Rare Bear experienced a right landing gear failure after the last race on Friday. John Penny went through all the procedures to get the gear down while the T-33 Pace Plane monitored the situation. John departed toward the North, away from the crowd, and pulled a very tight high G turn that brought the gear down. The crew worked on Rare Bear to resolve the gear issue and get the plane back into the Gold Race on Sunday. Hopes for the win were dashed when the engine let go during the Gold Race. John Penney saved Rare Bear twice in three days. Way to go John!
The 2008 Reno National Championship Air races and Air Show was marked with the celebration of 45 years of air racing. The week of qualifying and racing was under perfect weather conditions which helped not only the teams, but drew the fans as well. Most of the people and families that come to enjoy the thrill of racing will find the bleachers a great view. The other great experience is being in the pits while crews work on the planes between heats. The pits can be a bee hive of activity when the crews are going over every nut and bolt, checking fluids, and cleaning the plane up for the next race . One minute you are 6 feet from the mechanics as they prepare the aircraft, the next minute you are 2 inches from another aircraft being towed right past you.
The 45th anniversary show was incredible. Besides all the different classes of air racing, the aerobatic performances kept the crowd well entertained. Leading the list of jet performances were the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds and the U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor. John Klatt's Air National Guard(ANG) Staudacher S-300D and David Martin's Breitling CAP 232 provided intense aerobatic flying displays. David and John performed both solo and dual acts between all the air racing action. The parachute team was from the Air National Guard base in Kulis, Alaska. Their jumps with the large American and Alaskan flag were spectacular. The Pace Plane this year was Steve Hinton's Lockheed T-33 sponsored by AirShowBuzz.com.
The Air Racing action culminated in the Unlimited Gold Race being won by Bill (Tiger) Destefani flying the P-51 #7 Strega with a top speed of 483.062 mph.