This letter will serve as a preliminary "pilots meeting" in order to maximize our time in the air. It will try to cover as much information as possible; however you should feel free to bring up any subject that concerns you during the pilots meeting at the flying site.

We will offer all classes of IMAC; Basic, Sportsman, Intermediate, Advanced & Unlimited with awards through 3^rd place for each class. Also, if enough pilots show an interest, a Freestyle event without awards will be offered.

The Scale Aerobatics contest will consist of 2 days of rounds. Saturday will consist of as many know rounds as we can get in. Sunday will start with unknown round for each class (Basic will fly the known), followed by the Freestyle competition and the end with 1 Known round for each class (the order of the Freestyle and the Final round of Knowns may switch).

On Saturday all trim flights must be completed 15 minutes prior to the start of the pilots meeting. Trim flights on Sunday morning will not be allowed unless pre-approved by one of the Contest Directors.

7:00 a.m. until 7:30 a.m. – Sign In. Please bring your AMA card. Entry fee is $30 for IMAC members and $35 for non-IMAC members.

All pilots and callers are required to attend this meeting. We will have a brief discussion immediately following this discussion; we will have an abbreviated Judging School. Attendance is mandatory because we will be relying on contestant judging for this contest. It is imperative that all contestants are familiar with the nuances of the Scale Aerobatic Judging Guidelines. Judging schedules will be discussed prior to flight time. We will do our best to make any adjustments needed to allow competitors to call for a fellow pilot. Should one become present, please report any scheduling problems to a contest official as soon as you become aware of it.

8:00 a.m. until late afternoon- Known rounds

One or two boxes will be utilized depending on the number of registered pilots. Flight order and flight line assignments will be announced at the pilots meeting.

7:45 a.m. – Brief Pilots Meeting

This meeting will be used to discuss any questions arising from the previous day’s competition.

8:00 a.m. – Unknown Sequence (Basic will fly known)

Upon completion of the Unknown Sequence, we will have a brief break to set up for the Freestyle round.

Upon completion of the Freestyle event, one Known Round will be flown (the order of the Freestyle and the Final round of Knowns may switch).

It is always our intention to conclude the contest as early as possible on Sunday so those traveling may get an early start for the drive home.

All AMA rules for the Scale Aerobatics will apply. Pleas read the following information.

Proof of Scale: All competition aircraft should meet the scale requirements as detailed in the AMA rulebook. If your aircraft is at the extremes of the guidelines or is not easily recognizable as a scale aircraft, please bring proof of the scale with you to the contest.

2 sequences will be flown per known round. Landing between sequences is permitted for the throttle and minor adjustments to the aircraft. If you so choose to land between sequences (voluntary or involuntary) your second sequence will be flown at the end of the class round.

If the pilot is unable to complete the first sequence, he or she will receive a zero for the remaining uncompleted maneuvers in that sequence. If the pilot lands without completing the first sequence, he or she will be allowed to fly the second sequence (at the end of the round), but a landing during the second sequence will also cause a zero for any remaining un-flown maneuvers and the round will be concluded.

A 180-degree, zone-less box will be used, with the deadline beginning 100 feet directly in front of the pilot and running the length of the box.

Pilots are expected to be on the taxiway and ready to go when directed to do so by the Flight Line Director. Pilots are responsible for knowing where they are in the flight order and having their airplane ready when required. Any difficulties should be discussed with the Line Director as soon as possible.

Start engine and become airborne – two (2) minutes.

Enter the aerobatic zone – one (1) minute.

No time limit while in the aerobatic zone.

Between leaving the aerobatic zone and touchdown for landing – two (2) minutes unless required to hold upon command of an appropriate official.

Except for Freestyle, no aerobatics may be performed immediately following the take-off, or directly in front of the judges. Positioning maneuvers and simple trim maneuvers are acceptable, but only after having reached altitude.

For safety reasons no taxiing will be done behind the flight line. Anytime the engine is running, a helper is required to have a firm grasp on the aircraft until it reached the flight line.

Should a pilot crash during the scored portion of the flight he/she will be zeroed for the remainder of the flight. In this context a crash is defined as any model damage whether mid air or ground contact from which the airplane cannot continue flying without repair work to the airframe, including replacing the propeller. In the event of model damage, the Line Judge will notify the Contest Director of the damage and the Contest Director has the final say as to whether the airplane satisfies the "repair" or "repaired" criteria.

When two flight lines are utilized, it’s possible that two aircraft will be sharing the same airspace at the same time. Whenever the pilot or the caller believes any aircraft is in danger of a collision, or if both aircraft are flying on a close synchronous path, (thus distracting the pilot), an "avoidance" may be called. Judging will cease, allowing the pilot to reposition the aircraft to a point prior to where the avoidance was called. However, the pilot will not be re-scored on completed maneuvers. The pilot will alert the judges that he/she is re-entering the box and judging will resume. No penalties or downgrades will be assessed.

Scoring will follow the 2008 normalized method outlined in rule 15.4

15.4 Each sequence shall be normalized to a standard 1000 points. The pilot with the highest raw score receives 1000 points for the round. Each pilot thereafter shall receive their raw score divided by the high raw score giving a percentage of that high raw score, which is then multiplied by 1000 to get the normalized score. Scores shall be rounded to the nearest ½ point.

All plots must position themselves between the airplane and the spectators for the duration of the flight. Standing on the runway is permitted, but the airplane must remain beyond the far edge of the runway unless landing. Any pilot violating this rule will be zeroed for the flight. Alternatively, the Contest Director may define the runway deadline, and crossing the deadline will zero the flight.

A caller must accompany each pilot during the flight.

Pilots’ have the option of beginning their Freestyle routine at take-off, or they may use a flying start. If using a flying start, the only allowable maneuvers preceding the start of the routine are procedure turns and climbs to altitude.

For runway starts, judging begins when the wheels break ground. If a flying start, the caller will drop his arm signifying the start of the sequence. The timekeeper will start the music when cued by the caller and use a stopwatch to monitor the time.

Judges will be instructed to terminate judging at 4 minutes. The time keeper will announce four minutes to the judges, thus notifying the judges to stop scoring.

From I-84 take the Hazelton/Valley Road Exit 188. Turn north under Freeway and then turn east on Frontage Road. Go 2 miles (just past Hazelton Airport on north side of roadway) to 2000 East Road and turn north. Go about 100 yards turn west onto gravel road. Continue ½ mile going west on gravel road past airport and you are there.

Thank you and good flying!