Model Aviation Online - Modeling Spoken Here (September 2007)

... eccentric people usually come up with the most amazing solutions to technical problems.

Most would probably agree that this hobby/sport/pastime develops a good deal of character in an individual. The lessons learned from aeromodeling are, in most cases, also good life lessons. Patience, craftsmanship, sportsmanship, and brotherhood are instilled and constantly honed simply by participating in this great pastime. And the product of that process is character.

     Another result of our involvement is the ability to abstract and apply lessons learned elsewhere to our modeling. That door swings both ways; things learned through modeling are often applied in "real life" as well.

     Yes, all this builds character, but many times it also breeds characters. You know, those often charming, usually slightly eccentric types who live either at the fringes or right at the center of the hobby/sport and add spice to the whole thing.

     I'm sure most of us know at least one person who fits the description of a 'character.' If we are totally honest with ourselves, that person is the one who makes it all more fun—or more exasperating, depending on the nature of the "character" in question.

     I've been blessed with having known many characters throughout my life who have deeply enriched my aeromodeling experience and made the whole thing much more fun in the process. The more eccentric people usually come up with the most amazing solutions to technical problems. They seem to have no stop signs in their minds, and they often pursue unusual courses of action to achieve a result. That is typically why they are regarded as characters in the first place.

     I've also noted that most characters are natural comedians. Their oblique way of thinking extends to the absurd at times, and the things they say can often be hilarious.

     By now you should understand that to be branded a "character" is usually a good thing. I want to celebrate the great and good characters we all know and love. And in tribute to them all, I'm going to tell you about a character I recently came to know, respect, and now, sadly, mourn.

     Few who are reading this will recognize the name Ray Borden. He was not famous within the modeling community for any body of work or for any competition successes. He did have one design published in the modeling press, but that was in 1948!

     I came to know Ray through mutual friend Dick Sarpolus. They worked together at Bendix/Allied for 40 years. Ray was a design draftsman for the firm, and he had more than a dozen patents to his credit while working there.

     Ray's character status came about because of his willingness to take the unbeaten path and his penchant for arranging everything in his life to facilitate his interests. A visit to his home confirms his total commitment to aeromodeling.

     A bachelor in later life, Ray set up his entire house in departments, each with a specific modeling application. In one room he arranged a complete and high-end CAD station, complete with large-format plotter.

     His "Summer Shop" (an unheated garage) was extremely well arranged with building stations and was even equipped with a high-tech and expensive laser-cutting machine he purchased for his use in model development (and he did help his club mates by cutting parts for their models). Ray's "Winter Shop" was a bedroom in his house that he converted into a workspace.

     His real genius was in using his natural design talents to bring projects to fruition, and that was what he loved to do. In the past few months Ray, Dean Pappas, Dick Sarpolus, Paul Vliet, and I had joined forces for some unusual model development.

     In true form, Ray jumped right in and began contributing as soon as I told him about an idea we had. He brought whole new vistas of insight to the project, and I knew I"d found a new close friend. And then he was gone.

     Ray had recently defeated cancer and was looking forward to many more years of modeling. A simple procedure at the end of his cancer treatment was supposed to be only a formality, but it went tragically wrong and he was gone at age 75.

     So here's to Ray and all the other characters who add the fun and spice to this pastime. May they never stop being unusual.

I can be reached at (610) 614-1747 or via E-mail at robinhunt@rcn.com. My address is Box 68, Stockertown PA 18083. MA