Monterey Bay Ninety-Nines |
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by Earline Arnold September 2007
We made high speed flybys at specific low altitudes and over very specific check points at each of the three airports and were timed there. Once timed, each airplane can land and refuel or just continue on. There was a huge forest fire just north of the Los Angeles area restricting visibility to zero the day of our arrival at Santa Monica. We had to detour way around to the west to skirt it. On the day of our departure, however, the smoke had blown in another direction so that it was no hazard to our race. There were no problems, mechanical or otherwise, until we were scheduled to leave Bend, where it had started raining in the night and continued on. The freezing level was 7,000 feet. Our plan was to fly on to Portland, Oregon. We rented a car and drove. Jeans friend met us and delivered her home to Battle Ground, WA, and I went on to spend five days with family. When I return home from an air race I think that I am as good a pilot as I will ever be. Racing certainly tests your skills. Talk about multi-tasking! Racing is at the top. There is nothing like the camaraderie of spending five days with the pilots you are competing against. |
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