Rumble Over the Redwoods captivates thousands
Rumble Over the Redwoods thrilled audiences at California’s Redwood Coast-Humboldt County Airport last weekend with their aerial prowess and impressive collection of legendary aircraft.
Not only those present were satisfied, as the event attracted over 10,000 visitors over two days, exceeding the expectations of air show director Dennis Dunbar.
“I have attended hundreds of shows over the past 25 years and have never seen an audience more appreciative of an air show,” Dunbar said in a news release Monday. “The community response has been heartwarming and very fulfilling. It is an honor to see the community come together to support this show. Our volunteers have truly put their heart and soul into the event and the audience has recognized their efforts.”
Several World War II-era aircraft were on display, the Tora Bomb Squad brought pyrotechnics, the Patriot Parachute Team displayed red, white and blue colors as they fell from the sky, and the T-33, P-51 and B-25 were on display to capture the attention of all aviation enthusiasts over the weekend.
Rumble Over the Redwoods is still working out the numbers, but their preliminary data suggests their event generated “multiple millions of dollars in economic impact for Humboldt County.” Rumble Over the Redwoods has not yet announced another event for Humboldt County, but it seems the success of last weekend’s event will likely help organize another one.
“We will take some time to evaluate this year’s show and begin planning for the future,” Dunbar said. “Our goal is to build on this year’s success and bring even more excitement and innovation to the next Humboldt County air show.”
Racing returns, DelBiaggio wins the Late Models race
After Cal Fire had to use the Redwood Acres Fairgrounds as a crisis management base due to local wildfires, Redwood Acres Raceway took a long summer break, having not had a race since June. Racing resumed Saturday night.
Jarrett Mayo of McKinleyville took the top spot in the Mini Stocks, Joe Bonomini of Eureka finished second and Cole Peterson of Blocksburg took third in a battle of local drivers.
Eureka’s Jordan Krupa extended his lead in the Upstate Bombers division with another first-place finish. Terry Pittman finished second, while two other Eureka riders finished in the top 10 – Brayden Carnes was fourth and Kadence Toland was sixth.
Similar to Krupa, Sierra Furia maintained her lead in the Upstate Modifieds standings with her win on Saturday. The Upstate Modifieds drivers have had a consistent season, with all four of the season points leaders finishing in the top four on Saturday. Eric Price Jr. (fourth in the standings) finished second on Saturday, Sal Martinez (third) was third and Trystan Mucci (second) finished fourth on Saturday.
Dennis DelBiaggio of Fortuna emerged victorious in a thrilling Late Models race after DelBiaggio took the lead near the end, outpacing second-place Jerry Peterson and Brandon Barnwell of Fortuna, who finished third. It was DelBiaggio who held the lead at the end after both Barnwell and fourth-place Romeo Venza of Eureka led for parts of the race.
Finally, Cole Brown of Ukiah took the main victory in the Legends race in a packed field of 18 riders in the main race. Following Brown, Landen Green of Eureka took second place, while CJ Dizney of Madera didn’t quite get the Disney-esque finish, finishing in third place.
Racing fans won’t have to wait that long for another opportunity to return to the racetrack: Another night of racing is scheduled for August 31st with the Spears SRL Late Models, Spears Modifieds and Nor Cal Legend Series to make up for the racing originally scheduled for last month.
Dylan McNeill can be reached at 707-441-0526.
