NemesisNXT makes its debut

                 New race plane impresses Mojave Airport spectators

                    This story appeared in the Antelope Valley Press on Saturday, June 5, 2004.

                    By HEATHER LAKE
                 Valley Press Staff Writer

                    MOJAVE - With the crowd of 200 or more duped into looking the other way, the NemesisNXT rolled up behind them - and there it was.

                    Its color-sanded pearl paint job glistening in the hot desert sun, the flawless, sleek racing craft held spectators at bay as applause gave
                    way to awestruck silence.

                    "I could tell it was a three-bladed engine," said Burt Rutan. "It had that kind of hum to it. The sound this makes is mesmerizing."

                    Spectators slowly moved in for a closer look, caressing the impeccably detailed body, ogling the craftsmanship and snapping photos to
                    capture its debut.

                    "It's just something new and different than anything I've ever seen," said Elsie Abel, a Lancaster resident and former flight student.

                    Different mainly because of its almost sharp aerodynamic design, whose exterior beauty makes up for its barren, no-frills interior, said her
                    husband Dave Abel. Frills, Dave said, only add extra weight and reduce speed.

                    "The fit and finish on this is excellent," Dave said, noting that the lines on the rudders were perfect.

                    The 350-horsepower sports class airplane has more than double the power of its predecessor, Nemesis, which had 100 horsepower, said
                    Jon Sharp, owner and racing pilot.

                    The award-winning original Nemesis was retired to the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum in 2000 after 47 victories in 50 races, setting
                    16 world speed records.

                    Sharp and his wife Patricia Sharp, also a pilot, built the plane from a kit with a team of experts.

                    Eric Schrock worked on the plane's aerodynamics, testing it in a wind tunnel and creating a flight simulator for Jon, who plans to race the
                    plane in several events throughout 2004 and 2005. Two of the many events are the Reno National Air Races in September and the Nellis
                    Air Show in November.

                    The Sharps decided to build the sports class aircraft after racing the Nemesis with great success for nine years in Formula One Air
                    Racing.

                    "This is really that plane on steroids," Jon said of the new plane powered by a Lycoming Turbocharged 540 engine.

                    To build a plane meeting sports class standards, the Sharps had to meet several specifications including that it was home-built, that the
                    engine not be more than 600 cubic inches and that at least five kits were out on the market.

                    The Lancaster couple met all of those standards, selling their first kit in April 2002 for $129,500.

                    Along with readying the kits, they had to make a training video instructing buyers on how to build the plane. The whole process took four
                    years.

                    "The thing that really impressed me about this is Jon Sharp's motivation," Schrock said.

                    Doing that meant having an oven and a freezer at the work site in order that the carbon fiber material which arrives frozen and only has a
                    shelf life of 30 days could be stored and later put into a 230-degree oven to be cured, Patricia said.

                    A friendly rival, Andy Chiavetta, who has won two of the last three Reno Air Races with his Lancair Legacy was busily inspecting the
                    underpart of the craft's wing.

                    "They kind of built this plane to try and beat us," Chiavetta said. "It looks pretty competitive."

                    The plane is unique in the fact that it is made almost entirely of carbon fiber with the exception of the engine mount, the landing gear and
                    a few other small parts, lending to the Sharps' expectation of a premium performance.

                    "We are really pleased about the potential performance of it," Jon said.

                    Though he said "today" it has only 350 horsepower he has hopes they can push that up in the future.

                    "We're known for speed," Patricia said.

                    Standing around the plane, speed was the first thing that came to many people's minds.

                    "It looks like it's going fast just sitting there," said Bryan Kreimendahl.

                    But it hasn't gone anywhere yet.

                    The couple is tight-lipped about when they will conduct their first test flight. Patricia said the reason being is that test flights are very
                    dangerous and require extreme concentration.

                    She also didn't disclose the speed the "fast" plane can go, information that will be available after the test flight which will be "very soon."

                    On average sports class planes go about 330 mph, Schrock said.

                    And all bets are that the NemesisNXT (Neoteric eXperimental Technology) will more than hold its own.

                    "It looks like a lot of fun and it looks like it'll go really fast," Rutan said, adding that it only had one thing holding it back.

                    "It's beautiful," Rutan said. "But it's saddled by having to use a propeller."

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