This is my next to last column as President of the NFFS, and next month,
I will be asking for your indulgence as I reminisce about the past 7+ years in
office. However, this month, I have some news of interest for you.
• NFFS Election
If you were like me, you noticed that the last issue of the Digest did not contain your ballot for the upcoming NFFS election. Well, by now you should have received your ballot by special first class mail. If you have not received it, please contact Walt Rozelle ASAP (see inside cover of this Digest for address). It was one of those inevitable snafus... But, it is important that you vote. You have until December 1 to get your ballot postmarked. So do it now!

•Nostalgia Rules and approved models on the Website
For the past twenty years or so, the NFFS has published hard copies of the Nostalgia Rules and a list of the eligible models for Nostalgia. That list has been sold at no profit to the organization. Beginning now, you can find the current NFFS Nostalgia Rules and the complete list of eligible models on line at the NFFS website (Freeflight.org). The rules have been there for awhile, but the list of models just made the scene.

•Nostalgia Rules Update
Although there have been a number of minor changes to the Nostalgia rules in the past two years, the current rules book will not be updated until the end of 2004. We have attempted to keep our rules making procedures in line with that of the AMA so that there can be a consistent and uniform approach to all of the rules. Look for the official update in about a year.

•New Nostalgia designs
I just got a packet in the mail with three proposed Nostalgia power designs. These three are all from Argentina, and when approved by the committee, will be featured as 3 views in the Digest. Subsequently, they will appear as full sized plans in the NFFS plans service.

•Classic Towline Glider
I have fielded a few calls and answered a few emails about the Classic Towline rules which were published in the last issue of the Digest. These are the official rules under which we will fly during 2004 and which we will follow for the National Cup competition. I agree with some of
the callers that they are less than perfect; however, we can make alterations to them for 2005. I suggest that you make recommendations for changes as you have a chance to experience the current rules and find their shortcomings or notice areas of improvement. The Competition Committee of the NFFS, headed by Bob Perkins, will be the organization which will make the modifications to these rules.

•Classic Towline Redux
Last weekend, I had the chance to time and fly A-1 glider while checking out the new Classic Towline rules. I launched, timed and/or observed about a dozen flights. What I noticed was that the 15 second launch rule is generally easy to follow. Only one flight that I observed took longer than 15 seconds from launch to release. It is a bit of a challenge for the person who is the launcher/timer. This person needs to be pretty ambidextrous in order to click on the watch at the time of launch. It would be better to have a launcher and a timer instead of a person who doubles as both. The other help would be if the timer uses two watches. One for the tow time and another for the flight time. But it can be done.

I want to close this column with a personal announcement. By the time you read this column, I will be married to the widow of a late friend of mine. It is time to begin a new life, and I look forward to it. To all of you who supported me during the time of my late wife’s illness, please accept my heartfelt appreciation for your support. I consider the free flight community as my
friends.
More next month.

Bob Stalick