Day 3 - SEVEN Stops To Go - Only Two Days To GetThe Job Done...

Thu June 20 - We are up early and off to the airport. We have only two days left on the race to fly the last seven stops by sunset on Friday! In the previous 5 races, I've never flown 4 stops in one day, so it's looking dicey. Moreover, these last stops are the longer legs, as compared to P&R to Logan and Logan to Rawlins. So it's time to get booking on these flights. Our goal - to overnight in Holdrege NE (4 stops) or Brookings SD (3 stops).

We launch out of Logan and need to circle to get clear of the terrain and mountains heading to Rawlins. We fly south looking for the lake and canyon to fly into that will give us a little lower terrain; however, the rising sun is fully in our eyes, and we're unsure of the terrain. So we opt to climb higher - it will cost us time on this leg, but it is the safer option for us. Gorgeous day and weather, despite the headwind we have to deal with today - that 20+ knot tailwind yesterday sure would have made us happier. C'est la vie.

We swap off flying, and Lynn keeps us locked into our altitude with very little deviation. Today, we are just going to blast thru as many stops as we can to see if we can make Holdrege NE by sunset. It's a great flyby in Rawlins...circle to land by about 10 am...208+ naut miles covered (check!)...cool off with some some cold water and a quick rest break...a short chat with the stop chair and volunteers. Refuel, and we're back in the air...flyby to continue...destination - Spearfish SD.

The terrain is now descending...brown, rocky, craggy earth starts to smooth out...an emerald carpet appears in spots. The winds will do us no favors today, but there is no time to sit around and wait for conditions to become more favorable. We're planning a lunch run to The Green Bean in Spearfish, if we can get the crew car. Since most of the race pack is well ahead of us along the route, we don't anticipate a crowd on the ground. We've got Classic Racer 15 to talk to on the air-to-air frequency, and we meet them on the ground for our lunch run. Their Mooney is faster, and they're waiting for us. Flyby to land. Circle in, land, and taxi to the ramp. Nice lunch and little relaxation. Another 220+ naut miles covered - check! It's after 2 pm now. Back to the airport, fuel up, taxi out...flyby to continue - next stop - Brookings SD.

The land below is now really beginning to look more like home...green...farmland...large numbers of cattle grazing below...I tell the Purdue racer team that I don't want to hear about any cowtipping as they fly over this terrain...our little pack of racers is blasting along as best we can to Brookings. Another attribute of flying in the Midwest in the summer - copious numbers of bugs smashing against our wing edges and windshield. It's not a pretty sight at all.  It's now pushing towards 4pm, and we need to discuss whether to make the push for one more stop today. Brookings will be stop #3 today - 299+ naut miles. So what will it be - 4 stops today, or 4 stops tomorrow?  Either way it's a gamble. We agree that it's better to make the effort today. If we make it to the next stop, Holdrege NE, by sunset, we know that tomorrow will be "easy." If we don't make Holdrege before 9:11pm Central and shoot the Holdrege flyby AFTER sunset, then we're disqualified. Decision made - we're going for it. We line up for Brookings, shoot the flyby to land, circle in for the landing. It's a quick refueling turn...Lynn runs in to pay the fuel while I check and recheck the fuel this last leg of the day. Weather is good. While we normally debug to plane at each stop, there's no time for this now. These bugs are going to Holdrege with us. The windshield is disgusting and hard to look thru.

We fire up the engine, taxi out, shoot the timing line to get back on the clock and aim for Holdrege - 257 naut miles away. After we get on course and climb to our altitude, we check the GPS estimated time of arrival in Holdrege - 9:02 pm. If correct, we'll have 9 minutes to spare on the sunset rule. We're low to the ground for us, but not as low as many others fly. We're watching our terrain and obstructions closely along the charts. It's a new kind of flying for Lynn, but she's great (!) on this kind of flying, because she's so rock-solid on holding her altitude and spotting things outside the plane. She's nailed every airport sighting so far...taken care of flaps...timers...super job! We are watching our time, but there's nothing we can do to change it, as we're rocketing along as fast as the little Cardinal will fly us. Our ETA is still looking good.  The sun is getting low in the sky...Holdrege is getting near...we've got the airport in sight...we fly by at 9:02:30pm

Mission accomplished! The first time that I've knocked out 4 legs in one day in 6 races. We calculate it at 1000+ miles in a day, counting all the flybys and circling to land. We are wiped out and tired beyond belief. The ladies of the Nebraska 99s are there supporting the stop and waiting for us. They graciously help us find a motel for the night and offer to swing by a fast food place (our only options) to pick up some dinner. We opt for Runza's, a Nebraska experience, and take our host's recommendations on the burgers there - DEELICIOUS! Especially when you're dog-tired. Hah!