Almost everyone will have I am sure heard that RC helicopters are the most amazing fun, exhilarating to fly, exciting, thrilling and at the same time challenging hobby that you can partake in. You only have to take a look at any one of the many YouTube videos of a pro flying aerobatics in an RC helicopter – which I guarantee you that the first time you see one you will stand back in jaw-dropping awe – to appreciate this. Even a very ordinary pilot is something to watch.
Furthermore, I will guarantee you this: anywhere you see somebody flying a remote control model of any kind you will see a crowd of onlookers. remote control helicopters in particular are like a magnet – for children and adults alike. True they might not all be gathered round the person with the transmitter but you just look around and see how many people have stopped what they were doing to observe . With this as a hobby you can’t help but make friends – and that’s even if you don’t join a model helicopter club.
This is one hobby that you can certainly get totally engrossed in, and that is something that almost everyone benefits from today. Let’s face it, we all need something to take us away from the daily stresses and strains of life, away from our worries of work, family and finances to name but a few. Most of us can only take a get away from it all holiday once or twice a year but anyone can find half an hour or an hour every day to lose themselves in their favourite leisure pursuit – go down to the park or over to the local flying field and get the blades whirring on one of your favourite helis.
One thing that I can promise you is this, when you are flying a RC helicopter there will be no place in your mind for anything but 100% focus on what you are doing. It is like a meditation and all your concerns will dissolve...at least until you come back down to earth with your flying machine.
Remote control helicopters are one of the most demanding and challenging of all RC models to learn. However with achievement comes reward. Mastering a new level of skill on a radio controlled helicopter brings immense elation. The shear satisfaction of flying your first loops is amazing. You enjoy this and are automatically motivated to seek the next progression...what is next? What more can I achieve? There is always someone you can learn from, always more to learn and you will always find plenty of people willing to share the learning experience with you.
Yet whilst it can be most demanding and require great levels of concentration, once you have got the basics well perfected, you can fly within your capacity and find it very relaxing.
I’m a violinist and I see numerous parallels between learning to play the violin and learning to fly an RC helicopter. Both are a progressive path whereby over a period of time you develop your ability and in both cases it is an endless learning process; there is always more you can learn. In a recent radio interview Nigel Kennedy said that he had probably achieved 50% of his capacity. As with violin, so it is with remote control helicopters. With RC helicopters there is always another level you can take it to and with the radio controlled hobby technology is always advancing, and this brings in an extra aspect of learning. Not only keeping up-to-date with the new technologies and how it works but more importantly perhaps the impact it has on the performance of flying. For example the new flybarless generation of helicopters just fly differently to the previous flybar type helicopters and the introduction of this has led to a need to adapt to their flying characteristics. It is an ever changing hobby.
The more you put into your pastime the more you will get out of it. This is true of both the violin and remote control helicopter. The more you practice the better you will become and the better you become the more you will be motivated to improve further and the greater pleasure you will get from flying.
The benefits, however, have now been shown to go well beyond what you might logically have expected. A classical music station recently stated on the news that scientists had discovered that learning to play a musical instrument helped to prevent age related deterioration in mental function, such as senile dementia. It is my belief that the same is true of flying radio controlled helicopters or planes or driving an remote control car or boat for that matter. The motor neuron skills, hand eye coordination, sharp reflex actions required and left brain-right brain interaction of coordinating simultaneously independent movements of the two hands is highly stimulating to the brain and will help develop and maintain mental sharpness.
It is also my belief that the stimulation and pleasure of flying helps to lift mood and thence helps prevent depression. The relaxation and release from the stress factors of life may have a wide ranging influence on health, including lowering blood pressure. This is only my opinion but there is sufficient anecdotal and observational evidence to make it a logical proposal.
So the next time you are indulging in your favourite pursuit and someone accuses you of playing with your toys you will have a plethora of answers you can give them...above all else it gives you fun and enjoyment but it should not be forgotten that play in children, as indeed in all young animals, performs a most important function...learning new skills, whether they be functional skills or social skills but it is all about development...and play should, I believe, be encouraged and celebrated at any age.
If you have been to some degree moved by this article to dive into or progress in this pursuit, if you are already partaking in it, then my intention has been fulfilled.
So go out and ENJOY !!!
The author as well as being an RC model enthusiast and especially < AHREF = 'http://rchelisandcars.com' > RC helicopters is a passionate musician and wildlife photographer. He also writes a regular < AHREF = 'http://rchelicopterworld.blogspot.com.' > blog and regular < AHREF = 'http://rchelisandcars.com/articles/' > articles .
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