Since I am currently residing in the Twin Cities metro area, it would be impossible for my to maintain this blog and not report on last weekend's Red Bull Flugtag event.
"Flugtag," meaning flying day in German, is the perfect name for this unique occasion. The idea, originating in England in 1971, included an assortment of (usually haphazard) flying machines which were eventually pushed from a cliff only to fall to their doom in the waters below. The original event, "Birdman Rally," maintains it popularity throughout the world (especially in the U.K. and Australia). However, in 1991, Red Bull hosted its first "Flugtag" in Vienna, Austria and with the sponsorship of Red Bull, this event has grown increasingly in the past two decades.
Although I am usually only a quick drive from this year's Twin Cities Flugtag, I was occupied with a family reunion during the 24th of July. Nevertheless, I was able to receive first hand accounts of the spectacular event. One spectator said, "I thought there were probably three or four thousand people there." Not even close! This year, the Twin Cities played host to more than 90,000 spectators and 37 teams. With a turnout like that, something big was bound to happen. This event set a Flugtag attendance record and the team Major Trouble and the Dirty Dixies set a Flugtag world record by flying 207 feet (beating the previous record of 195 feet which was set ten years ago).
Here is their historic flight:
(I was part of an assembled team, but our application didn't make it to the finals. Maybe I'll try again next year.)
To view the top results and to browse the list of competing teams, go to http://www.redbullflugtagusa.com/TwinCities2010.
I'm disappointed I missed out on this event, but with a turnout like that, I would expect Red Bull to bring Flugtag back to the Twin Cites in the near future. Congratulations to Major Trouble and the Dirty Dixies and the rest of the competing team.
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