Last Reno Air Race

[Hardingfv32]

The very last Reno Air Race is going on right now.

Could be the last air race in the USA.

Brian

[Lastminuteracin]

Do you know why it is the last one?

[John Nesbitt]

From the Reno Gazette:

In an open letter to the Reno community, the Reno Air Racing Association Board of Directors said that the Reno-Tahoe Airport Authority decided to end the event due to "the region’s significant growth amongst other concerns." The board added that it was "exploring several other possible locations to host the event in the future."

[Lastminuteracin]

So basically it's like any other race track. The suburbs move in and the racing gets moved out. Too bad.

[Dee]

Reno was dead long ago ,when Leeward went in that was the end.
They may try to move the event to another location , What will kill them is the Insurance cost. without REAL UNLIMITEDS
you don't have much.of a show !
Dee
Director Mojave air races 75-77
Race pilot Mojave and Reno 75 -78
P51

[E1pix]

Dee is exactly correct.

I knew the head ER nurse at Washoe (now Renown) when that accident happened.

Even she heard some things then, regardless it’s clear the race couldn’t go on here any longer... living life at any level beyond boring is becoming too much for the insurance-litigation collective.

[DanW]

It didn’t help when the L39 augured in last year. I don’t think they have reported the results of the investigation yet.

[John Nesbitt]

... living life at any level beyond boring is becoming too much for the insurance-litigation collective.

I suppose that living one's own life at a non-boring level is one thing, but killing 11 spectators while doing so is another thing.

[E1pix]

We’d better close every track in the world, starting with Indy.

[BLS]

Do they still race at Le Mans?

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-...edy-at-le-mans

[Rick Kirchner]

Well you can contain race cars to a great extent (stating the obvious).

Air racing at a safe distance is ....TV.

[Dee]

wing tip to wing tip at 475 mph 50 feet off the ground in moderate turbulence is something I don't wish on anyone , But in your mid twenties who cares. At 76 would I do it again HELL NO

[Hardingfv32]

It didn’t help when the L39 augured in last year. I don’t think they have reported the results of the investigation yet.

Not Official - The L39 (small jet trainer) accident was a classic race driver/pilot error of not knowing when to give up.

The pilot was new to the class but very fast. I believe on the pole for the main event and was racing for the win. While leading he went wide in a turn. To recover and have a chance at the win he made a turn that created more G's than he could stand....passed out. There are no G suits at the Reno air races. Basically at the un-limiteds and jet cornering speeds there is not much room to decrease turn radius. He need to be mentally prepared to give up on the win if he made any driver errors.

Brian

[Dee]

You are correct, ask me I know.

[DanW]

Not Official - The L39 (small jet trainer) accident was a classic race driver/pilot error of not knowing when to give up.

The pilot was new to the class but very fast. I believe on the pole for the main event and was racing for the win. While leading he went wide in a turn. To recover and have a chance at the win he made a turn that created more G's than he could stand....passed out. There are no G suits at the Reno air races. Basically at the un-limiteds and jet cornering speeds there is not much room to decrease turn radius. He need to be mentally prepared to give up on the win if he made any driver errors.

Brian

Understood, but regardless of the cause, the crash occurred during RAR competition. The locals living close to the airport have influence on the airport authority and local officials. It was the aiport authority who pulled the plug.

[Steve Demeter]

Sad day in fact!!!!

Unfortunately all good things come to an end. Hopefully it can be relocated somewhere there is no danger to anyone but the participants, because they choose to accept it and last I heard this still is a free country

[E1pix]

I agree, and I can say there’s many, many places in the Great Basin to do it. Amargosa Valley springs to mind.

I liken this to many other potentially-dangerous pursuits — like Isle of Man, which is always under deep scrutiny — and hope to be gone way before cables are on Everest, if you get the comparison.

[Rick Kirchner]

Armagosa doesn't have an airport, but Beatty does. Tonapah's is probably the best option in the area, along with maybe Fallon. But those places barely have the infrastructure to support the crews, let alone the crowds.

Wendover might work. Enough accommodations for the participants and about a hundred mile drive to Salt Lake City.

Kingman might be another good place.

[E1pix]

Agree fully with Fallon, maybe over the dunes!

Wendover’s intriguing, too... Bonneville seems a PR natural...

[Dee]

A lot of great ideas, but like Mojave their are many infrastructure challenges to be met for racers and spectators.

[Rick Kirchner]

Mojave! run the crack head gauntlet to the venue.....

[E1pix]

Lest we overlook the TronItes as a source of mindful raceworkers... at least I think I mean mindful.



(Warning: regional joke)

[SteveG]

If they can do the Blue Angels, Americas Cup and the funky Red Bull inflatable obstacle course in and over the bay why not the Air Races? There are plenty of underutilized local airfields to support the participants.
Nothing to crash in to but water with the Coast Guard to the rescue.

But WTF Do I Know?

Steve

[Dee]

Ya Rick, we were pretty crazy back then that's why we had the Human Fly !!

[E1pix]

George Willig?

[Rick Kirchner]

Lest we overlook the TronItes as a source of mindful raceworkers... at least I think I mean mindful.



(Warning: regional joke)

I once used the Trona airport to test my FSV. Hit gravel about halfway down. That was exciting. I also tested at Manzanar once.

[E1pix]

Seriously, Manzanar? Watched an autocross near there about nine years ago.

Did a flight out of Trona about 15 years ago in a small Cessna, flew alongside Telescope at about 10,000’, aged and awesome local pilot trainer named Shel S... he trained the purchaser of Panamint Springs Resort and I did their logo.

Never golfed the gravel course near there, can’t do everything. ;-)

[Marty Nygard]

Two guys in trainers collided while landing after their race -- both dead. Reminds me of the father and son landing their P51s at Oshkosh who ended up one on top of another instead of side by side. I did get to see the Whittington brothers land side by side on the Brainerd main straight. P51D and P51H; both chopped wing air racers.

[Dee]

That's the last of Reno and maybe the end of air racing for a long long time to come!
As for the Whittington's none of us wanted them around because of their drug connections

[Offcamber1]

should have left Cleveland in the first place.

[jphoenix13]

should have left Cleveland in the first place.

Similar tragedy resulted in a similar demise of the National Air Races in Cleveland:

"In 1949 Bill Odom lost control of his P-51 "Beguine" and crashed into a Cleveland-area home, killing himself and two people. The races went on hiatus again until 1963, then went to Reno in 1964."

Odom's P-51 had an interesting radiator in a pod mounted on the wingtips. https://www.thisdayinaviation.com/tag/bill-odom/

[Hardingfv32]

Two guys in trainers collided while landing after their race -- both dead. Reminds me of the father and son landing their P51s at Oshkosh who ended up one on top of another instead of side by side..

This accident actually toke place in the flight pattern setup just for landing after races. The flight pattern specifically designed to address possible conflicts. Well documented and practiced by all competitors. They were operating under visual flight rules.

The race chairman said they are reviewing seven possible new locations for future races.

Brian

[Rick Kirchner]

Interesting. I figured they raced from Burke lakefront out over the water. Heck no, let's fly over occupied territory....

[Dee]

The location won't be the issue, the killer will be the event Insurance can you say MILLIONS for the event!!!!!
Former race pilot
Dee

[Offcamber1]

Interesting. I figured they raced from Burke lakefront out over the water. Heck no, let's fly over occupied territory....

Rick, during the 1960s, that's exactly what they did. But it was all midget mustangs, no unlimiteds. Got several miserable sunburns when my dad hauled me out there to watch. They were so far away from the spectator area they looked like sparrows.

Dee: you have my utmost respect!!! You sir, ARE THE MAN!

Finally, my dad used to sneak into the Cleveland Air Races as a teenager in the late 1930s and was a big Doolittle fan. In the 1950s he used to hang out sometimes at Cooke Cleland's small 2000 foot runway grass strip just off the lake in Willoughby, Ohio. Cooke kept his race winning Corsair (He had two, I believe) at that strip as well as a PBY. Cleland's comment about the Odom deal was simply that it reminded him of going out with his squadron in the Pacific in that 9 would go out and 8 would come back. Cooke was another legend.