sad to say

Unless a partner shows up in the next two weeks, I will be taking this year off from racing. I am still going to fly though and try to work towards my instrument rating. I passed my FAA physical which was not fun at all, never had a doctor measure my tattoos to put in the record for tattoos and scars. Yes, I love tattoos, and I have fallen a lot so I do have scars, but to actually measure them took forever. Well I am going for the FAA Wings Basic to get through my BFR starting next month.

New Year-New Race

Well this year I am planning on competiting in the Air Race Classic again. I may have found a potential partner, who turns out to be a professor at the college where I am receiving my Master's degree. I hope this works out, as she is into racing cars and running races. So now onto fundraising and getting that to go,so we have money to race on. A lot of things have happened this year,so I know I am going to need financial backing if I want to do this. I quit my job with the intentions of having another one,but the other backed out on me after I quit and I was told from someone else the company did the same thing to them. So now I am independantly contracting myself out for Zumba Fitness and just when I get close to the classes I need to survive, the gyms decide they want to cut back on classes or they become flakey. I also start my Doctoral classes in March, but the cool thing is I can do my homework while on the race, and before I leave for the race.
Well here's to trying to race again this year!!!!

more pics

race results

The results are in, and we placed 46th. It's an accomplishment to finish the race. This race was challenging to a lot of teams due to mechanical failures, pieces or mechanics not available at some of the stops. It was a great learning experience.

Yesterday was the mandatory debriefings. So after the meetings before the awards banquet we had some free time which we used as an escape to Washington D.C., as this was Sara and I first time going to the Capitol. Got to go to Lincoln Monument, in which I felt like Forrest Gump over looking the water. This trips was the first time I rode the metro also.

The award banquet was nice. It was held at a beautiful restaurant and the food was great. Then today, Sara and Suzanne made their way home in Suzanne's plane, and soon I will be on a bus going to New Mexico for a vacation, as racing is far from a vacation. Doing this race for the 3rd time, I feel like it's a summer camp where I get to see my camp friends. I am happy I got to see racers that I raced with my first year of racing.

Nicole

Day after finishing the race

We had a girl scout event. We did some activities with several local girl scouts, such as a simulated landing, looking at airplanes, and some easy ground school. Then we had a movie premier to go to that was about the first woman's air race that featured one of the racers. Afterward, we were treated to a VIP reception at an art studio. It was alot of fun. Later on, Sara and I went to dinner at a restaurant with our new racer friends.

FINALLY MADE IT!!!

We are pleased to announce that the 2010 Snow Eagles Race team completed the 2010 Air Race Classic. After I spent the time in the back seat of the plane today getting air sick, I was happy when we landed this morning in Frederick, MD. We landed and got all settled in at the nice Hilton Garden Inn, and had a nice meltdown party with all the other racers. It was fun,they had a dinner sponsored by Famous Dave's, a blues band, and people came to meet us. The race got alot of press, with the news coming to talk to the racers.

Nicole

even more pics