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Race Course
Announced For 2012 EAA Airventure Cup By Daniel Baxter |
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February 29, 2012 - Race officials for the 2012 EAA
AirVenture Cup race have finalized the race course for
this year’s cross-country race, scheduled to take place
on Sunday, July 22, 2012 in advance of the EAA
AirVenture fly-in in Oshkosh, WI.
This year’s race will commence in Mitchell, SD (KMHE)
and end in West Bend, WI (KETB), with checkpoints in
Sheldon, IA (KSHL) and Pocahontas, IA (KPOH), totaling
450 miles. The race will have 11 classes of homebuilt
aircraft, some of which reach speeds of 400 mph. The
competition is a timed race, meaning that each aircraft
will take-off individually and fly in pursuit of the
best time. The times are used to determine final race
results.
Cross country air racing has a long history in the U.S.,
starting in the early 1920s, and has been credited with
many advances in aviation technology, speed and
reliability of engines. The organization’s goal is to
combine aviation history with innovation, new
technologies and individual craftsmanship into one
high-octane, fun-filled race that participants and
spectators alike will enjoy. |
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“This is
truly a grass-roots aviation event,” said Eric Whyte, the race’s
chairman. “The event keeps cross-country air racing alive and
lets younger generations experience a piece of aviation
history.”
Upon
completion of the July 22 race in West Bend, the aircraft will
depart for Wittman Regional Airport in Oshkosh, where they are
scheduled for a mass arrival that afternoon. The awards banquet
will be held later that evening when the winners will be
announced. The race aircraft will be on display for the
remainder of the week in the homebuilt parking area just north
of the new International Aerobatic Club building on the
AirVenture grounds.
Each
summer EAA presents the largest annual general aviation event in
the world, 'EAA AirVenture Oshkosh', also commonly known as the
"Oshkosh Airshow". During the event, the city's airport, Wittman
Regional Airport, is the busiest airport in the world (in terms
of traffic movements). The week-long event annually attracts
around 10,000-12,000 planes and a total attendance of more than
500,000. The event also attracts more than 800 exhibitors, hosts
nearly 1,000 forums, seminars and workshops, and welcomes more
than 700 journalists each year.
The annual fly-in was first held at the Rockford, Illinois airport. Attendance at the fly-in continued to grow until the Rockford airport was too small to accommodate the crowds, and so it was moved to Oshkosh in 1970. A study conducted in 2008 by the University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh determined that the 500,000 annual fly in attendance generates $110 million of tourist income for the three counties surrounding the airport. |