News 2005
Reno 2005
September 18, 2005
Blue Thunder congratulates Darryl Greenamyer and his team with
another well deserved championship. It was a long week where we went
faster than ever before. Blue Thunder Air Racing is proud to walk
away with second place, and no problems during race week. We worked
hard and had a lot of fun. Our official speed was 356.738 MPH, eight
MPH behind Darryl and 13 MPH ahead of Kevin Eldredge in third. It was another great Reno and we will be
back next year.
September 17, 2005
After an interesting start, Blue Thunder was in third
place behind Kevin Eldredge in his NXT. We were able to pass Kevin and
close on Darryl. We stayed about five seconds behind Darryl for the
rest of the race. We finished the race at 351.039 MPH.
September 16, 2005
Interesting day... Jon Sharp pulled out with a mayday but made it
back safe and sound. We once again followed Darryl around the track.
Greenamyer went 352.804 MPH and we went 351.533 MPH. But, the really
cool thing is that our telemetry registered a ground speed of 397.102
MPH on the first lap as we approached the home pylon. Kevin Eldredge
finished a solid third.
During our Thunder Dinner prepared by five star chef, Simon Gault,
it was suggested that we mount a pair of .50 CAL machine guns on Blue
Thunder to take care of the competition. We are currently reviewing
the Sport Class rules to see if this would be legal.
September 15, 2005
John Parker summed it up as he climbed out of Blue Thunder, "He
was just faster." We were close behind Darryl Greenamyer but he got
the win in the fastest Sport Class race in history. Greenamyer
finished at 359.691 MPH, six and a half seconds faster than our
355.089 MPH.
September 14, 2005
It's official, for the second year in a row, John Parker flying
Blue Thunder has set a new qualifying record in the Sport Class.
Breaking last year's record by over 10 mph, Blue Thunder rocketed
around the pylons at 361.921 mph, edging the current champion, Darryl
Greenamyer, who qualified at 358.435. Next are the NemesisNXTs of
Kevin Eldredge and Jon Sharp at 336.436 and 323.381.
Blue Thunder's new GPS telemetry system performed flawlessly and
gave a clear view of the line John Parker was flying. John simply can
not fly a better line around the course and each lap was nearly
identical to the one before. As John flew, the telemetry continued to
send back real-time performance and systems monitoring data to our
base station.
There is still a long way to go to Sunday, but Blue Thunder is
faster and more prepared than ever before.
September 12, 2005
Blue Thunder set a new qualifying record in the afternoon session.
The official speed has been recorded as 361.921 mph. With other top
racers set to qualify it will be interesting to see where we will
stack-up. For now, we are number one and that is a good way to start
off the races.
September 11, 2005
Hosted by John and Jan Parker,
Thunderstorm 2005 will be held September 15th, 16th,
and 17th on the Stead Airport at their American Air Racing hangar
during the Reno National Air Races. As in past years, food and drink
will be available in abundance. Fresh Alaska salmon, tri-tip roast,
and chicken will be grilled to perfection.
John Parker will give a Recurrent Forum with updates and new
information on the Thunder Mustang program. This will be held on
Friday, September 16th at 10:00 AM PDT in the American Air Racing
hangar. We encourage all pilots, builders, and interested guests to
attend.
This is a wonderful opportunity for our elite group to visit with
other Thunder Mustang enthusiasts and share hangar stories in a party
atmosphere.
PLEASE JOIN US!
June 23, 2005
Blue Thunder Air Racing is proud to
announce that on Saturday June 4th,
John Parker piloting Blue Thunder, set two new world speed records
during the EAA
Golden West Regional Fly-In and Air Show in Marysville, CA. The
Class C1c 3km world record was upped 30mph to 374mph. In the same class,
the 15/25km world record was upped 75mph to 376mph. Although it will be
quite some time before the NAA and FAI will certify the event, Blue
Thunder Air Racing is confident that the new records will stand. Blue
Thunder’s fastest pass was an astonishing 383mph, making Blue Thunder
without a doubt, the world fastest normally aspirated aircraft.
 John
Parker and Blue Thunder Air Racing dedicated the runs to the men and
women of the United States Armed Forces, especially those in harms way
in Afghanistan and Iraqi. It’s these fine Americans that keep this
country free, and the world safe. Your service is definitely and deeply
appreciated.
Success was not accomplished alone and Blue Thunder Air Racing would
like to extend it’s sincerest thanks to John Gibson, Mary Hansen, Peter
Requa, and the rest of the volunteers at the Golden West Fly-In, Brain
Utley and Art Greenfield of the National Aeronautic Association, Rick
Stockton of the FAA (Sacramento FSDO), Ryan Falconer of Falconer Racing
Engines, Rick Gold of ERC Racing Fuels, Allen Foreman of Red Carpet
Aviation, the entire O’Brien family, AeroMag, and Steve Edmudson, Sean
Gassaway, and Chris Moldenhauer.
While John
concentrated on the course, the crew kept an eye on Blue Thunder’s
vitals using our new custom telemetry system built by crew members Fred
Roscher and Bill Grant. It transmitted real time info that was viewable
on a laptop and saved for further analysis.
The next event
for Blue Thunder will be the
Nevada
County AirFest July 8th and 9th. This show promises to be great with
many warbird, classics, and experimental aircraft flying and on display.
And you won’t want to miss the CDF Airtaker Demonstration. We will see
you there!
Click here to download this update as an Adobe Acrobat pdf file
May 10, 2005
With the
EAA Golden
West Regional Fly-In and Air Show at Yuba County Airport (MYV) in
Marysville, CA just a month away, are goal to set new world speed
records in the C-1.c class over the 3 kilometer and the 15/25 kilometer
distances are unchanged. Most of our plans have been and finalized and
here is the latest info on our speed record attempt.
The plan is to make a practice run over
the recognized distance on Friday, June 3, then a record attempt on
Saturday, June 4th. Sunday, June 5th is a backup day for a second record
attempt should there be any problems on Saturday.
 We
have 72 hours after the flight is complete to claim the record. If all
goes well and we make flights on both Saturday and Sunday, we will claim
the record from the faster of the two attempts.
The
National Aeronautic
Association (NAA) will not approve timing of this attempt from the
ground due to speed and timing accuracy requirements. They do have
flight data recording equipment that they will approve, but can't
guarantee that it will be available by June 1st. Led by Art Greenfield,
Director of Contests and Records, the NAA is working to get everything
in order
The organizers
of the Golden West Fly-In have been very helpful. Big thanks go to John
Gibson, the Golden West Director, who has provided us with logistical
support, and Willie Turner, the Air Boss, who has helped ensure that all
of the FAA waivers are correct, filed, and in-place for our attempt.
Flight testing
continues for Blue Thunder. The flight telemetry system is still being
tested but things are going well. Fred Roscher and Bill Grant are
working hard to make sure all parameters are recorded without fail. A
nitrous oxide system has been installed to squeeze a few extra HP out of
the engine. The nitrous has been provided by
Ryan Falconer
Industries (RFI) and Sierra Welding Supply. Ryan Falconer of RFI has
also been instrumental in aiding with the nitrous set-up. Fuel for the
record attempt has been supplied and delivered to the site by Rick Gold
of ERC Racing
Fuels.
Special thanks to our fans for keeping us going. We look forward to
seeing all of you in Marysville this June.
Click here to download this update as an Adobe Acrobat pdf file
January 28, 2005
The Blue Thunder Air
Racing Team hopes that all our fans, friends, and families had a
wonderful holiday season, and we wish you all a prosperous New Year.
The Blue Crew is hard at work preparing
for this year’s coming events. Blue Thunder’s latest improvement is a
telemetry system. Headed by our Chief Technologist Fred Roscher, this
system will collect, transmit, and display all the aircraft’s functions
in real time at the crew’s base station. We installed the system mid
January, and now we anxiously await an improvement in the weather for
flight testing and further equipment trials.
 We are proud to announce
that Blue Thunder, piloted by John Parker, will attempt to set new world
speed records in the C-1.c class over the 3 kilometer and the 15/25
kilometer distances. This event will be monitored by the
National
Aeronautic Association (NAA) in accordance with the rules dictated by
the Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI). Our challenge of the
present records will be held in conjunction with the
EAA Golden West
Regional Fly-In and Air Show
at Yuba County Airport (MYV) in Marysville, CA this coming June 3rd,
4th, and 5th. With 350 show aircraft attending in
2004, the Golden West Fly-In is quickly establishing itself as one of
the premier aviation events in the Western US.
To set the world speed records, Blue
Thunder Air Racing looks to our fans and sponsors for support. We need
volunteers to work with the NAA as observers and to assist Blue Thunder
Air Racing with merchandizing, logistics, photojournalism, and
promotions. Anyone interested in volunteering for this event, or for
more information, please contact
John Parker or
Bill Pearce.
We look
forward to seeing all of you in Marysville this June.
Click here to download this update as an Adobe Acrobat pdf file
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