I learned I was pregnant a few months after talking my race partner into participating in the Air Race Classic 2016. I knew that my baby would be 10 to 11 months old at the time of the race, and I could participate while my husband would take care of him for 10 days. That was an easy decision to make while my baby was less than the size of a peanut... I stuck to it though, with the support of my husband, and we planned the race with the idea that we would spend the least amount of time apart from each other. The fact that the race ended at home helped a lot.
During the race, I had a huge advantage over the other racers. I wanted to get home and see my baby boy. When the day came to put the plan into action, it was a lot harder to do than when I made the decision 18 months before. My partner said I didn't speak for 30 minutes when we left. But after getting in the race spirit, nothing could stop me from getting back home. Not a swarm of bees, not a reluctant starter, not 10,000 ft density altitudes, and certainly not a microburst.
Competing in the race was hard. It's hard for anybody. It's competitive, we fly 8 to 10 hours in hot airplanes, we have to get along with our race partner(s), and we have to fly high speed 200-ft AGL flybys, often in less than perfect conditions. Being the mom of an infant, preparation before the race was very important, because I had to make sure I was not going to be worried over diapers and baby food while flying. I wanted to stay concentrated on the race. It took me about a month to plan for all his meals. Just as it took me a month to plan for the rest of the race, reviewing the route, the flybys, the paperwork. But during the race, my only concern
was to know whether he was having a good day at daycare, and how he would react when I got back to Daytona.
His reaction was amazing, and made the whole experience worth it a thousand times. When I crossed the doors of the FBO, and he saw me, he couldn't wait to get in my arms and gave me the best and longest hug ever. All in all, I'm really glad I got to participate in the Air Race Classic, however hard it was, and I hope I get to do it again. Having to plan for a family complicates things a little, but I'm one of these people who thinks you can have a family and still be able to follow your passion. For some of us, it means delaying things by a few years. For others, it gives us the strength to keep doing what we love. So to all the moms out there, keep doing what you love.