World’s fastest motor sport kicks off

Tom Gardner

Thursday, Sept. 16, 1999 | 12:41 p.m.

RENO, Nev. - Two years ago this week, astronaut Curtis Brown was piloting one of the most powerful planes at the National Championship Air Races. This year, he's just a spectator because he's on tap to fly an even more powerful bird - the space shuttle Discovery.

"Once I'm committed to the crew, I can't race until they release me," he said. "I wish I was out racing this year."

Brown is set to command Discovery in its scheduled Oct. 28 takeoff to repair the Hubble space telescope. It will be his sixth shuttle flight.

He is one of eight current and former astronauts serving as co-marshals for this year's air races. But he plans to be back next year to compete. He has his eyes on flying this year's fastest qualifier, the P-51 Strega.

Bill "Tiger" Destefani of Bakersfield, Calif., set the 1999 qualifying mark of 479.620 mph on Tuesday to establish the standard for other Unlimited pilots.

Competition began Thursday for the Unlimiteds and the other four classes - AT6-SNJ, Sport, Biplane and Formula 1 - in the 36th running of the races, billed as the world's fastest motor sport.

Almost perfect weather for both fliers and fans - sunny skies and light winds - is predicted for the weekend, with more than 150,000 fans expected to jam the Reno Stead Airport north of Reno through Sunday.

In addition to the astronauts, who are commemorating the 30th anniversary of Neil Armstrong's moonwalk, fans will be treated to the Air Force Thunderbirds at the nation's only major air races with pilots in more than 100 planes competing for a record purse of $656,000.

Several cities have tried to resurrect the Cleveland National Air Races, which died in 1949, but only Reno succeeded in 1964. Small races are staged around the country, but only Reno offers five classes, ranging from kit planes to the World War II-vintage Unlimiteds.

The Unlimiteds include the P-51 Mustang, the Hawker Sea Fury and the Russian Yak, all usually highly modified. Speeds exceed 400 mph.

The T-6 is the same stock configuration as when that North American two-seater was used to train pilots during World War II. Speeds are in the 200-mph range.

Formula 1 is one of the oldest classes, small in size and easy on the checkbook but swift in the air, clipping along at 200 mph plus.

Biplane is the slowest class, seldom reaching 200 mph.

The Sport class is back at Reno for the second year. These are fast pleasure craft that owners buy and assemble from kits. Speeds can reach 300 mph.

Two of the astronauts, Bill Anders and Robert "Hoot" Gibson, also are Reno air racers. Along with Brown, they're joined as co-marshals by Gibson's wife Rhea Seddon, Eugene Cernan, Jim Lovell, Joseph Engle and Richard Gordon.