
Unlimited Class withdraws from National Championship Air Races
The group looks forward to working with Reno Air Racing Association toward its return to the races in 2026.
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Unlimited Class withdraws from National Championship Air Races
The group looks forward to working with Reno Air Racing Association toward its return to the races in 2026.www.kolotv.com
No reason cited for the Unlimited’s pulling out. Everybody was oddly polite in this article.
Heard a rumor that they are talking to Reno about starting up again in Reno next year.
Bill Odom in Beguine in Cleveland has entered the chat. As for people buying and developing property by an airport that has been there for decades...The course has already been encroached with development. Stead is done.
I've heard many of the same concerns, not so much about accommodations but more about the safety aspects of the course. Stead was perfect for air racing with three runways all forming a triangle roughly in the center of the course, if you blew an engine and still had some energy you had a pretty good chance of gliding to a landing on a paved runway. But as some have stated urban expansion crept into the safe area around the race course. I watched MAII disassemble itself on the front straight and its Griffon engine landed in a neighborhood that hadn't existed when racing started there and I think that was truly the beginning of the end for air racing. When the "Galloping Ghost" went into the crowd I thought for sure it was over but it limped along as a very diminished version of what it had been for a few more years. It's a dangerous sport that needs to be conducted far from any populated area. Bonneville Speed Week manages to put on a race every year without any grandstands because the audience is all participants. It's the same thing but it happens on the ground, the egos involved are very similar when it comes to going real fast. People die on the salt flats and it barely makes the news, for instance the fastest piston powered car ever was aiming for 500mph this year and it crashed fatally injuring the driver just a week or so ago. There's a certain kind of person that wants to pursue these seemingly pointless endeavors and caging them is ill advised, they need that outlet. I hope they find another place to race airplanes safely.I have some insight.
First off, RARA is a horrifically run organization. Poorly managed with incredibly poor decision-making would be an understatement. Roswell was the worst of the choices presented in a number of ways. A complete and total lack of airline service, hotels, rental cars, attractions for spectators, and the list goes on. The most important element, though, was that very, very, very early on in this process, several classes raised concerns about the course, namely, powerlines that run through the course, AND, no relief runway on the back end of the course that would allow an emergency aircraft to land. Sport class pulled out, jets pulled out, and now unlimited. That airport presents a lot of challenges for racing. The weather (namely, wind) is, on average, much worse there than in Stead.
This year will be such a revenue loser, that I highly dought RARA will survive it.
You knew Jerry Duty?Bill Odom in Beguine in Cleveland has entered the chat. As for people buying and developing property by an airport that has been there for decades...
View attachment 84980
NoYou knew Jerry Duty?
Could they do it where they did the Mojave races?I've heard many of the same concerns, not so much about accommodations but more about the safety aspects of the course. Stead was perfect for air racing with three runways all forming a triangle roughly in the center of the course, if you blew an engine and still had some energy you had a pretty good chance of gliding to a landing on a paved runway. But as some have stated urban expansion crept into the safe area around the race course. I watched MAII disassemble itself on the front straight and its Griffon engine landed in a neighborhood that hadn't existed when racing started there and I think that was truly the beginning of the end for air racing. When the "Galloping Ghost" went into the crowd I thought for sure it was over but it limped along as a very diminished version of what it had been for a few more years. It's a dangerous sport that needs to be conducted far from any populated area. Bonneville Speed Week manages to put on a race every year without any grandstands because the audience is all participants. It's the same thing but it happens on the ground, the egos involved are very similar when it comes to going real fast. People die on the salt flats and it barely makes the news, for instance the fastest piston powered car ever was aiming for 500mph this year and it crashed fatally injuring the driver just a week or so ago. There's a certain kind of person that wants to pursue these seemingly pointless endeavors and caging them is ill advised, they need that outlet. I hope they find another place to race airplanes safely.
I have some insight.
First off, RARA is a horrifically run organization. Poorly managed with incredibly poor decision-making would be an understatement. Roswell was the worst of the choices presented in a number of ways. A complete and total lack of airline service, hotels, rental cars, attractions for spectators, and the list goes on. The most important element, though, was that very, very, very early on in this process, several classes raised concerns about the course, namely, powerlines that run through the course, AND, no relief runway on the back end of the course that would allow an emergency aircraft to land. Sport class pulled out, jets pulled out, and now unlimited. That airport presents a lot of challenges for racing. The weather (namely, wind) is, on average, much worse there than in Stead.
This year will be such a revenue loser, that I highly dought RARA will survive it.
accurate but afaik the jets, biplanes, F1 and T6 are still running
conditions were reportedly not good at PRS, a lot of blowing dust and high winds scrubbed course time for many of the classes with the vis restrictions associated
I did not attend because I knew the course layout would not leave viable options for landing in my speed range- most would be survivable, but i'm not interested in trashing an airframe for $1100 and a beef jerky.
my colleagues’ evaluations came to the same conclusion
No.Could they do it where they did the Mojave races?