This report is from Wyoming Associate Vice President Craig Bastion:
I’ve attended the Thermopolis Fly-In, in Thermopolis, Wyoming, for a couple of years, and this year was the best. This event is a cooperative venture put on by fliers from Wyoming and Montana. The draw of this three-day event is flying from the long paved runway at Hot Springs County Airport, just outside of Thermopolis.
The RC fun-fly is in conjunction with a fullscale fly-in, which brought 15 general-aviation aircraft to the field on Saturday. Throughout the event, Airport Manager Nate Messenger communicates with everyone, and it runs well. By rule, model aircraft give way to full-scale, and with everyone’s cooperation, it works out safely and with very little interruption of the full day of flying. The small town of Thermopolis is a great venue for these activities and never disappoints the pilots.
As you might imagine, the long runway attracts many RC jets and large models. There were 10 turbine and two large model waivers in the book. All told, there were 27 registered RC pilots from four states: 15 from Wyoming, seven from Montana, four from Colorado, and one from Utah. The air was filled with airplanes of all shapes, speeds, and sizes.
Another draw is the food and camaraderie. There was a food truck on-site all three days. On Friday night, Jerry and Linda Umbdenstock invited the RC pilots to their place for a fantastic taco bar. On Saturday morning, the Hot Springs Chamber of Commerce served a hot breakfast for both RC and full-scale pilots. Saturday evening’s supper was over the top, with corn on the cob, smoked beef brisket, and all of the trimmings. After supper, there was a pilots’ drawing and raffle drawing, which made for some very happy folks.
This event would not take place without a lot of help. Thanks to District XI’s Contest Directors Art Mulkey and Dennies Rollings, from Billings, Montana. Also, a huge thanks to Nate, the Hot Springs County Airport manager, without whom it just wouldn’t work. Thanks also to Jerry for the use of his hangar, Friday evening’s taco bar, and all of the support during this whole event. I want to also thank the wives for the great food and putting up with our RC addiction.
