My first drone race.

I’m disappointed. At the moment, I’m on the flight returning from Mumbai. The trip was amazing; the race, not so much. Did I crash a lot of times? Yes. Am I happy about it? No. But did I learn a lot? Yes.

The first day, we had practice and the track was fairly flowy. But then, late into the afternoon after about six packs, I hit a gate with metal pipes going full throttle. It happened so fast, I didn't see it coming at ALL. I went out to the field to see where my drone was and found the bottom part, battery still plugged in, stack and motors intact, but no top plate. I looked around frantically and finally found the assembly about 10 meters from the gate. The aluminum standoffs had SHEARED OFF. The VTX was still attached to the top plate, but I could not find the receiver ANYWHERE. The solder joints had ripped off CLEAN. I was baffled.

I frantically borrowed a receiver from someone (thanks Ninja FPV) and soldered it on. Somehow the VTX was still working and the camera wasn't damaged. I got a few packs in and ended the day with a crash. When I got back to the apartment, I decided to get some sleep. After a good night’s rest, I got to building a new drone with the parts I’d bought the previous day and a few spares. I was halfway done when I had to leave for the venue. Qualifying was starting and I had to hit top 16 to be eligible for the race.

When I tried to fly the old drone, it DID NOT turn on. The motors beeped, but the ESC did not connect to the flight controller. The FC had no power. I checked the wires, but it wasn't that, the FC was just broken. This was full on panic. I scrambled to finish my spare drone, borrowing a VTX from someone else (thanks Hunt FPV). I eventually managed to queue myself for the very last round of qualification. I asked Adile FPV (thanks Adile for the lights too!) to spot me. My nerves were not helping.

The beeper goes off. First lap: a slight bobble in the dive gate, but a 20.2-second lap. Amazing. Second lap: I crash, manage to recover, and get a 21.4. Even better. I just needed to get the third lap in and I would comfortably qualify in the top 10. The third lap, at the dive gate, I hit the gate. I manage to get back up, but as I go on the straight after the dive, I careen straight into the ground. The battery ejections, and it is OVER. I cannot even compete.

Dejected, I went back to the apartment. I really hope I have a better race next time. I do love this hobby though, especially how much it involves swiping credit cards.

Maybe 2025 just isn't my year. I hope 2026 will be better.

Sid, signing off.