When you think of drones and racing, “rodeo” isn’t the first word that comes to mind.
But that’s not the same for Josh Nelson, president of the Casper Air Modelers. On Saturday, he and his group teamed up with the Casper Sports Alliance to host the first Western States Drone Rodeo.
“Drones are becoming real popular, obviously. So we wanted to try and hold an event that would expose people to an organized side of the hobby,” Nelson said. “Also, (we’re) trying to get rid of the stigma that (drones) are dangerous and causing all kinds of problems. If used in a responsible manner, they’re just a lot of fun.”
The idea for the event first came from John Giantonio, the director of the Casper Sports Alliance.
“What we want to do is invite every and all of the drone operators, people who are out there who think they have a shot at competing, to come out and look and see how it’s done,” Giantonio said.
Pilots of all ages were encouraged to both attend and participate. The average skill level of the event might not be as high as the standard seen at competitions like the World Drone Prix in Dubai or the DRL races, but the friendly competitions like these help bring newcomers who are interested in testing the waters.
Venom Power, a company that sells batteries for drones and other electronic devices, provided the prizes for the winners.
“It’s our first year, so we’ll see what happens and see how well it goes on,” Giantonio said.
Check out the original article here