  |
 |
        |
Charter Date: 1964
Fran Gustavson, a former WASP and
B-1 7 pilot who ran Fallon Municipal Airport's FBO with her husband tried
for months to start a 99s Chapter in Fallon--a small town 70 miles east
of Reno, Her efforts finally paid off in the Summer of 1964. In early
1964 Dee Baer who lived 100 miles north of Fallon, got her license and
then several from the southern tip of the state joined in and on June
13, 1964, the Fallon Chapter was established. They volunteered to help
with the first Reno Air Races in September, which was held at Sky Ranch.
It was a perfect match, a working relationship that has lasted for 35
years.
Hazel Hohn, a former WASP who, as a young girl, had been inspired to fly
after meeting Amelia Earhart, joined the new Fallon Chapter. Mary Barr,
a Fallon charter member and FAA designated examiner flew in the Women's
Race and claimed second place. Elaine Brown, who was to join the chapter
in 1965, was recruited by her husband to help and remembers volunteers
being drafted to assist in an assortment of unexpected tasks. At one point
she found herself holding down the tail of a Formula One airplane at race
start, hoping as the accelerating propeller blasted her with sand, that
she'd still have some skin left after the takeoff release Dorothy Baer
was taking her private pilot checkride in September as the Air Races were
flying over Sky Ranch, she got her ticket, joined the 99s and became Chairman
2 years later.
In the late 1960's the Chapter name was changed to Reno Area Chapter in
recognition of the fact that most of the members were from Reno. The association
with the Reno Air Races has become stronger through the years. The Air
Racing Association began compensating the Reno Area 99s with a donation
to the Chapter in line with the amount of work done at the Races. This
is now a year-round activity with the Chapter being called on for office
help either at peak times or during emergencies, with the heaviest work
times being August and September through race week. Chapter members all
work in uniform during race week and work in the Headquarters area for
box and reserved seat ticket sales, information booth, announcers' stand,
registration for race pilots and performers, and record-keeping for pilot
briefings sign-in/attendance.
Monieti earned from the work at the air races is the primary fund raiser
for the Chapter and the primary expenditure for the Chapter is an annual
scholarship. Over the years the Chapter has also done the seine things
other chapters do--airport marking, safety seminars, pinchitter clinics,
poker runs, spotlanding contests, flour bombing, fly-in camping, and of
course potluck dinners!
Because our Chapter has been in existence for 35 years and we have a number
of these same members still a very active part of our Chapter, we have
a wide range of ages and experience among our members. We have brand new
private pilots, and airline pgots; we are happy to claim Dene Chabot-Fence,
one of the country's best race pilots, as a member, but we are just as
happy to claim the pilot who no longer has a medical and makes her contribution
to the Chapter by working with us at the ram each year. With 42 members,
we are considered a medium-sized Chapter, but we are of a sufficient size
that any woman pilot can find someone in our Chapter to whom they can
relate, and we are happy to welcome new members and visitors.