From the Marion County REcord, July 8: Hodson pilots KSU to 2nd in 4-day air race
Tonya Hodson, formerly of Marion, and co-pilot
Nicole Lordemann placed second in the collegiate division of the 4,000
nautical mile cross-country Air Race Classic, an all-female competition
honoring women in aviation.
“It was four straight days of drive and focus on doing the best we can,” Hodson said.
Hodson and Lordemann are students in the Kansas
State University-Salina professional pilot program. Lordemann, a senior
who participated in the race last year was junior Hodson’s mentor.
“I did all the flying, she did all the behind the
scenes everything — communications, weather, navigation, everything,”
Hodson said. “She was the aircraft commander and I was the pilot.”
The pair met in class this spring, when Hodson learned
about the Air Race Classic, but they never flew together until they
stepped into the cockpit of their Cessna Skyhawk 172S at the start of
the race June 19 in Lake Havasu, Ariz.
“Two days after finals she left for an internship in
California,” Hodson said. “We were on the phone probably five hours a
week for three weeks. We talked about our strategies. It was kind of a
challenge to make it work.”
“It’s important to be able to communicate with your
co-pilot,” Lordemann said. “We were fortunate that our personalities
blended well. There were times that we could almost read each other’s
minds.”
Weather became an obstacle the second day when they tried to leave Columbus, Neb. and were forced to turn back.
“We’d flown one leg and had hoped to get two more.
Everyone else had buttoned up their airplanes, and we were still there
thinking maybe we had chance,” Hodson said.
Airplane weight was a critical factor, and they
calculated everything down to the ounce, including what clothes and
personal items they could take with them on the plane. The ground crew
at the airport in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich. learned firsthand how precise
those calculations were.
“We got out to the airport that morning and they had
put more fuel onboard than we calculated we needed,” Hodson said. “They
were kind enough to siphon seven gallons of fuel.”
When Hodson and Lordemann finished the race June 22 at
Batavia, Ohio, their plane was immediately impounded, and it would be
another two days before they learned the results.
“That was an emotional roller coaster. We got a call
we had a penalty. The very first flyby I was too high,” Hodson said.
More encouraging news soon followed.
“Saturday morning we got a call our aircraft was going
to be inspected. Anyone who gets that call was likely in the top 10,
Hodson said.
Hodson and Lordemann were the first K-State team to
place in the top ten in the overall standings, finishing eighth among
the 48 entries. Hodson also received an individual honor.
“I’ve been asked to sit on the Air Race Classic panel
at the national Ninty-nines conference,” Hodson said. The Ninety-nines
is an international organization for women pilots founded by Amelia
Earhart. Hodson said she will be sharing her experience as a first-time
racer.
Hodson started flying in 1990, and her maroon
Stearman biplane was a familiar sight in the skies above Marion for many
years. She entered the professional pilot program at K-State-Salina in
2011.
“I went with my passion, I went with my heart,” Hodson said.
She plans to graduate in 2013, and wants a career
flying jets. Hodson said it doesn’t matter whether she flies for a
commercial airline or pilots a corporate jet. “Flying is so unique, so
freeing, and they’ll be paying me to fly,” she said.
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