Father and son Alan Hoover, Winona Lake, and Brian Hoover, Warsaw, found competition and success at Reno Air Races after months of intense preparation.
Brian Hoover, as builder and crew chief for Hoover Aero Sports, rebuilt/built both planes over the past year. He and father Alan Hoover disassembled and drove their two biplanes 2,200 miles to Reno, Nev., earlier this month, according to a provided press release.
Both pilots were able to qualify to race; Alan Hoover in his Pitts S1S Race 84 “Panther” at 193.6 mph and Brian Hoover in his Pitts S1C Race 32 “The Whip” at 186.1 mph. Both planes are dedicated to military pilots – Brian's to his grandfather, Col. R.H. Damico, who flew fighters in WWII, and Alan's to Gayle Snell, a pilot in the Women's Air Force Service Pilot Corps.
Although flying faster than his father in practice, Brian raced in Silver Class earning third place in the Cup Race Sept. 20., reaching 199 mph. Alan Hoover's fastest lap in Gold Class was 195 mph earning him 6th place. The race planes fly around pylons on the 3.2 mile course for six laps at altitudes of 50 to 250 feet above the ground, the release states.
Each September the National Championship Air Races include categories from biplanes to jets to unlimited warbirds. The Air Race spectacle lasts four days and includes national airshow demonstrations, with 2016 bringing the Blue Angels Team.
Alan and Brian will be there next year seeking more speed and welcome all the support from the community, who is invited to come to Reno into the pits to meet them and see the planes up close, the release states.
Hoover Aero Sports was sponsored this year by G & N Aircraft of Griffith and AeroLeds of Caldwell, Idaho. Special thanks was given to Scott Herring of T-Zone Graphics for his last minute work in getting the graphics on the planes. Other sponsorships are available by contacting hooveraero.com
(Story By The Times Union)
