RIP AJ.

I knew AJ from him racing where I was a CFI-G: Minden, NV. My winter/off season day job was preparing racing sailplanes for Alan Bikle's biz Airtech. Alan crewed for AJ during a nationals there in Minden. This was when AJ was flying his 604. I loved the way AJ put a very large , stretched numeral 2 on his tail. It was inlayed into the paint as to not cause drag! This number took up all avaialble real estate. That was AJ. I was always real keen on observing AJ when he competed both on and off stage. He was really cool and I never saw him loose that. Not even when he would bend the bird, or his crew would bend his crew car-which at this time was an Audi. At that time all I ever heard about AJ was that he was a real good racer and that he could be intimidating. I never knew that he flew war birds. I did not know he liked airplanes too.

I was a crew member on a coast-to-coast sailplane race:the Smirnoff Derby-which was a series of invitational affairs. On a rest day in Columbus, all the race pilots were treated by a local aviation nut to fly a hanger full of his airplanes. This cool host said-if you can fly them-then have at them. AJ went over and fired up this pitts special. AJ taxied out-hit the coals, lifted-off and did a roll on take-off. He set the pace for the others on the play day. He was a true competitor and a gentleman. What a great pilot AJ Smith was!