AV geeks and STOL freaks, welcome to the 2024 National STOL season! -Ryan Dembroski, probably
Death, taxes, and mud at Swamp STOL..some things in life are inevitable. After a long off season, our pilots, staff, and volunteers were thrilled to reunite and kick off the 2024 season at Swamp STOL.
Returning for the 4th year to Jennings, LA, this was a transitional year for Swamp STOL. Founder Matt Peterson took a step back as he prepares for retirement and new local host, Adam Gordon, stepped up to make the event another rousing success. As always, the City of Jennings and Jeff Davis Parish welcomed our pilots and team with open arms and plenty of Cajun hospitality. From steaks and fly outs to DIs, to rumaritas at the Awards Ceremony, those pilots that were able to dodge the inclement weather en route were treated to to blue skies and plenty of memorable moments.
While Saturday was absolutely beautiful, storms on Thursday and into the early morning hours of Friday left the field a muddy mess and provided logistical challenges both on site and for those traveling in. A record high 54 pilot registrations became 46 competitors taking to the skies as the new season officially began:
In the Rookie Class…Shane Burns and Eric Bentley in a pair of Cessna 170Bs finished second and third respectively to Christian Fischer in the CubCrafters CCK-186. As the Rookie class champion, Fischer must now compete in his standard class at any upcoming National STOL competitions.
In Exhibition…National STOL was thrilled to have Todd Spink demonstrate the capabilities of his 1954 twin engine Beechcraft B50. While the grass turf was too wet to allow this heavy aircraft to land, he delighted the crowd with a STOL takeoff and then repositioned to land on the asphalt runway just a few hundred yards away.
In the Touring Class…Brandon Corn (Cessna 205) picked up right where he left off in 2023 with a win to start the 2024 campaign. John McCardle in the Maule M5 continues to narrow the gap, finishing just 45′ behind him for second place. Newcomer Adam Plunkett in the Cessna L-19 Bird Dog placed third, with Don Mickey (Cessna 180), Jason Brown (Cessna 182A), Jay Holt (Maule M5), and Jeff Abrams in Piperzilla (Piper Cherokee) rounding out the class.
In the Backcountry Class…new builds, northern snow, and mechanical issues kept many of the mainstays of this class away from Swamp STOL, and opened the door for new names to top the podium! Taking first place was first time competitor Brad Crawford in an Aviat Husky A1C. Familiar face Joel Dopson in the Cessna 172 (tailwheel conversion) took 2nd, and John Lewton in another Husky finished 3rd. It truly was a Husky parade as 4th through 7th place finishers Jeff Harrell, Corey Clone, Adam Plunkett, and Jerry Clemens also competed in the same airframe, with the Colonel Matt Peterson rounding out the field in the other lone Cessna 172 in the pack.
In the Adventure Class…a fierce battle and a new airframe was the story of the day, with rookie Jared Garetson in the Badlands Traveler besting the field of Legend MOACs and Cubs to take first place. Rumor has it a few more Badlands Travelers are poised to make their premieres in the coming months with familiar names at the sticks…
A one-pattern runoff was held to finalize 2nd and 3rd place, as Brian Shirley in the orange and black Legend MOAC and Keith Lange in Nitro, the black and red Piper Super Cub were tied with a lowest combined score of 135′ after three rounds. Shirley came out on top with an impressive final run of 118′ to take second.
The remaining three MOACs, piloted by Brian Steck, Collin Caneva, and Luke Spoor finished 4th-6th, with Adam Gordon and James Barkheimer in Cubcrafters EX2’s, Jeffery McMahon in the Murphy Super Cub, and David Warren and Levi Noguess in Piper Cubs following.
In the Sport Class…in the largest class of the day, Joel Milloway in Tiger Shark, the Rans S7, came out just 6′ ahead of Patrick McInteer in the same airframe. The second runoff of the day was needed between Justin Tisdale (Zenith 750 STOL) and Matt Vastine (Just Highlander), who ended the regulation rounds with a 179′ tie. It was almost a three plane runoff, as Kelly Qualls in the 100hp CubCrafters Sport Cub was just one foot behind in 5th place!
Both Vastine and Tisdale scratched the runoff, a first for National STOL! Race control made the decision that as a secondary tiebreaker to use the 2nd lowest run of regulation, giving Vastine 3rd place and Tisdale 4th.
Following the top 5 were Nick Ardillo (CubCrafters SS), Edward “Lee” Boyd (CubCrafters Carbon Cub in the stunning black and blue paint job), David Kerley (Just Highlander), Sheldon Heatherington (Zenith 750 STOL), Jeremiah Stapleton (Rans S20), Chuck Olmstead (Legend AL-18), and Chris Jamison (Zenith 701).
In the Unlimited Class…three incredible pilots, three very different aircraft! Hal Stockman (Rans S7-S) and Dan Reynolds (Chinook Valdez Special), well known on the National STOL circuit, welcomed Justin Meaders (Just Aircraft Super STOL) to their ranks. Meaders was slated to compete at Lonestar STOL in 2023, but mechanical issues forced a late withdrawal.
When the champagne was popped, Reynolds came out on top with a lowest combined score of 46′ (including an incredible 10′ landing!). Meaders took 2nd at 99′, and Hal finished 3rd at 117′.
With Steve Henry unable to make the trip to Jennings this year, and at least one more potential Unlimited new build yet to premiere, we look forward to seeing the continued innovation, growth, and world class competition in 2024.
Hal Stockman took home the award for the Most Consistent Pilot, with Jared Garetson winning the Pilot Performance Index award. Matthew Peterson was voted Fan Favorite and Dan Reynolds won grand champion. All four gentleman took home custom coolers from Kysek Ice Chests for these specialty awards. For full event results, click here.
The weekend concluded with a shrimp boil and rumaritas provided by the City of Jennings, the Jeff Davis Parish Tourism Board, and Bayou Rum. This event was supported locally by:
Season standing can always be found at https://nationalstol.com/2024-season-standings/. Individual event results can be found at the bottom of the page. You can watch Friday’s full competitor practice, Saturday’s competition, and Saturday evening’s awards ceremony in their entirety on YouTube. In addition, visit National STOL’s social media pages for many more photos and videos from Swamp STOL!
Registration for the next two National STOL events are now open! Join us at the Military Aviation Museum in Virginia Beach, VA for Heritage STOL (April 26-27) or for Arklahoma STOL in Pocola, OK (May 24-25). Ticket sales and registration for both competitors and volunteers now open!
The 2024 season is proudly presented by:
