Or what it actually will be, if it materializes, is Chapter Two in unlimited hydroplane's hottest 1973 rivalry.
The two went at it on the Detroit River yesterday and when the smoke cleared, Miss Budweiser and driver Dean Chenoweth owned the Gar Wood trophy.
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| Dean Chenoweth drives Miss Budweiser to a Detroit victory. |
But just barely. It took a victory in the final heat for the Budweiser-Chenoweth duo to master Pay 'n Pak, piloted by Mickey Remund.
The rivals entered the finale with 700 points each after swapping first-place efforts in two preliminary heats. Pay 'n Pak won Heat 1-B, finished about 13 seconds ahead of Miss Budweiser and then Miss Budweiser averaged 102.369 miles per hour to Pay 'n Pak's 101.199 in winning Heat 2-B.
In the final heat, the boats were never more than 10 lengths apart, with Chenoweth and Budweiser prevailing by about four seconds. Miss Bud covered the 15 miles at a 105.980 clip while Pay 'n Pak averaged 104.489.
Miss Budweiser wound up with 1,100 points to Pay 'n Pak's 1,000. Surprising Gale's Roostertail, driven by Fred Alter, also had 700 points going into the finale and then ran third for a day's total of 925.
Red Man, with Jim McCormick of Owensboro, Ky., at the wheel, had a first and two fourths to take forth place in the overall standings with 738.
Other totals: Miss. U.S 652, Atlas Van Lines 450, Miss Madison 394, Lincoln Thrift 169, Mr. Fabricator 169, ValuMart 127.
Community-owned Miss Madison, driven by Tom Sheehy, was third in Heat 1-A, behind Gale's Roostertail, and Miss U.S., and then forth in 2-A, behind Red Man, Gale's Roostertail and Miss U.S.
In the sami-feature, for boats not making the final, ValuMart and Bob Gilliam triumphed with Miss Madison second and Mr. Fabricator third.
Boats Escape Damage
Average speeds were well below the course record of 121 m.p.h. because of rough water conditions. In contrast to last year's race, when a number of hydros were damaged, all came out of the Gar Wood competition in reasonably good shape and will move on to Madison.
Pay 'n Pak's strong effort was a mild surprise since the Seattle-based boat had sustained minor damage during a trial run Thursday. Owner Dave Heerensperger had repair materials flown to Detroit by charter, and the crew was able to ready the craft by race time.
Despite yesterday's runner-up performance, Pay 'n Pak continues to lead the national championship battle after four races, with 3,738 points to Miss Budweiser's 3,638. Red Man is third with 2,934.
Miss Bud has won two straight races, its previous success coming at Owensboro June 17. Pay 'n Pak won the opener at Miami and Lincoln Thrift took the second stop at Washington D.C.