Reno Air Races

[Lee Thiel]

    In a couple of weeks, My wife and I will be flying out to Reno for the Air Races.  Who else is going?  I will be wearing my Stunt Hanger T-shirts while I am out there.  If you see me, yell, wave, or come up and say "howdy".  My lil girl lives there with her family, so I won't be spending the whole week at the air show.  I was stationed at Stead AFB in the early sixties, just prior to its closing.  Ah, the memories..
Lee TGD

[Darrell Mims]

    Lucky Dog I only get to stay the weekend ,arrive Friday and will be in the Pits Saturday with the Big Red team ,and up in section 3 Sunday !

[James Mills]

Please take some pictures to post.


James

[Dan McEntee]

   This is a must trip for any aviation enthusiast. I was lucky enough to attend in 1999, working with Chris McMillin on his Pitts Special in the Sport Bi-Plane class. This was a thrill of a life time for me. Since I was a kid watching the races on ABC's Wide World of Sports, I had dreamed of attending, maybe even working on an airplane in the pits.I always thought it would be SOOOOOOO COOOOOOOLLL to be the guy to hold onto the tail of a Formula One racer as it revved up for the start. Got to at least hold down the tail of Chris' Pitts as he did his run-ups and prep ffor the start of his main event. You just feel the history in the Lear hanger, where the F-1 and Bi-Planes were pitted. I got to look into " The room with the long, hard benches" where the race pilots get there briefings. Not enough time to tell all of the stuff I got to do, but I remember it all.
    And the Unlimited Races are simply AWSOME! When you sit at the top of the bleachers, you actually sort of look down on the pack as they go past the Start/Finish pylon, and you better be above the "R" in Reno, right Chris? When all that horse power goes by, you actually feel them, not at all like other forms of racing. I've been to Indy, I've been to NASCAR, NHRA< and lots of others, and there is nothing like it.
   I just wish it could be me out there hugging the tight line around the pylons, just once!
    Have fun, but that is really a redundant statement, isn't it?
    Type at you later,
   Dan McEntee

[Darrell Mims]

     Ditto : Dan, I got to ride the Fire Truck up and down the Ramp when Big Red won a heat race . Helping out a Team and working in the pits is a big thrill. I had a picture to post but it's too big. It just doesn't get any better than that .

[Darrell Mims]

   Me at the front gate    and my better side

[Robert McHam]

   Lucky Dog I only get to stay the weekend ,arrive Friday and will be in the Pits Saturday with the Big Red team ,and up in section 3 Sunday !

Heh! Go big Red! and Rolllll Tide Roll!

Enjoy my friend, Robert

[wwwarbird]

 I'm working on putting together a last minute plan to get out there this year, finally. This is a race I've followed and wanted to make it to since I was a kid watching on Wide World of Sports as well. Which brings to mind once again, WHY ISN'T THIS EVENT TELEVISED??? SPEEDVISION-HELLO?
 I hope to arrive Thursday and stay thru Sunday if things work out. Attending Reno and seeing the Unlimiteds run has been a lifelong dream for me. I wish I could have made it in the late '70's or early '80's when the Unlimiteds were more plentiful, along with many others, that RB-51 really had to be something to see...

 Fingers crossed...

[Dan McEntee]

I'm working on putting together a last minute plan to get out there this year, finally. This is a race I've followed and wanted to make it to since I was a kid watching on Wide World of Sports as well. Which brings to mind once again, WHY ISN'T THIS EVENT TELEVISED??? SPEEDVISION-HELLO?
 I hope to arrive Thursday and stay thru Sunday if things work out. Attending Reno and seeing the Unlimiteds run has been a lifelong dream for me. I wish I could have made it in the late '70's or early '80's when the Unlimiteds were more plentiful, along with many others, that RB-51 really had to be something to see...

 Fingers crossed...

    Hi Wayne;
      They used to be on TV, ESPN and SPEED, or whatever they used to call it. I think I still have some saved on tape. The short lived race they had in Phoenix was televised once at least also. Chris McMillin and I went to a "race" in Oleatha, KS in 1993 that was on ESPN, so the history is there. The closest thing they have now is the Red Bull Air Races. Last year or the year before, they were doing some filming for a full length feature film about the Unlimiteds, but I have never heard any more about it. There was once an old movie called "Wings of Fire" with  Susan Pleshette and James Farentino in it. Kind of hoakie, but it did have Mustangs and Bearcats in it!
     Have fun!!! Or is that what they call a redundant statement!
    Type at you later,
   Dan McEntee

[Darrell Mims]

   If you want to see some racing ,check out Thunder Over Reno DVD   The acting is no good but the air to air is great !  order the DVD  www.thunderoverreno.com      Also check out www.airrace.org and go to the web store to get DVD's of the past races and car tags and other stuff.

[john e. holliday]

Hi Dan it is hard to beleive it has been that long ago when the big planes were in Olathe, Kansas.  I was there for one day.  The sound of the big engines as they came down the straight away was awesome.  Can't remember who it was that was trying their best to get one backin the air.  I guess their engine problems are worse than ours.  Would have loved to see them back, but, having to shut down highways and roadways so they could was a big problem.  Now with all the residencial areas out there now it is impossible to even think about a race now.  Would be nice to see the high lights on SPEED Channel sometime.  Have fun,  DOC Holliday

[wwwarbird]

 Wow, so they DID finish Thunder Over Reno! This is the one Dan mentioned above. I thought it was planned for the big screen, but apparently that never happened.
 It is my understanding that Bob Odegaard was instrumental in this production. He is the owner of Super Corsair race #57, along with many other Warbirds. Much of the aerial footage was shot from a rearward facing seat out of the back of his P-51D, with the back half of the sliding portion of bubble canopy lopped off. One of the "doubles" was the late Gerry Beck's replica P-51A, in bare aluminum and with lime green vinyl applied to the wings, replicating "Precious Metal", Ron Buccarrelli's Griffon powered Mustang with contra-rotating props.
 I was fortunate enough to meet Gerry at a Warbird fly-in shortly after completion of that A model. The airplane was literally scratchbuilt. There had been plans to produce more, and many jigs were made with that in mind. Among many other things we discussed that day, the story he told me about having to fabricate the belly radiator from scratch was incredible.

[Darrell Mims]

   Yes Bob is in the movie with a speaking part and Ron . Both Planes were flying together Gary's A model and P M .The Corsair, Rare Bear, Big Boss Man,Miss A  and others .Plus a two seater sprayer that they shot some scenes from .

[Darrell Mims]

I got lots of pictures

[Darrell Mims]

Heh! Go big Red! and Rolllll Tide Roll!

Enjoy my friend, Robert

   Roll Tide!    rolled over them Clemson boys !   about a week to go   Varrrrroooooooom!