Official Web Site of the Old Buzzard's Sunbird Classic-Pictures

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We are looking for any and all pictures or stories about Sunbirds, Dave's HLG contests or Dave in general. Were you at the contests in California, Japan, France? Want to become famous on the web? Send us your stories or pictures and we will handle the rest.

Mark Miller with his highly modified Sunbird. Winner of the 1999 MRCSS Builders Challenge. Photo by Susan Pekowsky

Frankenstein Sunbird. Mark's latest in a long line of Sunbirds dating back to when the plans first came out in 1980. Photo by Susan Pekowsky

What a Bunch!

And now this really dubious looking bunch of characters....their first time out of town at a toy airplane contest in Buckeye, Arizona....The Young Buzzard on the left is holding a Jedelsky winged, Bowlus Baby Albatross...and some abomination he published in Model Builder called a Don Quixote. The plane in the box at his feet was called a Mach Turtle...the predecessor of a plane to come called the Bird of Time. Steve Work (the woolly looking sheep in the middle is holding the only airplane that he ever designed and scratch built... I don't think he ever named it....and that guy on the right is me holding a Graupner Cirrus...and a Windfree.....Pretty scary looking dudes, aren't they? Photo and text by Taylor Collins

Rainburg....Dave in his rain gear at the 1975 Soar Nats...making a fashion statement....As always. Photo and text by Taylor Collins

Photos from the "First" HLG Contest

These pictures were sent in by Taylor Collins from the "first" Hand Launch contest at Cal State Dominguez Hills College in L.A...... circa 1976....

CD Dave in his "pulpit"....on top of Rick Norwood's camper. Yes....He really did conduct the pilot's meeting from up there....probably so nobody could inflict physical pain on him....Photo and text by Taylor Collins

Dave Thornburg in his custom designed Contest Director's shirt.... imprinted with replies to all of the contestant gripes ..... "Can't do", "No Way", "Bad Break", "So Sorry", "Too Bad", "Tough Luck"....Photo and text by Taylor Collins

Larry Jolly with the first prototype of his Icarus. This was specifically designed for the H'L contest.... later kitted as a general purpose 2 Meter thermal ship.....Photo and text by Taylor Collins

Dave about to launch the ORIGINAL Prototype Sunbird..... Yes, the CD flew in the contest... and got his tail kicked.....Photo and text by Taylor Collins

2nd Place winner Rick Pearson & CD Dave Thornburg..... Photo and text by Taylor Collins

Blaine Rawdon, the ultimate winner of the contest..... He flew a 110" Mirage of his own design......Photo and text by Taylor Collins

Mike Reagan, of the San Fernando Valley Silent Flyers club... with his Paragon...... Nobody had little bitty Hand Launches back then....except for Thornburg, of course.....Photo and text by Taylor Collins

Bill Nibley, another San Fernando Flyer... with what I THINK is a Craft-Air Drifter..... Photo and text by Taylor Collins

3rd Place winner Chris Adams & CD Dave Thornburg.....Photo and text by Taylor Collins

SEE! I told you Thornburg ran the pilot's meeting from the top of that camper....Photo and text by Taylor Collins

The Winners!!!

The motley crew....standing (left to right) Mike Reagan, Chris Adams, Blaine Rawdon, Rick Pearson, Dave Thornburg......kneeling....Joe Wurts, Dick Odle (designer of the RO-8).....Photo and text by Taylor Collins

The whole fam damily......where it all started......Photo and text by Taylor Collins

Mark Miller chucking his Sunbird. Build one soon. You too can have fun.

Sunbird on final approach. Made my wife run for cover after she took this.

As Dave once told me..."If you hold a sailplane over your head and cant see
the sun through it, it ain't worth a damn."

Tail down...Damn the sink!

Last Updated 02/26/00
By Mark Miller on a Macintosh G3
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