DATE          LOCATION                        NOTES (Full report follows)

17 Jun 05     Lafayette, IN (LAF)           Day 2 - Purdue University Airport

Lexington, Kentucky

We had a great morning in Lexington. It was a beautiful, cool (72 degrees) day and we decided to walk around the shops by the hotel and bought a couple of things. After lunch we headed for the airport for our flight to Lafayette, Indiana.

Once at the airport, we decided to go visit the Kentucky Air Museum, which is located near the Tac-Air FBO. The museum, although small, was very nice and they had some very interesting and rare airplanes. The Museum holds several aircraft and other memorabilia that have a connection to the State of Kentucky.

We departed Lexington at 3:45 PM and headed to Lafayette. The flight to Indiana was great. Once again, the scenery was spectacular. The green rolling hills and pastures make the view from the top breathtaking. We had very good weather throughout the flight but continued to have head winds, so our flight took us almost 2 hours. We arrived at Lafayette-Purdue University Airport at around 5:45 PM our (Miami) time, which is 4:45 local.

Lafayette, Indiana

Once we landed in LAF, the Tower controller called us "Classic 40" and directed us to the Purdue University Ramp control, where we were welcomed by the Purdue crew. From that moment on we were no longer N7136X, we were "Classic 40".

There were already about 22 other planes that had arrived for the race. We were instructed to immediately proceed to have an RPM check. There we were greeted by Ruby, a lady that has been flying for over 40 years and has logged more than 15,000 hours, when she stopped counting. Upon completing the RPM check the airplane was parked on the ramp and we proceeded with our registration and logbooks inspection. While we were doing this they took the plane to have it washed and waxed. Once they finished waxing we headed out to the plane to put on the race number 40, while their mechanics conducted the inspection of the airplane.

To say the least, we had a long afternoon/evening. Thankfully, everyone we encountered, the Purdue students, volunteers, and other race staff were very friendly, helpful, and accommodating. They even took us to Wal-Mart to get some duct tape, which we found out comes in many different colors…

We arrived at our hotel at about 8:30 PM local time. We checked in and had dinner at the Lafayette Brewing Co., which had very good beer made on the premises! We then walked back to the hotel. It is cold here! Can you believe it was 58 degrees!

Tomorrow morning we head to the Airport for another day of preparation, meetings, and briefings.