2026 F3F Nationals
11/12 April 2026
Slopeside action as Stefan Bertschi starts another sizzling run
BMFA F3F National Championships
The Bwlch in South Wales is home to some fantastic slopes, and witness to many PBs and sub-30's. In short, it's the perfect location a National Championships!
I arrived a day early, and managed a short practice session with my Pitbull 2. Meanwhile one or two entrants, discouraged by the poor weather prospects, dropped out. This resulted in a smallish field of just eleven pilots.
Day 1 (Saturday)
Saturday on Mickeys dawned with grumpy skies and a strengthening wind. In fact, it was soon gusting to a body bending 25 m/s. Nevertheless the wind remained legal (just!) and square on the slope. In other words, perfect for some fast times, with full ballast being the order of the day. There were some interruptions due to hail, but we managed to stay reasonably dry.
Round One went to Greg Dakin, flying his Saker in his usual jaw-dropping style for a 34.72... only for Pete Gunning to go better in round 2 with a splendid 32.59.
Stefan Bertschi, who had been making progress after a slow start, won round 3 with a cool 33.20, before going one better with a fantastic 29.59, making this a sub-30 comp as well as putting Stefan firmly in the lead. He further stamped his authority by taking the last round with a 32.57.
Day 2 (Sunday)
We returned to Mickeys for the second and final day. The wind had abated slightly and was gusting to around 18 m/s. In spite of stoppages due to rain, we managed another five very fast rounds.
Rounds 6 and 8 were taken by Mark Treble, steering his Pitbull round the turns with characteristic precision. Stefan won rounds 7 and 9, with the final round going to Pete Gunning.
So there we have it! A Nats characterised by a small entry and some of the most gruelling conditions many of us could remember... but one which will also be remembered also for the crazy lift and excellent pilot skills on display. A sign of the quality of the flying is that the slowest round win was 35.74!
Acknowedgements
Many thanks to Andy Burgoyne, Les Wood, Mark Treble and helpers. A special mention to Les, who despite not being able to fly due to a dodgy wrist, stayed on to organise and grace us with his company.
Free Wyvern raffle
While not directly related to the competition, Ian Mason is offering a new Wyvern F3F model as a free raffle prize for participants in this year's BMFA league. The prize draw will take place at the final event of the 2026 season. More details at GBSRA.
The Wyvern is Ian's design, also flown by Greg Dakin and John Phillips. Ian's generous initiative will no doubt encourage more pilots to participate in the fabulous sport which is F3F!
Results
After 10 rounds
1 S Bertschi 8792.36 1000.00 2 M Treble 8492.28 965.87 3 P Gunning 8383.10 953.45 4 G Dakin 8246.67 937.93 5 A Burgoyne 8160.86 928.17 6 W Fourie 8001.21 910.01 7 M Shellim 7846.70 892.44 8 I Mason 7115.52 809.28 9 P Stubley 7058.93 802.84 10 M Evans 5473.99 622.58 11 J Edison 5080.31 577.80
Fastest time: 29.59 by Stefan Bertschi in round 4
Round winners: Greg Dakin, Peter Gunning (2), Stefan Bertschi (5), Mark Treble (2)