Looking back

The last week was a full one, trying to pick up the strands of "normal" life again after the race. It has also given me some time and distance to reflect back on the adventure and commit the lessons to memory for some future time, when I may want to attempt this again.


It will never again be my first air race, though. There's only one of those, and for so many reasons I'm happy this was the race for it. To meet women like Bee, a former WASP (look it up if you don't know what that is, and honor these ladies for what they did!!!) and to have seen parts of the country I'd never visited before, and to have flown, explored, learned and become a tiny part of a historic event... Special indeed!

In the end, we raised nearly $22,000, flew 32.9 hours, had an immeasurable amount of fun, and created a great memory to gaze back upon. And, as I like to point out, we were the fastest and highest placing taildragger in the race! ;-)

Thanks go to my family, my friends, my co-pilot, and to all of you for being the wind beneath my wings. Until we meet again!

We won...

...NOTHING!!!

However, we are entirely ok with that. We flew well, didn't run out of fuel, finished, and most of all, we had fun. It was a pleasure and an honor to fly with so many talented women, and the experience was a rich one for us.

Thanks to all of you who have lived the adventure with us, for your encouragement, support, and kind words. We'll be flying home tomorrow, thinking about how to resume our daily lives after this exhilarating ride.

And to Wings of Hope: thanks for the work you do, we are humbled and thrilled to be a small part of your efforts!

Veni, vidi...

...and I waited.

We're in Atlantic, Iowa, past the finish line! And now we wait. We've had briefings, parties, and scoring discussions, but now we are waiting for the results to be processed and announced tomorrow.

The race was challenging for our little Loki, which is very susceptible to the headwinds we encountered on nearly every leg. But he pushed on valiantly, squeaking us by a giant thunderstorm into Racine, and sipping fuel as we throttled back for the final megaleg, one that was so long that the other racers doubted we'd make it. But the calculations held, and we made it in with some fuel to spare.

Unbelievably, Kara and I are both jonesin' to get back in the plane. What a ride it's been!

www.myfirstairrace.com

Wow! I go away for a couple of days, and there are news stories, contributions to Wings of Hope, and all sorts of stuff! :-) Check it out on the website.

We're in Russellville, AR -sopping wet from the heat but undaunted. Kara is worth her weight and more in gold, keeping us on track and helping to keep Loki tuned up. I'm focusing on finding the airports, which is sometimes harder than it might seem: this one was hiding behind a ridge, and the plane coming in behind us had electrical problems, making their approach extra exciting.

My copilot tells me we're ready to go, so we're off to Grenada!

Two legs down...

...and seven to go! Today was HOT, and felt slow, but we made it to Sweetwater, TX! Early departure tomorrow, so I'll just leave it at that.

Stay tuned for more!

Difficult day

Some days it seems like anything that can go wrong, will. Like today. A bunch of hard work of the last week was undone by the laws of physics and Murphy. However, with just some more work, it should all be taken care of. For example, we learned that contact paper sticks to white, but less to blue, and least to red. The result? A shredded race number and lost sponsor stickers. Live and learn.

I can't wait to be airborne, with the paperwork, the worry and the loose ends left behind on the earth below. Flying has always been liberating, and now it is the culmination of such enormous effort that I am impatient to get going.

Thanks to so many of you who have given me a push along when I most needed it, I'll see you on the other side!

Air Race Classic here I come!

Kara posting: I got my tail wheel endorsement last week and today I flew in the back seat for the first time, where a good co-pilot belongs. There's nothing like flying by feeling! Loki and I are going out again tomorrow and then I should be ready to go. The race being exactly one week away and with Loki washed and waxed, the count down is really on.

Race number is on!

I realized while at Wings of Hope that we have a trifecta of 33s... Loki is 33 years old as well! 33-year-old Classic 33 in the 33rd race - cool!

In other news, check us out on FACEBOOK (myfirstairrace) and TWITTER (@myfirstairrace). We'll be posting updates there during the race!

Two Weeks... EEK!

I can't believe the race starts in a mere two weeks... time has flown. I can't wait to be at the start line, experiencing the adventure, the excitement, and the adrenaline that must have coursed through the women of 1929 as they pulled up to prove themselves to a skeptical world. I may not have the same things to prove, but I like to think that we share the same spirit of aviation today that they had 80 years ago.

Crew Change

They say change is good, so with that in mind, I offer a warm welcome to Kara, who will be taking Lara's spot as copilot for Classic 33. Due to a variety of circumstances, Lara decided to step down. I thank her for her contributions to the race effort, and wish her well in her future endeavors.

Kara will be telling you about herself soon, but I'll introduce her as a very enthusiastic crewmate with a great deal of dedication to the team, and I'm looking forward to flying with her. She's also a flight instructor, so maybe I'll learn a thing or two along the way ;-)

At Wings of Hope!

What a day! Left Diana and Tom's gorgeous farm and airstrip this morning (thanks for the wonderful visit!!!) and arrived at Wings of Hope headquarters minutes before a huge storm. The day was spent doing work for the race and my job, followed by a reception with some of the lovely ladies of the local 99s chapter and WoH benefactors and volunteers. Loki is in the capable hands of the wonderful mechanics and techs here, who are giving him a final checkup before the race, and I'm pleased to report good compressions on all cylinders!

I brought my coveralls to help out, but these guys are hard to keep up with. A top notch operation, truly impressive. Some pics...

Carbon Neutral

The latest bit of good news: thanks to the Terrapass program, Team 33 will be carbon balanced while flying the ARC!



We will be offsetting our fuel burn carbon dioxide emissions and doing our part to protect the environment while we compete. We're thrilled to find a way to enjoy our passion for flight while avoiding harm to the places we love to see from above.

For more info on how you can reduce your own carbon footprint, check out www.terrapass.com

Lara meets Loki

Classic 33!!!

Copilot - check
Registration - check
Race number - check!

Number 33 in the 33rd race, let's take that as a Good Sign. I'm a big fan of Good Signs. When I started working on this adventure, it seemed like an obstacle race... lots of questions and problems to overcome. As soon as I nominated Wings of Hope as my charity, the pieces started falling into place at an almost alarming rate. I took that to be a Good Sign too.

Getting Lara as a copilot felt like another Good Sign -we know each other through ADVrider.com, an online forum for motorcycling adventurers, and we share not only a love of aviation, but also a love of riding. ADVrider.com quickly became one of our biggest supporters, contributing almost $2,000 so far to Wings of Hope. If that's not a Good Sign, I don't know what is.

We're nearing the $6,000 mark on our fundraising efforts. You guessed it: a Good Sign. Heading into the home stretch now, with big goals for raising four times that amount in the next two months!!! Stay tuned for more Good Signs on that front :-)

Meet my Copilot!

I'm very happy to introduce my copilot for the Derby: Lara Carpenter. She is a Captain with SkyWest, a fellow motorcyclist, and an enthusiastic aviatrix. We haven't actually flown together yet, but she says she knows how. ;-)

Lara attended Embry Riddle, flew some aerobatics, and enjoyed piloting small planes to camping trips before joining the airlines. I'm counting on her to keep me on track, and she's already proven to be a realist who's not afraid to call it like she sees it. Good qualities in a crewmate. Welcome to the team, Lara!

On Wings of Hope

I have GOT to tell you more about this organization.

Saturday, I met with the president of Wings of Hope to work out details about the race, and to learn more about the organization. The bottom line: I couldn't have chosen a better charity to nominate.

Not only do they reach over a million people worldwide, they also run an air ambulance service here in the U.S. It is available 24/7, and is the only such service that provides free transport even to non-ambulatory patients. They typically fly two to three missions per day. Beyond transport, Wings of Hope also negotiates with the hospitals to provide the treatments free of charge, giving the chance of a normal life to many who would otherwise never get it.

The planes are set up to carry stretchers, medical staff, oxygen and medication dispensing equipment, anything the patient might need. A large portion of the transports they provide are for children with birth defects that require multiple treatments or surgeries. When I was there, a crew of volunteer pilots returned from transporting a four year old boy being fitted for a prosthetic leg. They shared with me how rewarding the work is, and at times, how difficult. I deeply admire their dedication, and the professionalism and high standards of the operation.

Their work doesn't stop here, though. They have volunteers around the world, and something like 200 planes providing support to those in most desperate need in Africa, Central and South America. But rather than just dropping off food or medicine, Wings of Hope builds partnerships with the local community and together they work toward self-sufficiency.

Thanks for reading along, and for helping make a difference to so many through Wings of Hope. I'm proud, honored, and humbled to be a part of their efforts!

Adrenaline!

Wow.

What a crazy couple of weeks! Late nights and a few weekends at work, and working on the air race in what some people refer to as "free time."

Let me tell you about free time with a 7.5 month old doberman puppy in the house. It goes something like this:

Wake up at the crack of dawn to let him out. Let him in. Let him out. Let him in. Remove inappropriate "chew toy" from throat. Provide appropriate chew toy. Feed him. Let him out. Let him in. Let him out. Let him in. Rescue shredded formerly appropriate chew toy-turned-health hazard. Water him. Rescue besieged older doberman from puppy. Let them both out. And in. And out. And in. Repeat.

Wouldn't trade it for the world. If only we could harness this renewable energy source!

So far, the only thing that has adequately tired him out has been a half hour of wrestling a 165-lb mastiff.

Whew.

Back to the race - thanks to so many who have contributed and wished us well, your support and encouragement is fuel for this effort. More soon, but now the puppy is demanding his dinner!

T-100

100 days and counting down!

First, THANK you from the bottom of my heart to those who have already contributed -I am humbled, thrilled and touched by your generosity. After long hours working to make this all possible, your support inspires me to work even harder.

Second... well, second is the realization that 100 days is not much time, and there's much yet to do! For example, research what kind of stickers I can use on my fabric plane for sponsor logos. Brushing up on cross country planning and navigational skills. And an oil change would probably be a good idea too.

100 days also seems like a milestone for asking the important questions. Loki is currently covered in mud -should I leave him that way for the race, for street cred? Or wash and polish? How much faster would we go if I put the wheelpants back on? What outfits should I wear?

But seriously... this is the home stretch, and I'm gearing up. If nothing else, I have to find out what it is I don't know so I can be ready when the flag drops!

Ready....Set....

GO!!!

The site has officially launched! I hope you will stop by often, leave me a message, and join me in the fight against poverty. Together we really can make a difference!

Thanks so much for visiting :-)

Revving up!

We're making progress here, at Loki Skyways, with a website that's nearly ready to launch. A truly HUGE thank you to web guru and dear friend DJ for making it a reality.

I'm getting ready to spend my weekend writing letters to corporate sponsors. I'm hoping to raise not only the funds I need to actually fly the race, but a sizeable donation to Wings of Hope for the amazing work they do, bringing resources to communities in poverty-stricken areas, and building partnerships that engender self-sufficiency. They bring hope and a brighter future to the communities they touch.

I invite you to help me make a contribution to their efforts. You can contribute via Paypal on my webpage at www.myfirstairrace.com. I'll be posting financial progress reports so you can see just what a difference every donation makes --no amount is too small!

Entering the blogosphere

Well, the air race is a mere 112 days away, and I have yet to find a partner, get my site up, and install some airplane parts. But hey, at least I have a blog!

Check back here for updates, progress, setbacks, and outtakes. I look forward to having you along for the ride. And the race. And beyond.

Thanks for stopping in!