Over 80,000 hydro maniacs were treated to the greatest thunderboat racing in history on the sun-streaked, breeze-dappled course on the Columbia River at Tri-Cities, Washington, on Sunday, July 21, 1974.
After three days of total frustration the big boats ran like a script on Sunday with the Pay 'N Pak (mentioned as a 3rd place boat by Charles Lyford of the U-95 camp) winning it wire to wire as though anyone could catch the George Henley piloted rocket the way she was running.
Seven boats were in the flying start (reminiscent of the old six boat starts) when Bill Muncey, the alternate, joined the start as Valu-Mart had gone dead in the water. Little did Bill know that rookie Ron Armstrong had restarted the Valu-Mart before the one minute gun.
In the screaming first turn there were at least four boats and it was hairy. Pak, U-95 on her hip, Valu-Mart, Budweiser, and Atlas in there somewhere. In a 320 ton spray of roostertail something happened, the Pak came out leading by two boat lengths, the U-95 seemed to settle in the water and then the Valu-Mart, Bud and Atlas screamed after the Pak.
The action in that turn evoked a protest from Pamela Clapp, owner of the U-95, but race officials contended nothing illegal happened. However, from there on the second fastest qualifier (118 to the Pak's 119+) and the boat that set the fastest head time of the day (113.469 mph) was never really in it.
U-95 finally restarted and apparently running on one turbine managed a bad fourth. (The same place the U-95 crew had predicted for the Pak.)
The U-95 and the Pak went into the final championship flight in a dead heat with 700 points apiece. The Pay 'N Pak widened her National Points lead over (still second) Budweiser from 6 points to 837 points and the U-95 moved up within 813 points below the Bud.
The seven boat start was (as one reporter put it) fouled up. About six minutes before the final starting gun, flames spewed from the engine of the Valu-Mart and she headed into the infield - obviously out of the action. This spurred Bill Muncey in the Atlas Van Lines into life.
Apparently Ron Armstrong revived the Valu-Mart shortly before the one minute gun, but by now Bill was pass him and naturally couldn't see behind him. Bill must have been surprised when Ron zipped past him at the start. Muncey as fined $250.00 for not pulling off the course. What would you have done?