The dates for the 2015 Pylon Racing Seminar(PRS) will be June 17-20, 2015. The entry application has been posted! Please make sure you contact the class you plan to attend PRS in. For more information, please look at the Rookie School Page.

Reno, Nev. – The Reno Air Racing Association (RARA) has tapped former Coca-Cola executive, Micheal (Mike) Crowell, as president and chief executive officer of the STIHL National Championship Air Races. Throughout his established career at Coca-Cola, Crowell managed bottling facilities in the United States, Middle East and Asia. Crowell has a strong reputation as a leader in sales and marketing as well as his highly effective management of operational cost controls.  “We are extremely fortunate to have someone of Mike’s caliber step in to take the helm at the Reno Air Races,” said John Agather, chairman of the RARA board…

Renewal forms have gone out in the mail, to renew the seats you held in 2014. If you did not receive your form, please contact the RARA office at 775-972-6663. Tickets will go on sale to the public on March 3, 2015. You can purchase them from the Air Race website at www.airrace.org , you print them out and they are scanned at the gate, or call the RARA office at the number above. We look forward to seeing you in September!

Sept. 29, 2014 – The passion of our air race fans is truly unmatched and is reflected in the conversations that have gone on since the end of the 2014 National Championship Air Races. It’s unfortunate that the quality of racing during this year’s event has been overshadowed, for some, by the controversy surrounding the disqualification of Precious Metal in the Breitling Unlimited Gold Race. We have reviewed this issue thoroughly and fully support the decision of our contest committee, who followed the Reno Air Racing Association and FAA rules in every way. We will, however, work with our pilots…

Reno, Nev. – Sunday, Sept. 14 concluded what was one of the most competitive National Championship Air Races in recent histories. Throughout the week, nearly 120 pilots, across six classes of airplanes, thrilled fans with racing that was intense and extremely close. Unfortunately, the results of Sunday’s thrilling Breitling Unlimited Gold Race have been called into question by some fans and pilots. Five-time reigning champion, Steve Hinton, won his sixth National Championship flying the P-51 Mustang “Voodoo.” Sherman Smoot and his Yak-11, “Czech Mate,” finished in second place. Unofficial race results had Thom Richard finishing in third place in the…

Reno, Nev. – At approximately 3:30 p.m. today, Sport Class pilot Lee Behel, 64, from San Jose, Calif. was involved in a fatal accident during a qualifying heat of the STIHL National Championship Air Races at the Reno-Stead Airport. Behel was flying a GP-5, “Sweet Dreams.” This was single-plane incident and no other pilots or spectators were injured. In addition to being one of the founders of the Sport Class and its current president, Behel was a retired Air Force fighter pilot and a loving father. Behel was a former Sport Class champion and longtime Air Race pilot. “Lee was a very…

Reno, Nev. – With the kickoff of the STIHL National Championship Air Races less than two weeks away, the historic aviation event released its complete list of pilots and planes scheduled to compete for Air Racing gold. The lineup features nearly 120 pilots and planes and is headlined by a highly anticipated rivalry that pits two of the winningest Unlimited pilots in Air Race history head-to-head in the event’s most recognizable racing class. Coming out of retirement in an effort to regain Air Racing gold is famed racer and seven-time Unlimited Gold Champion Bill “Tiger” Destefani, racing his wildly popular…

JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska – Lt. Col. Kevin Sutterfield, an Air Force Reserve F-22 pilot, will be delivering an F-22 to the 51st Annual Reno National Championship Air Races and then making his debut in a 1942 AT-6 Texan during the competition Sept. 10-14. “It’s a real privilege to fly these amazing aircraft and to be part of this legendary aviation event,” said Sutterfield. “For a kid that grew up looking through the airport fence, this is a dream come true.” Sutterfield learned to fly before he had a driver’s license- soloing on his 16th birthday near his home in Tampa,…