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Peter Mill is an experienced flyer ---- yet he doesn't have his pilot's license! Peter is a champion model airplane pilot and has just returned from a chance-of-a-lifetime trip to Norway, where 1 SORE) against ater yurs sca af over 196 wird. Soe steey LOGAN'S POOL - CHEMICALS 8 ACCESSORIES - | 22 Greensboro Drive, Blackstock » 8 Vaurs seyving Sinckevook and Rors Berry Arse - Pumps - Filters - Blankets Pool Kits (Inground & Above Ground) Rollers - Pool Furniture - etc. BROMINE SPECIAL. CALL ... 986-5404 © kg) *99.95 Wagg - McDermott - Panabaker Funeral Home Kindness - Courtesy - Economy | We are bonded for your security. wEMBER Pre-arrangement & Cremation information Sarving Fort PUY 8 SurrSundig Districts with Distinctive Service - SAME LOCATION FOR OVER 75 YEARS Eso 985.2171 5mm PORT PERRY WINDOWS & DOORS * Double Hung Tilt Windows Casement Windows Picture Windows Awning Windows Storm Windows Storm Doors Sealed Thermal Units Patio Doors Patio Storm Doors And Much More m-- ~ p a, - wl tam *® * * ¥ ¥ ® HF * *® FREE ESTIMATES Glass & Screen Repairs -- Insurance Work -- SERVICE & INSTALLATION WAYNE HUTCHINSON PHONE 985-8724 By the time this story is publish- ed, flying ace Peter Hill will have just returned from Oslo, Norway after competing against other fliers from around the world. Peter, a Blackstock resident, isn't your average flyer. In fact, he doesn't even have his pilot's license, but that doesn't stop him from fly- ing his De Havilland Chipmunk at dizzying heights and speeds. The Chipmunk is actually a scale model of the original Canadian designed two-seater plane, about four or five feet long, with the cockpit just big enough to house a regular-sized barbie doll. It is fully radio-controlled and operated by Peter, safely ensconc- ed on the ground-which doesn't mean the task is an easy one. The plane can travel in excess of 100 miles per hour, and one wrong move can send it plummetting down to earth in a fiery crash. The sport requires cool nerves, a steady hand, careful concentration, and much training. Peter's been operating a radio-controlled plane for 25 years, so it's really no sur- prise he was chosen to represent Canada (along with one other flier) in the international flying competi- tion in Norway. Other competitors came from as far away as Ireland, Austraia; Australia, Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Italy, Japan, Finland, Germany, England, the United States, France, Switzerland, the U.S.S.R., Poland, and Tchecoslov- qui. The prizes at stake were three medals, a gold, a silver and a bronze, and the competition was just as tough as any sport of the Olympics. ~ For folks like Peter, model airplane flying is a spor, not a hob- by. He has one or more of his planes (he has several) out at least once a week and keeps busy with competi- tions on weekends. His living room is filled with awards but as his wife Kathy explains, the Norway com- petition is The Big One, with as much prestige accompanying it as any other international contest. "This is the final plateau for Peter. It's the highest he can go," she said. Before embarking on his flight (he left July 12th and returned after the competition ended on the 19th), he had no real hope of winning a medal. "It sure would be nice, though," he said with a hearty chuckle. In order to even qualify for the Norway trip he had to win competi- tions against other flyers. Eventual- ly he was chosen along with two others (one couldn't go) to be part of the Canadian team. He had the same opportunity in 1982 but finances dictated he couldn't go at the time (he pays most of the cost himself). This time around, however, he decided he couldn't afford not to go. During the competition, he was asked to make three flights, employ- ing certain mandatory maneuvers, much like a figure skater has to. The flying itself is tricky and com- plicated. Insurance, necessary on all model planes, is high as a result. With a wrong maneuver, a plane could crash and hurt someone. "The thing is just as good as hav- ing a loaded shotgun in your hand," he said. The plane runs on methanol and has five controls, all operated from the ground by remote: the elevator, which controls height; the rudder, which controls direction; the motor control, which adjusts speed, the wings control and the flaps. The motor is one horsepower, more than enough steam to turn the prop approximately 11 to 13,000 an RPM's. There's a glow-plug for starting it, with a one and a half volt battery. Once started, the plane taxis down a smooth stretch of .ground (Peter says sod farms are the best runways), until enough speed is gained for take-off. But unlike "real" planes, the model airplanes are limited by their controller. By necessity, they can travel only as far as their operator can see. Naturally the radio range is farther than that, but if an operator can't see where the plane has gotten to, it could get into trouble. And like real planes, the models are limited to their particular con- struction. Chances are you'd never see a Jumbo Jet doing somersaults in the air, but you might see a sport plane do just that. As a result, Peter handles his Chipmunk just like a real pilot might handle a full-size Chipmunk. Obviously, there's a lot more to this so-called "hobby" than meets the eye. "When you first tell people about this, they think we're talking about childrens' toys,"' Kathy Hill says. "You can see these planes are ing but toys." t the Hill household, flying is a Patrick GQ. Deegan. DENTURE THERAPY CLINIC 305 Queen Street -- Port Perry Blackstock pilot against world's top model fliers family affair. Wife Kathy has done a fair bit of flying on her own, as has their young son. But nobody has quite the same enthusiasm as Peter himself. "Ireally loveit. It's a year-round thing for me," he said cheerfully. "It's a skill for the hands in the winter, when I build the planes, and it's an outdoor sport in the summer, when I fly them." A few days before he left for Nor- way he was more than just a little bit excited about the competition he would be up against. "But it's like anything. You have to go once to know what's going on, to get the grasp of what's expected of you," he said, and then added with a grin, "Now, I'm going for the experience. I keep telling my wife this is only the prelude to 1988 and she says no way.' He laughs, and she rolls her eyes. "That's fine, "' she says, "but if you go in 88, I'm going with you." Don't waste this space. Small ads pay! BY APPOINTMENT ONLY! Phone: 985-2916 or 623-4473 covicon £88Y ORT AUTO GLASS & TRIM wo Hl Complete Upholstery HB Windshields HB Sunroofs & Pinstripes Hl Body Moulding 139 WATER STREET -- Poy PERRY CALL FOR YOUR APPT. ... 985-8507 Monthly Rates 2 YEARS 3 YEARS 4 YEARS 5 YEARS 10 1/8% 10 1/4% 2 YEARS 8 7/8% 3 YEARS 4 YEARS 5 YEARS 9 3/4% -- MORTGAGES BOUGHT & SOLD -- Rates subject to change without notice. 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