Sorry y'all...I'm out of town, performing inspections on a couple CAF aircraft.
The long and short of it is this...and I'll start with the bad news...........
During PRS, I decided that there was indeed, no way in heck I was going to be able to finish Another Solution in time for Reno in September. Only those who know me well can even come close to possibly understanding how difficult this decision was for me to make. I feel like I've tried about as hard as I could have to get the thing finished, but I just couldn't get it done. I don't know if I've ever actually accomplished anything within the deadline given.
And it's not only about how mad I was at myself, but I was also worried (and still am to some degree) about those who have come forward to help sponsor the little racer. I feel I've let them down considerably. I still have every intention of racing Another Solution at Reno next year, but there was simply no safe way to pull it off this year. That sucks.
Now, for the good news......
Upon hearing my decision to stand down this year, fellow racer (and IF1 Vice President) Gary Davis, came up with what I thought was a pretty cool idea. You see, he's got two airplanes to race this year...Scarlet Screamer, which is a real hot-rod Cassutt racer, and another little racer, which started out life as No Big Thing, then Wood-Stock, then Spud Runner. It's new name is Time Bandit. What's especially cool about Time Bandit is that it, like my airplane, is a Shoestring. There have only been a handful of Shoestrings ever built & raced, and Gary wants me to fly this one for him!!!
He's going to be busy with Scarlet Screamer, although I
might let him fly Time Bandit for one race or so.
But what an honor it is for me to be chosen to fly this historic airplane for him.
Another neat thing about this airplane is that it was built only one year after the original Wagner Solution, and they've raced each other. Gary brought the airplane to me last week for some final assembly, and I can't tell you how neat it is to have TWO Shoestrings that have raced one another in times past, sitting in the same hangar, under my care. My engine sponsor mentioned to me last week that my engine should be shipped to me this week, so the plan is to install it on Time Bandit for this year. I have some photos that I intend to share with y'all, but that'll have to wait until my return to Midland this weekend...IF y'all want to see them, that is.
So, there's the news. It's bitter-sweet for me really, as I'm still bummed that my airplane won't be finished for this year. But next year, won't it be cool to watch both of these Shoestrings racing each other once again?
Gary
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