Two JU teams to take part June 19-22 in all-woman 2012 Air Race Classic

JU has not one but two teams taking part in the 2012 Air Race Classic, the only all-woman transcontinental air race, which traces its history to 1929.

The teams have big shoes to fill, as Sarah Morris and Leah Hetzel were the first JU team to win the competition last year. This year’s competition, which runs June 19-22, starts in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., and ends in Batavia, Ohio, with many stops in between.

JU’s two teams are: Air Race Classic Team #9 (“Team Snoopy”), consisting of pilot Juliana Vazquez and co-pilot Heather Meyer, flying a Cirrus SR-2; and Air Race Classic Team #45 (“Team Red Baroness”), consisting of pilot Katja Jourdan and co-pilot Renèe Brilhante, in a Cirrus SR-20.

“They have been busy working on planning their routes,” said Juan Merkt, Director of JU’s Davis Aviation Center. “We wish both teams the best of luck in the competition.”

The Air Race Classic is the only all-woman, transcontinental air race flying today, tracing its history to the era of Amelia Earhart. Starting in 1929, the race became known as the “Powder Puff Derby” during the 1930s. Last year’s JU team beat 11 other participating collegiate teams as well as all 50 teams made up of the top female pilots in the nation. Forty-three teams finished the race last year.

Air Race Classic Inc. is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) dedicated to encouraging and educating current and future women pilots. For more, visit http://www.airraceclassic.org.