Incidentally, the winner is Paul Bonhomme from GB and he flew this plane. Of course, we didn’t know it at the time of the picture taking.
We went to our very first Red Bull Air Race in Windsor Ontario, across from Detroit MI. Left the house early around 6.15am and got to the border in Detroit just around 11.30am. Drove across the Ambassador Bridge onto Ontario..and the town appears to be very much similar to the US. Familiar names like Walmart, Petsmart and Payless Shoes were there. I never even felt like I left the country. Perhaps the only thing that might have given it away are the car license plates.
It was easy to find the venue and after parking a few blocks away, we proceeded to the event. It hadn’t started yet, much to my surprise as I thought it was starting at 11am. Turned out that was the time when the gates were open. We found a decent spot just by the railings next to the river which offered great view and photo-taking.
Weather was surprisingly cool and I had to get my windbreaker for the most part but it worked out really nicely.
The qualifying rounds were fast paced and exciting! Planes flew at speeds of up to more than 300 kph, races into the course with smoke trails and doing their necessary maneuvers to get across the course as fast as possible and pulling as high as 9Gs, all tht time having to abide by the rules of the race. Huge screens with live real time info and view are situated strategically and was just as impressive, as we, the audience could see the real time from the cockpit of the plane, the speed they were going at and the view as if we were next to the pilot himself, if not in the pilot’s seat. Before the day ended, we got a great show by a helicopter doing all kinds of interesting and dare devils moves that defy helicopter flying. Even the helicopter is equipped with a very nice camera on the front and could capture the audience as it flew by! Spectacular! A crowd pleaser!
This being the first day, it ended with the first qualifying rounds. Tomorrow is deciding day for the overall winner. We also bought a pass to go and do a public pit walk and get to see the planes and pilots up close. Managed to get a few autographs and pictures with the pilots.
Downtown was the place to be and it was festive and crowded with revelers an; we both had lamb dishes at a Lebanese restaurant. By this time we were really exhausted, especially having eaten a nice and relaxed meal. So we headed to our hotel – it’s more a college inn/convention center and our room was in a dorm-like setting.
On race day..we managed to find street side parking. Also found out at the Tourist center that the city is on strike. We saw tall grass in public playgrounds and piles of litter everywhere but didn’t really pay much attention until it was mentioned. Found ourselves a fairly good spot under a tree and plunked our lawn chairs down but was standing most of the time in order to watch the race and take more pictures.
The action was just as exciting as the day before. As with all races, some contenders are sure bets etc but the results were really interesting. I think the commentators were also slightly surprised as the race unfolded.
We made a bee-line to our car and try to beat the traffic to the border to get back home, in anticipation of long lines. But we needn’t have rushed as traffic was decent. Truly enjoyed the air-race and would love to attend another one in the future if it’s close proximity like this year’s. The only regret is we didn’t get a T-shirt or cap but the designs did not impress us enough to justify paying the high prices; and there were a few we would have considered purchasing , but again the prices were just too high. But not all is lost..as my husband is pretty happy that we did not splurge!
