After completing the final round of the advance class and all serious stuff out of the way, the air combat event started in the early afternoon. The Apache rifle club brought out a dozen air pallet guns for guests to shoot down some foamie planes. As if that wasn’t enough, Jason Krause, Alan Szabo, and Mark Padilla volunteered their T-Rex 500 as targets for the event. Jason did some extremely close fly-by’s, while crazy Mark just flip flop right in front of the guns! Just as he thought he was invincible, somebody knocked off one of his links and ended his flight. Below you will find some photos of the poor heli after taking all those beatings.
Later we began the obstacle course event. Contestants need to fly their T-Rex 450 (500 was also allowed to entered, but nobody did) through an L-shaped box, circle around a Taipei101 model twice, land on a scale carrier ship, and then go through a meat grinder. Doug Marshall made the first attempt, flying his T-Rex 450 all the way to the meat grinder. This has proven to be the best flight, as no other contestants went as far as he did. Unfortunately nobody was able to complete the whole obstacle course this year. Better luck next time!
Then comes award ceremony. The top finishers were as follow:
Advance Class:
1. Lukas Riva
2. Duncan Osbourn
3. Alan Szabo
4. Theeradet Mahamontree
5. Chang-Fang-Hao
6. Jukrawut Rummaitree
7. YoungRok Son
Intermediate Class:
1. Korawich Thongsri
2. Mark Padilla
3. Frank Columbia
4. Benjarit Hotrabhavananda
5. DongRyul Lee
T-Rex 500 Class:
1. Ko-Huan-Chen
2. Timo Wendtland
3. YoungRok Son
4. Mark Padilla
5. Tu-Yu-Wei
Align was also presented with 3D master’s “Best Constructor’s Award.” At hand was 3D masters organizer Jeff from UK to present the award to Alex Tu of Align. This award is presented to outstanding manufacturer with breakthrough products. Congratulations to Align!
Just when we thought this was the end of our memorable trip, Align’s boss decided to treat all guests to a Japanese style BBQ feast at a popular restaurant called “Yuan Shao.” He basically booked the whole restaurant, as the 200+ guests filled the 2 stories. This restaurant served sliced marble beef that you cook on a charcoal stove on the table. The food would please even the most discriminating connoisseurs. I’ve had some good beef but this tops them all. Sorry I didn’t take any photos, as I was too busy cooking and eating.
The following day guests had the option to take a city tour up to the capital city of Taipei to see Taipei101 and National museum. My flight was on that day so I had to pass on the city tour, but I have been to Taipei 101 so I’ll share a few photos here. It’s currently the tallest skyscraper in the world, with a super fast elevator system that zooms you up to the top observation deck in 38 seconds. The elevator is even pressurized to prevent discomfort. The view from top is spectacular. This is a trip not to be missed if you plan on attending the Align fun fly.
I’ve been to a lot of fun flies in the past, and this is by far one of my favorite. The Align crews were extremely friendly, paid attention to every single detail, and ran the event very professionally. The helicopter flights were spectacular to watch, but it’s really all the people of the funfly I am going to miss. I bumped into old friends, met a lot of new ones, and witness the miracle Align has created. This to me was a trip of the lifetime, and this blog is a reminder of the memory from this fun fly. Thanks to Align’s Maggie, Wendy, and Alex. See you guys next year!
[ contributed by Steph ]
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