 25 year old dremel saw.
With all the limitations my tool selection put on the project we had the plane flown in short order. The stress level was very high for months but we did it. Top Gun Magic!
During our IMAA fly-in the weekend before Top Gun I was asked over and over by other fliers “where is the Skyraider”? Safe at home I told them, ready to be loaded for the biggest event one could ever participate in. There was no way I was going to take a chance on dinging the plane again after all that I had gone through to get to this point. Paul would have hit me over the head with a big stick if I had brought the plane, I think he was more stressed over my flying the plane then I was. But I took his advice after an evening of doing touch in goes with it and just put the plane away until Top Gun.
Mike, Vince and David brought their planes out and flew them. Mike flew his Tiger moth, mainly to blow the dust off of it; he has been flying this plane successfully for a long time. Vince dialed in the Zero and David worked out the bugs in his Weight and Balance changes all in preparation for the big event.
Many of you were at the field during the week leading up to Top Gun and saw some great planes come down from the great white north to get some final flights on them before the contest. Some were successful and some were not, it’s a real shame but we all know that these things can happen. If we are afraid of crashing the planes we would not fly them. For some reason we lost a P-51 and T-34. I was not there so I cannot say as to why they had problems. These Top Gun hopefuls had their dreams smashed in an instant and that is very unfortunate. This is why Paul was so against me flying the Skyraider so close to the event. They all have expiration dates written on them somewhere, we just do not know where.
Sunday night before I was to leave for Top Gun I packed all of my supplies and the plane in the trailer because on Monday I had to pick up Greg Tracy in Tampa who was flying in from Australia. Greg had his own issues that we had to overcome in a short time when he arrived. The week before coming to Florida he was in his back yard in Sydney lighting the fire on his F-84; that really was a poor choice of words because that is exactly what he had, a fire. For some reason the turbine main bearing froze up and caused the fire, so out comes the fire extinguisher. After the dust had cleared Greg had his hands full only days before he had to box the plane up and ship it to Florida. He had to repaint one entire side of the plane that got burnt by the heat. With a call to Mike Selby in Thailand the turbine problem was solved, Mike arranged to have the team from PST to bring Greg a new turbine to Florida with them for him. Top Gun Magic!
After picking up Greg and his BIG red suitcase at the airport we headed for Frank Tiano’s shop in Lakeland where the jet was waiting on us. We stopped in at the local hobby shop in Lakeland for a few items; little did I know that I was going to walk out with a $200 electric FW-190 and Greg with a Spitfire. I almost got out with $7 worth of items but we both looked at each other when we saw the planes and said what the heck.
We pull into Frank’s around lunch time; everyone was at lunch except for John. John left shortly after for a bite to eat as well so we started unpacking the jet. It made the long trip very well which was a great relief, we had enough to do. Then a knock at the door comes, it is a delivery truck, in it are 8 LARGE boxes that needed to be unloaded, yep you guessed it, more planes from the other side of the world. I helped unload them and the guy was on his way in no time. We began moving some things around in one of the rooms in Frank’s shop so we could assemble the jet and be ready for the PST team when they got back from lunch and install the turbine. After a few hours Frank reminded us that he closes shop at 5pm. The guys from PST were fantastic; I would give them a mention but I may start an international crisis by trying to spell their names.
Top Gun is a major event, but the real magic is meeting new people. These guys from Thailand could not have been more pleasant. Little did I know that by the end of the week I would be out looking for them to say goodbye and wish them well before I headed home. Top Gun Magic!
Top Gun is an international event and global friendships are formed each year by those that attend. I am very fortunate to be invited and I know it. Flying is only a small part of this event, helping others in any way that you can so that they may make it to the line when their flight time arrives is what it’s all about.
So Greg and I packed up and headed back to Sarasota to work on the plane in my shop. We were pulling into town when I got a call from Nick. He had flown Ed Newman’s Storch this day and they had some issues that needed attending to so I invited them to my shop to work on the plane. Greg and I unpacked the F-84 and started in on it when Nick and Ed pulled up. Man, this plane is massive! They had a main landing gear issue, a tail wheel issue and an aileron hinge problem. Greg and I had plenty to do as well, so we each took a table and got down to business.
The Tuff Grit cutting wheel was cutting and grinding away and the old trusty dremel saw was buzzing along, I was handing tools to each group like a good nurse assisting in a major surgery. Half of the stuff I had packed in the trailer was pulled out to accomplish the tasks at hand. But again, helping out is what it’s all about. I had never met Ed before this night, but from now on he and I will always shake hands when we cross paths. Top Gun Magic!
While the dust was flying in the shop Kim prepared a great spaghetti dinner for Greg and I. Nick and Ed had just come from dinner, just wanted to make it clear that they were welcome too. After a quick bite to eat Greg and I were back at it, the tail cone installed and more paint was touched up on the plane. After a few hours we were all ready to close up shop, Ed and Nick had completed their repairs and Greg and I had Tuesday to complete the few things we needed to do, so the shop lights were extinguished.
Did any of you read about the big Warbird crash that happened around 2pm on Tuesday at Twin Lakes park? Well Greg and I were there, it was tragic. A FW-190 and a Spitfire had a mid air and both planes were totally destroyed! Yep, we figure the 6 minute flight cost us a little more than $30 a minute. The planes flew so nice, we zipped around chasing each other then I pulled a wing over then flew right though the tail on the Spitfire. The Spitfire went into a full power flat spin and the 190 smacked right into the asphalt nose first. Top Gun Magic!
We cleaned up the debris and went about our shopping chores then headed to Lakeland that evening.
Wednesday morning I dropped Greg and the jet off at Frank’s shop then headed to the field. David and Vince showed up soon after I did. This year we had a 30x60’ tent that 7 fliers called home for the week. We started doing this a few years back to keep the work load down by not having to set up tents of our own; this has worked out very well. Many of our fellow club and family members joined us in the tent to get relief from the relentless sun, it was great. This year there were three days of Pro Am flying starting on Wednesday, at the same time Static judging for Masters and Expert class entries was going on. Greg, Mike and I did not static until Friday so we were able to assist others during these first few days.
David flew very early on Wednesday; as a matter of fact he was the first plane in the air at Top Gun 08! They should have a trophy for the person that has to be the very first to fly. With David done for the day we walked over to the food vendor and got a “Top Gun Slider”. A slider is a bacon egg sandwich prepared by Rich, owner of Sugar Shakers food vendors who will be serving at our Scale Masters event later this year. This is something we did every morning while there. We walked back out in time to watch Vince fly a very nice first round.
Well, the flying is done for the first day, now what do we do? This is the fun part; we sat around and talk and laugh, talk with other competitors and watch the flying. The weather was absolutely perfect all week, not something we are used to at this event. If it’s not blowing 20mph+ in your face or at your back it does not feel like Top Gun. A few weeks back they got over 4” of rain at the airport, it would have been nice to get a shower overnight to knock down the dust; it was really dry and dirty.
Greg and I took a ride into town and secured a keg of beer for a party we were going to hold on Thursday night at the tent. We bought some wine at Publix and some Citronella candles at Target to keep the bugs at bay if they should come out. Everything was set so we went back to the field where we hung out the rest of the afternoon chatting it up with others. We hung around to meet up with Gene Payson who was arriving from Sarasota with a trailer full of items to display and sell. Shortly after they arrived we ran and got a shower and met Gene and Bill at Chili’s for dinner.
Thursday we pretty much repeated the flying order, I ran out and got the beer for the party, then came back and iced it down in a trash can at the tent. We tapped that baby around 5pm and walked down the line to remind everyone that it was there. We did not get a big crowed but the ones that did come put a real hurt’n on the thing. We left pretty late and ran back to the hotel. The next thing I knew we were getting cleaned up and headed out again, by taxi this time, to meet up with Frank and others downtown. Wow, like I needed that!
We got back around 1am; my need for food was quenched when I saw in the lobby store a very tasty Microwave Pizza! I just told the man at the front desk to put it on my room and disappeared. It did not take long to get that baby cooking, I got changed and sat and watched it. Shortly after I was in pizza heaven, enjoying the fresh pie and then all of a sudden the FIRE ALARM went off! Wow, did I do that I thought? No, no smoke here. I sat on the edge of the bed and finished it before I got up and got dressed to go see what was going on. I walked out into the lobby and I could smell the smoke! Wow, the place really is on fire. I sat down next to Jason, (another new friend) who had also been out with us, in the lobby and watched a group of fireman wearing full gear sounding like Darth Vader with their oxygen gear on stream in looking for the fire. Shortly we were asked to join the other 200+ guests outside while they took care of the situation. This was like a bad dream; the same thing had happened a few years back at one of the other host hotels.
I go outside and see a big green airport fire truck along with about 4 others, lights all going, my first thought was, I need to get a picture of this! So I walk around the hotel to my truck and get my camera. I have been a photographer for a long time, but for some reason I had some real issues this week with taking pictures at night and inside at the banquet…..
They had us line up in two rows so they could count everyone. I looked and looked but never found my friend from down under. I ran in to Simon from the UK who was rooming with him and he said he could not get him out of bed. If it had gotten worse I am sure one of us would have gone back in and gotten him….sure! Top Gun Magic!
Friday morning was kind of foggy, or it could have been just me. Greg, Mike and I had to static so the three of us were running around getting the planes ready for this most important part of the event. Your static score can make or break a contest. I had taken last year’s comments from the static judges and corrected issues that they found to be wrong with my plane. Now it was time to once again place it on the table for them to pick on. When it came my turn the judges all walked off! I was already nervous, then to see the judges walk off and not return for some time made it even worse. You just want to get this over with.
To be competitive at such an event as this you must static 93 or better because you know the top guys will be 95 and better. If you static out at a 92 and there are 6 others better than 95 you cannot make those points up flying unless they do not complete the event. So this is really big. I turned the plane, stood it on its nose with the help of two others, this thing is a big and heavy, then turned it some more so all of the judges can get a good look at it. The Craftsmanship judge is leaning over looking at the plane from less than a foot away, looking at everything and not saying a word or even smiling.
Your results are not posted until after your first flying round is completed. If they did post them right away many may not even fly if they do not static well. Now that I am done with static I go get something to eat, I had sort of a headache for some reason.
The plan was to run the new Turbine in Greg’s F-84 after static judging was done. So I go back to the tent and help Greg put the final touches on the setup. We put the jet on the ground and start fueling it up. As the pump ground away we heard a big “Bang” go off in the belly of the jet! Greg and I look at each other in disbelief. The jet has two fuel cells, one you can see one you cannot because it is under the turbine. Looking inside we saw what we did not want to see, a fuselage full of kerosene! The tank under the turbine had ruptured. What next?
We proceeded to remove the turbine so we could get at the fuel tank. Two sides of the tank had popped their seems, fuel was everywhere. All we could think of was all the time spent to get here, all the money it took and now this. We were very depressed to say the least. We looked inside and then looked back at each other about 20 times trying to figure out what we were going to do, if anything, to get this bird in the air. With the designers of this plane from PST down at the other end of the flight line we headed their way to see if they had any spare tanks with them. They had brought two of these same jets with them so there was a chance. Our walk was brisk and determined but the end result was that they did not have a spare tank with them.
Our only hope was to get the bad tank out and attempt to repair it. This too became a dead end because the tank was glued in with something that was not going to give it up without doing more damage to it. John for FTE (Frank Tiano Enterprise) came by and saw us on our knees in the dirt working on the plane. With his help we came up with the idea of cutting the existing tank out and installing two separate standard tanks somehow. He and Greg loaded up and went to Frank’s shop and picked up the two tanks while I took off and returned the dead keg before they kept our deposit.
Frank and his team are all about getting everyone in the air no matter what it takes. Frank opens up his shop to everyone in cases like this. I would bet that Frank himself would have been down here helping us if he did not already have his hands full with the event, what an event. Top Gun Magic!
When I returned Greg had already cut the tank out, yes, the Tuff Grit cutting wheel at work again. We came up with all the plumbing needed to tie the two tanks together and then installed them temporarily and began filling them with fuel to see if it was all going to work, it did! Woo Hoo! With some more head scratching we figured out how to install the tanks and secure them so that they would not touch the turbine once installed, that would be bad. The sun has gone down, everyone has left and Greg and I were once again the last ones at the field. We both had to fly early the next day so we cleaned up our mess and headed out. Tonight’s dinner would be a Subway sandwich on the tailgate of my truck while watching a helicopter shoot approaches into the airport. Top Gun Magic.
The big day has finally arrived; the nerves are working their magic on each of us. The Skyraider went together well and David and went over my flight plan and then made sure that the batteries, air tank and fuel tank were all topped off. The pilots meeting was scheduled for 8am and I was 2nd up on Flight line 2 so we proceeded down to show center with the plane. We put it in the ready box and then attended the pilot meeting. After the National anthem we were treated with a full scale flyby of a USAF A-10 Warthog. I think that Team pilot Ray Johns had something to do with this since when he is not flying RC he is working at the Pentagon wearing 3 stars on his uniform.
My first flight went pretty well from my standpoint. One never knows what the judges think until the scores are posted. The main thing is that the plane performed flawlessly and I was able to get it off the ground and back on without any mechanical issues. The main thing that has been plaguing me is upon landing where I seem to always bounce. The first bounce is not a problem; it’s the second one that seems to bite me. The second landing is nose down and this causes the planes landing gear struts to compress and in turn hit the prop and breaks it. This was my biggest fear for months but after this first round I was up $38 by not bouncing. I brought 4 flying props with me, one for each round and I am glad to say that I came home with all four.
The second round was a little more challenging due to circumstances beyond my control. Each flight you are given 15 minutes to explain your flight to the judges, start your engine and complete the flight. If everything goes well I can complete my flight in as little as 7 minutes, so I have lots of time. I try to talk to the judges a lot during my flight. My reason for doing this is two fold, one I try to put some reason behind the maneuvers that I am performing by choreographing my flight around a rescue mission. Rescue missions were the primary job of the Skyraider pilots so my entire flight is based on that mission. The other reason is to keep the judges focused on what I am doing and not some other plane that happens to be in the air at the same time. This is my 15 minutes so I try to keep them focused and entertained.
Once I got in the air another competitor fired up his VERY loud plane right next to me on flight line #1. This really through me off my game. I had to bend over to my right in order and talk very loudly in order for the judges to hear me. I was about 3 maneuvers in and this plane still had not taken fight, so when I leaned over to tell the judges what I was going to do next I looked at them to make sure they were hearing me. In doing so I committed a major no no, I looked at the score sheets and did not like what I saw. Everyone has their own opinion and that is what you set yourself up for when you enter such an event. But all I saw was two maneuvers scored Seven point something! I was shocked and disturbed by this, so much so I gave up, it really hit me hard because I did not feel that any of my maneuvers were that far off. All my time and efforts to get here and the effort that I felt I was giving to complete under such great pressure did not deserve a score in the 7’s. NEVER look at the flight sheets. My statement to those that do not want to be judged by others is “Fly Pylon”.
So I was my own worst enemy on this fight, I had broken rule number one and then I let it affect me, I never should have done either. So needless to say I was quite bummed the rest of the day over it but once again the Skyraider performed flawlessly and was safe on the ground, I had two more rounds on Sunday to make up for it. Top Gun Magic!
Once I got the plane back safely in the tent I turned my attention to Greg and the jet who had successfully run the turbine and was setting on the line waiting for his turn to fly. He and I went over the flight plan and he told me things that he needed me to remind him of during the flight. This preflight is critical because my job as caller is to keep him calm and on track during the entire flight. He is the sole manipulator of the controls but I am watching out for traffic and guiding him through each maneuver where he has told me he needs me too. As we stood there drinking our second bottle of water it happened! PSsssssSsSsSsSsSttt! We both looked down at the plane shining in the sun knowing what had just happened. Something in the air line had just let go and all the air in the system was escaping fast. We both fell to our knees and put our ears to the plane to see if we could figure out where the leak was coming from, it was located around the nose gear. I picked up the plane as Greg ran his hands through the nose gear well and found that an air cylinder on the gear front right gear door had totally blown apart. Now how often has that ever happened? Never!
The first plan was to just get a bolt and plug the air line and tape the door open so I went back to the tent and got my back of tricks and headed back. None of the 100 items that I had would stop the leak so I head back to the trailer for more tricks. As I was passing Bob Violet’s tent I remembered that they were selling air cylinders so I popped in and grabbed one that looked to be about the same size, interrupted the person running the register and handed her $30 and said I had to get going and would come back for the change later. Now that I think of it I never did go get my change.
I went back to the flight line and handed Greg the new cylinder. He then told me that he had called an attempt so he was moved to the end of the line. With it getting close to lunch time we were not going to have to fly until after the noon time show, so we took the plane back to the tent and repaired the door. Where is that keg when you need it! Top Gun Magic!
With the gear system holding air once again we headed back to the flight line and got ready to fly. The owner of PST came out with us and handled the starting of the turbine, it ran very smooth. We buttoned up the hatch and taxied out for take off. Greg called takeoff and brought he power up and released the brakes, the plane started to roll and pick up speed. It went by us at a pretty good clip and it kept going right down the runway at an even better clip until we were pretty sure that this sucker was not going to rotate. It was stuck to the ground and there was nothing Greg could do but chop the power and hit the brakes. The plane just kept on going like it had no brakes to stop so to keep it on the West end of the airport property Greg retracted the gear and the plane slid to a stop. Well that is that, I packed up all our gear and headed back to the tent while Greg went to get the jet.
After he returned he only brought a broken wheel with him, it had split at in the center explaining why he could not stop the jet. We still really do not know why it turned into a jet dragster. He had flown the plane many times at home but these flights were on grass, maybe the bouncing takeoff run on the grass assisted in getting the nose to rotate…. But the fact we were facing is that Greg’s Top Gun attempt was now over. I felt so bad for him and still do.
With that excitement over with David and I headed down to the flight line for round 3. This flight went better then the last because I asked the judges if I could wait for my loud neighbor to get started and in the air before I started, they allowed this to happen. See, judges are not all bad. Here it is Sunday and they have been setting out here for 4 days already so they have a very tough job, so a little kindness and understanding on our part goes a long way.
With the scores for round three posted I was pleased to see that I had posted my highest score of the event, a 95.066, now that is more like it, I felt much better. My first round was scored a 90.9 and the flight from hell was a stunning 87.618, so all I needed to do was post another 92+ flight and I should stay in the top 10.
With all of the 4th round flown everyone must wait for all the scores to be tabulated and then the winners are announced. While we waited I began tearing down camp. Greg had the jet boxed and Paul and I loaded it up in the back of the truck. I then took the Skyraider apart and loaded it into the trailer then packed everything else in around them both. With everything packed up the tent looked massive.
Everyone sat around in the tent and talked over all of the events that had taken place this week. If your still reading this you will see that I only know one story and that is my story. I would hope that the other guys that participated this year will sit down and write about what Top Gun means to them as I have here. Well that is it, Top Gun is over for another year and all I can hope for is to be invited back next year and do it all over again. Thank you for sitting through my long winded story about what makes Top Gun “Top Gun Magic”!
Oh, who won? Well I do not have all of the names but there was one of our gang that I mentioned at the beginning loaded up a cup and from what I have been told is still sleeping with it.
Vince flew 4 great rounds and finished 5th in Pro-Am Am Class. That is a great effort in a field of 22 pilots! Great job Vince. What was that? How did everyone else do? Well Nick and Ed had engine troubles which resulted in damage during the 2nd round that left them unable to complete the event. Kirby Cole flew the heck out of his Skyraider to an 11th place finish in Pro-Am Pro class. This kid out flew 19 other big names in this class, great job kiddo! Bill McCallie had gear problems with his sweet looking big Corsair that kept him from finishing the final two rounds. Mike once again graced the sky with his Tiger Moth to a 13th place finish in Expert class. My last round was just what I needed, a 93.93 which brought me home in 8th place in Expert.
My final take on this event is simple. I was a winner by being invited. There are people all around the world that would give anything to be in our shoes. My goal was to show up, static and fly 4 times and bring my plane home in one piece. Mission accomplished.
Top Gun Magic!
by Tom Smith
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"At least half of the pleasure of attending a contest like Top Gun comes from the social aspects; getting caught up with an old buddy you have not seen since last year, going out to dinner and trading friendly insults with your team members, hearing Dave Platt's latest batch of jokes and of course attending the Awards Banquet. This year's event was again held at the Eaglebrooke County Club. The SRQ contingent agreed that the food this year was the best ever." If this sounds a bit familiar, it should, I wrote it last year about last year's event and it is still true for 2008! Mike Winter
