Video: Destination Recreation: Aerobatics Contest

Weston Liu loves the adrenaline and the focus of aerobatics.
http://www.wcax.com/story/29575691/destination-recreation-aerobatics-contest

Destination Recreation: Aerobatics Contest Posted: Jul 17, 2015 5:54 PM EDT Updated: Jul 18, 2015 8:27 AM EDT By Cat ViglienzoniCONNECT WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports- NORTH SPRINGFIELD, Vt. - Weston Liu loves the adrenaline and the focus of aerobatics. "It's not just that I go up, I level off, I fly 200 miles, and I come down," he says. His plane is a Pitts Special from 1974 and has two seats. "I tell the young guys that having a seat for your spouse or your wife or your girlfriend makes you a much better guy in their eyes," he says. But his wife is not joining him in the cockpit this weekend. This kind of flying isn't for everyone. Thursday was practice. As one pilot takes off, someone else is on the ground with a radio and an eye to the sky. As the pilot does his loops, rolls or hammerhead turns, he listens for the buzz of a radio to let him know how he's doing. Silence, they told me, means you're doing it right! Each practice run is about 15 minutes, which feels a lot longer in the small space of the cockpit and the summer heat. Eric Anderson flew up from New Jersey to compete with his red biplane. His face lights up when he talks about it. "When I was a kid, I saw one of these in an airshow and I've always wanted to fly one. To me, the Pitts is the epitome of airplane," he says. He's a pilot by trade, but at work, he can't do what he's about to try here. He and other pilots compete with three programs: one they know ahead of time, one they've made up and one they're handed. They're scored on their maneuvers, and the winner gets a trophy and bragging rights. It's Anderson's first competition at the Intermediate level, and he says he'll be happy if he finishes in the middle of the pack. "It's a very raw airplane. It doesn't do anything to help you and it doesn't do anything to hurt you," he says. These colorful crafts don't just look nice -- they're built especially for aerobatics and can withstand stress levels of about 10Gs. "We ask a lot of the airplanes when we do these aerobatic flights. We're stressing the frames, we're stressing the engines. So we have to take pretty good care of the aircraft," says Farrell Woods, the president of the New England Aerobatic Club. He offered to take me for a ride! As we take off, he tells me one thing he likes about flying is the different perspectives, especially during the tricks! "When we're upside-down, you get this beautiful view of the ground," he says. And even after more than 10 years of aerobatics, he says the thrill, and the freedom, of flying never get old. The aerobatics contest is going on today and tomorrow in North Springfield. It isn't going to be like a traditional airshow, which is meant to dazzle spectators, but organizers say anyone is welcome to come and watch! And we're told the pilots are pretty good about letting kids come see the aircrafts close up. They will not fly if it's raining or if the clouds are below 3,500 feet.