2014 Valdez Fly In
More than 250 planes traveled to Valdez, Ala., for the 11th annual Valdez Fly In, and a crowd in excess of 2,500 was on hand to witness the festivities. Frank Knapp of Palmer defended his title in the Alternate Bush class with the best overall score for the STOL event—a takeoff of 41 feet and a landing of 35 feet, for a combined score of 76 feet. Josh Pepperd impressed the crowd with a 37-foot takeoff for the shortest of the event in the new SQ12 to take second place. The Bush Class was a family affair as Bobby Breeden won his third straight contest with a 61-foot takeoff and a 55- foot landing for a combined score of 116 feet. His dad Bob was just behind with a score of 119 feet. Paul Claus took third with a score of 167 feet. Competition results and links to videos can be found at
www.valdezflyin.com. Planning is already underway for the 12th Annual Fly In on May 8-10, 2015. For more information, email Joe Prax at
jprax@alaska.net.