Chenoweth Pilots Bud To Victory In Tri-Cities

Reprinted from Sea and Pacific Motor Boat, September 1973

Mickey Remund and the Pay 'n Pak had a substantial lead in the final heat of the APBA Gold Cup
until a broken propeller ended his run. Photo by Lee Stickler.

Going into the Gold Cup Race, Dean Chenoweth had one vivid memory of the unlimited hydroplane course on the Columbia River at Tri-Cities in South-Central Washington.

In 1970 the driver of Miss Budweiser was pitched violently from the cockpit and the boat sank. Luckily, Chenoweth escaped with minor injuries.

Chenoweth has another happier impression of the Richland-Pasco-Kennewick area after Gold Cup '73. He piloted the Bud to victory in powerboat racing's premier event by outlasting a Seattle-based Pay 'n Pak in the final heat. It was Chenoweth’s second Gold Cup win, his third victory on the circuit this season.

In the final heat, the Pak had a substantial lead after running the first lap in record time. But a blade of the Pak's prop broke, the boat bounced crazily a couple of times and settled to a stop. Patrol boats had to rescue the hydro from sinking just as Miss Budweiser hit the finish line.

Going into the final heat, Pak driver Mickey Remund had a perfect 1200 points while Budweiser and Atlas Van Lines each had 1100.

Bill Muncey's Atlas ended up second after making an unsuccessful charge at the Budweiser midway in the final heat while surprising Fred Alter drove Pizza Pete — the former Gale's Roostertail to third. The Pak was fourth and Notre Dame, fifth.

If you don't think the unlimiteds are going faster, consider the records set on the 2½-mile Columbia River course: In addition to the Pak's single-lap mark of 119.691 mph, Budweiser boosted the 15-mile speed mark for one heat to 111.386 mph.

Bud's 60-mi. speed average was a record 105.354 mph, almost five miles faster than the 1970 standard set by Notre Dame. Both the lap and 60-mile performances are the fastest in unlimited history.

D'Eath Scores First Ever Hydro Win

DETROIT -- (Special) — Tom D’Eath’s days as an apprentice are over.

D’Eath became a member of unlimited-hydroplane racing’s Winners Club yesterday when he drove the Miss U.S. to victory in the $30,000 Gar Wood Trophy race on the Detroit River.

The triumph capped a series of comeback attempts by D’Eath and the Miss U.S. owner, George Simon, and could not have occurred at a more appropriate site.

The Detroit-based boat out dueled the defending champion Miss Budweiser in the final heat, pulling away to a 10-length triumph that delighted hometown spectators.

Mickey Remund moved the Miss Budweiser up to the No. 2 spot in the season’s point standings with his second place finish, while George Henley finished third in the Pay 'n Pak. Lincoln Thrift was fourth and Miss Madison fifth in the final heat.

Weisfield’s, the season-long leader and top qualifier for this race, was not in contention. The Seattle-based boat dropped out of its first heat with a broken gear box and sputtered because of a bad piston to a fourth-place finish in its second heat.

D’Eath sped to victory in all three of his heats, traveling the final five lap circuit at a reported 121.321 miles an hour.

While D’Eath was gripping his first unlimited trophy after 2½ years of trying, Bill Muncey was shaking his head about what happened after he got a firm grip on the Atlas Van Lines’ steering wheel.

Muncey, a five-time Gold Cup champion from San Diego, found himself in control of only the wheel when it came off in his hands as he roared toward the start of Heat 2A.

The Atlas veered sharply to the right and made an unscheduled dash up a canal, between two lines of spectator boats, near the Detroit Yacht Club.

"It scared the hell out of me," Muncey said.

D’Eath, 31, of Fair Haven, Mich., had not finished a 1975 regatta until yesterday and almost doubled his previous season point total with the 1,200-point performance here.

Simon, who has campaigned unlimiteds under the U.S. Equipment Co. banner for 20 years, had not fielded a winner here since Muncey pushed a previous Miss U.S. to victory in 1969.

This Miss U.S., rebuilt after burning to the water line in last year’s Gold Cup race in Seattle, is powered by a turbo-charged Allison aircraft engine.

The Weisfield’s, winner of two previous races this year, and Miss Budweiser, the President’s Cup winner both get their thrusts from Rolls Royce powerplants.

D’Eath’s speeds for one lap, one heat and an entire regatta all were faster than the Spirit of Detroit course records. However, since the new, shorter course has not been surveyed and its exact distance is unknown, none of the marks was a record.

The speeds, computed with a three-mile conversion table by unlimited officials even though the course was about 2¾ miles long:

Fastest lap — first lap, final heat, 123.287 m.p.h.; fastest five-lap heat-final, 121.321; overall 15-lap average, 118.476.

The hydroplanes will be in Madison, Ind., Sunday for the Indiana Governor’s Cup race.

Heat 1A — Miss U.S., T. D’Eath, 117.921 m.p.h.; Miss Budweiser, Remund, 116.404; Lincoln Thrift. Milner Irvin, 110.361; Miss North Tool (former Miss Shenandoah), Roger D’Eath, 82.733. Atlas Van Lines, Muncey, did not finish.

Heat 1B — Pay 'n Pak, Henley, 115.904; Miss Madison, Jerry Bangs 102.311; Probe, Bob Miller, 101.256. Weisfield's, Billy Schumacher, did rot start; Miss Vernors, Fred Alter, D. N. F.

Heat 2A — Budweiser, 116.104; Lincoln Thrift, 108.108; Probe, 97,737. Atlas, Vernors and Mr. Fabricator (alternate), Tom Kaufman, D. N. S.

Heat 2B — Miss U.S., 116.179; Pay 'n Pak, 111.662; Madison, 95.575; Weisfield’s, 86.552. North Tool, D. N. S.

Consolation race — Probe, 101.886. Fabricator, Vernors, D. N. F.

Final — Miss U.S., 121.312; Budweiser, 120.160; Pay 'n Pak, 111.065; Lincoln Thrift, 108.238; Miss Madison, 68.588.

George Henley

By Craig Fjarlie
Reprinted from Unlimited NewsJournal, January/February 2010

George Henley

One of unlimited racing’s most successful drivers passed away on December 14, 2009. George Henley, of Eatonville, Wash., was 72.

Henley made his mark on the sport as driver of Pay 'n Pak in 1974 and ’75. He won the Gold Cup and guided the boat to national championships both years. His involvement with boat racing goes back well before that, however. He was a crew member on Bob Gilliam’s Miss B & I in 1956. He had a successful career in smaller classes before receiving the cockpit assignment for Bob Murphy’s Burien Lady in 1970.

Henley displayed his driving talent in his first season with the unlimiteds. The under-funded boat finished third in the consolation heat at the Detroit Memorial. Then, while a large contingent of fans cheered on the shoreline, Henley drove the boat to second in the Seafair regatta, winning the final heat in the process.

Bob Fendler picked Henley to drive Lincoln Thrift’s 7-1/4% Special in 1971. It was another low budget operation. At the last race of the season, when a heavy rainstorm turned the pits at Dallas into a muddy slough, Henley took the boat out for a test run on Thursday afternoon. It was the only boat on the water that afternoon, and the next day local newspapers had photos of Lincoln Thrift on the front page of the sports section. Henley and Fendler didn’t win the race, but they scored big in the publicity department.

The next year, Henley became the first driver to compete with a turbocharged Allison engine. The boat made its first appearance of 1972 at Owensboro, where it finished fifth. It was a moral victory for the crew, however, as they proved their turbochargers would work. The following season, Henley drove the boat to second at Miami.

A few days after the 1973 Miami race, Fendler released Henley. Fendler had five different drivers in ’73. Henley drove Jim McCormick’s cabover Red Man at Seafair. That was the famous “race in the rain” when Pay 'n Pak and Miss Budweiser had their deck-to-deck duels. Everyone else, including Henley, was filler for the show.

Things changed for Henley the following season. Mickey Remund, who had driven Pay 'n Pak, parted company with Pak owner Dave Heerensperger and went to drive Fendler’s new Lincoln Thrift. Henley was hired to drive the Pak.

Mechanical problems dogged Henley at first with Pay 'n Pak. The boat lost a rudder in a spring test at Tri-Cities, and mechanical problems kept them out of the winner’s circle at Miami. Henley won the President’s Cup then won a deck-to-deck duel against Howie Benns aboard Miss Budweiser at Owensboro. Pak won the World Championship at Tri-Cities. Sand Point on Lake Washington was the site of Henley’s first Gold Cup win, again beating Benns in thrilling deck-to-deck duels. Pay 'n Pak won a total of seven races that year on its way to the national championship. Then, Henley stunned the racing world by announcing his retirement on November 21.

Jim McCormick took over the Pay 'n Pak seat for 1975, but lasted two races. The boat was fast on straightaways, but a handful in turns. Heerensperger coaxed Henley out of retirement with a hefty financial package. Gradually the boat was returned to its 1974 form, but Billy Schumacher and Weisfield’s had a commanding lead in point standings. Henley and Schumacher hooked up for some terrific duels at Madison, with Pay 'n Pak taking the win. The Pak was back. Henley went on to win another Gold Cup, and edged Pay 'n Pak past Weisfield’s to take the national championship. He won five of the last six races in the process.

When Heerensperger sold the Pak team to Bill Muncey at the end of the season, Henley retired as a driver. This time the decision was permanent. He drove water jet boats on the Snake and Salmon Rivers in Washington State, and was a Hamilton Jet dealer.

Henley maintained his interest in hydroplane racing throughout his life. He rarely missed the Tri-Cities and Seafair regattas, and his family played host to Seattle Outboard Association at Henley’s Resort on Silver Lake near Eatonville. Henley always had time to talk with the racers, whether they were veterans or rookies.

Smilin’ George Henley left us far too soon. He will be remembered as one of the nicest, most approachable drivers the sport has known. His accomplishments as a winner will keep him in the record book as one of the top drivers of all time.

Chenoweth Takes Gar Wood Memorial

Reprinted from Sea and Pacific Motor Boat, September 1973

Gar Wood Trophy race on the Detroit River--A context for hydroplanes. In the pits. Photo by Joe Clark.

The unlimited hydros were at it again, and it was Mickey Remund in Pay 'n Pak and Dean Chenoweth in Miss Budweiser that grabbed the silver. The Gar Wood Memorial on the smooth Detroit River went to Miss Bud after some intense racing in front of 400,000 fans.

Remund beat Chenoweth in the first heat, only to lose in the finals. Drama was added when Pay 'n Pak sheared a propeller in a trial run three days before the event and ripped off much of the hull bottom. With the help of other teams, the crew worked for 60 hours straight to repair the damage.

Gar Wood Memorial: 1, Miss Budweiser, Dean Chenoweth, 1100; 2, Pay 'n Pak, Mickey Remund, 1000; 3, Gale's Roostertail, Fred Alter, 925; 4, Red Man, Jim McCormick, 738; 5, Miss U.S., Tom D'Eath, 652.

Hydro Driver Fined For Remarks

Schumacher Out $500

By Chuck Ashmun
Reprinted from The Seattle Times, July 28, 1975

TRI-CITIES — Billy Schumacher today was fined $500 by the unlimited racing commissioner, George (Buddy) Byers, Jr., for remarks the Seattle driver made following yesterday’s Gold Cup race.

A threat of suspension, tossed out by the race referee, Bill Newton, was not carried out.

"I’m not going to let him off all that easy," Newton said after Byers decision was announced.

But it appears that the fine will stand by itself.

"I have the greatest respect for Billy . . . on the water," Newton added. "He doesn’t seem to know when to shut off his mouth."

Schumacher, driver of the Weisfield’s, said: "I think a man should be able to speak his mind when he’s in the right. And I was in the right. We should have freedom of speech. Without it, we’re in trouble."

Byers’ ruling followed a post-race interview in which Schumacher said:

"I was cheated. In my mind, it was a poor decision on the part of the referee; and he’ll probably suspend me for saying it."

Newton, the race referee, at the time unaware of the reaction from the Weisfield’s driver, said:

"I don’t care what Billy says, but if what I see in the newspaper . . . is contradictory, I may take drastic action.

"By drastic, I mean really drastic. One year."

What Schumacher also said was:

‘He’s supposed to be God. I’d sure like to see him walk across the river, though."

Schumacher was nodding toward the mighty Columbia.

Schumacher’s anger surfaced after Newton had ruled that the Seattle driver would be fined $100 for a racing infraction, then changed his mind.

Newton said he rescinded the fine "out of good sportsmanship," but Schumacher insisted he had broken no rules to begin with.

"This whole thing is ridiculous," fumed Schumacher. "I should get the points." When Newton rescinded the fine, he did not restore the 169 points which Schumacher felt he should have received for finishing fourth in yesterday’s first heat.

With those points, the Weisfield’s today would be the national point leader in unlimited-hydroplane standings. Without them, Weisfield’s ranks second behind the Pay 'n Pak.

The ruling came about after Schumacher, leading the first-heat field lost engine power because of a blown supercharger. He continued to drive around the course, however, at a much slower pace.

Newton, after consulting with his assistant referees, ruled that a black flag should be flown, signaling to Schumacher that he was creating a hazardous wake and that he should pull off the course.

"I didn’t even see a black flag until I was headed down the straightaway on the last lap," said the driver.

"The race (for the top spots) was over. I was not endangering anybody with my wake."

The rule in question has to do with what the hydro people call "planing." Boats are required to maintain a plane — skim over the surface — rather than drop down to the extent that the craft is traveling through the water instead of over it.

Schumacher says he maintained a plane. Newton said: "Billy may think he was, but . . . no way."

"I’m humiliated after today, and I think the crew is, too," Schumacher said after the race.

Of the Pay 'n Pak win, he said, "It was not their performance. It was our lack of performance."

The Pay 'n Pak owner, Dave Heerensperger, said: "You have to think that way in boat racing. You have to be optimistic."

Schumacher said he received some repercussions after the Weisfield’s camp elected not to try for the course qualifying record here and added:

"The way today went, we should have gone for it. In Seattle we probably will. I don’t know."

Newton said, "The rule is automatic. A boat must automatically pull off the course when it’s not in a plane, even without a black flag.

"This rule was put in at our meeting in Detroit. Ironically, it was proposed by Les Rosenberg."

Rosenberg owns the Weisfield’s.

Schumacher Tops Qualifiers

By Chuck Ashmun
Reprinted from The Seattle Times, August 1, 1975

Billy Schumacher powers Wesfield's to the top qualifying spot for Sunday's Seafair Trophy race on Lake Washington.

Billy Schumacher, trying harder now that his boat is No. 2, today took over the qualifying lead for Sunday’s Seafair trophy race on Lake Washington.

Schumacher steered his unlimited hydroplane, Weisfield’s, to a speed of 122.615 miles an hour.

The clocking barely beat George Henley’s run around the 2½-mile course of 122.116 m.p.h., logged earlier today.

Henley, whose Pay 'n Pak now holds a slim lead over Schumacher’s Weisfield’s in national point standings, said:

"We’re getting there. It just took some minor changes, shifting weight."

New qualifiers today, in addition to the Weisfield’s, were the Miss Budweiser, driven by Mickey Remund, at 121.786, and Atlas Van Lines, with Bill Muncey behind the wheel, at 111.801.

Tom d’Eath, Miss U.S. pilot, improved from a clocking yesterday of 107.142 to 118.577 today.

D’Eath was told yesterday he had toppled three records.

The marks that fell, however, had nothing to do with the new Seafair Trophy Race course.

Statisticians searching through American Power Boat Association files discovered that D’Eath and his Detroit-based boat set course, Gold Cup and national marks last weekend in the Tri-Cities’ unlimited regatta.

Ironically, D’Eath did not win that boat show. George Henley steered the Pay 'n Pak to the championship. but D’Eath got his marks by averaging 108.974 m.p.h. for the 60-mile test.

The previous course, Gold Cup and national marks for 110 miles on a 2½-mile layout were 107.902 m.p.h., established by Bill Muncey in the Atlas Van Lines.

And the winner of that Gold Cup battle two years ago in the Tri-Cities was not Bill Muncey. Dean Chenoweth captured the Cup, steering Miss Budweiser.

The Miss U.S. was one of five boats which qualified yesterday for Sunday’s race. Pay 'n Pak, new leader in national standings, led the way. Other qualifiers were Lincoln Thrift, Hamm’s Bear and Vernors.

George Henley put the Pak on top of the opening-day list with a lap at 121.130 miles an hour. Lincoln Thrift was next at 113.493 m.p.h., Jerry Bangs handled Hamm’s Bear at 109.090 m.p.h., and Bob Miller qualified Vernors at 104.287.

One lap at a minimum speed of 100 m.p.h. is required for qualifying.

The Shakey’s Special and Miss Van’s P-X, formerly Super Cinders II, both took trips around the oval; but neither was able to get in a lap above 97 m.p.h.

Peter LaRock, Shakey’s Special owner, blamed engine problems. Jack Schafer, a new driver in the Van’s P-X was out for testing and was not attempting to qualify.

The U-80 has raced with a Van’s P-X label before. In the Tri-Cities, the hull carried only the unlimited number and was piloted by Ron Armstrong.

Henley said he had difficulty setting up for the 2,000-foot turns in the Pay 'n Pak. He made a half-dozen journeys onto the course, almost as many as the Pak ran during opening-day testing in the Tri-Cities.

The turns were the talk of the day yesterday. Some drivers complained that the shorter straightaway, necessitated by the longer turns, would create relatively slow speeds on race day.

All said they needed more time on the water to adjust from the 1,200-foot turns in the Tri-Cities to the longer variety here.

"You might think that a course like this would give us an advantage, but our boat is riding so light we’ll have a bit of a problem with these turns," said Milner Irvin, Lincoln Thrift pilot.

"It probably would be an advantage if the boat were handling like it should be, but we’ve been having trouble with the sweeping turns all year long.

"I kind of think Tommy will have trouble, too."

Irvin’s comments conflicted with ‘those of race observers who predict D’Eath and the Thrift driver will be right at home on the new course.

The Miss Budweiser made its long-awaited arrival in the pits late this morning.

Crewmen have worked since last Sunday repairing sponson damage which caused the Bud to sink during the Gold Cup race.

Roostertales: Jerry Bangs, usually one of the last drivers to make a qualifying attempt, had the Hamm’s Bear in the water first yesterday, explaining: "About all we had to do after we got here from Pasco was wash the windshield" Tom D’Eath, who fumed about firefighting help here last year after the Miss U.S. burned, not plenty of attention from a race official yesterday who was jotting notes about fire-suppression equipment aboard the boat . The button and photo mini-trading posts are back again, and business is brisk among the souvenir fanciers.

A recount of the boats in the pits shows there are 16 on hand, but only 14 are capable of racing. The Miss Thriftway [??--LF] and Lauterbach Special are there for display only, the latter having been beached by assurances it will not receive a new gearbox in time to race here. Most-asked question yesterday was: "Where’s the Weisfield’s?" Les Rosenberg, owner, and Billy Schumacher, driver, were among those doing the asking. It seems the boat manager, Jerry Zuvich, kept the craft at the shop longer then expected after discovering a crack in a propeller shaft.

Another often-asked query concerns the difference between a supercharger and a turbocharger. In layman’s terms, a supercharged hydro uses fuel force-fed into its engine by mechanical means; a turbocharger forces fuel into the engine by utilizing scavenged exhaust pressures Schumacher, asked if he would qualify faster than George Henley, put it this way: "After watching what he did today, I would say if we didn’t go faster, we would have problems.

A yellowing newspaper clipping, attached to a door of the Lincoln Thrift truck, has underlined sentences pertaining to covering an engine. Someone didn’t during a downpour at Dayton, and the boat missed the next heat with a D.N.S. The Hamm’s Bear crew chief, Dave Stewart, missed his boat’s qualifying run yesterday, remaining in Madison, Ind., on other business. We called him and told him we didn’t need him, but actually we’ll be as nervous as heck until he gets here" said Bangs.

What does the Pay 'n Pak crew test so hustle? "Everything," said Jim Lucero. "Propellers, skid fins, gear ratios, maybe a sponson . . . sometimes it might simply be realigning the weight".

Bernie Little, Miss Budweiser owner, took time out from his criticism about closing the course to qualifying tomorrow long enough to report that he may buy his next boat from a Tacoma builder, Norm Berg, who recently has been turning out some swift inboards . . .

That on-again, off-again San Diego race may be on again, says Bill Muncey, Atlas Van Lines driver, who went south in search of a race earlier this week.

Guided tours of the Stan Sayres pits will be offered tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is $1. Tickets will be available at the pit area.

Time Trials Start Tomorrow

15-Boat Field to Make Dash for Gold Cup

By Del Danielson
Reprinted from The Seattle Times, August 4, 1974

The first unlimited hydroplane to test the new Sand Point course will be lowered into the water shortly after 9 a. m. tomorrow when time trials for the 1974 Gold Cup begin.

Twenty hours of qualifying are scheduled. The course will be open from 9 a. m. to 4 p. m. tomorrow and Friday and from 9 a. m. to 3 p. m. on Saturday.

Sunday’s Gold Cup will begin at noon.

Fifteen boats have registered for the race, setting up a heat schedule of five hydros in each of three flights. Six will run in the winner-take-all final.

The Gold Cup will be more of an endurance test than a sprint.

Because of the energy crisis, it was decided before the season to trim heats from six laps to five (12½ miles) in all races but the Gold Cup. Thus, all previous races have been 37½-mile events.

The Gold Cup races call for three preliminary heats — so Sunday’s race will be a 60-miler.

Boats will be grouped according to qualifying speeds. The five fastest qualifiers will race in the C sections of Heats 1, 2 and 3. The second fastest five will go in the B sections and the slowest five in A sections.

Three from the fast group, two from the middle section and one from. the slower division will start in the final.

The move from Seward Park (Stan Sayres pits) to Sand Point (a fenced-in military base) will allow the race-sponsoring Seafair to collect an admission charge for the first time in 24 years.

Hydro fans wishing to view time trials tomorrow, Friday and Saturday need only a Seafair skipper pin. But parking will cost a buck on those three days.

Unlimiteds Unanimous, a hydro hobby club, again will conduct guided pit tours during the three days of testing and qualifying. Cost - $1, for the general race fund.

The 2½-mile course is enclosed on three sides by the log boom. More than 15,000 feet of log-boom space is available and the log-boom committee is operating out of the Seattle Yacht Club (EA 9-1700).

A closer look at the lineup of 15 boats:

U-1 (Pay 'n Pak) — Last year’s national champion, has won three of five races this year season and leads the national points standings by 837 points over the second-place Budweiser. Rolls Royce-powered. Owned by Dave Heerensperger, Pay 'n Pak stores, Kent. Driven by George Henley, 36, Eatonville, Wash. Colors—white, orange and black.

U-2 (Miss U.S.) — A new hull with great potential, but has yet to be a consistent front-runner. Powered by turbo Allison. Owned by George Simon, U.S. Equipment Co., Detroit. Driven by Tom D’Eath, 30, Detroit. Colors — red and white with stabilizer wing.

U-4 (Kirby Classic) — Hull built years ago as Tahoe Miss, but not used in past 10 years. Powered by Rolls Royce. Owned by Bob Murphy, Murphy Marine, Burien. Driven by Bill Wurster, 50, Seattle. Colors — red, gold and white.

U-6 (Miss Madison) — Community-owned by citizens of Madison, Ind. One of several boats to switch to turbo Allison power this season. Won final heat in Miami season opener and placed third overall. Driven by Milner Irvin, 33, rookie from Coral Gables, Fla. Colors — Yellow and mahogany.

U-12 (Miss Budweiser) — Winner of two races this season. Last year’s Gold Cup winner. Powered by Rolls Owned by Bernie Little, Lakeland, Fla. Driven by Howie Benns, 36, rookie from Grand Island, N. Y. Colors — Red, gold and white.

U-74 (Valu-Mart) — New hull this year, powered by Rolls Royce. Damaged when rudder failed in Miami. Rejoined circuit in Pasco. Owned by Les Rosenberg, Seattle. Driven by Ron Armstrong, 32, rookie from Lakewood, Calif. Colors — Red, white and black.

U-76 (Northwest Tank Service) — Last year’s Notre Dame ran earlier this season as Miss Cott Beverage. Ran in Pasco as U-76. Rolls-powered. Owned by Tom Higgins, Miami. Sponsored by Don Mulivrana, Seattle. Driven by Roger D’Eath, 32, rookie from Hialeah, Fla. Colors White with red stripe.

U-81 (Red Man) — Destroyed in Miami accident. (Skipp Walther, driver, killed). Rebuilt and rejoins fleet for Gold Cup. Another turbo Allison. Owned by Jim McCormick, Owensboro, Ky. Driven by Tom Sheehy, 31, Miami. Colors — Red and white.

U-95 — Only turbine-powered boat in fleet. Showed great potential in several races, this season, yet to win. Will race without tail fin damaged in Pasco accident. Owned by Pam Clapp, Seattle. Driven by Leif Borgersen, 29, Bellevue. Colors — Red, white and blue.

VS-41 (Solo) — Australian entry. Arrived for Pasco race, but withdrew because of hull damage during testing. Rolls-powered. Owned by Stan Jones and Bob Carnie, Melbourne. Driven by Bob Saniga and/or Stan Jones. Colors — Purple, yellow and white.

U-18 (Red Ball Express) — Older hull, ran in recent years as Burien Lady, Smoother Mover and Greenfield Galleries. Rolls-powered. Owned by Bob Murphy, Burien. Driven by Jerry Bangs, 38, rookie from Seattle. Colors — Red, white, mahogany.

U-22 (Sunny Jim) — Older hull, ran last season as Shakey’s Special. Another turbo-Allison power system. Owned by Pete LaRock, Seattle. Driven by Tom Martin, 45, Mercer Island. Colors — Red, white and blue.

U-44 (Pizza Pete) — Former Myr’s Special, ran early in season as Atlas Van Lines back-up boat. Powered by turbo Allison. Owned by Lee Schoenith, Detroit. Sponsored by Pete Utter, Miami and Seattle. Driven by Fred Alter, 47, Detroit. Colors — White with cabbage-red stripes.

U-55 (Lincoln Thrift) — New hull, withdrawn during President’s Cup race because of handling problems. Returned to circuit in Pasco, but hull was damaged by explosion during last-minute test run. Great potential, no results yet. Was first boat to use turbo Allison last year. Owned by Bob Fendler, Phoenix. Driven by Mickey Remund, 37, Phoenix, last year’s national champion in the Pay 'n Pak. Colors — Yellow, white and blue.

U-71 (Atlas Van Lines) — Won six of seven races and national championship in 1972. Hasn’t won since. Turbo Allison. Nearly destroyed in April test run. Rebuilt and rejoined circuit in Pasco. Owned by Lee Schoenith, Detroit. Driven by Bill Muncey, 45, San Diego, winningest driver ever. Colors — Red, white and blue.

Turbine Racing with Jim Lucero

By David D. Williams
Reprinted from Turbine Racing in Seattle

No one person deserves more credit for introducing turbine power plants to unlimited racing than Jim Lucero. Lucero grew up in Seattle watching hydroplane racing. While he was still a young engineering student, he took a part-time job working as a parking attendant at a building that was owned by C. A. Lyford Il. Soon Jim met C. A.'s son, Chuck Lyford III, who owned and piloted the Bardahl Special, a modified P-51 pylon racer. Jim was invited to work on Chuck's plane, where he met the legendary Merlin motor wizard Dwight Thorn.

Stan Hanauer (left) with Jim Lucero (center) in Detroit in 1981. Photo by Larry Wilson.

In late 1965, Jim went to work for the Notre Dame Unlimited team. After the disastrous 1966 season, Jim was hired by Lee Schoenith and worked on a couple of boats, including the innovative "bat winged" Smirnoff. In 1970, Jim took a stab at boat designing and drew up plans for a radical twin automotive-powered "cabover" Atlas Van Lines for Bob Fendler. In the middle of the 1970 season, Jim landed with Dave Heerensperger and the Pay 'n Pak.

In Heerensperger, Lucero found a team owner who shared his total commitment for excellence and had the resources to back up his vision. Together Heerensperger and Lucero became a force to be reckoned with, winning the National Championship three years in a row: 1973, 1974, and 1975.

At the end of the 1975 season, Heerensperger surprised everybody (including Lucero) by retiring from unlimited racing and selling his entire team to Bill Muncey.

Muncey and Lucero picked right up where Heerensperger and Lucero left off, winning three more national championships in 1976, 1978, and 1979.

By the end of the 1979 season, Lucero had won six out of the last seven national championships. The challenge of running a successful Merlin-powered race team was becoming routine. Jim wanted something new; he wanted to run a turbine. He offered the chance to Muncey, but Muncey elected to stick with the tried-and-true Merlins

Dave Heerensperger was intrigued by Lucero's ideas and agreed to reenter the sport with a new Lucero-designed hull powered by a Lycoming T-55 L-7 turbine. Jim's close friend and talented inboard racer John Walters was asked to drive.

The T-55 seemed a perfect fit for an unlimited hydro, weighing only 600 pounds but putting out an incredible 2,850 horsepower.

The new turbine Pay 'n Pak debuted at Tri-Cites in July 1980 and looked incredibly fast, but a horrific blow-over accident during pre-race testing put the Pak out of the race.

The following year, a repaired and redesigned Pay 'n Pak took second place in the opening race of the season. The Pak struggled through the rest of 1981, qualifying fast but never cracking the winner's circle.

The last race of 1981 ended in tragedy, when Bill Muncey was killed in a blow-over accident while driving the Atlas Van Lines in Acapulco, Mexico. In the second race of 1982—Thunder in the Park in Geneva, New York-Walters and the Pak qualified fastest and went on to win the race, claiming the honor of being the first turbine boat to win a race. One month later, the sport suffered a devastating loss when Miss Budweiser driver Dean Chenoweth was killed while attempting to qualify for the Columbia Cup in Tri-Cities, Washington.

In Seattle that year, the Pay 'n Pak collided with the old U-95 (renamed Executone) in heat 1-B. The frightening accident severely injured John Walters. This accident, coming so close on the heels of Bill Muncey's fatal crash in Acapulco and Dean Chenoweth's death the previous week in Tri-Cities, prompted Heerensperger to retire again.

With Heerensperger's retirement, there would be no turbine teams in 1983. But Lucero didn't give up on racing. He became a partner in Muncey Enterprises and worked with Bill Muncey's widow, Fran, to campaign the Atlas Van Lines for the 1983 season. With Chip Hanauer driving, the Atlas won both the Gold Cup and the National Championship. Lucero, always an innovator, installed a reinforced "crash cockpit" on the 1983 Atlas that allowed Chip to wear a shoulder harness that would keep him in the boat in case of an accident.

In 1984, Lucero was incredibly busy. He built a Merlin-powered boat for Bill Wurster and Executone, and he built a turbine-powered boat for Bob Taylor, sponsored by Miller Brewing, named the Lite All Star. The Lite All Star was powered by a GE T-64 turbine. Lucero also built a brand-new turbine boat for Atlas Van Lines and Muncey Enterprises.

The new Atlas was very fast, earning top qualifier marks in seven out of eight races and winning the 1984 Gold Cup in Tri-Cities as well as the Governor's Cup in Madison, Indiana. But the boat suffered "new boat blues" and failed to finish a number of heats, dropping her to fourth in National High Points. It was Atlas's last year in the sport.

Another Lucero turbine, the former Pay 'n Pak backup boat, was renamed Miss Tosti Asti and won the 1984 World Championship Race in Houston, Texas.

At the end of 1984, Bob Taylor retired from unlimited racing and Muncey Enterprises picked up the Miller sponsorship. Miss Budweiser owner Bernie Little bought the Lite All Star hull and began to tinker with his own turbine team.

In 1985, the combination of Muncey, Lucero, Hanauer, and Miller was awesome, winning five of nine races and capturing both the Gold Cup and National High Points Championship. Along the way, Hanauer and Miller set half a dozen world records, including a one lap of 153.061 miles per hour at Tri-Cities.

A new, lighter Lucero-designed Miller was ordered for 1986, and construction began during the off-season. From the outside, it looked like Muncey and Lucero had the world by the tail, but appearances can be deceiving. Behind closed doors, there was tremendous friction between Jim and Fran, and it all came to a head just six weeks before the start of the 1986 season.

The Great Race - '73 Seafair Race Was Classic Bud-'Pak Duel

Reprinted from The Seattle Times, August 6, 1989

Mickey Remund and the Pay 'n Pak.

When former athletes get together, the rule of thumb is: The older they get, the better they were.

Similarly, the outcomes of legendary hydroplane races get more obscured as time passes.

"When people complain about how strung out and predictable today's races have become, it's usually because they are remembering how great that 1973 Seafair race was," said Bob Williams of the Unlimited Museum.

"That was a classic duel. People always think of the past as the golden days, but most of the races way-back-when were not close at all. The Slo-Mos, the Hawaii Kais and Bardahls used to bury people by bigger margins than today's boats."

In many ways, the 1973 Seafair World Championship hydro race was a bummer:

-- It was the first year racegoers had to pay for the privilege of seeing "their" race from the shoreline. Adults were charged $1 (either for a ticket or a Skipper pin).

-- Seattle Police kept overnight campers out of the parks near Lake Washington, another first. The party-all-night, puke-all-day set hated it, but homeowners near the lake loved the innovation.

-- It rained all day, causing a big drop in attendance.

Seafair officials, who estimated the crowd at 65,000, reported a $35,000 loss, as only $2,568 of Skipper pins were sold.

Those who braved the conditions, or watched the race on television, witnessed what is generally regarded as the best hydroplane regatta in history.

The Pride of Pay 'n Pak, with Mickey Remund at the helm, and Miss Budweiser, with the late Dean Chenoweth aboard, raced around Lake Washington's old three-mile course at world-record speeds for three heats.

In the championship final, Remund had a four-second lead after one lap, but claimed the checkered flag by a mere 25 feet. His average speed was 117.238 mph to Chenoweth's 117.086.

"If the race had been 50 yards longer," said one official after the race, "Chenoweth would have won it."

That may explain why Seafair officials, in this year's program, implied that Miss Budweiser won the 1973 regatta.

The Bud has won 10 national titles, including the past three, but the Pak won the 1973 race in Seattle and a stirring rematch at the Sand Point course in 1974.

The Bud did win the fastest heat of the 1973 race, Heat 1C, with a then world-record average speed of 122.504 mph. The Pak averaged 120.697.

In Heat 1C, Remund zoomed to a one-lap world-record speed of 124.424 mph trying to overhaul Chenoweth, who started from the inside lane.

In the next heat, 2C, the boats raced deck-to-deck for several laps before the Bud conked out to give the Pak an easy victory.

Then Remund turned the tables in the winner-take-all final when he outfoxed Chenoweth and grabbed the inside lane at the start, then held on for the victory.

Hydroplane driving was more arduous in the early 1970s. The best boats were conventional designs with the driver sitting behind the engine. The only turbine in the pits was the experimental U-95, which never left the beach. None of the pilots were protected by canopies.

The rain was hazardous. Because few drivers had helmets that offered full-face protection, most covered the lowered halves of their faces with bandanas.

After the race, many drivers, especially those in the back of the pack, believed the race should not have been held.

"That rain felt like being hit in the face with with a BB gun," said Tom D'Eath, who was the rookie driver of Miss U.S. in 1973.

"The visibility couldn't have been more than a couple of feet."

"I was really lost out there," said Chuck Hickling. "I could not see a thing. I had no idea which way to steer. That's scary."

But others, like Bill Muncey, who was driving the Atlas Van Lines that day, were philosophical about the elements.

"Visibility (for the drivers) was virtually nil, but an awful lot of people came out to see a race," Muncey said.

Remund said race conditions were not that far from normal.

"One thing about this sport is that you never can see that well," said Remund. "You have only about 80 percent visibility on a clear day."

D'Eath, who will drive Miss Budweiser in Sunday's Rainier Cup, said the next best heat involved Miss Budweiser and Miss Circus Circus driven by Chip Hanauer, on Syracuse's 2-mile course July 16. D'Eath won the heat with a 150-mph average. Hanauer later crashed his boat in the final heat while in the lead.

"The biggest difference between the 1973 heat and the one in Syracuse is the size of the course," said D'Eath. "Seattle was a 3-mile course in those days. If Chip (Hanauer) had hooked up on a 2½-mile course, we could have averaged 160. On a 3-miler, we would have run 170 per lap."

Seasoned Pilots Are Pacing Hydroplane Circuit

Reprinted from The New York Times, July 19, 1970

WASHINGTON, July 18 (AP) —New drivers and new boats are all over the unlimited hydroplane racing circuit this season, but older pilots and craft still lead the field in this comeback year for the fastest sport on water.

The national point leader, Bill Muncey, pilot of Myr's Sheet Metal, and Dean Chenoweth, driver of 1969 national champion, Miss Budweiser, are leading the fleet after five of eighth regattas. Muncey at age 41 and Chenoweth at 36 are two of the old men of unlimited hydroplane racing.

Going into tomorrow's Atomic Cup Regatta on the Columbia River at Tri-Cities, Wash. Muncey has led his huge roostertail Detroit boat to victories in Washington, Owensboro, Ky., and Detroit, a second place in Tampa, Fla., and fourth at Madison, Ind. He leads in the standing with 5,194 points.

Chenoweth Is Runner-Up

In Muncey's shadow, with 4,775 points, is Chenoweth and the Tampa boat Miss Budweiser. The Bud is the only other winner so far this season with victories at home and in Madison.

Three other boats can't be counted out of the running for the national title. They are: the Notre Dame of Detroit, 3,915 points; Parco's 0 Ring Miss. Ontario, Calif., 3,746 and the Miss Owensboro, 3,565.

After Miss Owensboro it's considerable drop to the Pride of Pay 'n Pak, a new Seattle boat, with 1,688 points. Eight additional boats have competed so far this year.

This was to be the year of the transition—and transfusion—for the beleaguered sport and it might eventually prove to be just that. But the Pay 'n Pak and Atlas Van Lines, new boats with revolutionary pickle fork design hulls and twin Chrysler super modified engines located behind the driver, haven't been convincing so far.

The Pay 'n Pak is sixth in the season standing, but Atlas has had a miserable year and is scoreless.

George Byers Jr., the Columbus, Ohio chairman of the Unlimited Racing Commission, said he thought Atlas and Pay 'n Pak tried to incorporate too many changes at once.

“I expect more boats to use auto engines next year,” Byers said although he concedes there is still a good supply available of the World War II vintage Rolls-Royce and Allison 12-piston aircraft engines that have powered conventional hydroplanes for years.

“But,” he added, “trying to prove both a new hull and new engines is too much.” He said the standard design, in which the driver sits behind the engine, is more satisfactory.

“The front end is just too light in the new cabover design,” of Pay 'n Pak and Atlas. he said. “It didn't work with 7-litre limited hydroplanes and it does not work with unlimiteds.”

Byers hesitated to predict 1970 champion, but said the title could go to any of the top four boats—Myr's, Bud, Notre Dame and Parco's.

Boasts a Sleek Design

Of the top five boats, only Parco's is new. The star-spangled red, white and blue craft is one of the sleekest of the conventional-design boats, with a length of 30 feet and weight of 5,500 pounds. The leader, Myr's Sheet Metal, weighs 7,000 pounds and is 32 feet long.

Of the handful of new unlimited drivers this year, the 23-year-old Miss Owensboro pilot, Billy Sterett Jr. is the front-runner with a total of 1,846 points.

But despite the rookie drivers, like Sterett and Dave Walther, 24 of the Miss U.S. and interesting if not always exciting new boats, unlimited racing it in a tenuous position this year after a miserable 1969 season in which there were only seven race dates and a severe drop in spectator interest.

The sport has been a victim over the years of its own esoteric nature it is a rich man's sport—expensive to participate in and expensive to stage.

Unlimited Hydroplane Racing to Open Season Friday

Reprinted from The New York Times, May 28, 1972

The fastest—and loudest—watercraft afloat start their season next Friday in Miami with the $25,000 Champion Spark Plug unlimited hydroplane regatta.

Hydroplane owners are taking dead aim at Florida in more than one way since Miss Budweiser, the champion boat of the last three years, is co-owned by Bernie Little of Tampa. If the rebuilt Budweiser wins a fourth national title, it would be an American Power Boat Association record.

There are several reasons why Miss Bud may not repeat: Two new hydros—with new, talented drivers—last year's fast-finishing Pride of Pay 'n Pak, plus a new pilot for the champion.

The new unlimiteds are Miss Madison and Notre Dame. Then there are last year's new boats, Country Boy, Miss Miami and Miss Timex, which should be tougher with a season's tune-up under their belts. Plus Pizza Pete, an old boat (Fascination) with new engine and new money.

Muncey is Entered.

Of course, there are other obstacles in the Miss Budweiser's goal: Bill Muncey, the sport's most successful driver, who will be at the helm of Atlas Van Lines; Fred Alter's Towne Club, replete with new engines; Bob Fendler's rear-engine Lincoln Special, and a local entry, Miss Miami, with untested driver, Lou Nuta Jr.

Qualifying runs for the season's opener will be held Friday and Saturday, with the final heat on Sunday in Miami's Marine Stadium.

Unlimited fans can be expected to look for the following developments:

• National driving champion, Dean Chenoweth, taking on a new boat in Notre Dame.

• Pride of Pay 'n Pak attempting to continue her string of victories, which reached three last year.

• Gold Cup champion, Jim McCormick, switching to the Rolls-Royce-powered Miss Timex.

• Last year's rookie of the year, Terry Sterett, now driving Miss Budweiser.

The proposed 10-race unlimited by hydroplane schedule has lost its Diamond Cup regatta, which had been listed for Aug. 13 on Lake Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. The sponsor, International Raceways of Seattle, reportedly dropped the event over a dispute on posting a bond with the city council.