1979 Reno Air Races -- Part 2

[@mike-w3e2c]

I've known Steve Hinton since the mid seventies, worked on restorations, watched his twins grow up and Steve running his businesses. You will never meet a more humble and talented man of enormous character. Anyone that has had the opportunity to work with him is truly lucky. He imparts large sums of knowledge and skill. A great man. Mike W .

[@sint5990]

“Not going to make it, tell Karen I love her” always has and will tear me up a bit.

[@The_Conspiracy_Analyst]

It made me LOL a little bit, not gonna lie

[@balsumfractus]

I was there in the stands....his engine was absolutely sick as he crossed the finish line and the plane was already slowing down.....watched him turn....watched him dip below the ridge line......saw the black smoke... It was a different era back then....nobody stopped us from going down to the wreck site ( after Steve was airlifted away..). He had somehow managed to hit the only pile of rocks on the valley floor. The plane was shredded. I found the griffon engine, and it was a mess... Fortunately, Steve survived, as is still very much with us today.....

[@NorthPoleJeff]

I was there in the stands also and had seen the whole thing. The plane appeared to go down in a steeper angle than the video showed. I'm totally surprised that he made it. My friend who went to the wreck said that the only part of the airplane that survived was the seat, that both sides of the fuselage around the seat were gone. I'm glad that Steve made it.

[@jvasquezito]

He survived!!! Wow that was so rewarding. I seriously thought he was done.

[@Cambpro]

@D town 313 What is your issue, dude? Are you always this hostile over something so trivial? First of all, he did survive, so the idiot here is you, dumbass.

[@cindybowman5977]

Just sad he didn’t win! He should not have banked sideways w a engine that was struggling at that moment

[@747heavyboeing3]

He's flown so many types of aircraft its amazing. I saw him fly a Dehaviland Mosquito yesterday out in Chino. CA

[@747heavyboeing3]

@@cindybowman5977 so you are an experienced air race pilot??

[@kevinmalone3210]

I saw the Red Baron race at the Reno Air Races in 77 and 78. It was an awesome airplane. It had contra rotating props and was the fastest in the unlimited class at the time. A pilot by the name of Darryl Greenameyer piloted it those years and won.

[@Natedoc808]

I used to love watching the races as a kid from age 4-10 ('86-92) from the roof of the stalls of our barn in Silver Knolls overlooking the race course in Stead. We used to ride our dirtbikes out to the track in the back of the valley past the pylons. Saw many a crash including one that crashed into the sage brush just off the edge of our neighborhood across the street from our friend Jared's house, luckily the fuel cell didn't rupture and ignite the area. Truly awesome memories that I smile about when my daughter asks me to tell her stories about my life.

[@deafmusician2]

First time seeing it... I thought he was a goner for SURE. I'm glad he made it!!!

[@edcook9747]

I worked st the planes of Fame museum in its very early years and remember Steve as a kid. Have visited with him several times over the decades since. Always an easy going, humble gentleman. Now his son races to the concern of Mom!! I don’t know him but his Son seems just like dad. A humble gentleman.

[@CaptJackSpeed]

I was 12 years old when I saw this on ABC Wide World of Sports. I'll never forget it. Many years later I met Steve at the Air Museum. What a great guy and truly great aviator. A modern day Howard Hughes

[@747heavyboeing3]

He sure is a class act. I saw him fly a Ww11 Dehaviland Mosquito yesterday. On KZbin

[@scottcharney1091]

"A modern day Howard Hughes" is not necessarily a good thing.

[@angharadhafod]

I remember when I was young seeing this on ITV (UK) World of Sport. My dad was mad on planes, and was watching it with me. It was such a dramatic and unexpected ending that I never forgot it. The final comment from presenter Dickie Davies was that Steve was alive, but no more. It's nice, after all these years, to find out what actually happened. My mind can rest now!

[@Terence-e5k]

3pm as i remember .

[@paulwright8532]

We were there in '79 ... a friend of ours worked for Lear Aviation, so we were on the flight line down by his hangar. Listening on the pilots' frequency, when Hinton declared a "Mayday" - obvious he'd blown something with that white smoke trail. He made a turn back toward the field, but pancaked in several hundred yards east of the runway. Huge ball of smoke made us all assume the worst - but fortunately the wings sheered off on impact, and Hinton wasn't in the fire. In 1980, we 4-wheeled out on the course and set up a picnic under one of the far pylons - could never do that today! :-o

[@gregdelgado4197]

I was there at the air races when Steve Hinton crashed. I have a piece of the Red Baron still. The crashed plane pieces were sent to Chino Air museum where it was on display. I asked if I could have a small piece of the wreckage and they were nice enough to give me a souvenir. I've been to 14 Reno Air Races from 1974-1988. Long live the Reno Air Races.

[@amcken9316]

I was at 10 between 74 and 89. :)

[@wadeadams4263]

I remember watching this on TV and it has stuck with me all these years

[@lestermiller2717]

My uncle was involved in restoring WW2 planes and loved to fly I got to go up a few times. Went a few times to Oshkosh with him in a reproduction 1933 twin engine plane made by McDonnell Douglas. The 60’s was a blast tons of original planes still flying back then. Never saw a P-38 Lightening in person that is my favorite plane of all time and the P-47D Thunder Bolt.

[@rpllieb]

I was in the pits that day my friend Zane J. Worked on the plane they were out of Idaho. After the crash I looked at Zane , and asked him if he thought he was alive and tears were running down his face. I thought damn he has to be alive, I don't want to be the last autograph he ever signed. I called the hospital later and got a hold of Zane, and he said he was alive !! Haven't been to an air race since . And I remember hearing over the radio Karen I love you.

[@rpllieb]

As I recall Zane told me, they modified the fuselage, at the tail, making it two inches shorter. On the second or third lap I asked Zane what's that white mist coming out of the back ?? He said it was normal, he walked away to talk to somebody, and came back to me and said something's up !! Thankfully the wing snapped off with the fuel and them, and Steve wasn't in the fire. Needless to say the red Baron was sponsored by Michelob beer, and they had a big watermelon tub full of ice and beer for after the race. Not on this day though.. I think of Mr. Hinton alot, every airliner I get on I wonder if he's my pilot ? He will always be one of my HEROE's .

[@mqbitsko25]

I remember seeing this live on TV. This is the first time I've seen it since 1979.

[@rodeye2]

I was there and watched this,it's so amazing he survived.I have a stack of oval shaped stickers of the Red barron someone threw away like it was trash.

[@airracingallaviationflight2721]

That was my first Air Race, the announcer said something like "we regret to tell you the pilot has lost his life" somethng like that.... then on the way out, my nephew came running up after a bathroom trip and said Steve was really beat up but alive and on his way to hospital.... amazing!

[@Yosemite-George-61]

I've met Steve on the pits at the last Denver race... great guy, took the time to talk to me even if I was a nobody...

[@dianneb2224]

Jorge Picabea - You’re not a nobody. And never forget that. 😌

[@billyboy3031]

@@dianneb2224 you are a nice Lady! 😊🌹

[@Shoeshineidaho]

I went to grade school with Steve----and I'd be hard pressed to say I've known someone I've admired more---over the years..........................

[@thephilpott2194]

I saw him at Duxford a few years ago and couldn't quite believe this clip from decades ago- clearly a Terminator of some sort!!

[@tski3458]

I lived in cold springs for years. Loved to sit on a mountain and watch these races

[@mrmcclear]

"Tell Karen I love her..." Wow, just pull my heart out!

[@Impisak]

You do realise he did not say that... he was passed out...

[@Cambpro]

@@Impisak You do realize that he did say that, who TF else would have said "tell Karen I love her" Right after saying "I'm not going to make it, John"? How the hell can you be this fkn stupid....

[@Impisak]

@@Cambpro I mistook this video for a diferent one with a simular name, so yes I was wrong but you need to calm down.

[@airracingallaviationflight2721]

The fact he said that has always amazed me... cool calm and thinking about her... wow.

[@PacificAirwave144]

I was the biggest aviation junky-kid back in the day and i remember reading about the crash of the Red Baron in Air Progress or one of the other great Av-magazines of the day. What a state-of-the-art airplane///it had been all the buzz for a couple years. Then the accident and I remember his parents were in-attendance when they announced he was gone. What a shock for all--so glad he survived and has gone on to do so much since!!

[@PacificAirwave144]

Thanks for the comment.

[@torkdork69]

2:51 this pretty lady has duel wielding props on her chest. This is awesomeness of the era.

[@coreyfellows9420]

Hahaha creeps ☝

[@neatstuff8200]

I was in the stands as that plane went down and you could have heard a pin drop. Nobody thought Steve had a chance of living through that Inferno.

[@gosportjamie]

Steve's survival is a classic lesson in THE biggest lesson in flying: Keep flying the aircraft, right into the crash if necessary and you really can make the difference between dying at the scene of the crash or surviving to be rescued. Above all just keep flying the aircraft...

[@gary6449]

I was there in the crowd and remember this vividly - what is not mentioned in the video is that the Red Barron had a *massive* 8-blade counter-rotating prop.. when the engine quit, that 500 MPH racer dropped like a ROCK because of the prop drag !

[@stacyobrien1729]

Know your plane!!, It was two three bladed props not four

[@scotabot7826]

Your not kidding! can you imagine the drag? No telling if he was able to get them feathered or not. Wow! Lucky man to be alive today!!

[@rogertycholiz2218]

@@stacyobrien1729 Is that the one with P&W 28cylinder?

[@stacyobrien1729]

Roger, I appreciate your comment I was there too, however, you are incorrect, she had two three bladed counter rotating props but she did fall like a rock that part is true, I wish the plane was still here like so many others .

[@RickGerald]

6 Blade Contra rotating drive used on the Avro Shackleton . The propeller pitch control used oil pressure for actuation so when the motor seized the propellers went flat. When Thom Richards purchased the racer "Precious Metal" which uses the same style Griffon engine and propeller drive he changed it so that he could feather the props manually, which saved his life when he suffered a Carb malfunction at Reno and was able to feather the props and land dead stick..

[@jimnew5813]

I am a life long resident of Florida, but moved to Tennessee in 1978 to work as a crane operator at a nuclear plant TVA was building. I heard about an unlimited air race they were going to have in Homestead Florida so I flew down to Miami met a friend who lived in Tampa where I was from and we saw Steve Hinton and the Red Barron win that race. it was the most exciting race I have ever seen and we got to go through the pits afterwards. I have never made it to the Reno races and unfortunately they never had another air race in Homestead, due to low spectator turn out.

[@rickdeckard7549]

Homestead General....was there as an 11 year old...shame they never came back...pretty different out there today...

[@flyingfinn7786]

I worked as a timer at the Homestead air race with a group of pilots and, I agree, it was a very exciting race. Steve Hinton and the RB-51 were just starting to hit their stride, culminating in the absolute propellor-driven airplane speed record the following year. He has devoted his entire life to the sport of air racing and his son, Steven, is carrying the family legacy forward with his own records and accomplishments. I have had the privilege to meet and speak with each of them over the years, and they are both consummate professionals. Sad they never held another Homestead race.

[@brandonthompson8411]

Wow, back in the day when the networks covered air-racing.............sounded like Jim Lampley on the call and obviously Frank Gifford in the studio..........now here in Reno it barely makes the evening news.

[@daw162]

I guess they've replaced it with goofy stuff like crossfit. Still can't figure out how that has become a "sport".

[@flyingdog1498]

What is the point of air races?

[@htos1av]

@@flyingdog1498 To be the big "dog".

[@flyingdog1498]

@D town 313 Hey Shitsucker, no it is not, just more make believe shit like pro wrestling.

[@firebirda1815]

@@flyingdog1498 Have you ever been? I assure you it's not make believe. My wife call's it the nascar of the sky. I guess that's kinda true, except when you blow the engine or rub paint, you can't just pull over...

[@tproking]

I remember watching this happen "live" on ABC Wide World of Sports with my Dad. When we saw that smoke cloud we were horrified and when they showed the wreckage we wept and knew he was dead. It was a miracle that he survived, it just wasn't his time to go. Glad he made a full recovery!

[@pg1171]

Daytona Shelby I remember watching it also. I just knew he was gone, but so relieved to hear that he had survived. He has gone on to great things, and others seem to be just catching up with where the Red Baron was back then. It's a shame that the networks don't pay any attention to the races anymore. Have a great day!

[@tobylangdale95]

I was watching this live with my Dad also, some things that you never forget.

[@AlanHirschenhoferII]

Great times back then...

[@alanpierce2269]

40 years ago, this week I was there. !!!! Think the RB Mustang was the worlds best known aircraft at the time, Glad Steve survived to fly again. Later that day I hooked up with John Crocker and went to his Oakland Hanger to see his Mustang. Not a bad way for a young PPL from England to spend a few days, even met Burt Rutan while at Mojave.

[@FlyingDutchmanPodcast]

I remember the McCellelan A.F.B airshow in 79 and Steve Hinton was there with the Red Baron, I was 15 years old and was amazed that this plane was an mustang, Steve Hinton said how he was leaving that afternoon to go to Reno to race. My dad has the picture in his album to this day along with other airshow pictures.

[@terryburgett3407]

Seeing his sanders hat reminds me where I got my first introduced to the air races I worked for Wiley sanders

[@jimmyb9016]

I was 8 years old when this happened. My Dad and I were some of the first people on the site of the crash. I remember watching the emergency vehicles from the airport drive up. I remember it all very well. Years later my Dad an a friend had the opportunity of scrapping what was left of the #5 P51. I tried to get him to keep it. But I was only 10 at this time lol. We had one of the bent props for a long time. Wish I knew what happened to it as its a part of Air race history.

[@topgunmaverick379]

What's left of baron is hanging up in a work shop in Idaho. John mazula has the remains of the plane

[@Weyco23]

@@topgunmaverick379 Some parts are at POF in Chino also.

[@kathryntruscott6351]

So glad he made it.... seems like a nice guy.....

[@cgee2224]

He is a great guy. He's president of Planes of Fame Air Museum in Chino, just celebrated his birthday on April 1st

[@akaSlasher]

@@cgee2224 He married Karen Maloney, daughter of air racing legend Ed Maloney, in 1980. Their son, Steve Hinton Jr., won the Reno Unlimited class race in 1990, at age 22; he is the youngest pilot to have won the race in that class.

[@LonMoer]

I remember this day :( I was working on the race crew for #7 Ridge Runner and we shared a pit with the #6, so we were all pulling for John Crocker and then the RB-51 came by real quiet and we all watched as Steve tried to turn the plane and it disappeared below the end of the runway. Later after the race a bunch of us got to go down and tour through the crash site.

[@bennetlucchesi843]

LonMoer my dad was on the race crew for ridge runner too

[@markshilobrit9756]

Steve Hinton showed the Right Stuff to keep his poise and keep the aircraft away from the crowd. Having been there in several situations in my aviation career I can relate to his attitude and his awareness to do what needed to be done.

[@shermansquires3979]

Did he actually keep the aircraft from the crowd, like had enough height to fly away, or was he already miles away?

[@wadeadams4263]

Ever since I was a little kid in the 60s I've wanted to go to Reno and see it live

[@nattybumpo7156]

Same. I finally kept that promise in '23. Had to drive a 30 year old car from Vermont, and sleep in the car, but I got to hear the war cry of Merlins in the valley of speed.

[@mostrosticator]

I'm now 47 years old. I vaguely remember this happening. Mr Hinton is very fortunate to have survived. Luckily it was after the race where the speeds weren't nearly as fast as during race conditions.

[@dalemaki7603]

I was at this air race we were just kids me and my two brothers and my three cousins were out playing in the field where he crashed we got thirsty and came back for a Pepsi and that's when the red Baron crashed thank God we weren't still out there my brother even grabbed a small piece of the plane

[@CapitalVideo]

As someone who was there and saw the crash, it's great to see the interview of Steve and find out finally what actually happened. We left the airfield thinking he was gone and only found out he was still alive a day or so later.

[@722wdblazer]

Just saw Steve flying a P-38 in Hillsboro Oregon yesterday.

[@steveturner3999]

I remember watching it on ABC live. When they said they had lost Steve I couldn't believe it. Then they loaded him into that Huey and I was cheering and praying he'd make it. What a career and legacy that almost wasn't.

[@akaSlasher]

"Tell Karen I love her." She is Karen Maloney, daughter of Steve's friend, air racing legend and flight historian Ed Maloney. Steve and Karen married in 1980. They have one son, Steven Hinton Jr., who became the youngest pilot to win the Reno Air Races Unlimited-class championship in 2009 at the age of 22.

[@scotabot7826]

In the beautiful VooDoo no less!!!!

[@zachthegreat6836]

akaSlasher nice profile pic

[@gracemccormick2580]

akaSlasher hh

[@flyerbob124]

They also have a daughter who finished medical school and is now a Air Force doctor.

[@Weyco23]

@@scotabot7826 Jr.'s first wins were in Strega, not Voodoo.

[@FlyingAce015]

He reminds me of Harrison Ford when recalling his crash landing in the golf course. Post accident, some people are either completely calm about it and talk like it was no big deal, or it is obvious they went through hell and it's changed them. This feels like the latter.

[@nitchmakes7550]

If Steve Hinton hadn’t lived, then his son Steven Hinton wouldn’t have came along. The modern Reno Air Races that we know and love would’ve be much different.

[@robertmantell1700]

Not really....I mean, I like SH jr as much as the next guy, even saw him in 2015 when he set Voodoo down after an overheat, but it always was about Dago Red, Strega, and Rare Bear. None of them fly now, so Voodoo runs the roost. Without SH Jr. nothing changes, and I'll point out that it was a Corsair flown by a USN pilot that own in 2017.

[@richardcclark]

My father and I had a very somber dinner that night in Reno with a friend after watching this sad event. It wasn't till the next morning that we saw in the papers Hinton was still alive.

[@donparsons3777]

Steve Hinton is one of the nicest guys in the world. I met him up at Oshkosh and he posed for a picture with my young son.

[@195511SM]

Lloyd Hamilton......I remember meeting him at my friend's graphic arts studio....in Santa Rosa, CA.....back in the early 1980s. I had no idea he raced, until after he left, and my buddy mentioned he had a couple of Sea Furys. As a kid in the 60s, I had heard of the Reno Air Races, but never got a chance to go....until I moved to the area in 2010.

[@195511SM]

I met that guy ( Lloyd Hamilton ) a few times in the early 1980s......in Santa Rosa, CA. He used to stop in at my friend's little art studio every so often. My friend mentioned something about him owning a couple of Sea Furys. I didn't get around to attending the Reno Air Races, until I moved to the area in 2010.

[@RagdollOC]

Still gets me after all these years.

[@djmips]

Are you gonna do it again? I don't think circumstances are going to allow it. Super Corsair! 1985, Tsunami 1990!

[@MrElSatan]

I can belive he survived this...awesome!

[@robbyrob0723]

Amazing!!!

[@onlyweknow2]

wow he got out of it alive!!! Well Done Steven!

[@BigWheelHawaii]

One of The Greatest "Aviation Proverbs" or "Aviation Axioms" Ever Spoken,,, Was One "Spoken By The Late ,,, Great,,, Korean Mig Ace,,, Major Bob Love... While Talking About Steve's Crash, a Couple of Weeks Later,,, Bobby Uttered This Pearl of Wisdom,,,, "Well,,, The Kid Made Every Mistake In The Book,,, and Lived To Tell About It"... And That's Pretty Close To Being 100% Correct... Another Aviation Adage That Might Have Been Appropriate That Day,,, "Steve Was The Luckiest,,, Unlucky Guy,,, Flying" In That Race...

[@zhamoua]

i'm so glad that Steve come out alive on this brutal crash, soon i will go to this race, at the moment i will race with my rc plane...

[@raymondcaruso507]

Very happy to see he survived.👍🛩🛫

[@cupidstunt22]

Wow So glad he made it

[@pulsejet1]

Fast, high powered airplanes, hanging it out there, risking life and limb. The adrenaline and work has to be incredible. And this anchor man still asks, "What's the thrill?"

[@christinestill5002]

Hinton says "Tell Karen I love her" a second before he hits. Amazing. A bit too quick the announcer says Hinton is lost.

[@tomsriv]

I thought he said "Don't care, I love it." Which sounded like a strange thing to say when someone says your going to crash. Had to come here to see what he said.

[@indridcold8433]

It is amazing how healthy and athletic everyone looks in the video. Being in top health probably aided in saving Steve's life. Nobody was fat and dirty in the video at all.

[@MrCarnutbill67]

Indrid Cold It’s because they all smoked like chimneys and drank booze back then. Seriously, my moms doctor recommended for her to start smoking to lose weight. That was around 1979. Fast food and soda hadn’t quite taken over yet either. Today, the pilots are in shape but everybody watching are fat asses. Haha

[@jameschatham2816]

Wow how I miss ABC Wide World of Sports, I remember watching Evil Knevil do some of his greatest jumps on that show

[@scotabot7826]

Wasn't it great! Every Saturday afternoon/evening . Mom in the kitchen making fresh salads and baked garlic toast and daddy outside on the grill cooking some of the best black angus ribeyes you have ever put across your tongue. Me and my brother and sister all in the den laying in the floor watching WWOS. I would give anything to go back to the 1970's!!!!!!!!

[@billyboy3031]

@@scotabot7826 you are NOT alone!! If you look throughout history, and the whole world is included, we lived in the very best of times in the very best of places!! NOTHING can compare to the 70's and 80's in the States! From music to technology improvements, cars, boats and of course planes, life in every way was the very best!! Yes my friend, you are not alone in that wish!! Not to mention Steve Hinton and Bob Hoover and many other incredible pilots!! We also had an amazing list of WW11 flying heros were still around and still flying!!! As well as Vietnam pilots who had skills unmatched in the world!! We who were the right age (teens to twenties) during that time were the very luckiest people on earth!! We still had freedoms and safeties lost in the following decades. Playing after dark and not worrying. STD's were still pretty simple and easily treated (for those who were a bit "promiscuous"), we were still almost as innocent as we were in preceding decades, but we had the knowledge of the coming technologies that would change our world forever and make it even smaller. Remember when "pagers" were a miracle? The the first "portable phones"? From that point on, it all was lost!! Cellular phones would BE the change!! Oh hell, I just realized I've been rambling. Sorry folks! It was just that it caught me at just the right time! I'm old now and I don't run in the sand on the beach anymore. We don't ride the backroads late at night with our girls listening to..well, pick your own favorites! Life was good and it got me remembering. See ya!! Poof!! 😉

[@scotabot7826]

@@billyboy3031 Oh your so right my friend. We did grow up in the best times. My dad was also a GA pilot and I grew up in Citabrias and 150's,172's, Cubs and Grumman Americans. Times were great and as kids we stayed outside till dark, with not a worry in the world. I'm so thankful I was born in 65, and grew up in the 70's and 80's. Hang in there buddy, I'm right here with you!

[@billyboy3031]

@@scotabot7826 so cool to meet you Scotabot!! It's good to know that you were able to enjoy the times also!! They were the very best and what we saw, experienced, lived and breathed will never come again!! We were given the greatest gift...life in the 70's, 80's and 90's!!! 60's were getting great!! Before then was too much worry about the cold war!! I remember duck and cover commercials on tv! After the 90's has turned into a world of tech and everything being way too critical with money!! I'm not going into politics because I'm only talking about the era. It really was the best of the best...and we lived it!!!!! SO glad you did too Scotabot!! And to all you others who lived it!! BTW, I forgot to tell you about the list of planes we were involved with from Pipers to Cessnas, then later for the working end..Beavers, Pilatus Porters, Helio Couriers and other STOL aircraft! Oh SO cool. Lets not forget the ultralights I flew!! Quicksilver was a favorite!! You could do anything with them!! Challengers were as good, maybe even better in some cases! So yes, the aircraft were also so great!! Altho a lot of the best were from an earlier time than the 60's through 90's. Still all good!! There's my edit!! LOL.

[@Belano1911]

In the studio, wow, what a cool customer.

[@sickspeed10]

I was there... Every one thought he was killed. My buddy and I were very sad, walking to the car. Then we heard the loudspeaker behind us. Wow.

[@gehlen52]

Steve Hinton, still going strong at 71.

[@trob0914]

AWESOME, GOD SAYS "Not Your Time!!"

[@Eradicator9000]

hey totally said "not gunna make it, tell Karen i love her"

[@philipbrodermann6867]

2:29 "Remember, the Red Baron is a plane that has flown at a speed of more than 499 miles per hour" I guess they couldn't count to 500 in 1979.

[@rpllieb]

That's funny I thought the same thing at the time ¿¿

[@brandonhill2183]

499.5 qualifies

[@Cambpro]

If you don't know the importance or the meaning of 499, it's best to keep your comments to yourself....or maybe learn why.

[@philipbrodermann6867]

@@Cambpro is it to do with the speed in knots? I'm genuinely interested.

[@BoberMcBoberson]

I get what your saying lol! But yeah when you're setting world class records every fraction of a mph counts. In this case the actual speed of the record he's referring to is 499.018 mph :)

[@erwinschmidt7265]

Steve Hinton was checkers or wreckers alright, but in the end proved he was much much tougher than the plane.......

[@coreyfellows9420]

Reno... Where we have killer air shows

[@Anacinc]

Now that is a nasty one O_O!! I can imagine that there must have been a weird kind of relief to see Hinton against all odds being taken away in one piece! given this horrible crash.

[@sanfranciscobay]

On September 16, 1979, Hinton was racing the RB-51 in Reno when the plane suffered catastrophic engine failure. Hinton finished the race in second place, but crashed short of the runway. Although the plane's fuel erupted in a fireball, the cockpit was thrown away from the fire and Hinton survived with a broken back, leg, and ankle.[12][13]

[@WhoopityDoo]

Read the fucking description people. He lived through the crash.

[@thresher4]

I met Steve several times, truly a nice guy. I went to several airshow in Chino Ca, he was flying a F-86 one time, it went by and one of the drop tanks fell off, when it hit the ground a bunch of ground hogs came up to see what the heck was going on. OOPS!

[@RobertLBarnard]

I met one of the volunteer EMTs who (according to him) was one of the first on the scene; we both worked at Boeing in the 1990's. He said people were coming up to the rec, sure of the worst. Then they saw the cockpit pit pretty well in tact with the canopy closed. As they got near it, they heard frantic pounding. The pilot, apparently still in full command of his wits, was aware that his way to safety hasn't finished yet. He was aware that, being trapped in the seat, there was a real possibility a relatively small amout of burning fuel (say a quart or so) get him.

[@leovolont]

Huh!? What happened? I had to look it up. Here's so you don't have to: On September 16, 1979, Hinton was racing the RB-51 in Reno when the plane suffered catastrophic engine failure. Hinton finished the race in second place, but crashed short of the runway. Although the plane's fuel erupted in a fireball, the cockpit was thrown away from the fire and Hinton survived with a broken back, leg, and ankle.

[@juliasmith5267]

wonderful video.

[@redsoxfan1324]

Wow that is a true miracle

[@bogdog999]

This was 2 years before I started going. I never saw the RB-51, but I did see the debut of Dago Red, the Bud Light Super Corsair and Strega.

[@styxxmann]

I was there when it happened. The part they didn't mention too heavily is that, although the Lemon Valley lake bed was right there, he crashed it on a big pile of rocks right next to the (then) dirt road that connects Lemon Valley to the aiport. You can still find little bits and pieces of the plane in those rocks; I recovered two pieces of it a couple of years back. Some guys had hauled the engine up between two parked cars on the road and everything was on fire. It was awful.

[@tonyemory3618]

What a lucky guy.

[@rcdyer]

Only man to win four consecutive Unlimited races in one year, and remains the only pilot ever to do so.

[@whootsley]

Wow this whole area has changed so much.

[@mkdzr72]

The reason why they quit racing in Cleveland Ohio a really long time ago. Everyone was crashing, so they stopped. It use to be called the Air Races, after they quit racing, they just called it a air show.

[@dks13827]

Steve is a great American.

[@jrj575]

What an amazing story! This was the first time I heard about it and just assumed he died after seeing that crash.

[@kimber1911]

Checking in, 2019 here, did dude ever figure out why his engine wouldn't run right?

[@91backinblack]

kimber1911 ended up being low on gas. Even in ‘79 they were pushing the limits of the gas light.

[@amcken9316]

Oil pump failure so the engine seized and the propellor blades went to flat pitch. All the drag pulled him down short of the runway.

[@amcken9316]

The between races airshow participants sometimes went below that edge of the airport to surprise people by popping back up for the next pass. We were all hoping Steve would also come back up, but got the smoke instead. :(

[@jsullivan9238]

I had run out of film for my 35mm Camera and was walking back to the airport to get more when I saw Steve pancake on that mound of rocks. It wasn't his time.

[@Mike-01234]

You hear him last second tell his wife or someone he loves her

[@mrslibertas3977]

Ain’t gonna make it...tell Karen I love her 😢

[@akaSlasher]

They got married the next year. 😃

[@Romans--bo7br]

@@akaSlasher..... and Still ARE ! : )

[@CHUCKLOVES1969]

my dad also crashed at Mojave... in the 80's in his P51,,more unlimited races than any pilot. just turned 91 this april,,who is he? engine exploded in fire..on back lap..he pulled up..got all the way around,,,on fire...he turned the plane into the flames..they went out...he dead-stick landed on the runway....went off the end..and crashed in the shrubs....... BUT nothing like what steve went through here....he should of been killed for sure..4 him 2b all in one piece,,just really really..amazing

[@jimmyjames6318]

Okay, who is he?

[@jimmyjames6318]

Sorry, who was he? RIP

[@Cambpro]

@@jimmyjames6318 Huh?? He never once said his dad died....At the time he made this comment, he said his dad just turned 91...How is the rest of your life if you can't even handle reading comprehension? Fuck, man....

[@fw1421]

Glad Steve survived this crash. This was back in the good old days of ABC’s Wide World Of Sports. They used to show all sorts of competitive events. What we have today is an abomination. NASCAR,Football,Baseball,with the occasional Golf match thrown in. Sports on TV sucks today.

[@robertmantell1700]

Hulk Hogan's dad at 4:44?

[@johnhardman3]

In the 1940s the British Royal Navy was developing a carrier-based fighter/bomber that had a contra-prop to kill the engine-torque: if the engine-failed the prop, feathered or not, caused the plane to glide like a brick. The only (right) thing to do was to bail out, if you had the height. One test-pilot tried to gamble a forced-landing when his piston-engine failed and got burned to death for his trouble. These Reno racers should have added (de rigeur) some sort of ejection-seat, despite the weight, to these overstretched overtuned aircraft, so they'd have a slight chance of surviving the more-or-less-guaranteed airframe failure.

[@wyocoloexperience7025]

Good stuff.

[@Mavic_101]

wow unbelievable :)

[@andyfranklinitsbecausehesa5774]

Tell Karen i love her 😪😪

[@pilot3016]

Steve Hinton is a amazing pilot.. A few pilots, knowing the complexity of the Griffon engine said. Some day that thing is gonna bite someone in the ass.