Hi Everyone!

I hope everyone has had a chance to enjoy our gorgeous PNW spring!  The weather is great and the days are getting longer.

Chris Randall and I had the opportunity to attend Joe Nall 2026 at the Triple Tree Aerodrome in South Carolina last week.  This was an amazing event with pilots and model aircraft from all over the world!  We learned a lot about what makes an event amazing, but also around how to manage busy flightlines.  One of the main takeaways we noticed is, communication!  These were some of the busiest flightlines we’ve ever seen, and what made them all work well was communication.  All pilots were communicating with others and intentions were well-stated.  I see this at our field, but some incidents can be avoided by simply talking to each other.  Of course, this is in addition to sticking within our safety guidelines!  

Also while I was there, I had the chance to catch up with some AMA representatives, and after telling them about our amazing club and our membership numbers (including our massive youth presence), they were gracious enough to provide some additional interesting facts.  Here are a few highlights:

• Total AMA members in WA: 4,005
• Total AMA members for our regional AMA district 11: 7,826
• Club member averages for WA state: ~56 (pulled from random samples of 50% of clubs in WA state, excluding Marymoor)

Our membership accounts for almost 8% of ALL AMA members in WA state!

*This is huge, folks! *

The big takeaway: by any measure, Marymoor is a uniquely large and active club for our state, and that scale is both an opportunity and a responsibility. Especially when it comes to safety culture, training quality, and how we communicate with members and the public.

A few highlights and reminders coming out of the May 13 board meeting:

Youth program & renewals: Youth participation continues to be a real bright spot, but we still have several youth renewals missing the required parent/guardian consent form. This is an annual requirement under our bylaws, and it also ties directly to who is allowed to fly at the field: only current members may fly, and youth membership requires that signed approval each year.⁠⁠​

Training program: Training is off to a great start.  One student has already soloed, and we’re continuing to see steady demand with applications coming in regularly.⁠⁠

Field and safety items: Maintenance has been progressing well and the field is looking amazing!  We’re always looking for feedback on ways to improve, so let us know if you have any ideas to improve the field.

Events: We’re in a heavy events window, including May activities and continued planning for June’s open house/air show, plus a proposed low-key glider day.

• Giant scale Aeroscout Maiden flight: May 30th
• Glider day: June 6th
• Marymoor Airshow: June 27th

As usual, I want to thank all our members for your contribution to not only our club, but to our hobby!  Whether you’re new to the hobby or a seasoned flyer, we’re all learning from each other, and each of you are vital to our hobby’s future!  

See you at the field!

Chris Adamski

President, Marymoor RC Club

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Hello from your friendly club safety officer!

As we approach the season of good weather and peak flying, I’d like to take this opportunity to remind everyone about a few safety-related things at the field. 

    1.    Only pilots and helpers are permitted at the flight line. If you are not actively flying or not a helper for someone who is, please stay in the pit area and enjoy the view from there. We’ve noticed an increase in people bringing chairs to the flight line and lounging there while not flying. Please do not do this! Having unnecessary people on the flight line increases chaos and makes damage to the planes more likely. Flying while seated in a chair is great, but relaxing in a chair at the flight line between flights is not. 

    2.    Close-in flying is prohibited if there is any person other than the pilot and helper(s) on the flight line. The club has defined close-in flying as flight between the runway centerline and the flight line, except for takeoff and landing. Please do not make low passes or fly low level 3D between the runway centerline and the flight line if you are not the only person in the air. Note: there is an exception for up to three pilots to use a single flight station and in this case, (and this case only) those pilots are considered one and close-in flying with more than one plane airborne is permitted. 

    3.    Please do not use the taxiway edges and flight line as plane parking! Once you are finished with your flight, return your aircraft to the pits so that the taxiway and flight line stay clear for flying pilots. It’s a tripping hazard for everyone and increases the risk of damage to all the planes on the field. This also applies to equipment left on the flight line. Please take your transmitters, FPV goggles, batteries, gloves, hats, jackets, etc. with you back to the pits between flights.

Those are the focus items for now. If you have a safety concern that needs attention or think I missed something in this note, please contact me at willf@marymoorrcclub.org. I’m also often at the field! Please come over and have chat with me next time you see me out flying. 

Thank you very much for your help with safety at MAR/C and making it the best AMA club in the country!

Blue skies,

Will Finamore

MAR/C Safety Officer

Hi everyone,

I hope you are doing well and getting some good flying time in. I wanted to share a quick update from the Board’s February meeting with a few highlights and upcoming dates.

Upcoming club dates

• February 20: Our club meeting will be a build/repair workshop at the LWSD building in Redmond. Bring a broken airplane or a project that needs attention. We will have tools and materials on hand including irons, heat guns, glue, and covering supplies.
• March 14: Swap Meet at the field. The Board voted to designate this as our annual charity event, with a portion of proceeds going to a local food bank. This supports our AMA Gold Club status efforts.
• March (date TBD): Work party to repair tables ahead of peak event season (April through June). Chris Randall will be reaching out to ask for volunteers soon.

Member Virtual Roundtable (new)

I want to start a member virtual roundtable, an online meeting where anyone can join, bring ideas for improving the field or club operations, or just talk RC flying and what people are building and flying.  

This is meant to be informal and open. If you have feedback, ideas, or something you want the board to hear, this is a great place to bring it.  It’ll also be a great way to hang out with other pilots you don’t normally have a chance to meet at the field.

Details (date/time and the meeting link) will be sent out shortly.

Update from our youth members

Our youth members continue to be active and engaged. They are enjoying night flying within club rules, and we also have a strong early signal that a number of youth members are willing to help with upcoming work parties and event planning.

Safety and field updates

• Safety: No incidents were reported this month. The fire extinguisher cabinet covers at the charging station were replaced and relocked, and we are planning recertification for about half of the extinguishers next month.
• Field: Thanks to the new mower purchased last month, the field has been getting positive feedback and is looking good. We must give Bryan Connelly and Mark Knutson thanks for our amazing field as they have put in tons of hours of work for all of us over the last many years!  Thank you for all that you do for us!  

Membership and finances

• Membership: We are ahead of last year in renewals and overall member count at this point in the season.
• Treasury: We purchased a new riding mower last month but expect lighter spending for most of the rest of the year outside of events. The club remains in a healthy position.

Looking ahead: 2026 Open House/Air Show concept

The Board reviewed an exciting proposal to expand on our summer Open House into an Air Show-style event. The working target date discussed was June 13. This is still in planning, but it is moving toward a committee-led effort with Corey Kelmel offering up some incredible ideas, with a focus on safety, volunteer coverage, and coordination with the park and local media. More details soon as the committee firms up a plan.

Youth aviation volunteer opportunities (request)

If anyone knows of aviation industry-related volunteer opportunities where our youth members could earn volunteer hours and get exposure to aviation as they consider options after high school, please reply to this email with details or a contact person. We would love to compile opportunities and share them with our youth and families.

Thanks for being part of the club and helping keep it a great place to fly.

See you at the field,

Chris Adamski

President, Marymoor RC Club