The 'Hearts' in the news

Well the race is in the books now. The ladies attended the melt-down party and got a chance to spend some quality time with their baby birds. The crew took in the sights of 'Diana's bath' - a scenic hiking spot in picturesque Maine.

During the public event where the teams and planes were available for photos and questions about the race, Teresa and Denise were interviewed with the local paper about their air race experiences. The link to the article is:  Sun Journal Article

Also of course, AOPA was in attendance and got a couple of fun snaps of the ladies and some memorable quotes for their informative article: AOPA article

The team headed back to Hartford on June 25th to their home field 'HFD', Brainard airport. The plane performed fabulously and Teresa and Denise had a great time.  This years bevy of collegiate racers and now graduated baby birds met up at Denise's Avon mountaintop home for one last mass over-nighter before heading back to Tennessee and California.  The Purple Hearts and the girls were thrilled to see a live BLACK BEAR in Denise's back yard. The college teams both pre-flighted and were briefed on navigating the Hudson corridor so they could circle the Statue of Liberty before heading home. Ms. Teresa finally had to say goodbye and ended up flying commercial back to Oklahoma on 6/26/18 to celebrate her 36th wedding anniversary.

Next year at this time, Teresa and Denise are planning to get their African pilot's licenses and flying a Cessna 182 through several African countries for a new experience and tour. The loyal Archer sadly will stay home for that trip but the Purple Hearts WILL race again soon.  The adventures never end as long as they always remain in your 'HEARTS'! - ed

The Hearts and their baby birds at Diana's Bath, Maine

Fryeburg landing with beautiful 99's compass rose (photo: L. Strand)

Scoring and NO penalties

Since the Purple Hearts did NOT officially handicap before the race, they have been flying the course as a non-competition exhibition team (no prize money). Given the confusing and weather restricted race losing 6 legs, this probably was one of the best years to race 'just for fun'.

However, the 3 legs that did officially register were subject to the normal rules and the Hearts did a fantastic job of catching the wind and using it to their advantage. We did a post a few years ago with a handicap run of 147 miles per hour. That is probably pretty standard top speed for a Piper Archer II. After the race in 2016 however, the team had re-handicap in Florida since they rode the whole way with an extra rudder inside the plane. After the plane had logged about 3500 miles cleaning out the engine and tuning it to precision, the plane handicapped at around 150 miles per hour.

So you will note that the plane performed well on the first two legs coming in over 154 miles per hour and the last leg at 146. On average a very respectable score and we will see how it compares to the winners of the race to determine if the Hearts would have been in the 'hunt' for prize money if they had been racing competitively. Regardless the ladies had an experience of their lifetimes and are thrilled to have run a clean race with no penalties and everyone and everything brought home in a healthy condition! - ed

Only 3 legs were officially scored, NO penalties for the Hearts

Cruising by timing tent at Fryeburg   (Photo: Cynthia Lee)

Greeted in Fryeburg by friends! (Photo: Laurie Strand)

Touchdown FRYEBURG, MAINE 12:47H EST

The ladies DID IT! Captain Denise did a perfect fly-by and landed at 12:47H EST in Fryeburg, Maine. The last leg was uneventful as the team was happy to leave the inclement weather behind. As an aside just after the team left Penn Yan - pop up storms once again started to form.  More news and pictures to follow from the terminus as they come in. CONGRATULATIIONS TEAM #23 - The Purple Hearts. Your friends, fans, and family are very proud to welcome you back to New England.

-ed

The last leg of the race nearing touchdown - FlightAware

Final leg speed and altitude profile - FlightAware

Our two favorite pilots - Welcome home PURPLE HEARTS!

Fryeburg Fly-by (Photo: Cynthia Lee)

A typical Denise understated greeting toward friends (photo: Strand)

Fryeburg bound 12:40H ETA

Well the ladies are low enough to report in even with a picture from the cockpit of the Purple Archer. The plane is running cool and strong at the top of the RPM arc. They are humming along and have only used 1 quart of oil during the whole race so the engine has performed marvelously.

The team uses mylar shields and cling screen panels on the glass to shield the sun from the instruments and pilots especially early and late  in the day when the rays beat down closer to the horizon. This trip started out toasty warm in Texas and Oklahoma and then turned cool and wet in the last half of the race so all in all it has been a mixed bag weather-wise to say the least. -ed

The ladies Fryeburg bound about an hour out  11:45H Eastern

#23 the Purple Hearts on course to Fryeburg, Maine

Leaving Penn Yan - NOW! 10:14 Eastern

Yes the Purple Hearts are rested and ready to finish the race. It was a relaxing night and a chance to spend time with many teams and reflect on the race. More news to come but if you have the live feed of the airport you can hear the radio calls now and the arrival in Fryeburg in about 2 - 3 hours.

The actual fly-by departure time was 10:27H Eastern. To start the timing run, the Purple Hearts fly away from the airport and then they drop down across a crew of timers who are stationed along the  designated runway. The timers look for the proper height, wings level, and start the clock once the plane crosses the line. When the Purple Hearts arrive in Fryeburg, Maine, they will cross the final line to stop the clock. The difference between the two numbers will determine the speed that the plane achieved. -ed

A typical fly-by to start the timing run

Purple Hearts safe arrival in Penn Yan, New York

The crew touched down safely in VFR conditions in Penn Yan, NY shortly before 20:00H Eastern. We'll add some pictures as they come in but needless to say, the ladies are ready to relax and get some chow. Many of the teams have put down in New York and plan to finish the race on Friday. Should be loads of interesting stories and close-calls to share across the dinner table tonight with fellow racing teams. Updates to follow.

- ed

Inside the storm

As a general rule, even experienced pilots try to avoid most convective storms because they by definition are dangerous and unpredictable. Even when you think you have the clouds beat, they will start to build in your path and create severe turbulence, rain, hail, lightning - you name it.

In the case of the air race, NOBODY wants to have to pick their way across the country with only bad and worse as the option choices for each leg. Unfortunately - that was this kind of race. Today's race legs were challenging and yes at times - scary. Storms have a way of making pilots humble and all the noise and bumping around tends to break concentration.

Today the legs were into demanding Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC). Denise and Teresa worked together continuously with air traffic control to try and vector around building cells in their path. The truth is there is no easy way out so they simply have to push forward and put the plane and crew through the punishment. The plane would drop a hundred feet and then rise 200 feet back. The rain is so relentless and non-stop it is akin to standing under a waterfall or being in a car wash with water forcing its way into the cabin through the door seals.

Though the plane, as always, took care of the crew and did its job, it did suffer some leading edge paint loss. The constant hammering rain acts with sand-blasting force and slowly peels back any paint defects along rivets and exposed edges. Literally at the end of the day, none of that mattered though. The ladies made it safe and sound and had conquered demanding weather to get to the other side. The Michigan and Ohio stops were canceled by the race committee as well so Ms. Denise and Teresa will fly the purple beast into Fryeburg, ME tomorrow morning with genuine pride for a job well done.

Leading edges getting pounded and worn in storm

Cowling paint got sand-blasted off in relentless rain

After the storm safe in Penn Yan - not far to go to Fryeburg, ME tomorrow