HMB-4

This beauty starts at Silbersattel Peak.   With a starting gate at 15,000 ft, it's a good thing that the Race Tracker starts you off all lined up and ready to go.   Some of the planes that are really fun to fly here have significant trouble just getting to that altitude.  

As you might expect by the significant drop between the start and end gates, there's a lot of downhill to be had here.   So just about any plane can do this from an engine power standpoint.    Flight agility might be a different issue, but I don't want to give too much away here.   As usual, a slow fly-over to familiarize yourself with the lay of the land and position of pylons is a good idea.    And while high-powered planes are always fun in a race, flying a real dog has it's own rewards.   Especially in the braggin' rights department.    

Much of the high country looks to be populated with some impressive ski lifts.  This alone should give you a hint of the ruggedness of the area.  And naturally, the course takes advantage of the natural scenery with a few surprises sprinkled in.   There are a couple of interesting skill sections that have earned the nicknames:  "Roller Coaster" and "Super G".    They'll be obvious.

The race ends down in the little town of Case Marco at 3100 ft.   The canyon is just too narrow to squeeze in a finish-line gathering place and secondary airport.   And I must say I miss not having one.    I've grown accustomed to sipping champagne while waiting for the next plane to finish.    I will make up for it on a future track.   The helicopter track in Chicago comes to mind, but that's another story.