16 June 2010
British Air Race pilot Nigel Lamb, currently standing third in the Red Bull Air Race World Championships, and one of the front-runners going into the New York Air Race (19/20th June) describes the racetrack above the Hudson River as a ‘Bumble-bee in a Jam Jar!’
“It’s a real privilege to be flying on a track between Ellis Island, Liberty State park and Manhattan, you really get a sense of the history and this will certainly be a season highlight for me. It is probably the most twisting and turning track since Interlaken 2007, you just never stop turning. The most challenging aspects are on the return leg when you are doing everything as a mirror image, particularly the turn between gates 11 & 12 before the second chicane where you can’t afford to drift even slightly, because you need to enter the chicane at a precise height and dead level, any descending in the chicane will certainly be flirting with a penalty.”
“After being so close to a race win in Windsor and having thrown it away with a soft Pylon hit in the Final Four; my personal challenge here is to refine my race day strategy and avoid the slight lapse in concentration that causes mistakes’
“Of course I would love to win here, but the competition is wide open. The American pilots Kirby (Chambliss) and Mike (Goulian) would love a victory here on home soil. Hannes (Arch) is going for the record of four race wins in a row, and then I have to contend with Paul (Bonhomme) who I believe has had 11 podiums in a row! It’s not going to be easy but we have the yellow and black livery and we hope to be the fastest Bumble-bee in the jar!” <a href=”http://www.redbullairrace.com”>Click here for more</a>
