The 2020 Poker Run was held today and was very successful. We had a great turn-out, with 9 airplanes and 15 participants. The route this year took us to Kearny, Pinal Airpark, Coolidge, and Casa Grande. Here are the results of the card showdown. Congratulations to all the prize winners.
We tried something new this year in recognition of the pandemic, a Bring Your Own Lunch in the DVT airport picnic area. It was a beautiful day and nice to see everyone. Here are a few pictures.
The Star Aero Club Poker Run will be held this coming Saturday, November 21. In consideration of the Covid pandemic, we will be conducting the Poker Run a little differently from our usual tradition, but hey, it’s 2020. Nothing is the same this year!
The Star Aero Club’s annual Poker Run is coming up soon. We will be providing more information, but save the date, November 21st, for this always fun and well-attended event. The DVT airport restaurant is closed, so we are looking at other lunch options – maybe a return to the airport picnic area if available.
Please let Mike Gibbs or Mike Adams know if you would be willing to help with the preparations.
Also, to give us a preliminary indication of the level of interest, please reply and let us know if you are planning to participate.
The 2020 Spot Landing Contest was held as planned on Feb. 15, 2020 at Gila Bend airport (E63). Four contestants joined the competition and a good time was had by all. The results are as follows:
1. Andy Durbin with a scored distance of 20′ (40′ power off)
2. Mike Adams with a scored distance of 45′
3. Mike Gibbs with a scored distance of 50′
Detailed scoring results are as shown below:
February Activity — Spot Landing Contest
February is traditionally the time for our spot landing contest. This year, the contest will be held at Gila Bend (E63) on Saturday, Feb 15. We will meet at the Gila Bend airport at 8:30am. We will finish up before lunch, and return to the DVT airport restaurant for lunch. If you’re planning to participate, please RSVP as soon as possible. We need a good turn-out to have a decent competition, so we encourage your participation. If you haven’t tried this before, come join us. The more the merrier!
As we did last year, we will use the scoring method using the shortest distance of each pilot’s landings rather than the sum of the distances. The rules are available here.
We are again including the “dead-stick” landing option in the competition. Each pilot will have the option of making any landing from a power-off approach. For this option, power will be reduced to idle at the start of descent on downwind, and is not to be reapplied prior to landing. Spot landing performance based on the reference line will be evaluated with a scoring incentive for the dead-stick option: half (50%) of the measured landing distance will be used for the scoring of the power-off landing. The goal is to demonstrate landing performance in a simulated engine-out situation. The pilot will adjust pattern size and application of drag to land on the desired spot. As always, safety is the primary consideration, so any reapplication of power necessary to ensure a safe landing is always the first priority.
The 2019 Poker Run was held earlier today. We had good flying weather and and a successful event. This year’s route was from Deer Valley to Wickenburg, Bagdad, Cottonwood, and Payson. We had a total of 5 airplanes and 10 participants. The card drawing and results are as follows:
Congratulations to Andy with the winning hand of two pair, 9’s and 4’s.
Preparations are underway for the 2019 Star Aero Club Poker Run. So far we have heard from the following contestants. If you are not on this list and plan to participate, please let me know as soon as possible.
Mike Adams
Mike Gibbs
Mark Henninger (needs a ride)
Rod Kennan
Andy Durbin
Kevin Vetter (Friday box distribution)
Participation is open to anyone. Funding will be through a $20 ante, and no longer requires a separate dues payment.
Date: Saturday, Nov. 23
Ante: $20 per person playing a hand for prize money
Time: We will meet at 8:00 a.m. for check-in and a pre-flight briefing. Departure time will be approximately 8:30 a.m.
Place: We will meet at the DVT airport terminal lobby.
We will meet after the run at the DVT airport restaurant for lunch, the card showdown, and awards.
More information is available here: http://staraeroclub.com/poker-run-rules
I will provide another update as it gets closer, with route information and a final list of participants.
The Star Aero Club’s annual Poker Run is coming up soon. We will be providing more information, but save the date, November 23, 2019 for this always fun and well-attended event. If you need a refresher, here is a description of the event.
Please let Mike Gibbs or Mike Adams know if you would be willing to help with the preparations.
Also, to give us a preliminary indication of the level of interest, please reply and let us know if you are planning to participate.
After several delays as mentioned earlier, the 2019 Spot Landing Contest was held on May 7th. Despite the late date in the season, the limited participation, and even some rainy weather, we had a very successful event with four pilots participating.
The winning scored distance was 15 feet, achieved by Andy Durbin. Second place went to Mike Gibbs with a scored distance of 55 feet, and third place went to Mike Adams with a scored distance of 90 feet.
Once again, we have rescheduled the spot landing contest. The April 13 date didn’t work out due to a variety of airplane and pilot availability issues. In an attempt to hold this event before the summer heat settles in, and because most of the regular participants are not available for the upcoming Saturday mornings, we have rescheduled the contest to this Tuesday morning, May 7th. The forecast high temp for Gila Bend on Tuesday is only 83º. So, call in sick and take a few hours to come flying on a weekday morning. After all, it’s a training flight!
The contest will be held at the Gila Bend (E63) airport with the same format as past years. Please let us know if you are interested and available. Rules for the spot landing contest are available here. We will meet at the Gila Bend airport at 8:30am. We will finish up before lunch, and return to the DVT airport restaurant for lunch. If you’re planning to participate, please RSVP to Michael Gibbs as soon as possible. If you haven’t tried this before, come join us. The more the merrier!
