Weekend Update & Fw: Weekly Events for week: June 30 - July 6, 2025

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President - DCEF

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Jun 29, 2025, 5:11:02 PM6/29/25

Hi All,

Weekend Update: You knew it was coming... The Balloon Fiesta Park is CLOSED this week, weekend, and Monday for the Freedom Fourth event. BFP will re-open on Tuesday the 8th. There are 2 more weeks in the schedule before Fiesta that BFP will be closed... just to give you a heads up. Just know, I am as anxious to fly as any of you!

BFP Weekly Forecast: Weather Underground 10 Day

Daily Reminders: Don't forget to visibly hang your Gate Card from your rearview mirror while you are at the Park. Check the 2 Runway Barriers/Signs for right lane position with the signs facing out to block each end of the Runway. Do respect the Balloonists if they are up and give them full airspace. Watch for and avoid other park users. Refrain from flying in the airspace above them. Remember that the airspace over the Golf Training Center (Driving Range) is a NO FLY ZONE. Clean up your Area or Crash Site when you're finished, as well as all broken prop blades. If you see a broken prop, even if it is not yours, please pick it up and throw it away. Thanks.

Flight Awareness: Stand 25' back from the Runway to allow for a Safety Margin and so all Pilots have a clear visual perspective. All turns from the Runway shall be away from the Pits. (Always fly to the west of the Runway over D6) The prevailing wind directs the Flight Pattern. (North Wind effects a Left Pattern and South Wind effects a Right Pattern at BFP) Call out Take-Offs, Landings, and any Maneuvers that could affect another Flyer. Use common sense if performing an unusual Flight Plan or Maneuver. Communicate with others if flying large or fast aircraft. Try to stay north of Key Grab (E/W road) so as not to interfere with the gliders. Unless everyone agrees otherwise, Micros may NOT be flown in or from the pits while others are using the Runway. Micros may use the D7 grass to the north or south of the North Blue Awning when the Runway is occupied. Refer to Protocol.

Los Lunas Indoor Flying: Friday night flying, sponsored by the Belen Area Radio Controllers (BARC), takes place in the Los Lunas Middle School gym on the 1st and 3rd Friday of every month from 6-10pm. Don't forget your AMA card.

119 Luna Ave SE, Los Lunas 87031. Park across the street from the gym in the skinny parking lot just south of the ball field.

Please remember that they sometimes have to cancel at the last minute (or have delays) due to unknown sporting events or practices. John will usually e-mail that day to let anybody know of delays or cancellations. His phone number is (505) 975-0321 if you would like to call and check before you load up your vehicle and head out here. If you're running late, do give him a call as he will leave if no one shows up.

As a reminder, this is just for small, indoor, electric, fixed or rotary winged aircraft, hover crafts, and even RC cars. The cars can not leave marks on the floor.

Cumberland Heights Presbyterian Church Indoor:

When: 1st and 3rd Thursday of each month from 6:30-8:30pm

Where: Heights Cumberland Presybyterian Church

8600 Academy Rd NE (SE corner of Moon and Academy)

Park/Enter on North end along Academy Rd.

What: Anything that fits in the gym: airplane, drone, heli.

Note: AMA required (sign-up sheet requires your AMA number)

Questions: Neall Doren - ne...@haughtmail.com

Call/Text: (505) 681-5998 Thanks Neal, for getting this facility up and running for us!

Cheers,

Greg Rullman

President

Duke City Electric Flyers

Hint of the Week: For electric Nose Gear Retracts, keep a check on the Nose Gear Steering Arm. Rough fields, runways, and everyday ground ops put mucho stress on the arm at its thinnest point. That's right next to where the vertical tiller shaft attaches and runs the joint to the pushrod. The length of the tiller and the slightest bend in the arm throws your NGS Trim off. It is NOT a good idea to simply bend it back. This only increases the chance that it will break on your next landing.

The arm is just aluminum or pot metal and is not hardened. It should be. The leverage that the pushrod exerts on the tiller easily bends the arm at this thin section. The constant back and forth will sooner or later break the arm. You know it's coming when the NGS is constantly getting out of whack and always needs re-alignment.

To help lessen the bending and avoid mechanical adjustment, I use a separate channel for NGS. The upper TX Knob becomes the NGS Trim. (For a full description of how I do my NGS for every a/c, just ask) Yes, because it's the Knob, I need to adjust this for each a/c and I do each time I taxi out. You could put it on a digital trimmer that would keep its last position for each a/c. However, because this little arm typically bends for every plane, you would need to trim prior to each flight anyway. So, I just trim every taxi as a habit. Part of my pre-flight!

The mfg's out there really need to take a harder look at this important little piece of metal and give it a good fix. Better design? Hardened Aluminum? Milled CF also comes to mind. Maybe a bent 90* tiller attaching to a double wheel collar on the strut. Hmmm.

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----- Forwarded Message -----

From: Rice, Susan <asr...@cabq.gov>

To: Rice, Susan <asr...@cabq.gov>

Cc: Gonzales, Sarah <sarahg...@cabq.gov>

Sent: Friday, June 27, 2025 at 09:04:50 PM MDT

Subject: RE: Weekly Events for week: June 30 - July 6, 2025

Hi all,

Gate number 3 is still damaged.

Gate 4 will be open 6:00am – 6:00pm. After 6:00pm gate 4 will close and you have to drive up to it from the inside for it to open.

Construction work will continue on Vendors Row in July. The construction fence will be pulled east from the edge of the grass.

Thanks,