The secret info is hidden behind a tree on a grass knoll.
The list is extensive and contains a broad range of viable aircraft. In this event, every potential competitor knew the test criteria and could therefore evaluate at least the freeware listed aircraft (it doesn't take long ) and maybe, in the process learn a bunch of things about what makes the difference among those choices. Certainly it's easier to be spoon-fed but that does nothing to improve knowledge or skill.
This is a low-key competition - it once was unlikely that any except the most extreme competitor would go out and buy a payware plane because it is a bit better but it's been known to happen. That's a matter of personal choice and not something the committee is motivated to encourage. In fact, if a payware plane were the "best" there would be accusations that the rules were intended to promote that product!
I am well aware there are those who believe having the "best" aircraft eliminates any need for flying skill and there may be some truth in that. Since I have a personal theory that the last thing learned in Flight Sim is flying skill then perhaps the ideal race with the greatest appeal would be in untested, non-rated planes over flat land at sea level with pre-built flightplans that can be loaded into the GPS and landing is not required (since that is the greatest cause of crashes).
We could go all-out trying to find the fastest barely-legal (or change rules to make it legal) aircraft and get it airborne and on autopilot. Now that we have eliminated the annoyance of having to fly we could crown the winner of the "fastest airplane in X category of FlightSim."
For this event the primary goal was to craft a race that was simple enough in which novice pilots could compete and ease into FS distance racing but challenging enough to test some flying skill. However, every year I have been involved in these events there have been a few people who have complained about the legality of certain aircraft, or tried to squeeze one in but complained if someone else tried to do the same, or suggested conspiracies. With a week to go before the official start, what have the novices learned so far?
- "There are faster planes that aren't being allowed for unknown reasons"
- "The rule makers stack the odds in favor of the 'insiders'"
- "There must be a secret plane on the list and they don't want us to know which it is"
- "Knowing how to fly well, at the limits of an aircraft's ability and without pilot error is far less important than finding a secret weapon."
I will not spend another minute of my time or ounce of energy to build something, only to have people who never help with the organization or operation of events to drop in like entitled consumers, exercise their "right" to complain and then disappear into the darkness, muttering about how they were 'cheated'. This is not the last year, nor the last event - this is the last minute I will allow someone, directly or by inference, to accuse me of conspiring, cheating or allowing subterfuge in the development or operation of a flight sim event.
[SIZE=-1][/SIZE]
