CMSU Aviators Participate in Air Contest
Jun 12, 2006, 17:19
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| CMSU aviation students Elizabeth Eisenhauer, left, of Springfield, Mo., and Raven Roberts of Oregon, Mo., will participate in the 30th annual Women's Air Race Classic June 20-23. The event will test their skills in competition with college students from across the country. |
This is will be the first time a team from CMSU has competed in the women's air race.
"We heard about the race last fall through the Wichita chapter of The Ninety-Nines, a national organization of women pilots," Eisenhauer said. Once the decision was made to participate, they began raising funds to pay for rental of the airplane, provided by the CMSU Department of Aviation, fuel and expenses. Since March, the two have raised more than $5,700.
Both women hold pilot licenses, and one holds an instrument rating, prerequisites for participation. Advancing in the competition requires that teams fly distances between two points in times as a close to possible to those prescribed, rather than in the shortest time possible, much like a road rally.
The pair will leave Mesa, Ariz., on June 20. Over the next four days, they will fly in and out of airports in Santa Teresa, N.M.; Ozona, Texas; Bryan, Texas; Bastrop , La.; Ada, Okla.; Lawrence, Kan.; and Albert Lea, Minn,; before making their final landing in Menominee, Minn.
First through tenth place cash prizes are awarded, and the top college team will bring home a traveling trophy.
Roberts took her first plane ride at the age of 13. When the time came to choose a career upon high school graduation, a conversation with an aviation student from her hometown convinced her that CMSU was the place to work toward her goal. She is pursuing a career in commercial aviation.
Eisenhauer's grandfather was a pilot, and her father has kept that interest alive for her. When she was 14, her father purchased a ride for her in a biplane. Although she initially started studying marketing in college, she eventually changed her major to aviation. As a cadet in CMSU's Air Force ROTC program, she will fulfill a 10-year military obligation in the field of aviation. Both plan to pursue graduate degrees.
Roberts and Eisenhauer are excited the upcoming challenge of the air race, and they both consider it an opportunity to expand their skills.
"It's a great opportunity to meet other women pilots and network for future jobs in aviation," Robert said. "CMSU has prepared us well, so we know we have the skills. It up to us to put them to use."
