ORLANDO, Fla. – You've probably heard of drones, but you may not have heard about the new sport of drone racing.
A local group called the Orlando Rotoracers has been racing drones for several years.
If you like video games, this may be the new hobby for you: first-person view, or FPV, drone racing.
[WEB EXTRAS: VIDEO: Neil Rivera, Orlando Rotoracers | Nelson Aquino, Gravity Goons ]
"Put the goggles on, you're flying and you're controlling it. It's like a video game, but real life," said Neil Rivera, a pilot with the Rotoracers.
The drones, or quads, used by most pilots in the races are probably not as large as you would imagine. One might fit inside a square foot of space. Most people think of drones as much larger devices.
"But more people are shooting for this size frame," said Rivera.
That's because, in these races, the fastest pilot may not necessarily win.
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"If you're not agile, cannot negotiate a turn, you're not going win," said Rivera. "I've seen guys win flying the slowest."
Rivera has been hooked ever since his first flight. He said he flies pretty much every day. It's all in preparation for the big race days.
The race News 6 visited was a regional qualifier race. Here’s how it worked:. First, Rivera said, the pilots checked in to get their quads inspected for safety. Then, there was a safety and rules briefing for all the pilots who would be flying. They got to walk around the course so they could see all the obstacles they had to fly through or around.
"The rules are, if you miss a gate, let's say, you have to go back and do it, so now you've lost time," said Rivera.
Pilots then made sure their quads were synced up with the tracking system that counts laps for the race. In this particular race, pilots needed to complete as many laps as possible in the designated time.
Finally, it was time to take off!
During the races, the pilots themselves sit just outside the safety netting. Usually, when you think about a race, you think of high adrenaline and lots of movement. But all you need for quad racing are quick thumbs and a video feed to your goggles.
"With this, it totally isolates you," said Rivera. "It makes you feel like you're on board the machine. It's like an out-of-body experience. You're out there flying 80 mph, 2 inches off the ground, going through courses or around trees, and it's just amazing."
Rivera said it's very cool technology that's brand new.
"Like two, three years ago, we didn't have this technology," said Rivera. "People were making their own stuff with a small tablet, enclosed with cardboard, whatever, that's how everything started. Now, it's a worldwide sport."
Rivera is talking world championships for big money.
"We just had the World Grand Prix in Dubai, and the guy that won is a 15-year-old and he won a quarter-million dollars," said Rivera.
If you're wondering how much it would cost you to get started quad racing, Rivera said it can depend.
"You can get a quad, ready to fly with goggles and everything, radio, it's about $1,000," said Rivera. "Most of the stuff is put together by the pilot himself, so you can have a choice of different components, different prices, depends on what you want, what you want to do with it. But most of the quads are customizable. Most of the machines you see here, you pick a frame that you like or you've seen good reviews on it, then you pick the motors, then you pick the props, what video transmitter and camera you're going to run, so you have a bit of selection so you can come up with your dream machine that way."
Rivera said you can get a lot of guidance from the quad community, too.
"You can copy somebody else's setup or you can just go under your own and most of the time it works," said Rivera. "The community has been really great because there's a lot of information. If you want to build a certain frame or you want to know about a certain component, you just go online and go on some forums and get your information there. You don't have to do trial and error."
Once you choose and build your quad, Sarai Almageur, the Rotoracers' president, said you can come out and fly with the group. They'll help teach you and get you started.
"We actually help you guys or anyone learn how to fly, how to tune, how to build. We teach the safety for it," said Almaguer.
Right now, Rivera said there are no fees or dues to be a part of the Rotoracers, but you do need to be registered with the Academy of Model Aeronautics, which includes insurance in case of an accident. He said as per law, you also want to be registered with the Federal Aviation Administration. There are rules and regulations on where and how the drones or quads can be flown and you can face fines if you violate those rules.