Yay! I finally had some thinking time and got my Zaon PCAS working again. Had to reverse polarity on the cable and replace a fuse. Life is good. --TAC

All good things must come to an end!

WELCOME HOME LADIES!

Well, this will be the last of the regularly scheduled updates for the Classic 47 blog. We may post some final pictures when we get to clean up the plane and strip the race numbers. Here is a shot of Bev in Ohio before the final push home in "Race Mode". And of course the sunset at KCPS as Classic 47 is getting close to good ol' Missouri.

Congratulations are in order for a tremendous performance by the crew. It was really exciting to get a glimpse of the Air Race Classic and all the work and preparation that goes into turning in a competitive effort.

The team is not only grateful for our wonderful sponsors and fans, but honestly, the pilots really worked well together and got into the spirit of the competition which made it even more fun. The whole experience has been as wonderful as it could have possibly been for the team and it showed. We are very proud of Classic 47 and thrilled the crew are home and safe. Enjoy some rest ladies ... only 365 days until next year's race!

*BLOGMASTER*

We landed in CPS and Bev dropped me off with a very handsome ground crew. Bill and Diana had a icy diet coke and chicken wings. Bev has a short hop to Cape. Have a safe flight home partner!--TAC

Air n Space and Banquet 6/27

Here is a couple of shots when Bev and Teresa ventured down to the Air and Space museum in Washington D.C. Team #1 went with the ladies to the city to spend the morning before the ending banquet. Bev poses in front of the banquet sign before the ladies went inside and won 3 leg prizes. The prize money and charms were featured a couple of days ago on a separate post, so those are not represented here.

Bev was scheduled to get back from Chicago by Noon today. The team should have started back towards Missouri by around 14:00H Eastern. We'll keep you posted on 6/30 regarding their progress.

*BLOGMASTER*

We are in Clinton OH. Good thing we didn't try to land at KILN. They say they don't like GA and can charge $5K.

I just stopped Bev from using the mens" room. The ladies' is much nicer.

We're trying to decide our next move. --TAC

We are prepparing to launch from FDK at about 3pm ET. Its a 2.5 hour flight to Clinton OH (KI66). We chgd airports due to construction at KILN. We expect it to be bumpy. --TAC

Bev and I made it back to Frederick. We're @ a Quiznos. I got a chicken sammy and salad for $5. Yummy. Now to gas and return the rental. Then we need to get to the airport and flight plan. We think our first leg will be to KILN near Cincinnati. We'll see how we feel and decide if we'll fly on in.--TAC

More pix from 6/26

Here are some banquet shots from the 26th of June. The ladies got to meet some of the honored WASPS and see their medals up close. It was a fun day and final chance to relax before the official end to the race on the 27th. Those photos will be posted around 18:00H Central today.

*BLOGMASTER*

Worked out a little this morning and just relaxed. Now, I'm at the BWI cell phone lot expecting a ring from Bev any minute. She is returning from her visit with her family in Chicago and her Mom's Birthday celebration. Soon we'll be on the road back to Frederick and on our way home. Yay!--TAC

June 26 Pictures

Here are some late uploaded pictures that the team took while wandering around Gettysburg. I will post more pictures throughout the day on Tuesday the 29th. Enjoy!

*BLOGMASTER*

6/28 Teresa dinner date

Had a lovely dinner with Charmane Truesdell (Karan Hofmann's Mom). We had delicious crab cakes at Timbuktu, and she was such a delight!--TAC

Best of all, we met our mission by exposing 100's of pilots and FBOs to the noble cause of Wings of Hope. We met people who want to help through volunteering. We also planted the seeds with many to consider donating their aircraft to WOH once they are done flying them. It is our hope that the impact of this flight continues for years to come. May many disadvantaged peoples' lives be touched with the WOH gift. --TAC

Well, I found a hotspot at a local McDonalds near Baltimore and am just relaxing reading everyone's blogs from the race. I also reserved a nice little room at a local Microtel. Bev and I had a good experience at the one near Parkersburg.

I got a call from Ms. Truesdell (Karan's Mom) and we made plans to meet for dinner for crab cakes tonight. Yum.

I must say this has been quite an adventure! We flew without mistakes so we showed well in the standings as 16th. I continue to learn and I have dozens more ideas how to get even more performance out of that sweet "Meme" (Bev's N267ME C-182). So if I ever race again, who knows?

For those loyal readers, thank you for caring and watching our exploits. I know some of my posts have been cryptic, but I tried to be prompt. And between all the duties of ground crew & bio functions I was proud to give you blow by blow bits of our adventure as they happened. --TAC

Happy 85th birthday celebration to Bev's mom, Bernice Gliege! We had indeed an amazing race. We feel extremely blessed to have been in the top 4 on 3 of the 8 legs among so many very talented women. Hopefully we have raised some awareness and funds for Wings of Hope. Thanks to all who made this possible. I had the best teammate and a wonderful journey.---BJC

Checked out of the hotel in Frederick. Good thing, too! We rammed the elevator on the 5th floor with the baggage cart trying to stop it from closing and ended up breaking the elevator!

The drive to BWI wasn't too bad. I dropped Bev off at the airport so she can catch her flight out to Chicago to celebrate her Mom's birthday. I'll pick her up tomorrow.

I'm out cruising around scoping out the Baltimore area. --TAC

CONGRATS TEAM !!

Well congratulations are in order for Bev and Teresa. They were comsistently competitive throughout the race and place 16th overall out of 51 teams. The team brought home 3 leg prizes during the Sunday night banquet for a total of $90.

The prize money will happily help Wings of Hope continue their unending misson to provide sustainable self-sufficiency for the world's poorest of the poor. The charms will remain with the ladies as a tangible memory of their superb team effort.

Thanks to all for the fantastic support and generous donations of time, effort, maintenance, and CASH to literally help keep Classic 47 in the air. The ladies have taken special pride in their goal to educate the public and other racers about Wings of Hope and its worldwide mission.

We will continue to update daily until Classic 47 is back in Missouri and keep you informed of any pending news or pictures as they are uploaded by the team.

*BLOGMASTER*

And the winner is....
In winning order...

#11
#24
#55
#4
#19
#49
#17
#48
#30
#58

But check this out...
We, Classic #47, won 3 leg prizes:
Leg #1 4th place
Leg #3 2nd place
Leg #6 3rd place
All the results will be posted tonight on the ARC website.
--TAC

Fun at DC. National Air and Space Museum. Made it back in time to freshen up for banquet.

We're still hoping for a leg prize. My exacta prediction is kelly#40 first and terry #11 second with #47 winning a leg prize for leg #6!--TAC

More Media Coverage

Ok folks, you have been patient for a day or so as we wait for more pictures from the ladies. So I am going to reward you with a couple of fun media bits specific to Classic 47, and one general media portal for lots of past and present news on the Air Race Classic. Enjoy and check back later tonight to see if pix have arrived!

*BLOGMASTER*

Here is the 5 minute radio interview with Teresa at a local St. Louis radio station, KTRS 550. This took place about 7:30 in the morning a week before the race. The team had not yet determined the Roy Clark Tri Pacer could not be ready in time for the race.

Here is an AP syndicated piece out of Fort Meyers, Florida as Teresa sets up the cockpit on the first day of the race.

Now here is actually a rather interesting compendium of various websites and pages that contain details of the Air Race Classic in general. This is a great resource if you want to see what other teams are doing both currently and in the past.

Drove 4 of us to Wash DC we are going to the air and space museum. --TAC

Bev had to attend the morning first time racer briefing at 8, so I worked out in the gym. Met the nice mother of #46/58 Kristin McTea, and the time flew by on the tread mill as we chatted. The really good news is that I think I lost 2 pounds. Their scale says I'm at 138! I am the biggest Looser!

I've got to get ready for the all racer debrief at 9. Cheers--TAC

We watched the premier of "Through the Clouds", which is a documentary on the first all women's air race. Fascinating. During the reception afterwards, during our chit-chats, it sounded like our leg that scored 20 might be pretty good. Who knows? Could we be in the running for a leg prize? We should find out tomorrow. --TAC

Got our score and it was slightly higher than my recorded times. We didn't get any penalties. Yay! However, we didn't get in the top ten impounded planes.

We got a rental car and drove to Gettysburg. Interesting battlefield and history. --TAC

AOPA facility tour 6/25/10

So during the day, the crew wanted to take a tour of AOPA. They have a beautiful building off the field at Frederick. AOPA had a couple of racers on Team 29 in the race. All the local staff signed a picture of their team. Also the position of their team was being tracked using the SPOT GPS navigation system. Teresa wanted to check-out the President's office along with his view of the field. Fortunately he was away at the time of the tour. More pixtures later this evening.

*BLOGMASTER*

YAY! Frederick Terminus 6/25/10

Well once the ladies touched down, the fun finally began. The terminus was filled with activies including a BBQ tent and a massage to get the knots out after 2100 miles of bumpy flying. Bev and Teresa were briefly interviewed by a radio station and of course Wings of Hope was the topic of discussion. It is hard to not get noticed in those WOH pink jumpsuits but the locals loved it. Finally, what better way to relax from a long day of flying than for the ladies to each take a half hour helocopter lesson???? They both were given instruction on basic hovering, forward, side to side, auto-gyro work and of course landing. More at around Noon 6/26/10 showing the crew's tour of AOPA in Frederick.

*BLOGMASTER*

Terminus unloading, volunteers, Photog!

Once the team was on the ground there was tons to do. A local photographer would come and talk to all of the racers. Each of the planes was assigned a spot along the grass and you can see the tiny timing hut out along the side of the runway. Classic 29 got in later and surprise - once inside the FBO, our old Ninety Nine friend Barb Wilper was helping out like always. What an experience. More pix coming soon.

*BLOGMASTER*

WV leg to Frederick - End in Sight

Here is a recap of the 6/25/10 9AM Eastern airport gathering in West Virginia. All the racers that stayed over greeted each other before the final push. There was a little tri pacer there to remind us of Roy Clark's plane that sadly could not make the long haul. The trip along the way did not have as much tailwind to Frederick but navigating lower was better today with more visibility than the previous night. Crew saw a powerplant along the way and turned for final at just before 11:00AM Eastern. Once they landed they were greeted by a line guy to guide them in to their grass parking space. The ladies were excited and took some snaps of themselves in their pink Wings of Hope jumpsuits. More pix soon.

*BLOGMASTER*