By
the time this issue of MA reaches you, AMA will have
participated in its first League of Cities (LoC) convention
in Tampa, Florida. The Florida LoC is an organization
comprising elected officials from various municipalities
within the state. Roughly 99% of municipalities and counties
in Florida are members. As does Florida, most states within
the United States have their own LoC.
Our purpose in attending this convention is to make
these elected representatives aware of model aviation and
its value as a viable recreational activity. We want to
plant the idea that facilities such as local parks,
schoolyards, sports fields, etc. are perfect venues for
modeling activities. We will also be promoting the use of
appropriate-sized vacant municipal land as model airplane
flying sites.
By making these officials aware of model aviation and
the value it can bring to a community as a recreational and
an educational activity, we can help open the door for local
modelers who approach these leaders to gain access to
municipal properties.
Our plan is to attend at least two LoC conventions in
2008 and, if successful, expand our involvement in 2009.
In October, AMA will
be attending the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA)
Congress and Exposition in Baltimore, Maryland. The NRPA
represents more than 22,000 members, many of whom are park
professionals and urban planners.
Our goal here is the same as our goal in attending the
LoC conventions. If we are successful in laying the
foundation that model aviation is a good use of municipally
owned lands, then it should be easier for modelers to gain
access to these lands. AMA Executive Director Jim Cherry
will be providing updates on our participation at these
events in one of his future columns.
Last month I wrote
briefly about our new association with JWALCHER
Communications, a public and media relations company in San
Diego, California. JWALCHER has successfully helped
organizations similar to AMA introduce and promote their
activities to the general public.
Our goal is to make as many people as possible aware of
model aviation. We already have several projects on the
board that, by the time you read this, will have resulted in
magazine articles, a number of newspaper articles,
television news clips, and hopefully a short segment
highlighting model aviation on national television.
The collateral effect of many of these activities has
already resulted in some significant public exposure for a
number of our clubs.
On a smaller scale, another concept that we've
re-created from several years ago is the drafting of a press
release that will be sent to the local media in the
communities of those who win events at this year's AMA Nats.
Local news organizations are always looking for
human-interest material and we think that by providing these
releases, they will eventually end up in print, on the
radio, or on television. This is a simple concept that takes
very little effort to implement, yet has the potential to
reach a large number of nonmodelers.
All of these projects are intended to introduce and
attract as many people as possible to model aviation. I
truly believe that if we are successful in growing model
aviation, our numbers will take care of themselves.
In my July column I
wrote about several events that will be taking place at the
International Aeromodeling Center (IAC) this summer. Since
April when I wrote that column, a number of additional
events have appeared on the IAC calendar. A couple of these
events will take place in late August and mid-September, so
this issue of MA should reach you before they happen.
The Indiana Warbird Campaign Giant Scale Warbird Fly-In
will be on-site August 27-31. This event will feature some
of the best RC warbird pilots in the United States and
Canada. Models flown will be from the World War II era up
through modern jets. For more information you can visit
www.indianawarbirdcampaign.com.
On September 18-21 the IAC will play host to the World
Soaring Masters (WSM). Organized by the League of Silent
Flight, an AMA Special Interest Group, the WSM is a
competition Soaring event that will include some of the best
sailplane pilots from the United States as well as several
other countries.
This is a great opportunity to see competitive Soaring
at its best. To learn more you can visit the WSM Web site at
www.worldsoaringmasters.com.
In the next few weeks,
ballots for this year's AMA officer elections will begin
arriving in your mailboxes. Up for election this year are
the vice president's position in districts III, VII, and XI.
In addition, there will be a national election for executive
vice president and a special election in District II to fill
the vacancy created when I was elected president.
Candidate statements will appear in a future issue of
MA as well as being posted on the AMA Web site.
Please take a moment to review the statements and exercise
your right to vote for the candidate of your choice. MA
See you next time ...
Dave Mathewson, AMA president
|
