Race Your Way To AirVenture!

On July 15, pilots will arrive at Wichita, KS for the start of the 2007 National Cross Country Air Races.

Representatives with US Air Race tell ANN the Wichita Airport Authority is sponsoring the start of an exciting week... the Wichita 300 Air Race at Colonel James Jabara Airport. From July 17-19, the 1800-mile Marion Jayne Air Race will fly from AAO to Horseshoe Bend, AR (6M2) to Nashville, TN (BNA) to Jackson, OH (I43) to Benton Harbor, MI (BEH) to St. Ignace, MI (83D) to Ashland, WI (ASX) and finish at Stevens Point, WI (STE).

On July 20, the Stevens Point 300 will take place. The races dovetail with the Cessna and Piper Owner's Gateway to Oshkosh Convention at Stevens Point. (AirVenture 2007 kicks off July 23.)

The events are open to all pilots and all piston powered aircraft. Teams compete in the real world of aviation, flying daylight VFR in strict adherence to all FARs.

Pilot Skill Handicap Racing, and Aircraft Performance Racing classes will be offered. Handicap racing places all the aircraft on a level playing field... and pilot skill is the key to winning. If you'd like to fly your Piper Cub against a Columbia 400 or Mooney Acclaim, this class is for you.

Performance racing matches aircraft of like power and type, and proves the speed of the aircraft as well as the pilot's skill.

Additionally, a collegiate division encourages younger flyers to take part. Those pilots now enrolled in universities or schools are eligible... and will gain valuable real world flying experience.

Event organizers state pilots from all over the US and some foreign countries will fly over the plains of Kansas, the Ozarks, across Tennessee and northward over Ohio to the shores of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron and westward touching the shores of Lake Superior to Wisconsin. Each stop is mandatory for fuel, and optional overnight.

Pilots may enter any or all races. Awards are given for each individual event, and pilot skill handicap entries may compete for the Marion Jayne Perpetual Trophy by flying all three events. Aircraft Performance racers will be awarded points by the newly formed Sport Air Racing League toward their annual championships. 

FMI: www.sportairrace.org, www.us-airrace.org