There is a lot to be said for the good life of professional athletes. Their hours are relatively short and the pay is high.
About the only negative factor, most athletes agree, is the extensive traveling they have to do.
Billy Schumacher, driver of the hydroplane "Pride of Pay 'n Pak," in the Tri-Cities for the Atomic Cup race July 23, has found a solution to the pro athlete's travel woes.
 |
| Billy Schumacher and his wife Cindee discuss racing strategies with Bernie Little (left), of the Miss Budweiser racing team, and Dave Heerensperger (top). |
His home is on wheels, a spacious top-of-the-line motor home, complete with sleeping quarters for up to six, a fully equipped kitchen, dinette, full bath and modern decor featuring teak and Formica.
Schumacher and his pretty wife, Cindee, recently bought the Revcon 250 so they "wouldn't have to live out of a suitcase anymore."
"It's really great," Schumacher said, predicting motor home travel will soon become routine for traveling athletes, entertainers, salesmen and construction workers who are on the road most of the time.
"The better motor homes today have all the accommodations of motels, but you don't have to pack and unpack, hustle for cabs, and try to beat time tables," he said.
"This rig," he said, "is just great driving too. It's built for the professional traveler or the guy who can afford some builtin features to ease his fatigue. It has front-wheel drive, power steering, automatic transmission, and it's got an aluminum body so it weights and handles like a car."
"For me, that's important," he said. "It means I'm not all bushed when I arrive so I can save my best driving for the water."
Billy the Kid, as he is know to his fellow hydro pilots, and his family are traveling throughout the country this summer in their "home on wheels" during the hydroplane racing campaign.
Relaxing with all the comforts of home, Schumacher discussed his racing career which started when he was eight years old. Since his first race, in a utility outboard, Schumacher has competed in virtually every boat racing class. His record at all levels of competition is impressive.
Schumacher is a two-time national unlimited hydroplane champion and Gold Cup winner. He was recipient of the coveted "Driver of the Year" award in 1968 and 1968.
The personable 29-year-old hydroplane driver from Seattle has set 10 world records ranging from outboards to unlimited hydroplanes. Last year, he established the world record for a three-mile course (121.076 m.p.h).
Schumacher chauffeured the "Pride of Pay 'n Pak" to more wins last year than any other boat on the unlimited hydroplane circuit despite an early season accident.
Many members of the racing fraternity are picking Schumacher as the favorite for this year's campaign.
"Pride of Pay 'n Pak" is sponsored by David J. Heerensperger, chairman of the board of Pay 'n Pak Stores, a Seattle-based electrical and plumbing supply chain operating in the western United States.
The unlimited hydroplane weighs 7,000 pounds and measures 28 feet 6 inches in length and 13 feet 9 inches at the beam. A 2,500 horsepower Roll-Royce Merlin aircraft engine powers the boat to top speeds of 175 m.p.h.
The 1972 unlimited hydroplane schedule opened June 4 in Miami. Other racing events include: The Governor's Cup at Owensboro, Ky., June 11; Gold Cup at Detroit, Mich., June 25; the World Championship, Madison, Ind., July 2; the President's Cup, Washington D.C., July 19; the Atomic Cup, Tri-Cities, Wash., July 23; the Seafair race, Seattle, Wash., August 6; and the Diamond Cup, Coeur D'Alene, Idaho, Aug. 13.
With this busy schedule, Bill Schumacher will be a man on the move during the summer months - in his "Pride of Pay 'n Pak" hydroplane on the water and in his Revcon 250 on the highway.