Roll Drills and Sequence Committee

Roll Drills

I’ve just ended a six-month mental break from aerobatics. This meant I had to relearn quite a bit of what I had developed, and that naturally caused me to think of all the inefficiencies in my own training progression that I’m only aware of now that I’ve flown Unlimited at the world level. If I could do it all over again, I would spare myself a lot of (literal) headaches. I’d be wealthier also! There is nothing that drains the pocketbook faster than burning fuel in vain effort.

I’ve come up with a series of drills that helped me out and I think they will help you too. I’ve never really shared this stuff except here and there at camps, but I have notebooks filled with pretty much everything I’ve learned, so from time to time I think it might be helpful if I pull out some of the info and put it into an article or two. You’ll find an article on “Roll Drills” elsewhere in the magazine.

Sequences

We are at the point in the year where we are preparing for the Fall board meeting and I’ve seen the proposed Known sequences for 2023, so I think it might be a good time to talk about the Sequence Committee.

This committee, led by Mike Ciliberti, is tasked with creating 9 Known Sequences each year for all the power and glider categories. It is also responsible for creating our Unknown sequences.

From time to time, I hear criticism about IAC products, including sequences. Frankly, sometimes this criticism comes from pilots with parochial interests that we just can’t accommodate. Some of them like or dislike certain figures. Some of them want the sequences to be harder, some want the sequences to be easier. Sometimes we even have very assertive complainers who seem to think they know more than they clearly do about what aircraft are able to do in the hands of a strong pilot. It’s just not possible to make everyone happy. All in all, I’ve looked at what the committee does, and I think the sequences they make are very good. Mike is open to constructive comments. Send them his way.

If you see a problem with an Unknown sequence during a competition, you can take it to the Contest Jury. They are authorized to change the sequence for matters of safety or if the sequence does not conform to the contest rules. It isn’t fair to the other competitors around the country if a contest changes a sequence for any other reason. We all need to fly the same sequences so that our regional and national standings are fair. That’s why the rules limit what juries can do with sequences, because we are trying to keep the playing field level across the country.

Everyone’s skill level is different so the Sequence Committee cannot tailor sequences for the level of capability at your location. If you encounter an Unknown sequence that seems too challenging for you, but still conforms to the rules, you have the option of taking zeroes for certain figures (or the whole sequence) or taking an Explicit Interruption (a.k.a. “break”) during your flight. If all the pilots in a category feel the sequence is too hard for them, consider a mutual agreement to take a break at a particular point in the sequence. That’s a good solution that doesn’t have to involve the jury.

I remember a couple of contests when I was flying Advanced where the competitors protested the existence of a hard push in the middle of the sequence. How much negative g to allow in an Unknown is a fair question, but you must expect a few hard pushes if you are flying Advanced or Unlimited. It just comes with the territory. I’ve always found that with enough analysis and care that pretty much any sequence is flyable, but I have seen a few where I decided a break was the best way to manage my positioning and safety concerns.

Until Next Time

That’s all from me this month. Keep those emails coming to president@iac.org.