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First-person point of view drone racing provides an immersive experience and can have a variety of applications in recreation and sports entertainment, among others

The first drone racing tournament finally took its first leg off last March 18, 2017 at the open grounds of Faith Asia Institute of Technology and Humanities in Tanauan City, Batangas, in the Philippines. Gabe Villaver, Greg Villaver, and Frederick Cortejas emerged as the top 3 winners respectively.

Drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles, are more commonly known and associated military or surveillance purposes. SkyEye Analytics Inc, a company dedicated to maximizing the potential of drones in different industries, is also determined in mainstreaming the use of drones for recreation and sports entertainment purposes.

FPV (first-person view) is a term used for the method of controlling a device (in this case, a drone) through the pilot’s point of view. FPV drones allow the pilot to fly immersively than he can from looking at the drones from the ground. It also allows more precise flying through different obstacles.

When asked, top winner Gabe claimed to join the race in order to showcase his talent and meet like-minded people: “These people who I met are now one of my closest friends and we aim to make the FPV Drone racing community here in the Philippines grow and be known worldwide.”

He admits that curiosity was what got him to the game, starting from flying DJI Phantoms back in January 2016 for aerial videography. Upon noticing people who fly much faster and smaller drones, he dived into the sport. “Now I fly racing drones because of their agility and their ability to fly in ‘acro’ mode,” he finishes.

SkyEye hopes to help give back to the drone community through such events. In a continuous effort to promote robotics and IoT (Internet of Things) in the Philippines, it will be holding three more races under the said tournament, with the next leg happening this April 8, 2015 at the Circulo Verde Racetrack. This community gathering invites old and new hobbyists alike.

The event was done in collaboration with with Smart Communications, PLDT, Brainsparks, Shapecloud, Philrobotics and First Asia Institute of Technology and Humanities.

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Video Credit: Alexy Sales

The post Drones are great for both play and work, and Techie Hacienderos just topped the first Skyeye Drone Race appeared first on e27.

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