Evening Update: Alliance, NE

I just got off the phone with Nicole. The ladies are safe and sound in Nebraska and had quite a long day. They began the day with a breakfast (like...6am!) then left a short while later and were in the air enroute to Topeka. They had lunch with Megan's family and then departed for Alliance. They stopped for fuel enroute and also had dinner wtih some fellow racers. I'm not sure what team number they dined with, but Nicole said the competitors they ate with (also long time competitors--of like 30+ years?!) were going to drop out since half of the race was cancelled. Too bad for them...because there are 3 prime days of racing ahead!

The ladies are ready for a good night's sleep...and preparing for their first day of racing. With the delay in the start, they are getting an idea of what it is like to "hurry up and wait" on weather. There is nothing quite like racing and the excitement of not knowing where you will end up by the end of the day. Today, they are sleeping in Nebraska...tomorrow....who knows...we shall see!

Made it to Alliance, Nebraska!

Megan and Nicole made it to Alliance, NE!

The race officially starts at NOON tomorrow (Wednesday) from Nebraska, we are hoping for good weather and winds for the first leg. Get your game face on...it's almost race time!

Departing KIOW

As Megan said on a previous post, the race has been delayed and the starting line relocated. So now, the race will start at NOON tomorrow (Wednesday) and all racers have to be in Nebraska by that time to start. (the first few legs of the race have been cancelled due to the weather up north)

So.....what does that mean for travel plans!? I just got off the phone with Megan and she said they are going to be watching the weather closely. They are preparing to depart (any minute) to go to Topeka, where they will stop and check weather again, visit family, and probably refuel. They are going to try to make it to Nebraska tonight, but will see what the weather does when they get to Topeka.

Stay tuned for further news!

Banquet

This is an image of Kathy Walton in I she has flown in over 20 races. She was sharing stories with me about previous races and telling me all about the racers. We actually met her and her partner at Women in Aviation. They were manning the booth for the Air Race Classic. Her partner has flown in 32 Air Race Classics. I am so glad I got the chance to meet these seasoned racers.

Next is a picture of our Mama Birds. They are super sweet and super helpful. We couldn't have got better mentors for this race. They were willing to share any and all information with us that pertained to the race.

Here is Janet Yoder from Wichita. She is Classic 31. She was being awarded for racing in over 25 races. Go Janet.

Here is a picture of the Pre Takeoff Banquet. We had a fabulous meal of salad, chicken, with cheesecake and chocolate cake.

Here is a picture of us with the other collegiate teams after the banquet. Minus myself. A tall girl from Indiana cut me out of the picture :( BOOOO INDIANA..... just kidding they were super nice. We ate breakfast with them on morning.

Madness on Monday

This morning we got up around 630 and went to a few briefings before the race started tomorrow. This morning it was raining, which has been happening a lot here lately, so we were glad to be inside out of the weather.

During our first briefing we were instructed on how we were going to be timed during the race, in other words how to fly by the airport. Flybys for the different airports are done around 200 to 300 AGL. Th air race has special permission to fly that low from the FAA. We are really excited to fly that low.

After that briefing we had a guest speaker then a weather update. During that morning the weather for takeoff the next day did't look good at all. We took a lunch break then took a short nap and then headed to the new racer briefing downstairs. There, a lot of new racers asked questions about the race that they weren't sure about.

Nicole's dad, step mom and papa arrived In Iowa City and took us to the airport to inspect our plane. Since it has been raining a lot and there are strong winds we wanted to make sure that our aircraft was secure. It was when we arrived which was a good thing.

After that Nicole and I did more planning for our route, not expecting to be able to fly the route tomorrow because of the weather. We would later find out that the air race decided to cancel part of the race. So instead of flying through the Dakotas, and Wyoming, we are now staring the race in Alliance, Nebraska.

The air race is giving us till 1200, moutntain time, on Wednesday get to Alliance. Since some ofthr aircraft, including us, can't make it all the way to Alliance without stopping for fuel that is why we are staring there. We will keep everyone updated on our travels tomorrow if we can even depart from Iowa City.

Also we had a very nice dinner with iour mama birds tonight at an Italian restaurant. We learned more about them all and our very fortunate to have such awesome mama birds!! So thanks for all the help!! We really appreciate it.

Check back later and we will show you why we can't fly our route tomorrow. Night everyone.

BBQ and Stories

Yesterday after our inspection we spent the afternoon trying ot update our blog. We weren't able to figure it out so we had Robin help us. Thanks again Robin!! Obviously we have worked out the bugs and are trying our best to do it on our own.

One of the ladies who previously flew in the Air Race Classic is now writing a book about all of the interesting women pilots she has met over the years. She interview us yesterday for about an hour and she listened to our stories about how we came to love aviation. As we were being interviewed we started to gain an audience and soon even more questions were asked by other racers. We really didn't think we were that interesting, but they had a blast none the less. She said we will be in her book, so we will be looking forward to that in the next year or so.

Megan was having problems connecting to the internet on her iPad so we had a courtesy driver take us to an AT & T store in the same mall as the childrens museum. The nice women who took us to the store was originally from France, but is now living in Iowa City, Iowa married to her husband of ten years. She works in a laboratory studying cures for HPV virus (or Cervical Cancer). It has been extremely interesting listening to all of the stories from each individual we have met.

Luckily after our trip to the mall we were able to fix the iPad problem and now we have 3G network anywhere.

After our interview and our trip to the mall we went to the Hanger Barbeque and Dance. Here we ate delicious pulled pork, beans, corn bread, and some giant cookies. At the barbeque we sat with a few of the other college students we had just met. Pictured above are Embry Riddle Daytona, Embry Riddle Prescott, and Purdue. At the barbeque only a few women were dancing. One being one of our Mama Birds (the ladies who have been helping us with questions about the race). It was cute to watch.

Anyone have a guess what this is? We had no clue. We saw this as we were driving to the barbeque. Because it was sprinkling, these people were riding their low rider bicycles down the street with fiberglass covers. This was a sight to see.

Here are more pictures of the barbecue. On the left is Embry Riddle Prescott. And to the right of us is Embry Riddle Daytona.

We are both still very excited and cannot wait for the race to start. T minus 2 days.

We will post about the banquet sometime tommorow. It is Midnight and we have an All Racers Briefing to be at in the morning to go over Flyby procedures.

Sunday Update

This evening, the ladies are at an opening banquet where they will see all the competitors and possibly even some of the dedicated volunteers and board that has made this year's race possible. They have and will continue to have a few briefings over the next few days to talk about flying timing lines and overall race information.

Today they had the opportunity to have lunch with other collegiate teams and have a chance to network. Megan and Nicole have said everyone is extremely nice and enthusiastic. While the 'seasoned' racers are not giving away any secrets, the veterans are more than happy to help the first-timers feel welcome and ensure they have most of their first-time-jitter-questions answered.

TWO days until race day...the fun is about to begin!!

The trip: KSLN to KIOW

As stated earlier today, the ladies made it safely to Iowa City, Iowa. What adventures have they encountered already? They sent Robin an email with LOTS of pictures and captions…so here we go:

They have had lots of support and encouragement from their colleagues:

Go Meg! Lots of support from friends in the residence halls. They cut out our newspaper article pictures and posted them on Megan's door.











Megan and Nicole...posing for a quick picture before departing. GO TEAM!
(NOTE: they will be called "Classic 30" druing the race. Their tail number: N810KS will not be used while they are actually competing in the race.)

 

Our wonderful maintenance crew put our names on the plane so we would know which plane is ours ... Just kidding.... Now we don’t have to fight over where to sit. Megan is practicing for her CFI in the right seat.

Our first stop on our way to Iowa City was Manhattan (MHK). We took the courtesy car and went to grab Chipolte before our leg to Iowa city or KIOW. We stopped to change and when in the bathroom: Nicole, being the blonde that she is, put her clothes in the sink while she was changing failing to notice that it was an automatic water sink. So her shorts were sopping wet. Good job Nicole!

We are off!

The flight to Manhattan Nicole flew the plane. It was hot on our way to Manhattan and after lunch we were glad to climb up to 4,500 where is was a little cooler.

Below is a picture of a feature the G1000 has called a "Fuel Ring". We set this feature for 45 minute fuel reserve. This means that we can fly anywhere within this given ring (at our current speed, altitude, winds, etc) without running out of fuel.There are a few "rings" below. the most outer ring is when we run out of fuel...we never want to get there. The inner-dotted ring is when we hit that 45 minute reserve, and by that point, if something were to happen, we would want to start on our alternate plans to stop and get fuel.

Some awesome scenery in Iowa... Megan refers to them as "mossy lakes"

Megan is coming in for a landing on Runway 12 in Iowa City. There were several planes in the pattern when we came in. There is not a control tower at this airport, so each aircraft is responsible for keeping visual separation from each other...all part of the fun!

The trip was uneventfull, we didn't even see any other aircraft until we were about 10 miles out from Iowa City. As we got closer to Iowa the terrain started getting greener and there were a lots of hills, trees, and small ponds to observe. Megan flew from the right seat. She has only just begun flying from there so her altitude was hit and miss. Learning to fly from the right seat should be interesting.

Once we got on the ground at Iowa City, we were completly lost. Since neither of us has raced before we weren't sure what to do. But luckily there were lots of very nice volunteers to direct us in the right direction. Where we then parked the plane and both of us tied it down for the day.

While we were trying to figure out how to register and check in we were asked if we could complete our handicapp flight early. (Pretty much just 10 minutes after we landed). So Megan, being the pilot was debriefed on what she would do in the air. While both Nicole and Megan wipped most of the bugs off of the plane (sorry Mike we missed the bug free airspace)!!! Once Megan was up in the air she climbed up to 4,500 ft MSL, to simulate a density altitude of 6,000 ft. Once there she flew four different heading. 360, 90, 270, and 180. She had a check pilot in the aircraft with her to write down her ground speed so they could assign our aircraft a handicap. What this means is that we will have to fly our aircraft at an airspeed faster then our handicapp to earn more points. The handicapp flight went well and we are waiting to see wether we will have to fly again or not. If we don't our aircraft is all ready to go for the race. Our inspections are done, we are checked in, our airplane is rewashed, and we are ready to begin this awesome adventure!!!

Our Maintenance Inspection- They put paint on the nuts and bolts to make sure we do not modify the engine.

Our plan under inspection- They had trouble putting the engine cowling put back on our airplane this morning. Dont worry we double checked all the nuts and bolts and we are good to go.

We also met some of the other racers. One that we met is is Janet Yoder and her copilot Anne! They are super nice. They are Classic 29. Additionally, Janet was Robin and Niki's Mama Bird (to help them through their first race!)

While putting the plane back after inspection we needed help pushing it back into the grass. We got help from a gentleman that worked for a news station and Iowa. And again we were interviewed. It will be on the news in Iowa tonight at 6 and 10 CBS and FOX. We keep saying the cameras follow us.

After inspections, we got to go to the Iowa City Childrens Museum.

Megan at the Iowa City Childrens Museum Take Flight Exhibit. She was trying to fly the Wright Brothers Plane. She managed to land it three times, while Nicole crashed all 4 times. Don't worry, we are well qualified...our airplane doesn't maneuver quite like the Wright Brothers Plane!

Made it to Starting Line: Iowa City, Iowa

Yesterday evening, I received a call from Nicole informing me that she and Megan made it safely to Iowa City, Iowa.
They unloaded the plane, and started to get checked in...but with the possibility of a storm in the area, they skipped ahead to a quick flight with the panel to ensure that the airplane met the standards for the race. (And to ensure that there were no illegal modifications made that makes the airplane go faster than the given handicapp category they will be competing in.)

Today will consist of finishing the check-in process, going through the aircraft logbooks, and probably even a seminar or two for first time racers. All racers have to be in Iowa City by NOON today, so it will be a busy, long day for these ladies.

Megan and Nicole have some pictures they will post in the next few days and I'm sure some excitement from meeting the phenominal ladies they have the opportunity to compete with.

Nicole and Richard Picture

Nicole mentioned in her post the other day a person she wanted to take flying....here he is!!

Nicole and Richard

I'm sure Nicole will have plenty of exciting adventures to share when she returns...and takes him on that flight!

Lunch with Air Race Travelers

Yesterday I had the pleasure of visiting with a few individuals who were stuck waiting on weather in Wichita, KS. I couldn't help but ask where they were headed. Anticipating they were taking some awesome jet to some exciting destination...I was thrilled to hear they were going to... (drum roll please)....
Iowa City, Iowa...! THEY WERE ENROUTE TO THE AIR RACE!

These two ladies who were from Embry Riddle (the Arizona one) and both recent graduates. One of the ladies is competing in her 2nd race, while the other is a first-time racer. It was exciting to see their enthusiasm and I cannot wait to see them progress through the race. We were able to go out for lunch and my husband and little boy were able to join us. Just before leaving, my husband wished them GOOD LUCK...and to come in 2nd, right behind KSU! (hahaaa) !!

So, in case there are any other travelers coming through Wichita, KS....if I'm at work and spy your airplane...I might have to come bother you to hear about the adventures!!

GOOD LUCK AIR RACE LADIES!

Final Preparations!!!

With the help of our awesome maintenance crew, Mike Wise, the aviation department, Kurt Barnhart, Kansas State University faculty, the Burton Aviation Foundation, Robin Laws, Niki Gaskons, Kathy Sanders, Mark Friesen, Natalie Blair, and countless others Classic 30 is ready to leave for Iowa City Friday at 11:00 AM!! Our plane is washed and waxed thanks to our flight line, so a big thanks to them too!! Nicole and I are all packed and ready to take K-State 10 during our race. Wish us luck, strong tailwinds, and blue skies. We will keep everyone updated about our race as much as we can. The race begins Tuesday the 21st and we couldn't be more excited. Get ready for an awesome 10 days.

Two K-State students are going on a journey of a lifetime

Two K-State students are going on a journey of a lifetime

This is the link of the video on NBC action news.

Pre Race Planning: Updating Maps

Pre-Race Preparation. Megan sent Robin a few pictures. Here is a collaborative post including some of those images.

Nicole and I also flew on a cross country together. We went to Columbia Missouri. Here are a couple pictures from that practice flight.

Preparing to depart for Salina:

Pre-Race planning is exciting! There are sectionals (maps) to get, update, and plan the route on. Additionally, becoming familiar with the route, terrain, airspace, and obstacles along the route are some of the most exciting parts of planning....not to mention getting a sneak peak at other areas of the country that these ladies have never been to is all part of the fun.

Here are a few pictures from the process:

Here we finished updating the Dallas Ft. Worth Sectional chart

Megan updating a chart:

Nicole: Holding all the charts....

Trip Planning.....how many sectionals does one leg of the race cover!?

Entire Route....

(the sectionals are front to back...

so part of the trip is on the back side...but still......

a lot of work to plan! great job ladies!)

Updating charts...this one is one from South Dakota. The ladies went through to add any additional towers or obstacles that were built since the sectionals were published. They had to know how to read latitude/longitude and where to put the obstacle. One of the many ways they have gotten to use every bit of flight training they have had thus far.

The gentleman in the AHP shirt is Jack. Hello Jack! Thanks for helping the ladies update the sectionals!!

And here is a picture of a map that did NOT need updated...they were excited about this one! Newly published map means no updates!

The duo is hard at work updating sectionals:

Look at this smile....she sees the FINISH LINE: Mobile, Alabama

Now, imagine the smile Nicole will have on her face when she gets there :  )

The team plans to depart KSLN (Salina, KS) on Friday, June 17, 2011. Departure time is yet to be determined based on weather and winds. The team will not have to make any fuel stops from KSLN to the Starting line in Iowa City, Iowa. Their initial flight will take about 3 hours and they will cover just over 300 Nautical Miles. Stay tuned for more pictures and updates!

Pre Race Pictures

Taking a look at the destinations:

Our Awesome Wildcat!

Having fun...I mean-Working Hard

(Nicole and Megan)

In the KSU Hangar:

Megan and Nicole Pics

Megan and I met Freshman year at orientation. Ever since we have become really good friends. We spend countless hours studying together and are involved in many of the same clubs on campus.




Megan and I at Trunk or Treat. This is sponsored by Women in Aviation every year. We all decorate our trunks and provide a safe way for kids to trick or treat.

This was Megan and I at the Women in Aviation Conference in Florida. We were walking around at Downtown Disney at night.

In this photo we are on the flight to Reno for the Women in Aviation conference.

Us on the Buzzlightyear ride at Disney World in Florida.

This is us at Trunk or Treat. It got moved inside because of rain.

Press Release!

Press Release, check it out:  06.13.2011 Press Release

Great highlight and overview. Thanks Natalie!!

Bio: Megan Henderson

This year Megan will be the captain of the Kansas State University team. Megan and Nicole will be flying together. They have been close friends since beginning school at K-State Salina during our Freshman year. Theya are both extremely excited for this opportunity and cannot wait for the race to start!!

Megan was born and raised in Topeka, KS with her five siblings. Megan's interest in flying began when she was in high school and she completed her private pilot's license at Billard Airport. Her love of flying began when her Freshman year in High School. Megan became interested in flying after her first flight in the backseat of a C182. After that first flight, she was hooked.

Megan is a junior in the Professional Pilot Program at Kansas State University. Megan currently holds her Commercial and Instrument ratings, currently pursuing her Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) (so she can teach people how to fly!!). She will be graduating in May 2013 with a Bachelors Degree in Aeronautical Sciences, and two minors, one in Aviation Safety and one in Business.

While at Kansas State University Megan has been involved in many different clubs. Currently, she is the Safety Officer for our Alpha Eta Rho chapter here on campus. Megan was also the Treasurer of Women in Aviation, and the current Vice President. While working as an officer in Women in Aviation, Megan helped our club organize community service events, fundraise for our yearly trip to the Women in Aviation Conference, and also help the club be active on campus. She stays active by organizing events with the local Girl Scout group, selling root beer floats, and making cookies for Breast Cancer Awareness week. Megan is also a student Ambassador who helps represent school at various events, and give perspective students tours.

Megan is very excited to compete for Kansas State University in this race. She and Nicole hope to represent school well and will learn a lot from this unique experience.

Bio: Nicole Lordemann

My name is Nicole Lordemann. I was born and raised in the state of Kansas. I grew up in Olathe for most of my childhood. From there I moved to Baldwin City. I became interested in flying at the age of 10. My dad had been working with a group called the Commerative Air Force to schedule a Fly Over for an event at work. And this was where it all began:

"When once you have tasted flight, you will forever walk the earth with your eyes turned skywrd, for there you have been, and there you will alway long to return." - Leonardo da Vinci. There was not a cloud in the sky as we taxied town the runway in an old BT-13. Wearing a flight jumpsuit, goggles, and an ancient headset, I was ready to go.

"Are you ready for this?' The pilot asked as he closed the canopy to the plane. I could not have been more eager. Three, two, one, and the plane lifted up off the ground. The feeling was that unlike any other. It was exhilarating, the breeze cascading through the cockpit. The view below was astounding; it literally took my breath away. "Grab the controls," he told me. I was reluctant at first, but finally grabbed on. "Turn the plane to the right." As I turned the plane to the right I felt as if I was one with the sky. "You are a pro at this," he said with a grin on his face. I thought about this. Maybe I was? Back on the ground I could not stop talking about the flight to my dad, with whom I owe it all to. If it weren't for him I wouldn't have had the chance to fly with the Commerative Air Force on that beautifuld day. From that point on I contiuously watched the sky. I nagged my dad to take me back. I wanted more and I would stop at nothing to fulfill my dreams of flying.

The picture above is the same plane I flew in when I was 10 years old. The Commemorative Air Force was generous enough to let me take my Senior Pictures with them. Another person I can thank for my love for flying is my dear friend Richard McNett. I met him through my mother who worked with him in the Gardner Lions Club. One weekend they were having a barbeque at the airport to raise money for the club. At this time Richard was doing flights for the Young Eagles and took me up in his airplane. I absolutely loved it! To this day we are the best of friends. Every time I visit home I stop to visit my aviation buddy. We share stories of flying. He has recently lost his medical due to vision problems and has had to sell his plane. Which is why it is my goal to take him flying with me as soon as possible.

I currently hold my Private and Instrument ratings. I plan to start working on my commercial rating after the race is over.

I am very active on campus and participate in several clubs. One being Women in Aviation in which I am the Secretary and another being Alpha Eta Rho International Aviation Fraternity in which I am also the Secretary.

I love being involved in so many aviation clubs. One of the major perks of being in the WAI (Women in Aviation International) is that each year we get to go to the annual conference and network with other female pilots. It is basically like a job fair. There are boths set up from every aviation company imaginable. They also have educational sessions daily where you can learn about topics such as : Being a Pilot Mom, Corporate Aviation, Flying with the Airlines, Mountain Flying and so on.

Megan and I have been friends since the beginning of Freshman year. Over this time we have taken many classes together and spent numerous hours studying together. We have built a friendship that will last a lifetime.

2011 Air Race Classic Route

 2011 Air Race Classic Route

http://www.airraceclassic.org/

Airports		Nautical	Statute
IOW	Iowa City Municipal Airport, Iowa City, IA
BKX	Brookings Regional Airport, Brookings, SD	281.01	323.38
JMS	Jamestown Regional Airport, Jamestown, ND	175.82	202.33
SPF	Black Hills-Ice Airport, Spearfish, South Dakota,	260.32	299.57
RWL	Rawlins Municipal/Harvey Airport, Rawlins, WY	219.98	253.14
AIA	Alliance Municipal Airport, Alliance, NE	197.68	227.48
GBD	Great Bend Municipal Airport, Great Bend, KS	287.25	330.56
BGD	Hutchinson County Airport, Borger, TX	200.09	230.25
OUN	University of Oklahoma Westheimer Airport, Norman,OK	194.28	223.57
ELD	South Arkansas Regional at Goodwin Airport, El Dorado,AR	261.42	300.83
BFM	Mobile Downtown Airport, Mobile, AL	287.55	330.90
	Total Race Distance	2365.40	2722.01

The preparations have begun! (well, it began quite awhile ago...but now it's "real"...the race is only 10 days away!)

Megan and Nicole are preparing to embark on their first ever air race. As you can see from the above distances and stops, these ladies will stop in 10 states, and cover over 2300 NM! No small feat! Not to mention, they will be competing against approximately 50 teams total as well as for the collegiate trophy. The collegiate trophy is something that is a special category (I will call it)  for the racers. In order to qualify for this category, typically the competitor has to be in college (and occasionally, the rules change and sometimes even graduates and a current student can qualify for this category).

These ladies are also first time racers. Again, this is a special category, so they will have the opportunity to be eligible for some "prizes" other veteran racers will not be able to compete for. HOW EXCITING!