Ohio Valley Soaring Series OVSS
Member Clubs
Contest Criteria
Member clubs at a minimum hold a weekend contest* (two days, two separate unlimited class contests) for participants to have a chance to produce a score. It has become the preferred choice of the vast majority of fliers that the Man-on-Man format and normalized scoring be utilized in OVSS contests, but it is not a requirement to hold a contest under this format. Also, at the club’s choice, is the addition of other classes, i.e. two-meter or RES, but it has been shown over the history of the series that clubs that focused on and supported long flight times and five or more rounds of flying only unlimited class per day had better attendance.
The benchmark of the OVSS is having a minimum of a League of Silent Flight - Level V size contest (20 entries or more) every day of the season, and that has been the case in the majority of contests.
*Except the AMA Soaring Nationals Unlimited Class Contest
May 15-16
June 12-13
June 26-27
July 29-30
Aug. 14-15
Sept. 11-12
October 9-10
Scoring
Scoring is done on a normalized format that bases a contestant’s score for a particular day’s event as a percentage of the winner’s score times 1000. For example:
Flier A’s Score = 4109
Winner’s Score = 4376
4109/4376 x 1000 = 938.985
Flyer A's score rounds up to 939.9
(All scores rounded to the tenth of a point)
In each weekend contest that is flown, a flier’s best score is taken to count toward the Season Championship, so in essence, a flier has two opportunities per weekend to generate a score to apply for the Season Championship. The only exception to this is the AMA Soaring Nationals where only one contest opportunity exists to fly Unlimited Class.
In a typical season, there are eight contest weekends and the AMA Soaring Nationals for a total of nine events. A flier’s best 5 (five) scores generated per contest weekend or at the Soaring Nationals will count toward the Season Championship in both Master and Sportsman classes. A pilot who flies six events or more during the season will have the opportunity to drop their lowest contest score(s) according to the final number of contests flown in the season.
If a tie occurs for the OVSS Season Championship, the following tie breakers will be used in this order:
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1)Most number of wins in the pilot’s five scored contests
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2)Five minute man-on-man fly-off at the Fall Round Up with the contest landing task
Classes
OVSS recognizes two classes of fliers for awards in the year-end Season Championships; they are Master and Sportsman. At each contestant’s first OVSS contest of the year, pilots will declare themselves either a Master or Sportsman class flier. A Master class flier will from that point onward stay in the Master class. Those choosing to fly Sportsman will fly that class until one of two possible conditions occurs:
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1)The flier decides to change classes voluntarily and this forever elevates the flier to the Master class.
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2)The flier wins the Sportsman class championship at the end of a season.
Final Thoughts
In developing OVSS, the quest for excellence in the endeavor of soaring is the goal, the fellowship of those who have joined in the quest is the reward. Enjoy the Series, enjoy the flying, enjoy the passion of soaring.
Karl Miller with the Remus trophy after the 2008 season.
Contact Info
OVSS Coordinator - Marc Gellart
OVSS Scorekeeper - Glauco Lago
OVSS Webmaster - Chris Lee
History of the OVSS
Click here to read about how it all began.
LOFT (Muncie)
MVSA (St. Louis)*
SOAR (Chicago)
Nats (Muncie)
DARTS (Yellow Springs)
BSS (location TBA)
MIST/LOFT Fall Round-Up
(Muncie)
2010 OVSS Schedule
(click on event for scores)
About Us
The Ohio Valley Soaring Series (OVSS) was organized to promote radio control soaring competition (thermal duration or TD) in the Midwest part of the United States. The geographical region encompasses Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Michigan, and Missouri. The Academy of Model Aeronautics-recognized clubs that are a part of the OVSS are Cincinnati Soaring and Electric (CSE), League of Flight by Thermals (LOFT), Dayton Area Thermal Soarers (DARTS), Silent Order of Aeromodeling by Radio (SOAR), Louisville Area Soaring Society (LASS), Bluegrass Soaring Society (BSS), Mid Indiana Society of Thermalers and Mississippi Valley Soaring Association (MVSA). The OVSS (Marc Gellart and those aiding in OVSS’s operation) award a Season Championship to both a Master and Sportsman level pilot who score the highest in the season’s contest schedule flying unlimited class sailplanes according to the scoring section below.
• Bluegrass Soaring Society
BSS
• Cincinnati Soaring and Electric
CSE
• Dayton Area Thermal Soarers
DARTS
• League of Flight by Thermals
LOFT
• Mid Indiana Society of
Thermalers
MIST
* Hosts a Hand Launch
contest the Friday prior