FORMULA FORUM THE IF1 JOURNAL SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2009 FORMULA FORUM Volume XX Number 5 IF1 INC. Formula Forum © 2009 EXECUTIVE TOM DEHART International Formula One COMMITTEE Technical Director Pylon Air Racing, Inc. All 5220 Walton Dr. SMOKEY YOUNG rights reserved. Klamath Falls, OR 97603 President 541-882-1589 Formula Forum is the offi cial 13089 Peyton Dr. C136 fl yfastfl ylow@fi reserve.net publication of International Chino Hills, CA 92709 Formula One Pylon Air 909-548-0974 GARY AUSTIN Racing, Inc., a Texas non-profi t fl [email protected] Technical Rules Committee corporation. Member of the Air Chairperson GARY DAVIS P.O. Box 60303 Racing Council of the United Vice President States. Published bi-monthly. Midland, TX 79711 11534 Merlin Dr. 901-857-3350 Sanger, TX 76266-3925 [email protected] DISCLAIMER Articles appearing herein may 940-206-3079 be edited and are the opinion of texasfl [email protected] ED DUTREAUX the authors and not necessarily Procedure Rules Committee the opinion of IF1 Inc. MARK A. JOHNSON Chairperson Secretary/Treasurer 840 Jefferson Ct. FORUM Send contributions to: 1670 Yosemite Ave. #104 San Mateo, CA 94401 Simi Valley, CA 93063 CONTRIBUTIONS Editor, Lista Duren 650-347-6297 818-519-6402 3233 Via Alicante #48 [email protected] markajohnson59@yahoo. La Jolla, CA 92037 com KIRK MURPHY Phone: 858-452-7112 Pilot Committee Chairperson Cell: 858-442-1811 DIRECTORS 6140 Christa Lynn Pl. E-mail: [email protected] Prescott, AZ 86310 All contributions remain BOB BEMENT 928-445-8310 property of Formula Forum. Operations Director [email protected] 7320 Old Stage Trail JAY JONES Kelsey, CA 95667 MEMBERSHIP Membership in IF1 is open Promotions Committee 530-622-1434 to pilots, owners, crews and Chairperson technical people active in [email protected] P.O. Box 761 Formula One Air Racing for Buena Vista, CO 81211 $60/yr. Anyone may join as a 719-661-4484 non-voting Associate Member, [email protected] $35/yr. Applications available from the secretary or on-line. CONTENTS RULES For IF1 Technical and Procedure 3 Reno Welcome Gary Davis rules, check on-line at: 4 President’s Page Smokey Young WEBSITE www.if1airracing.com 6 Operations Brief Bob Bement Jim Cunningham, Webmaster 7 Operations Review Bob Bement [email protected] 8 News from the Teams 10 Reno 2009 Entries COVER PHOTO 11 Odds Dan Peters rounds a pylon during the Bronze 11 Reno Countdown Final at Reno in September 2008. He placed 12 Tech Tips Tom DeHart second and his crew won the “Crew of the 13 Sec/Treas Input Mark Johnson Year” award. 13 Election Sidebar Gary Davis Photo by Neal Nurmi. 14 IF1 Marketplace 2 FORMULA FORUM, SEPTEMBER 2009 Reno Welcome elcome to the “Reno Air Race” Race fans are welcome in the IF1 Gary Davis Wedition of the International pits. We encourage you to come by Vice President Formula One Pylon Air Racing, Inc. and see the Formula One racers and (IF1) newsletter “Formula Forum”. activities up close as well as visit with This issue will be available to IF1 the owners, crews and race pilots. We Members just before the 2009 Reno fl y early—the green fl ag often drops National Championship Air Races and promptly at 8AM—and we invite all to non-members during the event. This to come see our “race horse” starts column will hopefully inform and be and some of the best pylon air racing of use to both IF1 members and fans. available today. Photo by Bill Rogers Formula One Pylon Air Racing offers We also invite everyone to visit and something for almost everyone. enjoy IF1’s web site located at www. Race fans are in for a full week of if1airracing.com. Be sure to visit the exciting and competitive racing “Plane Page” for a listing and brief and will witness some of the best history of this year’s Formula One races of the event. For pilots IF1 Race Planes and the “Pilot Page” for provides a relatively economical a listing of this year’s Formula One … we invite means to participate in some of the Race Pilots. The web site contains all to come most demanding and satisfying fl ying IF1 history, bylaws, operating rules see our “race that can be found. For designers, including race pilot requirements, builders, and mechanics it is a golden technical rules including race plane horse” starts opportunity to be creative and “show requirements, electronic issues of this and some of their stuff” in their equally demanding newsletter, various articles and pictures the best pylon side of pylon air racing. And for of interest, a Community Forum, and a air racing owners and sponsors, Formula One “For Sale Page” available today. Pylon Air Racing provides a unique and exciting medium with untapped International Formula One Pylon potential for advertising and branding Air Racing (IF1) is an all volunteer, in the world of aviation. So come and Texas non-profi t corporation formed join us. Whether as a participant, a to promote the science and sport of spectator, or a sponsor, I think you will Formula One Pylon Air Racing. IF1 fi nd Formula One Pylon Air Racing a is the offi cial sanctioning body for all fascinating and exciting sport. Formula One Pylon Air Races in the United States. If you are interested Air race competitors will be preparing in becoming involved in Formula their aircraft for technical inspection One Pylon Air Racing as an owner, in the IF1 pits located in the Reno pilot, or volunteer active in the Air Race Association hanger on the organization itself, then membership West end of the pit area beginning is a must. Crew members, technical early Saturday, September the 11th. and operations volunteers, and those We begin fl ying on the race course actively involved in Formula One to practice and qualify pilots fi rst Pylon Air Racing are encouraged thing Sunday morning. Aircraft to join and enjoy the many benefi ts qualifi cations begin Monday. Racing of full IF1 membership. Associate starts Wednesday afternoon. Continued on page 12 FORMULA FORUM, SEPTEMBER 2009 3 President’s Page Smokey As you receive this issue of the pilots) which RARA was forced to Young Forum, trailers are being loaded, mediate. The other race classes had tools inventoried and all those last similar problems. The end result is minute preparations for the road to that all racing classes are now required Reno are being made. It’s an exciting to submit assigned parking plans to time of year for race pilots. It’s also RARA prior to the event. a busy time of year. I don’t have to tell the returning racers what a hectic The hangers this year will be available environment Reno can be. Being for our aircraft at 0800 on Wednesday, prepared mentally and arriving with a Sept 9, 2009. Parking spots will be “race ready” airplane is the key to an assigned by a bid process based on criteria developed by the International Photo by Bill Rogers enjoyable racing experience. Formula One Board of Directors. The IF1 board has also been preparing When you arrive at Reno, a copy of for Reno. Over the course of the past the parking plan will be posted. Please 12 months we have worked together establish a pit in your assigned spot. with the RARA Board of Directors to solve various logistical and technical Parking priority is based on the issues. We continually try to improve following criteria: the races while at the same time 1) Finishing position (aircraft and adapting to an evolving regulatory and pilot) in the 2008 Reno Air Races The hangers economic environment. While the 2) If an aircraft/pilot combination did this year will issues I am going to discuss are not not race last year the following priority be available new to any of you, I do want to use will be used: this venue to recap some changes you for our aircraft a) Returning racers based on last will see this year. at 0800 on relative position of the raced airplane Wednesday, The fi rst item I will address is the b) First year racers based on last Sept 9, 2009. parking plan. RARA has had a policy relative position of the raced airplane that racers were not allowed into the hangers until 1200 on the Friday prior Based on the RARA data base we have to the races. This year that would be established the following priority list Sept 11. Over the years individuals for choosing pit areas. have worked with RARA to gain 1) Senegal, Steve: Endeavor access to the hanger at an earlier date. 2) Davis, Gary: Scarlet Screamer These arrivals have been approved on a case by case basis. In addition, 3) Bodine, Doug: Yellow Peril in the past Formula One pits have 4) Young, Smokey: Sly Dog been available on a “fi rst come, fi rst 5) Temple, Steve: Madness served basis.” It is diffi cult to have 6) Jones, Jay: Quadnickel a “fi rst come, fi rst served policy” when individuals are making deals 7) Richard, Thom: Miss USA to have early access to the hangers. 8) Swenson, Carl: Annie Last year the inevitable happened and 9) Garrison, Bill: Dancing Queen confl icts developed between racers 10) Hall, John: What’s Up Doc (two of whom were Formula One 4 FORMULA FORUM, SEPTEMBER 2009 11) Reberry, Brian: N-A-Rush the accident last year. We know that 12) Kenner, Michael: Blackjack prior to the waiver going into effect, Reno-Stead is a public airport. If your 13) Seguin, Elliot: Wasabi airplane has a valid Airworthiness 14) Cooper, Adrian: miss t’witchie Certifi cate and valid registration you 15) Peters, Dan: Route 66 are legally entitled to fl y there without 16) Richard, Thom: Invictus being subject to tech inspection.