Race Winners Traveled 1,627 Miles

Shortly after the five teams in the 2012 America’s Challenge Gas Balloon Race has launched last Sunday evening in Albuquerque, New Mexico, race officials predicted a flight to the east coast was not out of the question. Wednesday that prediction came true – 3 fold.

Mark Sullivan and Cheri White are the unofficial winners of the event having ended their flight near Buelaville, North Carolina, near the Outer Banks. Their flight of about 1,627 miles is the 4th longest in the 17 year history of the race and a personal best for both pilots – who compete as a team often in gas events. It is their second win, having also taken the America’s Challenge in 2008.

The apparent 2nd place team of Leonid Tuykhtyaev of Russia and Wilhelm Eimers of Germany landed near Elkton, VA having covered 1555 miles in exactly one hour less than Sullivan and White. The flight is the 5th longest in race history and may establish a Russian distance record.

Peter Cuneo and Barbara Fricke also flew a personal best 1,455 miles landing near Ridgeland, South Carolina.

This was the first America’s Challenge flown purely on hydrogen and the event organizers could not be happier with the results. All five teams headed back to Albuquerque by car, where the results will be finalized and a gala awards banquet will be held on Saturday night.

(Image from file)

FMI: www.balloonfiesta.com/gas-balloons/america-s-challenge