Race day 4 - UPDATED WITH PICTURES

After my morning post, we waited until about 1130am when the cloud layer finally broke, and left for Benton Harbor Michigan. Linda and I took our time preflighting, planning and briefing the route, and we were the last plane to leave the ramp at Sault Ste Marie. We took off, did our flyby, and zoomed to our cruise altitude. Upper Michigan was gorgeous under the afternoon sun, with Lake Michigan sparkling blue and the countryside green and lush under a carpet of little puffy white clouds. There were a couple of isolated heavy rain showers which look quite dramatic from the air, like thick grey columns. We passed over many little airports, and talked to air traffic control at the bigger ones. Coming up on Benton Harbor, we headed out over the lake to position for the flyby, and zoomed off on an easterly heading to our final destination, Batavia Ohio.

The route over Indiana and Ohio continued in the same vein, although it got pretty bumpy. The tailwinds on both legs were not as good as promised, but our little plane was performing valiantly and pumping out as much horsepower as she could, all temps running hot and just below redline, but steady for the most part. Coming up on Batavia after passing Cincinnati, we turned onto the flyby course and dove down to flyby altitude on runway 22. We landed just after Mary and Elaine, and just before Barbara and Ethel, so the Pennsylvania Six stayed together right through to the end!! After landing, some very nice helpers gave us water and helped us tie down the plane, then drove us and our bags to the terminus where Linda's Mom and Dad (June and Bob) were there to meet us, as well as the other racers plus our Ninety-Nines friend and Ohio flight instructor Charissa. There were lots of hugs and congratulations between all the racers and their supporters, and it felt great to be there! The Batavia Airport is home to Sporty's, which is the most famous pilot supplies shop for which every pilot in the US probably receives and uses a catalog, and has a shop right there on the field, plus a flight school that Charissa works for. 


Linda and I are now back at the hotel, and she just brought us Wendy's because we are famished having not eaten since breakfast. I also had a blissful shower and put on clean clothes that we shipped here from Arizona, so I feel clean and fed and consequently content. We are shortly going to go to the racer's Meltdown Party, at which I plan to add the final touch to my feeling of wellbeing by having a large gin and tonic. We won't know the final rankings until Sunday night, and these will depend not only on the leg times flown, but also penalties incurred for breaking any ARC rules. Although race leg 7 was a disaster timing-wise, as previously described, we have learned that 4 teams yesterday and 12 teams today landed at the airport before Sault St Marie to hold for weather, and since the clock is still ticking during off route time they also will have had a bad leg, so we certainly weren't the only ones. Anyway, we'll see how it all goes! Linda and I are feeling great to have finished and happy to be here. Linda will hopefully sort out the formatting of this page later tonight, and maybe post some photos too.


Here are some photos from our final day of the race.

You know...the great thing about this race is, you never know when you will come across something you have never seen before (beside the scenery). Here is a pancake maker at the Holiday Inn...just press a button and a minute later out comes a pancake. A pretty good one too!

And here are the three EPA teams enjoying a leisurely breakfast 

before heading to the airport at Sault Ste Marie

The sky at Sault Ste Marie...you can see the low clouds that kept us grounded until almost noon. Also, in the distance you can see some hills.....Oh Canada!! Yes, that's Canada from our hotel.

Another men's room bites the dust at Sault Ste Marie airport

A common site, a charging iPad. Many teams used iPads to help with planning and flying.

Some of the teams at the airport waiting for the ceiling to lift.

Finally departing the airport at Saul Ste Marie for the last two legs of the race. You can just see the prison at the end of the runway that we needed to avoid overflying.

The lakes in the upper pennisula were beautiful.

With the warm weather and lakes, you forget that in winter there is a lot of snow here. Here are some ski slopes not far from the water.

Here's an airport that Alison and I agreed we would like to come back and visit at some point in the future.

Some of the rain showers on the leg from Sault Ste Marie to Benton Harbor.

South Bend airport on the horizon. I put this picture in here for all the Notre Dame fans in the world.

Here are 5 and 15 on the ground at the finish line.....

.....and just a few feet away here is Ethel from team #25.

And look who came to meet us at the finish line....my mom and dad.