When Dave Melara flies at the Great Meadow, you can hear his enthusiastic glee a hundred feet away at the Pickleweed picnic tables.

It’s why most people know him as Laughing Dave. He’s explosively dramatic, a passionate pilot who audibly celebrates his successes and mourns his occasional disasters.

An engineer, Dave enjoys tinkering with his planes, which range from discus-launch gliders to electric ducted-fan jets.

“Look at that! Look at that!” he exclaims, watching his latest EDF jet go into a silent glide.

Proposing Rules. He so loves Baylands that a couple of years ago, Dave wrote a Constitution for Flyers at Baylands.

It was prompted by a rough Baylands weekend: too many flyers, too many close calls, too much chaos.

English is not his first language — his handle on BayRC is latinflyer. He grew up in San Salvador, capital of El Salvador.

He attended an English-language technical school there. “I never spoke English, but I read and wrote,” Dave says.

After graduating as an industrial engineer specializing in electronic design, Dave came to the U.S. in 1983, the first member of his family to immigrate from El Salvador.

Numero Uno. “When I came here, I had no transportation and no language. I ate at the same place — McDonald’s — every day because all I could say was ‘Give me Number One.’

“The transition between not speaking English and speaking English took me six months.”

His speech is still heavily accented, but he’s a fluent and capable writer.

Covering the Bases. His list of 14 rules, posted on BayRC, included launching and landing protocols, frequency control regulations, newcomer requirements, safety guidelines and more.

This modest proposal was considered and considerate, rough in spots but a good start.

The Crowd Goes Wild. The ensuing discussion was wild. At first it was generally affirmative, then it morphed into something prickling with side issues: LiPo battery safety, how big is big, how fast is fast, who’s a good flyer, who made you the king?

A poll attached to the discussion showed that, in the end, only 29% supported the idea of written rules, not even simplified alternative drafts.

Throughout the battle, Dave maintained a positive attitude.

That’s his nature.

Guerilla Threats. Dave says that his father worked for the El Salvador government, helping struggling banks to correct their financial problems. In the 1980s, his activities prompted threats from guerillas, forcing his father to employ bodyguards and reinforce their home like a bunker.

“Because they couldn’t get to my father they threatened to kill every member of our family,” he remembers.

His whole family — four brothers, a sister and his parents — all live in the U.S. now.

Dave discovered Baylands, he recalls, in 2001.

“Ted Cooper was the first person to introduce himself. He said ‘I’ll help you’ and he put me on a buddy box to fly one of his 3D airplanes.

“Ted’s the one who taught us all: when you see a newcomer, you approach and offer to help. Don’t wait until they come to you.”

Wind Is Good. Dave says he learned to fly with Slow Sticks. “I flew even on windy days. The higher the wind, the better you get.”

Dave flies at Baylands most weekdays during lunch hour, and often on weekends

We usually hear him coming to the tables at Pickleweed when he’s a hundred feet away.

“Check out my new plane, bro” he yells, then follows up with his trademark laugh.

Tags: Airplanes, Baylands, Flying, People, Radio Control, Slow Stick, Wind.

This entry was posted on Sunday, September 9th, 2007 at 7:27 pm and is filed under Baylands. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.