*A Cumming woman, Annabelle Kellogg and her co-pilot, Gretchen Jahn, make up one of 43 teams entered in this year’s Air Race Classic. The entrants will take off June 17 from Fairhope, Alabama, and race 2,426 miles to Spokane, Washington, where the race is scheduled to end June 20. (Map shows designated stops along the way.) The Air Race Classic traces its roots to the 1929 Women’s Air Derby, also known as the Powder Puff Derby, in which Amelia Earhart and 19 other female pilots raced from Santa Monica, California, to Cleveland, Ohio.
*A race of a different kind, at a much slower pace and not covering nearly as much real estate begins this week in Helen. It’s the 52nd annual Helen-to-the-Atlantic Hot Air Balloon Race. And liftoff is scheduled for Thursday morning at 7:00, weather permitting. The winner will be the first balloon to reach I-95 by sunset Friday or the balloon nearest the finish line at that time. It’s the highlight of a three-day festival in Helen that will include tethered rides for the public. More about the festival and the race can be found here: Helen to the Atlantic Balloon Race