Today I put my FPV into Sport Mode for the first time. I have moved into the Twilight Zone, where strange things are common...
First of all, the thing is blazing fast. In Normal Mode, I could get about 32 mph flat out. In Sport Mode, it will climb straight up at 32 mph, and cruise along at 62 mph.
I had been getting lower and closer to things in Normal Mode, to the point that I was pretty comfortable with that. Moving to Sport Mode, my self-training includes going higher again, and staying farther away from things.
My CanyonBall Run consists of going out to the creek, and then screaming down the canyon until the control signal starts to get weak. The creek itself is about -150 ft ATL, and there are numerous 100+ft tress lining the canyon. My Normal Mode training started with doing The Run at 350 ATL, just to get the feel for the machine. I gradually lowered that to 300 ft, then 250 ft, until my last Normal Mode FPV flight, which was down to 70 ft ATL. “Ridge Running” along the opposite wall of the canyon has become one of my favorite pastimes.
So for my Sport Mode training, I bumped the test runs first back up to 300 ft ATL, then dropped back to 200 ft ATL on the second flight. When I turned after one to get over the ridge, it got up and over it right now.
It’s definitely much louder in Sport Mode. I can hear it a lot farther away than I could in Normal Mode. Even though I’m not flying over any houses at all, the sound tends to reverberate around the canyon, so I need to stay aware of that.
Sport Mode gobbles up battery power at an indescribable rate, compared to Normal Mode. I’ll need to integrate that into my real-time power management. If I could only get one change to this FPV, it would be greatly enhanced battery capacity. Also, the “minutes remaining” battery indicator is way too pessimistic, compared to the battery % remaining indicator. I suspect it’s intentionally pessimistic, but once I adapt to that, I’ll have more useful flying time for each launch, by at least a minute or two.
My plan to just fly with the one battery for a while, couldn’t survive its first encounter with Sport Mode. My Fly More kit is on the way, and I should have it for the weekend. So my biggest remaining needs are a second set of goggles, and a good hardcase for transporting the full FPV kit to remote locations.
Another big difference that surprised me a bit was how quickly I could outrun the signal range for both the control signals and the video. I’ve been bumping into that in Normal Mode too, but in Sport Mode it happens much easier. At one point on my second flight I lost both signals very suddenly, and my goggles were just dark for what seemed like a very long time. When they came back on, and the thing gave me back control, I was indeed going home, but way lower over a ridge than I would have liked.
The braking action is much harsher in Sport Mode. Very effective, but harsher.
I had to cancel the RTH several times on the second flight. It would go off when I had enough power left to come in and land, but not enough left to climb back up to the RTH altitude, and then come back down. I’ll get a better feel for that the more I fly it.
I’m still using Normal Mode for T/O and landing, but that may change with more experience. I fully expect to stay in Sport Mode for at least the rest of the month, before dipping my toe in the Manual Mode crocodile pond. On the other hand, I’m supposed to have great weather for flying for at least the next week, so I may end up advancing that.
This is awesome!!
First of all, the thing is blazing fast. In Normal Mode, I could get about 32 mph flat out. In Sport Mode, it will climb straight up at 32 mph, and cruise along at 62 mph.
I had been getting lower and closer to things in Normal Mode, to the point that I was pretty comfortable with that. Moving to Sport Mode, my self-training includes going higher again, and staying farther away from things.
My CanyonBall Run consists of going out to the creek, and then screaming down the canyon until the control signal starts to get weak. The creek itself is about -150 ft ATL, and there are numerous 100+ft tress lining the canyon. My Normal Mode training started with doing The Run at 350 ATL, just to get the feel for the machine. I gradually lowered that to 300 ft, then 250 ft, until my last Normal Mode FPV flight, which was down to 70 ft ATL. “Ridge Running” along the opposite wall of the canyon has become one of my favorite pastimes.
So for my Sport Mode training, I bumped the test runs first back up to 300 ft ATL, then dropped back to 200 ft ATL on the second flight. When I turned after one to get over the ridge, it got up and over it right now.
It’s definitely much louder in Sport Mode. I can hear it a lot farther away than I could in Normal Mode. Even though I’m not flying over any houses at all, the sound tends to reverberate around the canyon, so I need to stay aware of that.
Sport Mode gobbles up battery power at an indescribable rate, compared to Normal Mode. I’ll need to integrate that into my real-time power management. If I could only get one change to this FPV, it would be greatly enhanced battery capacity. Also, the “minutes remaining” battery indicator is way too pessimistic, compared to the battery % remaining indicator. I suspect it’s intentionally pessimistic, but once I adapt to that, I’ll have more useful flying time for each launch, by at least a minute or two.
My plan to just fly with the one battery for a while, couldn’t survive its first encounter with Sport Mode. My Fly More kit is on the way, and I should have it for the weekend. So my biggest remaining needs are a second set of goggles, and a good hardcase for transporting the full FPV kit to remote locations.
Another big difference that surprised me a bit was how quickly I could outrun the signal range for both the control signals and the video. I’ve been bumping into that in Normal Mode too, but in Sport Mode it happens much easier. At one point on my second flight I lost both signals very suddenly, and my goggles were just dark for what seemed like a very long time. When they came back on, and the thing gave me back control, I was indeed going home, but way lower over a ridge than I would have liked.
The braking action is much harsher in Sport Mode. Very effective, but harsher.
I had to cancel the RTH several times on the second flight. It would go off when I had enough power left to come in and land, but not enough left to climb back up to the RTH altitude, and then come back down. I’ll get a better feel for that the more I fly it.
I’m still using Normal Mode for T/O and landing, but that may change with more experience. I fully expect to stay in Sport Mode for at least the rest of the month, before dipping my toe in the Manual Mode crocodile pond. On the other hand, I’m supposed to have great weather for flying for at least the next week, so I may end up advancing that.
This is awesome!!
