X PRIZE Cup 2006
The X Prize Cup 2006 is officially over and it was a huge success for the Rocket Racing LeagueŽ. This year's Cup was held October 20-21 in Las Cruces, New Mexico and was attended by more than 15,000 rocket enthusiasts! RRL had a myriad of activities throughout the Cup including the announcement of the winning name for the Mark-1 X-Racer, the unveiling of the Mark-1 X-Racer, the announcement of the RRL's third racing team, debut of the virtual "Raceway in the Sky" technology, and hosting balloon rocket races for area school children on Friday's Education Day.
The Education Day
The Education Day on Friday was attended by 6,500 students from throughout New Mexico and Texas. At the RRL tents, the day was filled with rocket balloon races, a fun physics lesson demonstrating Newton's third law of motion and a chance for the students to test out the brand new flight simulators; each simulator was running the same program the RRL pilots will use to train for real rocket races.
"Thunderhawk" name chosen and plane unveiled
After condensing the 2,000 name submissions to 1,000, and then to the top 10 name finalists, almost 20,000 votes were cast from RRL fans across the world via AOL and the name of "Thunderhawk" was officially selected as the name of the first Mark-1 X-Racer.
The contest winner, Michael Higgins of New Market, Maryland, explains how he came up with the winning name, "The aircraft, with its rocket propulsion, combines thunderous sound with brilliant flame and light. So I worked up several names focused on thunder and light and tried to connect those with a bird of prey."
"Thunderhawk is the ideal name embodying both the physics and spirit of the Mark-1 X-Racer," says Granger Whitelaw, CEO of the Rocket Racing LeagueŽ.
RRL flew Higgins and his son down to attend the X Prize Cup to be present at the unveiling of the Thunderhawk on Friday afternoon, along with RRL founders Granger Whitelaw and Peter Diamandis, astronaut Buzz Aldrin, State of New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, New Mexico Sec. of Economic Development Rick Homans, and other notables. Higgins received an RRL logo'd bomber jacket, presented by Gov. Bill Richardson, two VIP passes to the XPC, and other RRL merchandise.
League's third team, Team Santa Fe Racing
The RRL's third team was announced Saturday afternoon in-front of the newly unveiled X-Racer. Marc Cumbow, an Albuquerque land developer, and his father Edward Cumbow, retired Air Force pilot, came together to form the "Santa Fe Racing" team.
"We are excited to have a New Mexico team a part of the Rocket Racing LeagueŽ 'starting grid.' This is not a team run by a pilot, but a businessman, whom is a great example of how our business model is resonating outside of aviation and into mainstream American entrepreneur's vision. It is great to welcome Santa Fe Racing to the League," stated Granger Whitelaw.
Santa Fe Racing will join teams Leading Edge and Bridenstine Rocket Racing teams in the leagues races next year.
Virtual "Raceway in the Sky" Technology Debuted
The highly anticipated debut of the virtual "Raceway in the Sky" was also demonstrated on the Jumbotrons during live webcasts virtual tunnels in the sky.
The Lear was equipped with technology, developed by the RRL engineers, which projects a virtual tunnel, or track in the sky, that the pilot must fly through. The image was simultaneously projected onto the Jumbotrons so the crowd could see the pilot flying through the track in real time.
After the X PRIZE Cup concluded, the Rocket Racing LeagueŽ held a VIP tailgate party on the campus of New Mexico State University prior to the NMSU football game. It was an opportunity for local dignitaries to meet the Rocket Racing LeagueŽ CEO, management and teams.
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