Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 105: Nationals Wrap Up

Welcome back! What a whirlwind! Mark and Jeff are back to reality. Nationals were absolutely fantastic, and I think everyone that put on the event would call it a resounding success. We talk about commentating on the live feed, as well as sitting down with Michael Goulian and David Martin. We talk about the categories a little bit, with a focus on Advanced and Unlimited. We break down the flying, judging, and results. Hope you enjoy it!

Congratulations to the 2022 U.S. Advanced team! Thank you to all the volunteers who made Nationals possible!

Thank you to LIFT Aviation for your continued support. Please head to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off most items.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 104: 2022 U.S. Nationals Day One

Welcome back y’all! Jeff is back from the chaos and we finally have a chance to catch up. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to make it to Nationals and fly Unlimited, so he fills us in on what’s going on. We get into some Nationals talk and break down some of the flying that was kicked off today in Advanced. Hope you enjoy it!

Thank you to LIFT Aviation for being such a huge supporter of aerobatics and this podcast. Please head to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off your order.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 103: Oh Fawk

Hey all! Welcome back! We had a couple of weeks of messiness and Jeff couldn’t record, so I wanted to throw a solo podcast out just to update everyone on what is going on and, to shoot the shit a bit. It was weird talking to myself, which is something I only do in the shower… Anyhoo, I ramble on about the Pacific Airshow in Huntington Beach this weekend, a recap of the Reno Air Races, and I get into the Advanced category at Nationals, as well as what aircraft are being flown.

Hopefully, we are back to our scheduled programming and will bring you a bunch of content for Nationals this week!

Thank you to LIFT Aviation. Head over to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off your order!

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 102: Marco Bouw

Welcome back! This week we have U.S. Advanced Team hopeful, Marco Bouw! Marco flies a hopped-up Laser and is kicking ass. We talk about all kinds of stuff. Marco had a Pitts S1 that he had to bail out of in 2016, so we had to talk about that. Marco has been working super hard training for Nationals, and just finished a camp with Rob Holland. Jeff and Marco get into a fun discussion on walking sequences. This was a great podcast, we hope you enjoy it!

Thank you to LIFT Aviation! Head over to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 101: Alex Huey & Eric Moore 2.0

Welcome back! This week we have Alex and Eric on to wrap up Redlands. It was Alex’s first competition in advanced. Alex gives us his breakdown and challenges faced. Eric wraps up his Redlands results and how he flew. We then get into Nationals, dropping down a category to go for the Advanced team, their top 3 pics, keyboard warriors and so much more! Sorry for the audio quality, Mark’s mic audio didn’t record properly, and Jeff was having some issues again.

Thank you to LIFT Aviation! Head over to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off your order.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 100: The Centennial

Welcome back! We missed you guys so much. This week we start tearing into Nationals which is a month out. We talk a bit about the ending of WAC with the free, and some closing thoughts, but Nationals was the focus. We really dive into the Advanced Category by picking some favorites and looking at different aircraft being used. We also look a tad at the Unlimited Category since Petro is competing this year in unlimited. This was a fun ramp-up discussion, and we are both super pumped!

Thank you to LIFT Aviation for supporting the podcast, head over to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 99: Petro Goes Unlimited

Welcome back! This week we recap a little bit of WAC and the 4 min free, but we spend most of the time breaking down the Kathy Jaffe contest. Jeff competed in his first unlimited contest and he did a fantastic job! He gives us a detailed breakdown of the prep, buildup, and flights during the contest. It was really fun to hear the breakdown. Hope you all enjoy it!

Thank you to LIFT Aviation for the support! Head to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off most items on your order!

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 98: WAC Wrap Up

Welcome back! Congrats to the French Unlimited Aerobatic team, and Florent Oddon for their gold victories as flights wrapped up. The U.S. Unlimited team did an incredible job finishing bronze, with Rob Holland finishing 5th place. We talk about the judging element and FPS scoring. We also talk about Jeff heading to his first unlimited contest this weekend! Congrats to all the competitors for a huge push and hard flying this week!

Thank you to LIFT Aviation for the support! Head to www.liftaviationusa.com and support them! Use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 97.1: World Aerobatic Championships, Into the Unknown

Welcome back! We tried to record a quickie that ended up being longer than an hour lol. Today wrapped up with the first half flying the first unknown and it was an exciting day. We talk about the rankings, how they scored, and some expectations for tomorrow.

Hope you enjoy it!

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 97: WAC Day 2 With Jim Bourke

Welcome back! In this episode, IAC President Jim Bourke joins the podcast again to talk about wrapping up the free known today in Poland. Jim shares some thoughts on Marianne’s death which was really insightful. As most know, Jim made the U.S. Unlimited Team last year but elected to pull out after her death. Jim’s perspective on the team, and the competition so far was really fun to hear. We also get into the unknown figures and the challenges it presents to the competitors.

Hope you enjoy it!

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 96: World Aerobatic Championships Day 1

Welcome back! It is WAC time baby!!!!!!!!!! We are releasing this one a bit early to recap the start of WAC 2022. Today, 22 pilots flew the known, with the rest flying tomorrow. It was filled with ups and downs today as we finished the day with Rob Holland in 1st place, with the former 2019 WAC champion, Louis Vanel in second. There were some HZs thrown into the mix but three U.S. Team members are in the top 10 as of right now which is very exciting. Perhaps more exciting, will be the flying tomorrow as we finish the known. There are some badass heavy hitters ready to shake things up tomorrow. We talk all about it on the episode today, and tomorrow we will follow up when the known flights finish.

Thank you to LIFT Aviation for supporting the podcast. Head over to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off your order!

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 95: AirVenturd

Welcome back! This week we have two big events ramping up. EAA AirVenture 2022 is kicking off, and practice is starting to get underway in Poland for the 2022 World Aerobatic Championships. We talk about how much we hate social media influencers and the selfie orgy that takes place every year at AirVenture, which is why we call it AirVenturd, as well as the conflict that some of the top performers like Jeff Boerboon and Rob Holland have by not being at the biggest airshow in the U.S. because they are gearing up for WAC. We explore the registered competitors for WAC and make some predictions on some individual wins and of course team wins for the overall, and freestyle. The U.S. Unlimited Team is really strong and they are ready to kick some ass!

Please go support and visit LIFT Aviation while you are at AirVenture this year. They are running a bunch of specials and discounts.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 94: Ringers

Welcome back! This week we end up focusing on WAC, and later on this year, Nationals. We get some interesting topics regarding both that leads to some really fun discussion. Unlimited competitors from around the world are making their way to Poland for WAC, and the U.S. team is almost all there, with a few arriving today. We talk about Advanced Team selections for Nationals this year and we take some really weird turns which were super fun. Hope you enjoy this week's episode!

Thanks to LIFT Aviation for supporting the podcast, head to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off!

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 93: Corey Gerulis

Welcome back! This week we have on the awesome Corey Gerulis. Corey is a corporate pilot by profession and currently competes in a 330SC in intermediate. Corey is kicking ass and is super passionate about flying aerobatics. We talk about how he got his start, the interesting story on his 300L and its previous owner, his new 330SC and so much more. We hope you enjoy this one, it was super fun!

Thank you to LIFT Aviation for supporting the podcast! Use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout when you place an order and you will receive 25% off your order!

Buy some shirts! Head over to www.flycoolshit.com/merch

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 92: Adam Messenheimer

Welcome back!!!!!! We missed you guys last week. We are back and we have a real awesome guy on the podcast. Adam flies the MXS and MX2 and is vying for a spot on the U.S. Advanced Team this year. We talk about everything! We get into how Adam started flying the Pitts S2C, how he and Rob Holland linked up, and the awesome relationship they have with Rob as a mentor and coach. Mark also shares his craziest private jet story. This was a really fun and awesome podcast, we hope you guys enjoy!

IAC elections are going on right now. Head over to https://www.iac.org/2022-board-election to cast your votes!

Thank you to LIFT Aviation! Head over to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 91: Rob Dumovic

Welcome back! This week we sit down with Rob Dumovic and have an absolute blast! There was a bit of an audio lag so don’t be too hard on us. Rob owns Spread Aviation, was an instructor at Executive Flyers, ferries Mike Goulian’s Extra 330SC, flies competition aerobatics, eyeing the US Advanced Team, is a test pilot for a cool flying car start-up, and is going to be a pilot in the new Jet F1 Cup series starting up soon. Oh did we mention he is also a DPE!? Rob never stops working and progressing. We talk about how he got his start, and what he is currently working on. Rob is a really passionate guy and clearly loves aviation and aerobatics. This was a really fun podcast and so good to finally sit down and chat with Rob.

Make sure you follow his journey to compete for a spot on the US Advanced Team at Nationals this year. He posts an episode weekly at: https://www.youtube.com/c/SpreadAviation. Make sure you like and subscribe to his channel!

For more information on Jet F1 Cup, head to https://www.jet1cup.com

Thank you to LIFT Aviation for supporting the podcast! Head to www.liftaviationusa.com and when you place an order, use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 90: Eat Cool Shit?

Welcome back! This week Mark and Jeff catch up and talk about what was probably the best episode with Rob Holland so far. Jeff tried his technique for ratcheting the harness down and you can hear his thoughts when you listen to the episode. We talk about a couple of contests that occurred including Intermediate Worlds which spawns a bunch of different topics of discussion. Then we somehow started talking about food which lasted way too long haha! Finally, we wrapped up talking about how Jeff is a terrorist because he hasn’t seen Top Gun Maverick yet.

Thank you to LIFT Aviation! Head over to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off

Thank you for your support! Please help support the podcast by going to www.flycoolshit.com/merch and buying some shirts.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 89: Rob Holland

Welcome back! Also welcome back to Rob Holland! Rob took some time from his insanely busy schedule to chat with us since it had been a while. We get into almost everything! We talk about the nuances of the 2022 Sportsman Known, getting coaching and critiquing, and random contest stuff. Rob gives us an update on WAC with regard to insurance coverage for their airplanes as the deadline to get airplanes overseas is coming soon. We also talk about all kinds of airshow goodness including the maneuver breakdowns that Rob has been doing. We really appreciate Rob for coming on, and for everything he is doing!

Please please please go support Rob by attending his airshows, and supporting his sponsors. Also, buy some RH shirts! Head to www.ultimateairshows.com for more information and to support Rob.

The U.S. Unlimited Team needs your support. Head over to https://www.iac.org/unlimited-team-2022 to donate and support the team!

If you haven’t already, sign up to be an IAC member! Click the link here: https://www.iac.org/roll-with-us-join-or-renew

Thank you so much to LIFT Aviation for supporting aerobatics, and supporting aviation!! Please head over to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT for 25% off most items.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 88: Mark Sorta Went To A Contest

Welcome back! This week we talk about Jeff’s diet, hanging out with the Don, and his progress flying unlimited. We talk about the unfortunate death of Mark Sampson of the Marksmen Aerobatic Team and doing complex maneuvers too low without an out. We also talk about the IAC chapter 38 Open West Championships in Tracy CA. This is the only contest in the Northern CA Bay Area. Mark finally goes to a contest to hang out and sees what it is all about. This was a fun episode!

Thanks to LIFT Aviation for being such a huge supporter of aviation, aerobatics, and this podcast! Head over to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off your order.

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Mark Pollard Mark Pollard

Episode 87: Pillow Talk

Welcome back! This week we chat about a bunch of random stuff. There are some contests coming up that we cover, we talk about Jeff easing into unlimited more and more, the fact that he is going to hang out with the Don while he is in town performing for Jones Beach Airshow, and so much more! This was a pretty random episode just catching up and shooting the shit.

Thanks to LIFT Aviation! Head over to www.liftaviationusa.com and use the promo code FLYCOOLSHIT at checkout for 25% off your order

Buy some shirts! Head to www.flycoolshit.com/merch

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