Best in the West 2013
16 - 19 October

Hosted by:  Joe Castelao
by: Bob Violett

  It's certainly a long way to go to fly jets for east coast residents, but with some space in Rei Gonzales' trailer driven by Lucas Martinez, and a few airline tickets, Dustin and I were able to enjoy the event.  Visiting with friends from our western states and almost non-stop flying are why this event is so worthwhile.
  "Best in the West" organizer and primary sponsor, Joey Castelao assured each of the 165 registered pilots family, and friends that their time and effort to attend would be a rewarding experience.  The Button Willow airstrip is located about 20 miles west of Bakersfield, California, and has for several years, been a perfect venue for unfettered jet flying.
  The very busy flight line was totally organized and safe thanks to Joey's team of helpers.

Thanks guys!  From the BVM Team.

Photo Gallery
click on images to enlarge

Guest of Honor, Col. Bob Thacker USAF ret. from San Clemente, Calif. really loves this sport and the people who are involved.

BV attended Bob's 95th birthday celebration 23 Feb 2013.

   
  Joe Castelao's custom painted Ultra Bandit was parked most of the time while he was busy catering to the needs of the 165 participating pilots.
   
  The BVM EVF 14s powered MiG-15 was flown many times by Dustin and BV.  Its performance received lots of positive compliments.
   
  The BVM EVF A-10 won the "Best Electric Jet" award.  David Payne shared the sticks with Dustin and BV.
   
  Roger Ko recently moved from Manhattan, NY to Pasadena, Ca.  While he misses flying with the Hamburg, Pa group, Roger appreciates the year round flying weather in Southern California.  He kept his BobCat busy at Best In The West.
   
Jack Geraldo Diaz is a very active Rep for BVM in California.  His engineering and piloting skills are exceptional.  He flew this BVM 63" Fury ARF on EVF 12S power and ThunderPower LiPo's multiple times each of the 4 days.
   

  This exemplary F-100F belongs to Geraldo, but father Jack got some stick time on it too at Best In The West.
   

Skeet Hunt is guiding Dan Avilla's BVM 80" Sabre to the runway intersection awaiting take-off clearance.
   
Greg Wright's "Golden Hawks" Sabre saw action at this and many other events this year.
   
  The first introduction of the BVM 1/6th scale almost Plug N Play
F-16 occurred at Best In The West. 15+ flights were shared by Dustin and several other pilots.
   
  Here's David Payne again helping Chris Huhn ready his Spektrum painted Ultra Bandit.
   
Mohammed Shirloo from Malibu, Ca has been enjoying this early Bandit ARF for a few years.
   
  If you were there with a BVM or Skymaster / Xtreme jet, please help us with a photo.  These event reports become a part of our jet modeling history.

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