July 20, 1969 aerial shot on a historic day for the Atomic Cup...

My dad taking aerial footage and still shots from the WWII "egg-beater" helicopter her flew in during one of the early afternoon heats.


Today's race would also be historic, as it was the day Apollo 11 moon landing took place. KEPR radio that announced the races, gave a live feed of those dramatic moments through the PA system, there was dead silence as we all listened with rapt attention.

When the famous words reached our ears, "Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed," a thunderous roar and cheers, along with hand-clapping erupted and echoed the length of Columbia Park.

By the time we had exited the park and arrived home, we watched the live video from the moon of the Apollo 11 crew at work on the lunar surface. Many more photos to come! :-)