Let's see the five nearest qualifiers "to my neighborhood" in the southeast. Driving distance/times according to Yahoo maps: NY @ 493mi/8hr 40min, OH @ 605mi /10h 9m, NATS @ 627mi/11h 50m, KY @ 687mi/11h 10m & Top Gun @ 713mi/10h 49m (invitation only). Then the Championships are @ 2844.1mi/ 42h 32m driving, ABU can probably get there quicker.
Makes it tough to justify attending or competing for someone who works in the retail sales field and gets one in four weekends off (usually not the one of the events). See ya'll @ Top Gun'09 in a few weeks though, can't miss out on all that fun and fellowship!