Chief pilot Larry Chambers keeps a high-in-the-sky watch over Daytona International Speedway in the Goodyear blimp, one of three maintained in the USA. By H. Darr Beiser, USA TODAY
By Seth Livingstone
USA TODAY
PALM COAST, Fla.
The past three decades, no one has enjoyed better views of the Daytona 500 than Larry Chambers, who hasn't paid a nickel for his first-class seat.
Chambers, 62, pilots the Goodyear blimp Spirit of Innovation, based out of Pompano Beach, Fla.
"When I'm over a NASCAR track, I get to see the whole event — all four corners," Chambers said. "On the ground, you only get to see that visual part that's in front of you."
Chambers, who has flown above everything from chili cook-offs and mall openings to Super Bowls and the Olympics, has an affinity for NASCAR. Flying one of America's most iconic advertising symbols for the official tire of NASCAR, he feels a connection to the competitors.
"The best thing about this job is that we're No. 1 in aerial support for television," said Chambers, who is Goodyear's senior pilot, having been with the company since 1969. "But if it wasn't for Goodyear running tires and winning all those events, we probably wouldn't even be up here."
This year's Daytona 500 will be televised by Fox and veteran broadcaster Mike Joy appreciates the blimp perspective.
"When (director) Artie Kempner started using the blimp as a play-by-play cam, it opened up a whole new world of possibilities for us as far as what we could say with authority," Joy said.
"The blimp used to be used for beauty shots — that wide overhead view to show the vastness of the track. In recent years … we've had great success using the blimp shots to follow cars around the track, but most importantly as a validation tool for replays. Who bumped who? How did this get started?"
Although Chambers says he could fly blindfolded, he can't do it alone. The company employs a team of 22 to man the Spirit of Innovation, christened in spring 2006, including three other pilots. There are two sister blimps in the USA — the Spirit of Goodyear, based in Akron, Ohio, and the Spirit of America, based in Carson, Calif. — each requiring similar operations.
Ground support
When the blimp positioned itself for Speedweeks by flying from Pompano Beach to Flagler County Airport, 25 miles north of Daytona, a team of 16 followed on the road. The traveling party requires a bus, a tractor trailer housing electrical and mechanical fabrication shops and two passenger vans, one pulling a trailer packed with TV camera equipment.
Chambers does more than fly, handling everything from "the budget to cutting the grass back at our base to buying fertilizer to making repairs on the hangar."
It takes hours of preparation and inspection for each assignment. Seating for up to six passengers in the gondola, or cabin, is replaced by the camera gear during races. Cameraman Jose Herrera, 26, coordinates installation of the HD camera, which provides 360-degree coverage from its mount below the gondola, and technical equipment used to adjust picture quality.
It takes only a minute for Chambers and Herrera to become airborne. The ship is powered by a pair of fuel-injected, 210-horsepower Continental engines, but can be operated as a free balloon.
The flight from Flagler to Daytona International Speedway takes 30 to 40 minutes depending on wind conditions. Once positioned 1,000 feet above the track, Chambers circles counterclockwise to offer the crowd a view of the illuminated message board on the port side.
Flying lower, along the coast, Chambers opens his window and waves to gawking spectators, many of whom wave or snap photos. The ability to fly low, hover and maintain longer views of subjects on the ground endears the blimp to TV.
The airship won't win any races. It takes nearly six minutes for Chambers to circle the 2.5-mile tri-oval. Chambers controls the altitude of the 192-foot-long, 59½-foot tall, 55-foot wide, helium-filled craft with a single drive wheel, mounted to the side of his captain's chair. Two foot pedals control the vertical rudder and steer the ship. The blimp produces an amazingly smooth ride, bobbing gently as it reacts to thermals from the ground. The top speed is 50 mph, although Chambers is most comfortable cruising at 30.
However, like an ill-handling race car might drift up the track, the blimp tends to wander as it reacts to air currents. It takes several seconds for the Spirit of Innovation to fully respond to Chambers' commands.
Landing is no easy task
The most difficult aspect of the pilot's job is landing. Even returning to Flagler in optimum conditions, eight crewmembers scurry to grab the guide ropes, while others help move the craft into position and attach it to its mooring mast.
"You have to know the weather, the wind and the fields — where not to put the blimp that may cause it harm or cause our personnel harm," said Chambers, who must avoid an open pit upon landing at Flagler. "You might be running 800 pounds lighter than air or 800 pounds heavier than air and you have to know how to handle each in all different wind conditions."
Steve Hogan, 56, is the crew chief on the ground and compares himself to a catcher in baseball.
"I'm the only guy who can see everything that's going on," said Hogan, a 35-year Goodyear veteran who has worked 20 years with Chambers. "My job is to make sure everyone stays safe, that all the maintenance gets done and the ship is ready to fly."
The blimp's basic design hasn't changed since the World War II era. What's new is the instrumentation. Chambers constantly has chatter in his headphones, monitoring air traffic, weather and instructions from TV directors. "Not only do I get to see everything, I get to hear everything," Chambers said. "But best of all, I get to show off our fantastic lady to the people below. They know they're at an important event when they see the Goodyear blimp hovering overhead."
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