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BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

General discussion on any topic which doesn't have a natural home on any of the other boards.

Single day, two day, mid week or weekend.

Poll ended at 04 Nov 2017, 14:52

Single day
5
8%
Two day
18
29%
Mid week
8
13%
Week end
31
50%
 
Total votes: 62

Geoff Pearce

Re: BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

Post by Geoff Pearce »

chris williams wrote: 21 Oct 2017, 09:55 Aaaah, believe it or not, I was young...once!
No you've been recycled........ :lol:

G
User avatar
Ray Watts
Posts: 128
Joined: 18 Mar 2015, 06:31
Location: Basingstoke

Re: BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

Post by Ray Watts »

I had been keen to go to Buckminster to check it out, so Mandy and I had last weekend there after arranging it with Manny, and what a place it is. It was a gamble with the weather but it was the only real weekend option that we had before the winter sets in.

We arrived on Friday lunchtime in sunshine with not much wind with Dave Phipps (BMFA Chief Executive) in the office to welcome us. The entrance and building area have been renovated with gates at each end of the drive to keep out any unwanted troublemakers. There is still renovation work to be started to about half of the buildings, but the buildings that have been done already, have been done to a very high standard with some of the work being done by volunteers. As we were the only campers for the weekend, we were told that we could pitch up anywhere along the hedges so I opted to be as near the flightline as possible which in the end was about 100 yards away at the most. There was a water supply and toilet disposal very near and the ground was flat. There is a toilet block in the courtyard area, and more facilities in the events complex/hanger plus a porta loo at each flightline. I was allowed to use the hanger (which you will see in the photos) for plane storage and I did a bit of indoor flying as well on Saturday when it got windy.
Buckminster Oct 2017 web.jpg
When I went out onto the flightline I was amazed at the size of the runway. It is huge. In fact the pits area is probably as big as most club patches and I was told that they used that as the runway to start with whilst working on the main runway. The runway is so big that there are 3 pilots boxes on the main runway and 2 more on the shorter 90 degree runway which has its own pit area. There are 2 control line circles at one end and more being developed at the other end currently. There were 7 flyers there who are all locals and as such have landed on their feet with the centre opening up. They were just regular flyers with regular club type models and welcomed me in straight away. They tend to fly there on week days as there are many events on at the weekends so they go to their own regular clubs at the weekends. I asked them how they felt about that and they said it was great as the place tended to be quiet in the week but they get great flyers visiting the events so they come and watch for free if they want to and have been amazed at what they have seen. 2 of them returned on Saturday but it was quite windy, but nobody turned up on Sunday at all when it was breezy but sunny all day. I flew all day by myself.

A lot of the ground work is done by a group of volunteers on Thursdays and they cut the grass to a very high standard and just keep the place looking very tidy. It was these guys who painted the floor of the hanger in one day, which was a massive task in itself.

There is a car park about 30 to 50 yards from the pits area with a porta loo in between. The car park has a row of trees in front for protection. The walk from car to pits is a short one but there are about 8 trolleys available to use to carry gear and models if you desire.

The site is fairly remote with houses about a mile away on 2 sides and nothing on the other 2 sides. If anything, the only problem would be the evening flying with the sun going down at the left hand end, but the sun is behind you all day so not a problem at all really.

Manny tells me that there are hopes to convert some of the remaining out buildings to bunk rooms and a shower block, but this is down to costs and funding. I have also seen there are hopes to have a refreshment area as well but that is for the future. Considering that this has all happened within about a year is truly remarkable and the team under Manny's vision and direction should be truly proud of what they have all achieved for the whole of the membership.

An aerotow here in my opinion would be easy to run as the runway is long and wide. The camping is good and the car parking is even better. It would be a fairly central location, only 15 minutes from the A1 near Grantham. The only problem will be that the site is in much demand so choices will be very restricted for weekend events. With planning there should be enough for everyone.

This did turn out to be a rather special experience for me and one which I will want to re-visit time and time again. I'm already looking forward to the spring despite the site being 150 miles away.

I have include below 2 links to you tube. One is video I took from my foamy Cub on the windy Saturday, but it shows the site very well and the size of it all and the other is a Slide Show of photos I took over the weekend. You can pause the photos at any time. I used a trial package for this, hence the writing on the corners of the photos.

Enjoy....I did!!

Ray



It's always calmer indoors :D
Pat Marsden
Posts: 121
Joined: 18 Mar 2015, 06:29
Location: Lincolnshire, UK

Re: BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

Post by Pat Marsden »

Last few days of the poll so time for last minute votes. If you have read Rays write up of the site then it certainly sounds like a cracking site for an aerotow event. The Ghost Squadron are keen to give it a go but really need to know that we will be supported before we commit the time and effort into organising. The calendar is increasingly busy as is the Buckminster site so its going to give AEB a headache in finding time that fits in all calendars :D The BMFA are our National body and the site is there for the use of all, they are keen for us to show how it should be done so lets give it a go.
john greenfield
Posts: 497
Joined: 18 Mar 2015, 07:52
Contact:

Re: BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

Post by john greenfield »

All

The poll has now finished and has shown (for those few who replied !?) that a 2-day meeting over a weekend was the preferred option. Based on this the Ghost Squadron have decided to go ahead and organise a trial event at Buckminster on 12 / 13 May 2018.
We will have exclusive use of the RC flying area for the weekend and the site has a permanent Notam to 1500ft. You will NOT require a "B" certificate to fly a model over 7kg but of course, to fly one over 20kg you will need to show the correct CAA paperwork. Your "favorite !?" tug pilots have already signed up to support the meeting, thank you guys.
Camping will be available on site for the weekend and we are working on a "special " price for weekend camping and flying. For day visitors there will be a daily charge similar to other aerotow events,
More details will follow in due course but we hope you will all put the dates in your diary and support this trial meeting. Its continuation will depend on the level of support.
If you have any questions, please post them here and we will try to answer.

The Ghost Squadron
AEB = Aeronautical Energiser Bunny (with thanks to CW)
Phill Tadman
Posts: 329
Joined: 18 Aug 2015, 20:38
Location: South Cambs

Re: BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

Post by Phill Tadman »

Thats great news!

Huge thanks to all who have been working hard to get this started!

Phill
keith poulton
Posts: 2
Joined: 07 Sep 2015, 06:51

Re: BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

Post by keith poulton »

Sorry to come in on this,but yes,great idea,I should be able to support
Pat Marsden
Posts: 121
Joined: 18 Mar 2015, 06:29
Location: Lincolnshire, UK

Re: BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

Post by Pat Marsden »

keith poulton wrote: 11 Nov 2017, 09:59 Sorry to come in on this,but yes,great idea,I should be able to support
Keith

Feel free to come in on any thread, no need to be sorry about it. Will be good to see you at Buckminster.

Pat
Chris Veitch
Posts: 47
Joined: 21 Mar 2015, 07:57
Location: Northallerton, North Yorkshire

Re: BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

Post by Chris Veitch »

Ray

Thanks for the info. The site looks great for aero towing. I have put the May dates in my diary

Regards
Chris
B Sharp

Re: BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

Post by B Sharp »

I have added the dates to my calender for next year and would definitely like to attend. Whether that will be possible is another matter entirely.
Brian. :)
Mark Richards
Posts: 18
Joined: 18 Mar 2015, 21:12
Location: Penkridge, Stafford, England

Re: BMFA National Centre at Buckminster

Post by Mark Richards »

Thanks to Ray and the GS for setting this up.
It's in my diary and I look forward to flying at Buckminster.
Mark
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