SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) — There’s a 32-mile wide ‘no drone zone’ around this weekend’s Super Bowl and Drone Racing League pilot Travis McIntyre says he wouldn’t dare risk it.
Instead, he and his fellow DRL pilots will be flying their drones at breakneck speeds through every imaginable course they can find.
(Video Courtesy DRL – YouTube)
It’s DRL’s 2016 season. The website describes it as “pod racing from Star Wars… the first sport of the 21st century.”
There will be six races around the world and pilots with the most points will qualify for the World Championship. So far, McIntyre’s ranked in the top 10.
“It’s unreal,” says McIntyre.
DRL drone racing is like the Indy 500, but with high-tech racing drones instead of race cars. Races last only a few minutes. Custom designed, carbon fiber frames and battery-powered, these drones are made for speed — racing up to 80 m.p.h.– transmitting real-time video to the pilots. The courses run the gamut — through abandoned buildings, landmarks, even the Miami Dolphins football stadium. Whizzing through the state-of-the-art Levis Stadium would be a piece of cake, through the seats, down the aisles, up into the hallways around tight corners — no prob.
DRL pilots race at the Miami Dolphins Stadium in Florida. (photo courtesy Travis McIntyre)
The pilots race the video-rigged drones via remote control, wearing goggles that put them in the cockpit. They call it ‘first person view’ or FPV.
Hand-eye coordination is key with FPV racing drones. McIntyre says a lot of the best pilots come from the gaming world because the muscle memory with the drone controller is similar.
But the aerial tricks and maneuvers are perhaps the most amazing part of drone racing. That’s McIntyre’s forte, catapulting him onto the DRL’s leader board. Acrobatics are second nature to him. He started out as a ‘boarder,’ doing ‘rolls, ‘flips,’ and ‘combos’ on the sidewalks of his native Santa Rosa.
“It’s really an extension of skateboarding in my eyes,” he says. “When I started flying, I started doing tricks and acrobatic stuff. Being a boarder made me better at flying in tight spots.”
Watching the video relay of McIntyre making a dive into a tight corridor will hit you right in pit of your stomach. What’s it like for him?
“It’s like looking at a big TV, but the image is right in front of your eyes,” says the 29-year-old. “You can definitely get nauseous, but I’m more worried about losing control and crashing than getting sick.”
DRL pilots crash and burn just like race car drivers. Repairs happen on the spot. Each pilot carries an arsenal of replacement parts.
DRL pilots prep and repair their drones.
“You crash a lot,” says McIntyre. “You are racing… crash mid-air, crash into the ground… break your propellers… but these drones are made to be repaired.”
Drones lined up and ready for racing.
Racing drones run the gamut. McIntyre says he’s seen drones worth as much as $20,000.
“The ones we are racing with in the DRL are worth $300 to $500 apiece.”
Which brings us to money. It’s a multi-million dollar league, according to the website. McIntyre says sponsors supply equipment, but he hasn’t made enough money to quit his day job loading trucks for Macy’s and race full-time. He once considered going after a degree in philosophy. Now he just wants to fly.
A job flying drones isn’t out of the question. After all, drones are being used these days for everything from package deliveries to reconnaissance.
McIntyre says he personally wouldn’t try to use a drone to spy on anyone. “They’re not sneaky,” he laughs. “They’re loud… people would definitely know they’re being watched.”
He says he’s just taking it a day at a time. He started out as just flying and putting his videos on YouTube. Then, the DRL reached out to him, so now hes a race pilot.
(Video: Courtesy RotorSports/McIntyre)
Ranking, money and trophies aside, right now McIntyre’s just into flying any time, any place, every chance he gets, for the sheer love and thrill of the sport.
“It definitely starts out feeling the freedom of moving through 3-dimensional space, but I still want to fly someplace where I haven’t seen that perspective from the sky.”
So what’s McIntyre’s dream race course?
“My dream track would definitely be in a city, up and over skyscrapers and under bridges.”
Heads up! Is that McIntyre and DRL pilots buzzing over San Francisco right now?
CBSSF.com writer, producer Jan Mabry is also executive producer and host of The Bronze Report. She lives in Northern California. Follow her on Twitter @janmabr.