Red Bull Flugtag Set to Make a Splash in the 'Gopher State' This Summer

MINNEAPOLIS and ST. PAUL, Minn., March 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Red Bull Flugtag is cleared for takeoff at Minneapolis-St. Paul's Harriet Island.  The one-of-a-kind flying spectacle promises to have a big impact during its first-ever visit to the Land of 10,000 Lakes, and Red Bull invites all Minnesotans to enter the competition with the most spectacular flying machines they can imagine.

Previous Red Bull Flugtag aircrafts have brought to life everything from hot dogs and gangsters to comic book characters and professional sports teams.  With Bob Dylan, Brett Favre, Judy Garland and Prince all hailing from or residing in the North Star State, this year's applicants have plenty of available muses.

Applications can be downloaded at www.redbullflugtagusa.com and are now being accepted either online or via snail-mail.  We know that Minnesotans have the guts, want the glory, and have always secretly desired to leap off a 30-foot pier into the Mississippi River.

WINGS OF WISDOM

For all first-time flyers, Red Bull Flugtag, which means "flying day" in German, is a competition that dares both the brave and the brainy to design, build and pilot homemade flying machines off a 30-foot ramp in hopes of achieving human-powered flight.  But don't be fooled – this is no ordinary flying competition!  While distance is important, creativity and showmanship are necessary to impress the judges.  These criteria have inspired such outrageous crafts as a sky-high Popemobile, an airborne outhouse, a flying fire engine and even a replica of Santa and his sleigh.  

While the sky may be the limit on creativity, there are still a few flight regulations.  First off, all flying machines must be entirely human-powered (no external energy sources or stored power, so forget about the slingshots, catapults or anything besides your own burliness.)  Second, no matter what they say, size does matter – all crafts must be less than 30 feet wide and must weigh no more than 450 pounds (including the pilot).

SETTING THE BAR

Since the first Red Bull Flugtag took place in Vienna, Austria, in 1991, more than 80 Flugtags have been held around the globe, attracting up to 300,000 spectators for a single event. The record for the farthest flight-to-date currently stands at 195 feet and was set at Red Bull Flugtag Austria in 2000, but the U.S. record is not far behind, standing at 155 feet and set in 2007 at Red Bull Flugtag Nashville.  After a year away from the U.S. skies, Red Bull Flugtag has returned to challenge this year's flyers to blow these records away!  Come on Minnesota, we know you can outdo the other stops on the Red Bull Flugtag circuit.  Show them how you get things done in the Gopher State!

Red Bull Flugtag is free and open to the public.  For more information, including applications, photos, and video footage from past Red Bull Flugtag events, visit www.redbullflugtagusa.com. For media inquires, contact Jen Belongia at (321) 320-6260 or [email protected].

SOURCE Red Bull Flugtag