enginehistory.org

[gravery]

Dreadnought's day. But it seems most of the guests we used to see in the past are no longer there (Voodoo, Strega, Rare Bear, Argonaut, etc).
Did the owners gave up ?

[wpearce]

It is all about money, or the lack there of.

Voodoo is now owned by the Planes of Fame air museum in Chino, CA. My understanding is that they would be happy to race the aircraft if a sponsor comes forward. The aircraft, with a stock engine, is flying (but not at Reno). The previsous owner still has both racing Merlins.

Strega is not here, but its owner is. I'm sure Tiger would be willing to have Strega race if a sponsor came forward.

Rare Bear is at Reno, but not racing. It seems that its current owner is taking a break from air racing. We can only hope that an epic return to glory is in this aircraft's future. But I know of no plans currently.

Argonaut is here and racing.

The reality is that they owners get paid less now than they have in the past. Combine this with the ever-increasing costs of warbird maintenance and the escalating value of the aircraft, and there is not much incentive to run around the pylons. There are also some rumors that 2020 will be the end of Reno. We will see.

But yes, the ranks of the Unlimited are a bit thin and contain mostly stock aircraft.

Regards,

Bill
_________________
Bill Pearce

www.oldmachinepress.com

[gravery]

Bill,

Thanks for the input.
Best.

Guillaume