"Welcome to the world of competition aerobatics!", said air show announcers Luke Carrico and IAC member/air show announcer Brittany Nielsen to begin their commentary for the IAC Demo Team.
RJ Gritter started the IAC Demo team off by flying his 150hp Decathlon. He pleased the crowd as he flew Intermediate figures with smoke and music. In his most recent competition, RJ won the Intermediate category at the James K. Polk Open Invitational beating out three Extras and a Pitts with an overall score of 81.86%. His elegant flying style wowed the AirVenture crowd as he performed an 8-figure freestyle featuring, hammerheads, a P Loop, a Spilt S, an "N" figure, a Humpty Bump and finished up with a 4-point hesitation roll.
The son of a test pilot dad and a flight instructor mom, RJ has been in the cockpit his entire life. Growing up in Greensboro, North Carolina, he started flying before he was tall enough to see over the instrument panel! RJ developed a passion for aerobatics through radio-control (R/C) flying. He started competing in R/C aerobatics at age 16 in national and international events, representing the US in indoor precision and freestyle aerobatic championships. R/C flying gave him a strong background for "full-scale" aerobatic flying.
Next up for the IAC Demo Team was Bob Freeman. With his new Extra 330SX Bob entered the air show box from the south as RJ exited to the north. He started a fast-paced four figure Unlimited sequence with Jeff Boerboon in his Extra 330SC in trail to perform the same figures. The first figure nicknamed "the Alien Head consisted of part loops, a variety of rolls and 45 degree lines. This was followed by a Shark's Tooth, 45 Hammer and a Laydown 8.
Bob has been involved with the IAC since 1981. Over the years he has been a spectator, a competitor, a boundary judge, a recorder, an assistant judge, a regional judge, a chief judge, a contest director, a chapter director, a chapter vice president, and a chapter president. Bob has been a member of the Advanced and Unlimited US Aerobatic Teams. He says "There are two things that keep me hooked on the IAC; the exposure to and the mixing of this incredible bunch of wildly interesting people, and the love of flying aerobatics."
After the four Aresti figures had been flown Jeff and Bob each perform 2 minutes of the four-minute freestyle program. Both performed with smoke and music keeping the crowd enthralled as they flew a pleasing and continuous flow of figures while demonstrating contrasting periods of dynamic and graceful maneuvers. When flown at a contest, the four-minute freestyle program is a stand alone competition not connected with the more rigid structure of the Knowns, Frees and Unknowns.
Like Bob, Jeff is a long-time competitor and has also been on the Advanced and Unlimited US Aerobatic Teams. He is also a 2-time US National Advanced Aerobatic Champion and also won the US National Unlimited Aerobatic Championship. He has twice won the Charlie Hillard Trophy for the highest scoring American at the World Aerobatic Championship. (2009 and 2015).
