More Gee Bee 'R' Awesomeness... With Some Help From Gizmodo.com.au

800hp Gee Bee R-1 from the 1930's - with the slightly more blunt cowl than the 450hp R-2

 It's true, my lifelong adoration for the Gee Bee racers is on the threshold of becoming an obsession. So we're taking another little journey into the Granville Brothers raindrop-inspired flying machines. The pic above is of NR2100, the R-1 powered by an 800hp Pratt & Whitney R-1340. This airplane was piloted by the amazing Jimmy Doolittle to victory in the 1932 Thompson Trophy closed-course race with a winning speed of 252.686 mph. The prize money for winning that race was $4,500.

 I'm just beginning to get my head better wrapped around the basic differences for easy identification between the R-1 and R-2. I probably knew all this when I was younger, but my head has a hard drive that's dangerously close to being full, or at the very least in desperate need of a defrag! It doesn't help that there are several variations or minor modifications of these racers over their careers, along with a hybrid of the two that appeared in 1934. That airplane, known as the R-1/R-2 Super Sportser, had the fuselage from the R-1 (lengthened about 18") and the wings of the R-2, plus the big engine (possibly putting out 1,000hp) and had a snug cowl with bumps on it for the rocker covers. That airplane crashed shortly after departing Burbank on the long race to Cleveland for the Bendix Trophy in the 1935 National Air Races. Pilot Cecil Allen was killed and the era of the stubby Gee Bee racer came to an end.

 Oh, the basic ways to ID the aircraft are:

 The R-1 has the big engine, the more blunt front shape on the cowl, the NR2100 registration number and the #11 race number.

 The R-2 has the smaller engine, the tighter fitting cowl, the NR2101 registration number and the #7 race number.

 The R-1/R-2 hybrid has a big engine, the snug cowl with bumps for the rocker covers, the old R-2 NR2101 registration number and race #7. 

 I hope to go much more in-depth on the wide range of Gee Bee aircraft in the future, but at least that gives you some basics to wrap your head around on the the 'R' model racers.

 For something extra and extremely cool, check out the awesome Gee Bee R-2 cutaway drawing that was recently posted by Gizmodo.com.au. Click the pic below to enlarge it over there (hi-res) and click here to see the other interesting cutaway drawings in their post that included the Gee Bee.

 Click pic to see the Gizmodo hi-res version from their post on cutaway drawings

Poll: Is The Gee Bee R-2 One Of The World's Most Perfect Airplanes?

The Gee Bee R-2 racer from the 1930's (with the tighter fitting cowl than the R-1)

 It's true that I'm a bit obsessed with the Golden Age of Air Racing at the moment... and not just because I posted a video with some amazing actual footage of the 1935 National Air Races, but also because I'm working on developing a mainstream business that actually ties in peripherally with the airplanes from that era. That business will hopefully be a kickstarter.com campaign sometime in the Spring, and you can be sure I'll be letting you know about it so you can be a contributor to its success!

 But for now I thought it would be interesting to see if you agree with me that the Gee Bee R-2 is one of the world's most perfect airplanes. And no, the poll isn't configured wrong, but if for some reason you aren't able to find the answer you were looking for in the poll, feel free to leave your disagreeable thoughts in the comments area : )

Video: Fantasy Of Flight's Gee Bee Z Recently Making Beautiful Music!

 I've been hooked on the Gee Bee Z and the R-1/R-2 1930's era air racers since I was about 3 years old. Seriously. My dad was Gee Bee geek from way back and he had some static models of them, and one used to hang over my bed when I was about 3. Even at that young age I knew there was something very special about a Gee Bee!

 This video from a couple days ago shows the highly accurate Z replica that was built by Jeff Eicher and Kevin Kimball in Florida back in the mid 90's. This aircraft has been part of Kermit Weeks' collection at the Fantasy of Flight Museum for many years now... and Kermit might be thinking about flying the airplane once again. They prepped the airplane for an engine run and made this sweet little video about it. I'm really glad they did that!

 Just looking at this airplane is enough to make your heart beat fast and streak glorious thoughts of Golden Age of Air Racing through your mind, but it's almost too much to handle when you get to hear that awesome Pratt & Whitney R-985 makes beautiful music too. And if you're wondering if this is the exact aircraft used in the making of my favorite Disney film The Rocketeer, it isn't. This one is built to be very accurate to the original. The one used in the Rocketeer was built by Bill Turner way back in 1978, and it was slightly modified with a little more wing and a slightly longer fuselage to make it easier to fly. It's on display these days at the Museum of Flight.

 So take a few minutes now and enjoy the amazing sights and sounds of the awesome and beautiful Gee Bee Z : )

 
Video screenshot: Fantasy of Flight crew pushing the Gee Bee Z out for the engine run
 

Screenshot: Gee Bee Z engine start up... blue smoke and beautiful sounds!
 

Screenshot: the 450hp P&W R-985 purring right along - maybe flying again soon?