May/JunE 2015 Aviation for Women 23
by Danville, Illinois, where we finally got to take a break. I will never forget that night. Nancy and I were so anxious, nervous, and excited that the next
day was hopefully our last day of flight
and we would get to the finish line. We
also heard some terrible news that some
of the racers were stuck for almost two
days in Pinedale because of bad weather and when they attempted to get out
of there, they experienced icing on their
wings and had to divert. We were just
praying for everyone to get to the finish
line safely. I was just so happy to be a
part of this race and didn’t even think
that we were doing that well as far as
the race was concerned.
We knew we had one more day to finish the race, but we were so ready to
be done. Throughout the race, I never
was able to drink enough coffee or eat
enough because we spent so much time
flying. That’s all I was thinking about
that day! We took off and had nice tailwinds that first leg from Danville to
Athens, Ohio. I felt like that was our
best leg, and it turned out that was what
gave us the win.
We got fuel at Athens, took a two-hour break, and then continued to York,
Pennsylvania, which was our last flyby approach. Then we continued on to
land at the finish in New Cumberland,
Pennsylvania! At the banquet where
they announce the winners, Nancy and
I were hoping to just to be in the top 10;
that would have made us so happy. We
didn’t hear our names until we won the
2015 air race claSSic
The 2015 air Race classic kicks off on June 22 at stafford Regional airport in Freder-
icksburg, Virginia. Racers will cover more than 2,100 nautical miles in four days travel-
ing a course over eight states from Fredericksburg to Fairhope, alabama.
Race teams must have at least two female pilots and fly VFR during daylight only.
They are given four days to make flybys at predetermined en route stops and land
at the terminus. Each plane is flown in race configuration to determine its handicap
speed, and the challenge for each race team is to achieve actual ground speeds as far
over the handicap as possible. The objective is to fly a “perfect” cross-country.
The air Race classic has roots back to the 1929 Women’s air Derby. Today up to 55
teams fly race routes that vary from year to year and continue the tradition of women’s
air racing. For more information visit www.airraceclassic.org.
2015 route
• Stafford regional airport –
Fredericksburg, Virginia
• Foothills regional airport –
morganton, north carolina
• hickory regional airport –
hickory, north carolina
• Joseph a. hardy connellsville airport –
connellsville, Pennsylvania
• clark regional airport – Jeffersonville, indiana
• threeriversmunicipal, Dr. hainesairport –
three rivers, michigan
• Kalamazoo/Battle creek international airport –
Kalamazoo, michigan
• lawrenceville-Vincennes international airport – lawrenceville, illinois
• Kirksville regional airport – Kirksville, missouri
• everett-Stewart regional airport – union city, tennessee
• northeast alabama regional airport – gadsden, alabama
• h.l. Sonny callahan airport – Fairhope, alabama
Collegiate trophy—I believe that Nancy
and I screamed like little babies when
we heard that we won First Place Collegiate. We jumped up and down and
couldn’t believe our ears. After we received the trophy of the collegiate placement, we were anxious to know who
won the first overall. They started with
the top 10 and Nancy and I were holding hands so tightly just praying. One
name after another, and still we didn’t
come up. They finally called our name
for second place (better than the year
before where my partner and I placed
third), and that was just as great as first
place for us! We were so happy.
After being through the things I have
been through, to be in such an amazing
program as the National Air Race Classic is such an honor for me, and such
a great feeling of accomplishment. The
United States is such a beautiful country and to be able to take this experience
with me everywhere I go is a privilege.
I highly recommend every female pilot
challenge themselves and participate
in this program. The friends you will
make, the things you will learn, and the
limitations you will know about yourself
are priceless and worth the challenge. ✈
