Hogtoberfest: Well that went well....A big thank you!

Hogtoberfest: Well that went well....A big thank you!:

The organisers of Hogtoberfest say "Thanks to everyone who took shredded, everyone who helped, the centre and the campsite, our wonderful sponsors for putting in SO MANY goodies..."

And we say "No worries"!! Glad that everyone had fun & delighted that our bearings, won as a raffle prize, helped William Ballard bag a first place in his heat - yeay!

Also, you have to check out this brilliant video by Mark Pickering, which truly captures the Hogtoberfest spirit!



OOH!  And we've just had this one from Cam Deegan as well...



Thanks guys!

Cardboard bicycle...

Engineers tell man he can't build a bike out of cardboard...so he goes and gives it a try. Check out the result:

The inventor, Izhar Gafni, has great hopes for his cardboard creation & believes it has the potential to change transportation habits, from the world’s most congested cities to the poorest reaches of Africa.

Cool! But maybe not ideally suited to the British climate... ;-D



Ian Emery - RC Heli Pilot end of season update...

We've had a great season update from our friend Ian Emery today.  Ian competes in precision aerobatic competitions with his RC helicopters & is turning into a real RC whizz!  Read on for his competition reports:

Dartford – Round 4

"After 2 month break for the European Championships, it was time for round 4 of this years AHA league competitions. At long last I had somebody to compete with, as Jon Kemp had decided to fly the Sportsmans instead of the F3C schedule to prepare for the British Nationals which were to be held at the end of August. The first round we were both quite rusty after the break and neither of us had done much flying due to the bad weather, but Jon did manage to win that round. He also won the remaining 2 rounds but I did manage to close the gap each time, which from a personal perspective I was really pleased with as Jon has been flying Sportsmans for a few years now".

British Nationals (Barkston Heath) – Round 5

"This was my first Nationals competition and it was an early start to drive to RAF Barkston Heath ready for the weekends flying. It was uncertain if the Sportsmans competition would be run due to lack of numbers again, but thankfully we scrapped together enough people. After a nervous wait it was my time to fly. I was really pleased with the improvement from the last competition and managed to finish joint first, getting exactly the same score as Jon Kemp. The other 2 competitors were Stuart Mott and Rob Turnbull who are both members of the British F3N (3D style) Team who had volunteered to enter to make up the numbers. Round 2 was once again a really strong round for me as I finished 2nd behind Stuart who at this point was really beginning to turn out great performances. This meant that I was leading half way through the competition. That is a good as it got as I made a couple of minor errors in the last 2 rounds pushing me back to finish 3rd overall. Stuart won the day as well as winning the F3N competition that he had flown in, with some outstanding flying in both disciplines. I can't be too disappointed finishing 3rd in the British Nationals, and it was a great way for me to finish this seasons competition flying. I would just like to thank SMB for the continued support over the past year".

Thanks Ian - SMB are delighted to play a very small part in your continued success & look forward to supporting you throughout the coming season & beyond!     As the competitive season is now at an end for 2012, it's time for essential maintenance.  To prepare for the new competition season, Ian's helis need stripping back, cleaning & thoroughly maintaining - replacing any worn or damaged parts, so we'll be helping Ian with our precision miniature bearings to ensure competition readiness next year. 

If you need new bearings, why not have a look at our range too...

More news soon!