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Aviation racing, camping, and volunteering – pilot Sherry Kandle does them all! Photo and Article By Natalie Bartley In June, Boisean Sherry Kandle completed her third cross-country race in her Cessna airplane. During the annual coast-to-coast Women’s Air Race Classic, Sherry and her female co-pilot covered 2,362 nautical miles in about 20 hours of flying time. Though the 4-day route varies yearly, the 2016 race started in Prescott, Arizona and finished at Daytona Beach, Florida with 55 planes participating. “I find racing the most interesting part of flying – it’s educational and I learn every time I do it,” says Sherry. The race consisted of nine legs covering 200-300 miles per leg. At
mandatory airport checkpoints, observers on the ground record each plane’s time. At each checkpoint, racers fly as fast as they can 200 to 300 feet above ground. “It’s fun and thrilling to go fast,” Sherry says. When you fly low to the ground, you feel the speed, more so than at higher altitudes. Sherry explains that originally, women were not allowed to fly in men’s cross-country air races because the men thought it was too hard for a woman to fly solo and do her own repairs. The first women’s air race – the Powder Puff Derby – was sponsored by The Ninety-nines, Incorporated. Formed by 99 women pilots in 1929, this international organization of women pilots has over 5,000 members worldwide with two chapters in Idaho. The organization awards scholarships to women seeking pilots’ licenses. Sherry is a member and treasurer of the Northwest Section. Various organizations have been in charge of the race over the years. Currently, the Women’s Air Race Classic is managed by volunteers. Sherry’s path to becoming a pilot and flying her own plane was a gradual process. It started when she met Doug Kandle, her future husband. “He said he had a plane and I thought that was a good pickup line,” she says. He took her up in his plane and they did spins. They attended aviation events such as the annual Experiential Aircraft Association (EAA) Airventure Oshkosh, held in Wisconsin. Doug and Sherry flew frequently to the backcountry to camp with friends and to southern Idaho airstrips to dine with other pilots at small-town restaurants. Yet, she did not feel the need to be a pilot. Sherry thought flying was exciting and adventurous. She says, “I enjoyed it and was never afraid to fly.” For many years, she was into her career in the computer industry. Plus Sherry and her husband owned an airplane (Continued on page 42)