Learning from Dirtydan

I have been learning again from Dirtydan in these forums. I recall having read his articles in the magazines. I’ll have to admit as a school kid in the midwest anything written by one called ‘Dirtydan’ was nearing the edge.

The purpose of this post is to illustrate what I have learned recently, the value of a story.

I thought I had a really good control-line story, but now realize the greater value this story would have if we had not felt the need to show off our knowledge, and intervene in events.

We had been flying (this must have been about 1974), a kid we knew arrives and gets out his stuff. He rolls out his lines, hooks them to his plane, but when he starts to gas it up, we had to ask ‘what are you doing’? This wouldn’t usually draw attention, but that his airplane wasn’t covered. Not a stitch, bare bone, open structure, I think it was a Ringmaster.

He explained how he was to test fly it, to see if it was ‘worth covering’. This is where we ruined the story, it would have been a whole lot better if we hadn’t howled in laughter, and told him he was stupid, rather we should have acted dumb, and said ‘gee I never thought of that’.

He could have flown it and come to the conclusion ‘yep, I was right, it wasn’t worth covering’....

He's an interesting fellow and has written a lot of good articles. Anybody that flew Combat and now does Stunt in his old age can't be all bad...Humor is never viewed the same by any two people and sometimes his and mine clash but that is part of life and the universe.
He can correct me, but I think the "Dirty" part came from his years of riding dirt bikes (another tough hobby).

Jake

We did something similar when we were 15 year old kids back in 1947. My flying pal built his first model with a symmetrical airfoil and we did not know if it would actually work. It was complete with silkspan covering but no dope so we decided to fly first and then dope if it flew. It did, it got doped and he learned to fly inverted just prior to the 47 Nat's. Super Cyke on spark. He then went on to 5th place finishes at 49 and 59 Nat's. Wish I could get him flying again.

Keep talking to him, you might just get there.

Jake

My nickname has nothing to do with dirt, or dirt bikes, or model aircraft.

It's an attitudinal thing.

I believe the wisest thing I have heard in the last six months was at the Raider Roundup and spoken by Dave Gardner. "Dan, I think some of the problems on Stuka Stunt and in Stunt News is that a lot of those people don't know you."

My response was along the lines of, "Yeah, compounded by the fact that reading comprehension seems to be a lost skill with the very same people who don't get it."

We were both laughing at the time. Get it, nudge, nudge, wink, wink, know what I mean, know what I mean?

As a sop to those who don't get it, I wonder if instead of the silly icons each of us has the option to use if we could introduce a laugh track. Of course, I wouldn't use it, almost universally turn off any TV show which has a laugh track, but it is an interesting idea...

There are people on here who require the icons. How will they know not to be offended? Reading comprehension....wasn't that before Classic Comics.

I think that Dan is an aquired taste sort of thing.

Just had to aggravate him with funny faces!

>>I think that Dan is an aquired taste sort of thing.

That's pretty much what Dave Gardner was saying, so it must be true.

We ALL have some Special Purpose to serve our Fellow Man.

I've been told that my own Special Purpose is to serve as a bad example. I tell 'em I learned it all from Mr. Rutherford, from reading SSWF and Stunt News.

[photo not recovered: 3e69bb3870f12ad5.jpg]

"Egotism is the anesthetic that dulls the pain of stupidity." -Frank Leahy

>I think that Dan is an aquired taste sort of thing

Ron B.
F4Fguy

Yeah,but you can't aquire a taste by sipping and nibbling.You have to chugalug and chomp.The low comprehension is mostly due to ADD.What's needed is total immersion.Dan gives 'em Lennie Bruce and they want Chuckles the Clown.

I like to give em' Frank Zappa!! I youse to like to remember, But now im paintig with Dope!! < Paul

Heck, Dan, you're so conservative that no one around here would ever hang the "dirty" moniker on you. The NW must be a really nice place to be! Now, if you were to spend some time in Black Ankle, watching the pulp wood truck races and such, maybe you could get a little real attitude!
Bill

I hate to break he news, but there really is no "Dirty Dan Rutherford"
This is a moniker used by a 13 year old RC wannabe that is a lurker on several sites.
At one time there was a Dan Rutherford that was arrested and put away after running a dragster down the main street of Sunnyside Wa. He however is now a press agent for Merrel Streep in Hollywood. The pictures you have seen are actually the out of wedlock son of Bruce Hunt.

>I hate to break he news, but there really is no "Dirty Dan
>Rutherford"
>This is a moniker used by a 13 year old RC wannabe that is a
>lurker on several sites.
>At one time there was a Dan Rutherford that was arrested and
>put away after running a dragster down the main street of
>Sunnyside Wa. He however is now a press agent for Merrel
>Streep in Hollywood. The pictures you have seen are actually
>the out of wedlock son of Bruce Hunt.
>
>
>
>Humor..God's gift to us to keep us from making sausage out
>of each other daily.

Well I'm sure glad we have that cleared up- now pardon me while I go do something really productive like watch Steve McQueen in the original "The Blob".

Jake

Amen!! < Paul

LAST EDITED ON Apr-13-04 AT 11:44 AM (CDT)
 
Joe,

I beg to differ. I have seen the reputed Dirty Dan. He is, in actuality, the evil twin brother of Bob Whitely. Certain NDS prevent me from explaining fully, but I can say, it ain't pretty.

Randy, Thanks for your eronious report. It really is encouraging to see that not everyone has lost their sense of humor. Thank goodness were not talking about the 18th Century English essay about how to solve the Irish problem, that would prove that satire has lost its meaning as well.(Was the author Samual Johnson, or was it John Dunn?Perhaps my son Scott Riese knows)

Joe
Humor..God's gift to us to keep us from making sausage out of each other daily.

Remember a few months ago when somebody used really cool technology to display a prop driver of unknown origin? And I responded by saying, "We've reached a new low."

That was hilarious to me. Reinforced by posters's indignant responses.

However, same comment seems to apply here as well.

In any case, ain't nobody gonna learn anything from Da Dirt in next issue of Stunt News. Yes, Larry made plans now to commit suicide, as my home 'puter has taken to not conversing with those outside my office (or what we laughingly refer to as an office).

Tom and I made every effort, the article was even done well in advance of deadline, we just couldn't pull it all together in time.

>my home 'puter has taken to not
>conversing with those outside my office (or what we
>laughingly refer to as an office).
>
>Tom and I made every effort, the article was even done well
>in advance of deadline, we just couldn't pull it all
>together in time.

Sounds like a job for the sneaker-net.
(You copy the file onto a floppy and run it over to a friend's house,
hoping their computer still speaks to the rest of the world)

Next time...

>>my home 'puter has taken to not
>>conversing with those outside my office (or what we
>>laughingly refer to as an office).
>>
>>Tom and I made every effort, the article was even done well
>>in advance of deadline, we just couldn't pull it all
>>together in time.
>
>Sounds like a job for the sneaker-net.
>(You copy the file onto a floppy and run it over to a
>friend's house,
>hoping their computer still speaks to the rest of the world)
>
>Next time...
>
>Preston

Preston,

Now look here, just because you're miffed that I have not taken advantage of your generous offer to use your dyno in my "testing" programs does not give you the right to assume I'm effectively a moron.

(Note veiled references to another thread.)

Actually, as my home 'puter is not, has never been, hooked up to the outside world via the internet, my first--and only--choice was exactly what you suggest.

We think the drive has failed even if smoke has failed to pour forth and the little light still works. The box can still read and write to my own floppies, other boxes cannot do either.

Woe is me, I am typing it all over again. And it's a huge column, kinda like the two I missed crammed into a third.

Say, do please keep this to yourself, but that ARF Flite Streak of mine you flew last year. It's a lot cooler now. Yep, 20FP, tossed 25FP in my engine drawer. Muffler-which-is-not-a-pipe. Fitted with add-on baffle-which-is-not-a-baffle in muffler-which-is-not-a-pipe.

You've **got** to fly it again. Heck, I'll even let you fly the newer of the two ARFs if you would like to do so.

>We think the drive has failed even if smoke has failed to
>pour forth and the little light still works. The box can
>still read and write to my own floppies, other boxes cannot
>do either.

Sometimes floppy drives drift out of alignment. I don't know that that they can be re-aligned, but they can certainly be replaced cheaply (as a software guy, I feel able to blithely assert this).

>Say, do please keep this to yourself, but that ARF Flite
>Streak of mine you flew last year. It's a lot cooler now.
>Yep, 20FP, tossed 25FP in my engine drawer.
>Muffler-which-is-not-a-pipe. Fitted with add-on
>baffle-which-is-not-a-baffle in muffler-which-is-not-a-pipe.
>
>You've **got** to fly it again.

Sounds good. I won't tell _anyone_.

Ron B.
F4Fguy

Dan:

Sounds to me like you 've got what's called a dumb terminal.You know it's not dead because the smoke is still inside.If you need more help,call Microsoft.