| I am currently 28 and have been around and loved aviation for as long as I can remember. My father took me for my first flight in his Cessna 182 when I was six months old. From that point on, I was flying with him and my grandfather, who flew B-29’s during World War II. Any time Dad would go flying, I would join him and he taught me how to fly. By age 6, I had soloed with RC airplanes and had been flying by myself with Dad just standing next to me. From there, I began to compete in Precision Aerobatics when I was approximately 12, going to the Nats and flying in Intermediate my first time there. I had a great time and have been back nearly every year since. I am now flying F3A and having a great time.I got my private pilot’s license on my 17th birthday, and then went to school to get all of my ratings so that I could fly for the airlines. After school, I became a flight instructor to build flight time so I could work for one of the airlines, but one day I got a phone call from Chip Hyde asking if I would be interested in flying UAVs with him. It sounded interesting and he had the company call me and it went from there. I was deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, flying large UAVs for five years and had a great time and really enjoyed helping the troops. | Image
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| I was able to work it in to make it to the Nats. Most of the time, I had some great coaching from Chip while flying airplanes that he has designed for the past seven or eight years.I just get a new job and I love every minute of it. I am working at Hobbico as the marketing outreach manager. I get to travel to several events and trade shows, as well as give presentations and work with our research and development team on new products.I would like to thank my mom and dad and my sister, Lisa, grandparents, Chip, Futaba, Hobbico, and Castle Creations for all their help and support. | Image
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