HOMESTEAD, Fla. – The 46th annual Air Race Classic featuring 100 female pilots that finished in Homestead on Friday.
The race featured 42 teams, consisting of 100 women pilots from across the United States and around the world took off at 8 a.m. June 20 from Grand Forks International Airport in North Dakota, for a 2,684-statute mile competition across 12 states that will finish at Miami Homestead General Aviation Airport before the 5 p.m. deadline.
The Pilots had Intermediate stops in Mankato, Minnesota; Ottumwa, Iowa; Hastings, Nebraska; Ponca City, Oklahoma; Sulphur Springs, Texas; Jonesboro, Arkansas; Pell City, Alabama and Homestead.
According to event organizers, this year’s ARC celebrates the 94th anniversary of the race, which marked the beginning of women’s air racing in the United States.
“The ARC Board of Directors and volunteers have been hard at work preparing for our 46th race,” said Air Race Classic President Lara Gaerte in a news release. “We look forward to celebrating the 94th anniversary of the Women’s Air Derby as we welcome back veteran racers and meet new competitors at our Start in Grand Forks, North Dakota.”
The 42 teams of two or three pilots had four days to complete the course, flying normally aspirated, piston-powered airplanes in visual flight conditions during daylight hours.
According to an ARC spokesperson, at each of the nine intermediate checkpoints, teams will execute high-speed fly-bys over a timing line as they race against the clock. Faster planes may cover the course in only two days; slower teams may not arrive in Homestead until moments before the arrival deadline at 5 p.m. on Friday.
“Each plane receives a unique handicap since teams are racing against their own best time, not against one another. This creates a level playing field, so slower planes can compete against faster aircraft on an equal basis. Teams strategize to play the elements, holding out for better weather or seeking more favorable winds, to beat their handicap by the greatest margin. Official standings aren’t determined until after the last team has crossed the finish line – the last arrival at the Terminus may, in fact, be the winner!” race officials said in a news release.
Because each plane receives a unique handicap, teams are racing against their own best time, not against one another.
This creates a level playing field, so slower planes can compete against faster aircraft on an equal basis. Teams strategize to play the elements, holding out for better weather or seeking more favorable winds, to beat their handicap by the greatest margin, officials added.
Air Race Classic competitor Kira Merl after finishing the race shared her unforgettable experience with Local 10 News.
" I think this entire experience was so wholesome and so rewarding,” she said. “Meeting all the other women competitors and also learning more about ourselves as individuals has been really awesome.”
The ARC traces its roots to the 1929 Women’s Air Derby, aka the “Powder Puff Derby,” in which Amelia Earhart and 19 other female pilots raced from Santa Monica, California, to Cleveland, Ohio, according to race officials.
For more information on the Air Race Classic, visit its website.