AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - September 2018 - 30

PILOT BRIEFING
EVENTS

|

Room on the
podium
The fastest racers are sitting out Reno...maybe
B Y A LTO N K . M A R S H

Reno racing history

The National Championship Air
Races began in 1964 to carry on
the tradition of the Cleveland
Air Races, which took place
from the 1920s to the 1940s. The
races were organized by World
War II veteran Bill Stead at Sky
Ranch Airfield near Spanish
Springs, Nevada, and are the last
event of their kind.
When Stead Air Force
Base-named after Bill's brother
Croston Stead-closed in 1966,
the field was turned over to the
public and the races have taken
place there ever since.
While there are some younger
pilots joining the Reno air races,
owners of warbird aircraft must
search for pilots checked out in
growling, over-powered World
War II fighters with tailwheels.
That wasn't a problem when
the races began. Now the pilots
come from turboprop and jet
backgrounds.
The races attract 150,000
people and bring $600 million
to the local economy. -AKM
www.airrace.org

30 | AOPA PILOT September 2018

FOUR OF THE FASTEST aircraft in
the Unlimited Gold category at
the National Championship Air
Races in Reno, Nevada, are sitting it out this year, leaving the
race open to aircraft that fly lap
speeds at only 380 to 410 mph.
Recent winners have flown 50 to
60 mph faster.
The Reno air races, as they are
known, take place September 12
through September 16.
Sitting out the 2018 Unlimited
race are Voodoo, Rare Bear, Czech
Mate, and Strega, according to race
officials. But are they really sitting
it out? Strega crews have claimed
in the past that their aircraft would
retire, only to show up on race
day-to everyone's surprise.
Unlimited racers withdraw
for a variety of reasons, with
money topping the list. Prize
money no longer covers expenses
of the top Unlimited aircraft, so
sponsors are required. No sponsors, no race. It is difficult to find
crew members; most are volunteers. Owners can expect little
return on their investment, and
have trouble selling a highly
modified airplane that potential
buyers can't afford to operate.
The Voodoo team's absence
seems like a sure bet. Voodoo, a

highly modified North American
P-51 fighter, was donated to the
Planes of Fame Air Museum in
Chino, California, operated by
Steve Hinton Sr. The donation
was made by owner Bob Button,
who confirmed he is out of the
racing business. Steve Hinton
Jr. won Unlimited Gold races at
Reno in Voodoo many times, but
in the 2017 Reno race he was
edged by Strega, a highly modified P-51D fighter flown by Jay
Consalvi. Hinton Jr. has also won
in a past year flying Strega.
Hinton Jr. is not racing this
year at Reno; he is in Italy working with his dad filming the
miniseries Catch-22 with actor
George Clooney. Hinton Sr. has
long provided aircraft support to
the movie industry.
If the fastest Unlimited aircraft really are sitting out the
2018 Reno races, contenders with
the next-best chances to win are
Dreadnaught, Sawbones, Miss
America, and Miss Goldfinger,
according to a Reno air race journalist and race officials.
Joel Swager, a pilot for
Dreadnaught in the past, said he
is waiting to see if the top four
fastest Unlimited aircraft really
will sit out the 2018 race. Pilot
http://www.airrace.org
AOPA Turbine Pilot Magazine - September 2018

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