DVD Review: 'Obsession' - Inside Sport Class Racing At Reno

The 'Obsession' DVD is not for sale, but interested individuals or groups can
find out how to get a copy by sending an email to 77Obsession@gmail.com

 (7 pix)

 Scott Alair spent 2-1/2 years building up his Lancair Legacy which was like an obsession for him... to get the airplane built, and then to race it at the Reno Air Races. This DVD is a pretty detailed look at Scott's experience in the Sport Class racing his Legacy at Reno 2006. The airplane is named 'Obsession', and so is this approximately 50 minute DVD video.

 The video isn't for sale, but it is available to people who are interested in sharing this inside look at Sport Class racing at Reno with groups, EAA chapters, and more. It's very well produced, with a coherent story line, great video images, and it's narrated at times to make sure the story is well communicated. I really enjoyed it. It's both entertaining and educational. Send an email to 77Obsession@gmail.com for info on how to acquire a copy.

 All of the pictures below are screenshots taken from the video. 

 The video begins by giving a nice overview of what the Reno Air Races are about, which includes a good look at several of the Unlimited racers.

 Several minutes are dedicated to showing the Legacy while under construction. It's not a video on how to build the airplane by any means, but it does take the time to explain about how the airplane came to be.

 The focus of the video however, is definitely on the details of Scott's experience at Reno 2006. He had first raced at Reno 2005, coming in second place in the Sport Class Silver Category. Scott's story isn't about having unlimited financial resources to build a super racer, but more that of a guy who's worked really hard to build a very clean but relatively stock Legacy, and the effort to put on the course and experience the thrill of air racing.

 You get a good feel for the preparations required for racing, and a nice look at the interactions between the pilot/owner Scott and his crew chief Jim Thomas, who has also built a Lancair Legacy.

  It's easy to overlook the Sport Class at Reno and pay more attention to the Super Sports or Unlimiteds, but getting the chance to see up close what it's like in this class has given me reason to realize that just getting to Reno and racing is a remarkably big accomplishment.

 The 'Obsession' video covers in pretty great detail the events of Scott's racing on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. It's after Saturday the his experience at Reno takes a pretty big turn. He winds up losing his racing license after making an inappropriate pass on the course. It's really interesting to see how all this plays out, and how Scott eventually realizes that the bottom line is that he didn't follow the rules of the game. It's also good to get the feeling that ultimately, the goal at Reno is to ensure safe racing. At the end of the day, that's all that matters.

 At about 50 minutes long, 'Obsession' is long enough to really tell an interesting story without being too long to get boring. It's not a story filled with extreme conflict and bad language like most of the supposed 'reality' shows on TV these days. Instead, it's a professional and articulate look at the very demanding sport of flying airplanes around pylons at about 300 mph and 50 feet off the ground. Added to all that is the story of a guy who turned his obsession into a reality, even if only for a couple of years.

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