Barbara Strachan's mother always told her she must have been a bird in a previous life. She always has had such an interest with airplanes, with learning to fly them.
"I look back at my younger self and see pictures of me and my three children standing outside of airport fences with airplanes behind us," the Largo resident of three years said. "I had such a fascination."
Fascination became reality in 1974 when Strachan began taking flying lessons, and Tuesday she will undertake her first transcontinental race in the annual all-women Air Race Classic. Strachan, a retired telecommunications saleswoman, will be responsible for navigation and communications as her friend Mary Wunder of Collegeville, Pa., pilots her four-passenger, low-wing Mooney in the 2,312-mile, multisegment race from Bozeman, Mont., to Mansfield, Mass.
Strachan has competed in passenger-plane races across Pennsylvania or New Jersey the past 15 years.
Strachan, 66, and Wunder met as members of the Eastern PA 99s, the largest all-women's flying society in the world founded in 1929 with Amelia Earhart as its first president.
32nd Air Race Classic
What: All-women's transcontinental air race
When: Tuesday-Friday
Where: Begins in Bozeman, Mont., with stops in Miles City, Mont., Aberdeen, S.D., Mason City, Iowa, Decatur, Ill., Frankfort, Ky., Franklin, Pa., Saratoga Springs, N.Y., and finishes at Mansfield, Mass., encompassing 2,312 statute miles.
How: Teams are comprised of two licensed female pilots. Participants utilize "stock" aircraft with no modifications and are assigned a handicap speed based on their capabilities. Winners are determined by the efficiency maintained over the route, that is, how far they can keep their the actual ground speed over the handicap speed. Winners cannot be determined until after the entire race is completed.
Kahne grabs 1st road-course pole
Kasey Kahne continued his recent hot streak Friday by winning the pole for Sunday's Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Infineon Raceway for his best career starting position on a road course. Kahne was the third driver to make his qualifying attempt in Sonoma, Calif., and his lap around the twisting track at 92.153 mph was good enough to hold the top spot for the entire session. It was his second pole of the season, and second in three weeks.
Finish what you started
Kevin Harvick set the modern era (1972-present) record for running at the race finish, reaching 59 last week at Michigan. Harvick completed 58 straight from October 2002 through August 2004. Harvey Beam holds the all-time record (84), set from April 1961-March 1963.
Fast fingers
Thieves stole six helmets belonging to drivers, including Danica Patrick, left, and St. Petersburg resident Dan Wheldon, from a company affiliated with the Indy Racing League this week. They ransacked the shop after also stealing laptops, high-end watches and gaming systems but did not bother the league's championship trophy. Apparently that would be harder to get rid of on eBay.
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