Behind The FPV Goggles: MartyFlyzZzFPV

Drone Racing and FPV Freestyle are some of the fastest growing sports in the world. Meet the men and women behind the goggles, who are changing the way we see our planet.
Simon Cheng, aka MartyFlyzZzFPV, calls the Land of 10,000 Lakes home. We flew with him at a park in South Minneapolis to see what it's like to fly in a state known for it's beautiful summers and abundant lakes. His journey into FPV was a little slower than most; it took him almost 3 years to build his first quad. It's not that he didn't know how, he says he kind of just forgot about it! That is until he saw some other FPV Freestyle pilots online. Out of the closet the quad came and into the air it went! Simon said as soon as he put on the goggles he knew that's what he wanted to do; fly through the trees like Top Gun. Some pilots love building their quads, but Simon says it's not his favorite thing in the world. In fact, once he finally built his first, he says it was such an accomplishment had to give it a name. And it's name? Marty. Hence Simon's pilot name: MartyFlyzZzFPV. Living in Minnesota means half of your flying season is lost to the weather. So, Simon travels to warmer climates, like Atlanta and Las Vegas to get stick time in and meet some of the pilots who have inspired him. But he doesn't travel alone. His girlfriend, Megan, comes and flies with him! He jokes her love of flight stems from "an act of survival," but is proud of where she has come and loves to fly with her. You know what they say, couples who drone together stay together. Because Simon prefers sitting while flying, we thought we'd quiz him and see just how much of his brain power goes into flying. Turns out it's a lot (it took him 17 seconds to tell us who the current President is). It was a beautiful day well spent; thanks for flying with us, Simon! Upload your best FPV Freestyle and Drone Racing videos to AirVuz.com for a chance to fly with us on Behind the Goggles. VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: Host: Drone racing and FPV freestyle are some of the fastest-growing sports in the world. Meet the men and women behind the goggles who are changing the way we see our planet. We caught up with Simon Cheng, AKA Marty FlyzZz FPV at a park in South [00:00:30] Minneapolis to hear why the former skateboarder's journey into freestyle took a little longer than most. Simon: I kinda went back and digging through the closets, saw the box of parts next to the instruments that you got, decided you weren't gonna play. Host: You liked the recording that you got for free, [crosstalk 00:00:51]. Simon: Exactly. Dusted that off and I was like yeah, I gotta finish this. Host: To say Simon didn't dive right into freestyle would be an understatement. It took him [00:01:00] three years to build his first quad. But once that thing was out of the box- Simon: Oh definitely the first time when you create this thing that flies, like this robot, and you see it take off off the ground, it's like the most incredible feeling. Like you've life to this thing. Host: Right. Simon: That's sitting in front of you. Okay, this is what I really wanna do. I don't really wanna do photography. I wanna like- Host: Fly. Simon: Pretend I'm in Top Gun, like flying through the trees. Host: Great. Simon: Buzzin' the deck of the carriers. Host: Everybody's [00:01:30] name that I've met so far, I kind of get it. Like when I found out your name was Simon, I'm like Marty FlyzZz, I don't understand. Where'd that come from? Simon: So my first quad that I spent three years in my closet sitting there in pieces, when I finally created him, it was such an emotional moment, I had to give it a name, so I called him Marty. And that was like the evolution of that is Marty Flies, and then [00:02:00] just the Z's are like the buzzing sounds. Host: Simon has gone on a few FPV trips this past year to places like Las Vegas and Atlanta, where he says he got to see the world in a whole new light. But he hasn't gone alone. His girlfriend Meaghan came and flew with him. Simon: Yeah, that was probably more just probably an act of survival on her part. It was definitely a little bit of like coaxing her to get into it at first, this thing I'm spending a lot [00:02:30] of time doing. So it was really good to be able to share that together. Host: It makes sense to me. I just haven't seen that yet. Simon: If you can convince your significant others to fly in the new quads, I think you- Host: You got a keeper. Simon: It's a good idea, yeah. For sure, a keeper. Host: Simon has a different flying technique than most of his fellow FPV pilots. Why are we sitting down? Simon: You know, I have to sit and fly. I know it looks really cool and [inaudible 00:03:01], [00:03:00] stand with this wide-legged stance, fly around yourself. But I just can't do it. Host: Oh, your legs just go numb. Simon: Yeah, just kinda like being drunk. Kinda lose my balance a little. Not like I can't fly, but it just ... I'm way more comfortable flying when I'm sitting. Host: Because of his sitting advantage, we challenged Simon to a quiz. Who is the current president of the United States? Simon: That would be, [00:03:30] I guess we're in the election, so I don't know when this ... depends on when this episode airs. Host: Ooh, tricky! Simon: Damn! Host: How about as of right now at this moment. Who is our president? Simon: I'm pretty sure it's still Obama. Host: Good, that took you 17 seconds. Okay. What is seven plus five? Simon: Oh, 12. Host: [00:04:00] What is seven times three? Simon: 21. Damn. Host: Math whiz over here. Simon: That's right. Host: I do have one stupid question though. [00:04:30] How big of a quad is [Nico 00:04:34]? What size frame? Simon: She's like a little micro, like Nano QX. Like a little Inductrix. Host: Can we have a size comparison, please? So, it's pretty good. I mean, she weighs about the same. Let's see on this. Meaghan: Might have to register her. Simon: Like a [inaudible 00:04:50]. Host: Have to register her. Simon: She weighs more than two sticks of [00:05:00] butter. Host: Family photo, plus me.