Reprinted from The New York Times, January 29, 1984
Unlimited hydroplane racing took a strong new tack last week with the announcement of plans for two turbine- powered craft for the 1984 national circuit. The use of turbine engines in the boats, both being built by major teams, is a departure from the traditional means of propulsion, the Rolls- Royce aircraft engines.
Some believe turbine engines, which had met with only marginal success in unlimited competition since first being used a couple of years ago, will now become the primary power source.
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| Lycoming T-55 L-7 turbine engine. |
With these two new craft, one from Atlas Van Lines and the other from the Miller Brewing Company, which is making its debut as an unlimited sponsor, there are expected to be eight highly competitive teams on hand when the 10-race circuit opens June 10 in Miami. A race in Seneca, N.Y., is scheduled for June 17.
In recent years, the Atlas Van Lines and Miss Budweiser teams have dominated the sport, which usually has 12 to 15 teams. But this dominance is expected to be challenged with an influx of new, better designed and faster craft. Almost Airborne
The unlimiteds, 28 feet long, are the fastest boats afloat, capable of reaching speeds of more than 200 miles an hour. They become almost airborne, riding on the tips of two sponsons, and the propeller. Delicate and innovative, these craft combine principles of aerodynamics and hydrogen dynamics. And, having no neutral gear, they idle at about 40 or 50 m.p.h.
Three of the four new boats on this year's circuit, including the new Atlas Van Lines and Miller's Lite Beer, have been designed and built by Jim Lucero of Seattle. The fourth boat is the new Miss Budweiser being built by Ron Jones.
Lucero was the first to use turbines in Pay 'N Pak a couple of years ago. From that experience, he said, he learned that ''the engines never let us down. Whenever he had motor problems, it was through our own mistakes.''
The advantage of the turbine engine is that it provides greater horsepower for its weight than does a piston engine. And for unlimited racing, one doesn't need "a stable full of engines, hopefully," Lucero said. Normally each unlimited team has 10 engines that it constantly rebuilds, using them at the rate of one a race. But often they only last for one heat. Atlas Van Lines, on the other hand, will have four turbine engines on hand this year. More Efficient Motion
The turbine engine is the more efficient engine because it has a rotating type of motion, whereas the piston engine must first convert linear motion into rotating motion, Lucero explained. The turbine also has constant combustion, but in a typical four- stroke engine, such as that in a car or a more conventional boat, only one stroke produces power and the other three are users of power. With the turbine, all motion produces power.
The Miller Lite boat will be driven by Tom D'Eath and campaigned by the R. B. Taylor racing team. The craft has a General Electric T-64 turbine engine capable of producing more than 4,000 horsepower.
Atlas Van Lines, driven by Chip Hanauer, the defending national champion, is powered by an Avco- Lycoming turbine that generates more than 3,000 horsepower.
Last year, using the small block, 1,650-cubic-inch Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, Atlas Van Lines set the fastest lap recorded on a two mile oval - 133.7 m.p.h. At 5,000 pounds race- ready, the new boat weighs 10 percent less than last year's boat. Lucero estimates this should add 5 m.p.h. on the race course.
With the trend toward lighter and faster boats, builders are also trying to make them safer. Lucero, for instance, took a cue from the aerospace industry and incorporated an aerodynamic trim device on the new Atlas Van Lines to help prevent it from becoming airborne and flipping over. The device is similar to the spoilers on an airplane wing, which affect the plane's lift.