Redmond High School juniors Michael Knight and Connor Laurel are soaring to new heights within the international community of remote control sailplane pilots. They are two of three pilots who’ll comprise the USA Junior team at the F3J World Championship taking place in France in July 2010.

Knight, Laurel and their teammate Brendon Beardsley, a junior at Jackson High School in Mill Creek, competed in Denver this past September to qualify for the event in France. The trials consisted of 19 rounds of flying, over a three-day period.

“The selection of the team came down to the last round. It is extremely rare to have a three-person team, selected from pilots from around the United States, all come from the same general vicinity,” said Michael’s proud dad, Sherman Knight, who coaches the boys, along with Connor’s dad, Jim Laurel and Brendon’s dad, Dave Beardsley.

Don’t confuse these sophisticated, remote control sailplanes with “toys.” The majority of the aircraft used by the USA Junior Team are the “Supra” supplied by Kennedy Composites in Texas and built in the Ukraine. The Supra is a fully molded aircraft made of carbon fiber and Kevlar and is extremely light for its 12-foot wing span. Each plane costs about $1,500-1,800 and the accompanying electronics run around $700.

“This is the high end of the sport,” Sherman noted.

Befitting the investments in their equipment, Michael and Connor treat piloting the aircraft as much more than a casual pastime.

Connor started at age 4 and did his first solo flight at age 7. Michael began at age 6-1/2 and “got more serious around age 8,” he said.

It takes a good year to master the basics, the boys agreed.

“Quite a lot of people just never get the hang of it,” Sherman added. He’s said he’s seen many adults crash dozens of these planes.

Michael, Connor and Brendan are all members of the Seattle Area Soaring Society and do their flying at 60 Acres South in Redmond and the Old Carnation Farm.

They’re heading into a period of downtime, due to the wet weather.

“In winter, it’s hard to practice,” said Michael. “In summer, we do it a lot — every day or at least five times a week.”

To prevent monotony, Sherman explained, “We try to set up games, do short upstarts … practice launching and landing at the same place.”

However, because the teammates are close friends, they naturally gravitate toward the activity.

During the “off season,” Connor, Michael and Brendon are seeking ways to help pay for their travel to the World Championship.

Besides the three pilots, there will be two team managers, two “tow men” and a spotter for each boy.

“To win, that’s what you’ve gotta do,” said Sherman. “And we’ll go about four days early, to get used to conditions.”

The soaring society helps to support its members and the USA Junior Team hopes to get some corporate sponsorships, too. Those interested in helping can contact Sherman Knight at (425) 576-8777 or knight@mediate.com.

To learn more about the F3J 2010 World Championship, visit http://www.f3jfrance2010.fr/