MolaKule
Staff member
quote:
F-15 beats IndyCar by a nose, wing, tail and a few yards
The Virginian-Pilot 06/23/04
author: Chris Brownlow
(Copyright 2004)
HAMPTON - Which is faster - an IndyCar or an F-15 fighter jet?
That's just what the folks at Langley Air Force Base and Richmond International Raceway wanted to know. So they pitted Maj. Bret "Slam" Anderson, a veteran fighter pilot, against IndyCar driver Dan Wheldon and held a drag race at Langley on Tuesday afternoon.
If you had placed your money on the IndyCar ... well, you would've lost.
Anderson's F-15 smoked Wheldon's IndyCar in the 17-second race, crossing the finish line yards ahead of the car before taking flight.
An F-15 reaches speeds up to 205 mph before liftoff, while an IndyCar can reach 100 mph in less than three seconds while accelerating. Wheldon told reporters he wasn't sure how fast he was going. In fact, he didn't know he had lost the race.
"Did I get beat?" Wheldon asked reporters after the race.
"Yes," a reporter told him. "It was a photo finish."
"I was told I would be racing somebody named Slam," Wheldon said. "I'm just glad he didn't slam into me. That F-15 can get rotten fast."
While Wheldon was talking to reporters, Anderson continued his flight over the base.
The race took place about 4 p.m. on two parallel landing strips 750 feet apart. About 50 service members and their families came out to support Anderson and to see Wheldon, filling up the metal bleachers at the airfield.
For the Air Force, the race was a way to recruit and boost morale, said a press officer. It also promoted the IRL IndyCar Series Weekend coming up at Richmond International Raceway, where Wheldon will be racing.
Races will start Friday and continue into Saturday evening. For more information, call 866-455-RACE or go to www.rir.com.