to think that RCGroups Labs maintains and updates the airplane (RCGroups. com) and I fl y the plane.
RH: Does RCGroups offer information about park fl yers? JG: At one time, park fl yers were one of our hottest topics. RCGroups started as an electric site and we have a forum dedicated to park fl yers with more than 890,000 posts!
RH: What’s great about park fl yers? JG: I have really come to appreciate a plane that you can throw in the back of your car. I appreciate a plane [that] I don’t have to take apart each time I fl y. I like a plane that can take a hit. All of those things describe a park fl yer.
RH: Please share how you got involved with model aircraft. JG: As a kid, I lived near an air base and a crop-dusting fi eld. I would lie in our pasture and watch planes practice for aerobatic competitions. When I was in my 20s, I purchased an
Italian RC plane at a garage sale for $5. I have been fl ying RC since then.
RH: What is your favorite new aeromodeling technology? JG: For me it’s all about FPV right now. I have multiple FPV quadcopters, but I’m working [on] a mid- to small-size foam plane for FPV fl ight.
RH: How did you become a columnist for Model Aviation magazine? JG: I was out mowing my lawn one day and thinking about the hobby. I was trying to come up with the best way I could help promote RC. My initial thought was to run for an offi ce in the AMA, but I wanted something that was more immediate and that would reach more people. Then it hit me. I turned the mower
off, called the editor of the [magazine], and pitched the idea of me writing a column. A day later, I was an AMA columnist. I have yet to run out of things to talk about!
RH: How did the Profi le Brotherhood get started? JG: Profi le planes are light, easy to
NashBro is an event Jim started in Nashville TN.
build, and one of the best planes for 3-D fl ying. The fuselage is fl at. My second RC plane was a profi le (I still have it). Many people consider them ugly, but the purists love them. I created a Web forum called the
Profi le Brotherhood around 13 years ago. At the time, many people said 3-D was going to ruin the hobby so we were pretty much outcasts. I’m happy to say that all these years later, the Pro Bro site is still rocking and rolling! Each year in Nashville, I host the world’s largest gathering of profi le planes called NashBro.
RH: What famous people have you met and how did you meet them? JG: I grew up on a ranch in Texas, so I didn’t get to meet many folks in my early days. After going to college at Baylor University, I took $1,000 and moved to Los Angeles. (Note to the youth—don’t do that!) I worked in the music and fi lm business in LA as a special effects person and art director and met and worked with people like Madonna, Bruce Springsteen, Mötley Crüe, Johnny Depp, and many more. When I decided LA was the worst
place on earth to live, I moved to Nashville, Tennessee. In Nashville, I did music videos. That was great because I was able to meet all the country singers I admired and work with them. Each year at NashBro, Mike [Wolfe]
from American Pickers will come down to say hello. We knew each other before his show, from his picking days. I also fl ew with the saxophone player
from the Rolling Stones, Bobby Keys. Bobby and I were both from Texas and always got along great. I didn’t know what he did for living until long after we fl ew together. The thing about famous people is that
they are the same as you and me. They get treated differently, they have to stop and say hello to people more often, but ultimately, they are just like you and me.
RH: Please tell us about your other hobbies. JG: I have come to realize that I am a “maker.” I have to be making something. In the movie business, as a special
effects man and weapons specialist, I had to be creative and able to make just about anything. That led directly to RC and the myriad different craft I work with and review daily. Evidently that’s not enough, because
a few years ago I started building guitars. That led to building amps and guitar pedals. One thing I have always wanted to do
is tool leather—leather belts, holsters, and things from the 1880s. I’m full swing into that with a pretty awesome leather work area. I do that almost every night. I think it drives my wife crazy and she’s proud of me at the same time!
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