New design wows the formula one air race class at Reno

RENO - Boise formula one race pilot Brian Reberry brought his new gull-wing creation, "September Fate," to the Reno Air Races in mid-September dazzling race fans with its sleek design and beauty. Reberry, whose day - and night - job is an Airbus A320 pilot for Virgin America, has raced a formula one class entry for a number of years, most recently flying Jim Whiteley's Cassutt III-M, "Tony the Tiger," the slowest plane in the formula one class.

Reberry flew both entries this year, one just for fun and the other competitively. "Tony the Tiger" is pure fun.

"I have so much room in the cockpit and it is so stable that I could fly the race holding a cup of coffee," Reberry remarked.

Whiteley, who lives in the Reno area, enjoys seeing his tiger-toothed camo-clad airplane fly around the pylons.

Two years in the making, "September Fate" is a clean-sheet design, not based on any other airplane. As with any first year experiment in a hot performer, Reberry continued to test "September Fate" through the race week finally finishing fourth in the final race with an average lap speed of 231 mph. Shoehorning himself into the cockpit, Reberry can't even wear his required parachute while climbing in. He has to strap it on while seated. Because of the low-drag, high-stall-speed race wing, Reberry needs long runways for fast landing approach speeds and fast rotation speed takeoffs.

The carbon fiber racer was designed and built by Frank and Mark Miller of Warped Concepts in Nampa. They were recommended by John Chambers who designed the wing and tail of "Mariah" flown by five-time formula one gold winner Gary Hubler of Caldwell. Hubler died in a race in 2007 after a mid-air collision.

Reberry is supported in his effort by his wife, Sherawn, a Boise State educator and co-crew chiefs, Mo Miller of Nampa and Don Waters of Boise. Eric Hubler of Caldwell also crews for the Reberrys.

The tiny formula one race class dates back to the Cleveland Air Races in 1947 and its airplanes must conform to a specific set of guidelines, such as a minimum dry empty weight of 500 pounds, fixed landing gear, a minimum 66 square feet of wing, fixed-pitch prop and a 100-hp 200-cubic-inch Continental engine.

For the 50th Reno Air Races next year the Reberrys plan to improve the speed of "September Fate" with minor modifications. A six mph speed boost was achieved just this year by adding a couple vertical tape strips to the landing gear fairings.

Another entry in some other race class is also being considered by the Reberrys.

At the end of the Unlimited Gold Class race on Sunday, which was won by Steven Hinton piloting the highly modified P-51 Race No. 7 "Strega," pilots, crews, fans, officials and volunteers let out a collective sigh of relief following the tragic accident in 2011 that claimed numerous lives.

The National Transportation Safety Board, after many months of analysis and review, released a preliminary statement last spring hinting at the causes of the accident, plus a list of changes to the race course, engineering evaluations of highly modified aircraft, high-G training of pilots and barriers in front of the grandstand. Other procedural changes were made, as well.

This summer a final NTSB report blamed deteriorated locknut inserts in the elevator trim tab attachment screws for the fatal accident sequence, which began when Jimmy Leeward's "Galloping Ghost" was traveling at 512 mph before commencing a nearly vertical climb that resulted in a peak of 17.3 Gs, more than enough to render any pilot unconscious.

The resulting crash into several rows of box seating in front of the grandstand marked the first time in 48 years that spectators were killed and injured during the Reno Air Races.

Biplane race pilot Marilyn Dash of Hayward, Calif., regularly met with other race pilots for months after last year's crash in a cathartic embrace of group support. She also took it upon herself to meet with and interview all of the injured survivors, many of whom attended the 2012 races even sitting in their same seats as last year.

The Reno Air Race Association facing extreme financial losses from last year, as well as huge liability claims, finally received a $600,000 boost from the state of Nevada several months ago allowing the races to continue.

The new name for the event is the TravelNevada.com Reno National Championship Air Races and Air Show. RARA expressed thanks for this infusion of much needed cash and appreciation for the recognition the investment signifies.

With a safe and successful year under its belt, RARA is looking forward to its 50th year in 2013.