1974 World Championship in the Tri-Cities

Reprinted from Facebook.

If there was ever a race that I would have wanted to attend back in my youth, it would have been the 1974 World Championship in the Tri. Unlike the disastrous Gold Cup two weeks later in Seattle, the race on the Columbia River was filled with many of the hulls in Seattle that never hit the water, burned up, blew up, sank, you name it! Seattle’s Gold Cup was only memorable for one particular heat 1C that became known as one of the greatest piston powered battles of all time between the Pak and the Bud. However, this is two weeks earlier now and we are in the Tri-Cities. 

There were 12 boats that qualified for this race with George Henley in the Pay 'n Pak at the top with a speed of 119.681mph, but close behind was the new U-55 Lincoln Thrift at 118.421 mph driven by Mickey Remund. The new U-2 Miss U.S. with Tom D’Eath and the U-74 Valu-Mart with Ron Armstrong were tied for third with 116.883mph followed by Howie Benns in the U-12 Miss Budweiser at 115.681 mph.

Photo by Randy Hall

The points structure had the slower boats in heats 1A and 2A, the faster boats were in heats 1B and 2B, and the fastest boats were in heats 1C and 2C with the winners in the fast heat getting 400 points while the winners in the middle heat getting only 300 points. The slow boat winners were given 225 points. The final heat point structure was even more bizarre in the final with the winner getting 600 points, 450 to 2nd, 338 to 3rd, 254 for 4th. 

The consolation winner, the U-4 Kirby Classic received 200 points and the U-22 Sunny Jim getting 150 for 2nd place. Wow! OK, the winners in the fast heats were the Pak in 1C and the U-95 in 2C. The winners in the middle of the road heat were the Bud in 1B and the Atlas in 2B. And finally, the slow heat winner was the U-44 Pizza Pete in both 1C and 2C. Not bad for one of the three Schoenith river sleds in attendance, driven by Fearless Fred Alter.

So, it came down to the all-important final heat. The top six points getters were the Pak, the U-95, the Bud, the Valu-Mart, the Pizza Pete and the U-76 Miss Cott Beverages. Sadly, three major contenders, the Atlas Van Lines, the Lincoln Thrift and the Miss U.S. did not have enough points to qualify for the final based on not being able to finish one of their heats. So, when the Bud went down during the final heat, the door was wide open for Henley in the Pak to cruise to victory, followed by Freddy Alter in the Pizza Pete, Ron Armstrong in the Valu-Mart and coming in 4th place, the turbine powered U-95 with Leif Borgersen. Son after 12 boats qualifying for the race, there were only six finishers between the final and the consolation. 

Hmmm maybe the disaster in Seattle was a bit better. Oh well. At least the fans got to see the Australian entry VS-41 Solo run a few laps during her failed qualifying attempt but I’m sure some of the sun-drenched fans cared very little about the boats on the water and paid more attention to the suntanned skin in the water and on the beach.

The Pak wins 3rd title on Mission Bay

Reposted from Facebook.

After two back-to-back titles for Dave Heerensperger's Winged Wonder Pay 'n Pak, one with Mickey Remund in 1973 and the other with George Henley in 1974, the Pak was looking to three-peat in 1975, but after Smilin’ George decided to retire, the seat was left open. Former Pak driver Mickey Remund already had a seat with the Miss Budweiser team, so Heerensperger had to go fishing for a new driver. He decided to go with veteran driver Jim McCormick who took the reins at the 1975 season opener in Miami. Unfortunately, the Pak underperformed and was not even able to make the final heat by scoring only 394 points. The following race at the Presidents Cup was also not good as McCormick finished in dead last during the first heat of the day.

Photo by John Woodward

The two sub-par performances by the veteran McCormick did not sit well with Heerensperger so he coaxed Henley out of retirement who then went out and had one of his worst career races scoring zero points in the Pak at the Kentucky Governor’s Cup in Owensboro with a DNS and a DNF. Meanwhile, Billy Schumacher in the U-74 Weisfield’s was making plenty of waves by winning two of the first three races of the 1975 season. Well, you can only imagine that there was a team gathering after the Owensboro race on how to turn the season around. Henley righted the ship and picked up a 3rd place podium finish in Detroit and then proceeded to go on a rampage by winning the next four races and putting the Pak right back in the national title race.

Two other hulls had also found the winner’s circle; the Budweiser won on the Potomac River and would win again in Phoenix, and Tom D’Eath in the U-2 Miss U.S. picked up a big win on her home turf in Detroit. Other noteworthy hulls were the U-55 Lincoln Thrift with Milner Irvin, and the U-6 Miss Madison/Hamm’s Bear driven by Jerry Bangs for their consistency in making nearly every final heat of the season. Everyone’s nemesis seemed to be Bill Muncey in the U-71 Atlas Van Lines (7), the Staudacher built lemon that kept Muncey off the top step of the podium for the third consecutive year. Controversy swirled around Muncey’s interpretation of the rule book as he kept searching for a race win that continued to elude the Atlas camp.

Photo by John Woodward

As the fleet headed into the last race of the 1975 season in sunny San Diego, the Weisfeld’s held a slight 249-point lead over the Pak. Schumacher had already wrapped up the driver’s title and was looking to add another national title to his already impressive resume. After the first heat, the lead had dwindled to 149 points after Henley narrowly defeated Schumacher to take the crucial 400 points away from the Weisfield’s. Then the wheels fell off as the Weisfield’s suffered engine failure and was unable to finish the second heat thus taking Schumacher out of the final and out of the national title race.

The Pak took the Lincoln Thrift to the finish line in heat 2B to barely squeak out the win by inches, and then in the final heat, the Pak had another amazing deck to deck battle, this time with Remund in the Budweiser. However, Henley in the Pak found a way to outduel the Budweiser to the finish line and win by a mere few seconds. The final two heats of the 1975 season at the San Diego Weisfield’s Trophy race gave the U-1 Pay 'n Pak enough points to leapfrog the U-74 Weisfield’s and claim their 3rd consecutive National Championship. Winning the driver’s title for Billy was nice but I’m sure that losing the team title had to sting a little. George Henley decided to hang it up for good after the season was over while Schumacher stayed on for one more year to drive the U-74 Olympia Beer.

The mighty Winged Wonder’s dominance rolled over to a 4th year as Bill Muncey would purchase the hull when Heerensperger decided to step away from the sport. This famous and innovative hydroplane designed and built by the master Ron Jones went on to win the 1976 title as the U-76 Atlas Van Lines and became the first hull in hydroplane history to win four straight titles on its way to 22 total career victories.

Will Pak's cornering be enough?

Weisfield's sets course record

Special to The Courier-Journal

DAYTON, Ohio — Can Weisfield's handle the tight comers on the Eastwood Park Lake course? And can it handle the Pay 'n Pak?

Those are the two biggest questions to be answered today when the city stages its second annual Hydroglobe Regatta for unlimited hydroplanes.

The Weisfield's hydro, driven by Billy Schumacher, leads the national championship standings after five races with 4,763 points to second-place Lincoln Thrift's 4,201.

But it was the Pay 'n Pak, with George Henley at the controls, that prevailed at last Saturday's Madison Regatta — and many think the snug Eastwood Park Lake course suits the Pak much better than Weisfield's.

The Pak, on the other hand, corners tighter than any other boat in the fleet, so it has to be ranked as the favorite on the two-mile Eastwood Park Lake course. (All other courses on the circuit measure 2 1/2 miles and thus have wider turns.)

Too, the Dayton layout proved to the Pak's liking last year when Henley piloted the hydro to a perfect winning score of 1,200 points.

However, Weisfield's set a new course record 109.091 miles per hour in yesterday's qualifying, bettering the Pak's 107.463 of last year. Pay 'n Pak qualified at 107.784 as did Lincoln Thrift. Other qualifiers:

Miss U.S 104.348; Miss Budweiser 104.348; Miss Madison 98.765; Atlas Van Lines 97.495; Miss Vernor's 95.491; Miss Boot Head 93.385; U-95 90.000.

Pak Wins 3rd Straight National Championship In Exciting Season

Reprinted from Pipe Yard Gazette, September/October 1975

It was a hectic season and as you’ll see by our point’s chart elsewhere in this issue. Pay ‘n Pak won by a mere 649 points when last year we won by a more comfortable 1,764 points.

George Henley, who came out of retirement after two races this year were lost, had to go down to the last race to win it all. However, George should be awarded the come-back of all times and broke a record by winning 12 races in less than 2 years and making it a record 16 races for one hull.

Pay ‘n Pak won the third straight title only by winning the last race, ironically the Weisfield’s Trophy Race, on Mission Bay in San Diego on Sunday, September 21, 1975.

May we quote from the San Diego Los Angeles and Seattle papers: From the Seattle Times, the lead line - “Billy Schumacher ran out of ‘Laughing Gas’ yesterday and George Henley and the Pay ‘n Pak crew ‘giggled’ all the way home.” The reference to laughing gas is the nitrous oxide that Schumacher had to use up all year just to run with the Pak.

Henley scored come-from-behind victories in all three heats on Mission Bay to win the Weisfield’s Cup Trophy and the National Championship.

Weisfield’s U-74 came into the race 249 points ahead. There were only two ways Pay ‘n Pak could win. (1) To draw Weisfield’s in every heat and finish first so the best Weisfield’s could do would be second. Then the Pak would pick up 1,200 points and Weisfield’s not more than 900. If that happened the Pak could have one with 51 points. (2) Weisfield’s would have go break in at least one heat while the Pak won at least 2 heats.

A little of both happened. George drew Weisfield’s for heat 1B and hung on Shumacher’s hip for the entire heat then passed the lead boat in the very final turn of the heat to take Weisfield’s in Heat 1B. “The nitrous tank just flat went dry”, Schumacher said about the lead change when the Pak shot forward as Weisfield’s ran out of power. The heat set a course record average speed of 116.099 miles per hour.

George Henley then did the same thing to Lincoln Thrift in Heat 2B and Miss Budweiser in the final heat.

Schumacher dropped out of Heat 2A, losing his spot in the final and losing the National Championship possibility when his boat lost its oil pressure. As he shut the engine down, it blew a rod.

The Pak now joins legendary Bardahl and Budweiser as the hydro racing world’s only three-time national Champion. Can we make it four-in-a-row?

Unlimited Hydroplane - National Points Standings - End of Season

Position	Boat	1975	Last Year
1st	Pay ‘n Pak	8,864	1st - 11,527
2nd	Weisfield’s	8,213	7th - 3,087
3rd	Lincoln Thrift	8,103	Not in Top 10
4th	Miss Budweiser	6,677	2nd - 9,763
5th	Madison/Hamms	5,203	4th - 3,865
6th	Miss U.S.	4,795	9th - 1,694
7th	Atlas Van Lines	4,017	3rd - 6,030
8th	Miss Vernon’s	3,384	Not in 1974
9th	Vans P-X	972	Not in 1974
10th	Miss Valvoline	844	Not in 1974

Extra hydro, 'collision' cause confusion

By Hec Hancock
Reprinted from The Tri-City Herald, July 22, 1974

Controversy and confusion, long the trademark of unlimited hydroplane racing, all but obliterated the finish of the $37,000 World Championship Regatta Sunday on the Columbia River.

The famous seven-boat start.

George Henley, a 37-year-old rookie driver from Eatonville, drove Pay 'n Pak to victory in the winner-take-all championship heat.

That much is a matter of record.

It is also a fact there were seven boats, one over the limit, in the final heat and Bill Muncey, hardly a stranger to rhubarbs, was fined $250.

Neither was it speculation that the turbine powered U-95 suffered an estimated $15,000 in damage to its tail section during the first lap of the championship heat.

However, just how the U-95, which set a course record of 113.469 in winning the second heat, was damaged set off a heated argument that surged back and forth through the pit area for more than an hour following the race.

About the only think everyone agree upon was the Muncey and the Atlas Van Lines had no business being in the race.

Muncey's presence came about when, as an alternate boat, he joined the field when he felt the U-74 Valu-Mart was unable to answer the starting call.

"The last time I had a chance to see the Valu-Mart the driver was standing on the deck. That was with a minute and 30 seconds to go," Muncey said afterwards.

As a consequence the veteran driver decided all systems were go.

Meanwhile, Ron Armstrong, Valu-Mart driver, got his boat going thus making it a seven-man field. Witnesses report that was with 1:40 left.

It was the traffic jam created by the seven thunderboats desperately endeavoring to negotiate the first turn that brought grief to U-95. Somehow the boat driven by Leif Borgersen was hit from behind forcing it to go dead in the water.

It was nearly a minute before it could resume under its own power, putting it out of contention. 

"You knew something wasn't right," U-95 Borgersen said afterwards. "Everything closed in on that first turn. It was like a funnel. All of the sudden the boat went up in the air. Then it went sideways and whether it caught the right sponson and hooked or took a direct hit I don't know."

Chuck Lyford, team manager of U-95, charged it was Muncey who had clipped his driver's boat. But other than being in the field illegally, Lyford did not blame the Atlas driver as much as the Valu-Mart, which he claimed moved from the outside and caused the crunch.

Bill Newton, race referee, ruled Valu-Mart was in the clear.

"Someone moved from lane five to the inside and that's illegal." Muncey stated. He later felt it was the Pak. Later he thought it must have been the turbine.

"There was no collision, I did not hit it," he said in answer if it had been his boat which had hit the U-95.

"Muncey gets fined $250 and the damage costs me $15,000, I don't think thats right," an irate Pam Clapp, owner of the U-95 retorted after Newton rejected her written protest.

About the only one who wasn't confused was the winner Henley.

"I got a good start and was out in front by the turn."

As a consequence he didn't see any of the confusion that transpired in his wake.

After the "non-collision" Henley sped virtually unopposed to victory pocketing $7,100 for the triumph. Fred Alter in the Pizza Pete earned $4,600.

Commissioner George Byers Jr., chairman of the Unlimited Racing Commission, promised Ms. Clapp he would appoint a four or five-man committee to investigate. "We'll get together a few days before the Gold Cup in Seattle and go over available information and look at any films on the race he stated."

Interestingly enough a protest used to automatically stop the awarding of prizes. Under present rules, the referee has the authority to determine the outcome right on the spot.

The rule as changed largely because of an incident in 1956 when it was 85 days before the winner of the Gold Cup was determined.

Muncey was declared the winner of that race when TV films showed he hadn't hit a buoy as charged.

1973 Pay 'N Pak

By Ken Muscatel, Pacific Northwest Chapter, ACBS

It remains one of the most popular unlimited hydroplanes ever built. To this day, the deck-to-deck duels between “The Pak” and “The Bud” remain legendary. Dave Heerensberger’s Pay ’n Pak was as revolutionary in its design and construction techniques as it was popular for the futuristic wing on the back and big orange letters painted across the deck. Designer Ron Jones insisted the boat utilize a horizontal wing at the transom to assist in the craft’s high-speed stability.

1973 Pay 'n Pak

The cockpit was situated higher than those of contemporary unlimiteds, offering the driver exceptional visibility. The Pay ’n Pak also set itself apart as the first unlimited to be constructed using honeycomb aluminum—a strong, lightweight material developed for use in the aircraft industry. The result was a hull lighter, stronger and faster. At times, it seemed virtually untouchable.

1973 UIM World Championship

Between 1973 and 1976 the hull won four consecutive National Championships under the Pay 'n Pak and Atlas Van Lines names. Drivers Mickey Remund, ‘Smilin’ George Henley, and Bill Muncey found the winners circle 21 times, dominating during one of the most competitive eras in hydroplane racing. Facing worthy opponents like Miss Budweiser, Weisfield's, Miss. U.S., and Lincoln Thrift the boat usually lost only when suffering some kind of mechanical issue. So good was the boat ride that upon his first time in the hull, Bill Muncey chided previous driver George Henley for not winning more races with it. Ron Snyder achieved its 22nd and final victory for the Miss Madison team in 1983 as the Miss Rich Plan.

2017 Tri-Cities, WA

After retiring from competition halfway through the 1988 season, the hull was stored indoors until acquired by Ken Muscatel in 2012. The Hydroplane & Raceboat Museum undertook a thorough, three year restoration back to its Pay ’n Pak configuration, making its public debut in 2017.

Gold Cup Day at the New Site

By Georg N. Myers
Reprinted from The Seattle Times, August 5, 1974

After all the caterwauling over what a wretched place Sand Point was for a hydroplane race, I made a hideous discovery.

The shoreline of Lake Washington's hydroplane course was jammed, but there was still lots of room for parking and moving around on the Sand Point Naval Air-Station's base during yesterday running of the Gold Cup Race. — Staff aerial photo by Larry Dion.

It is not much worse than the hallowed site at the Stan Sayres Memorial Pits.

All week long, I heard pitiable laments:

"There isn’t even any drinking water at Sand Point!"

"You can’t see past the officials’ tower and those damn cranes in the pits!"

"Impeach Arden Aegerter! "

My memory was that, at the old Seward Park course, there never was any drinking water. If you sat behind the official barge or the cranes in the pits there, you could not see.

Still, when the public for 23 years has walked in to see an event free, the temptation is irresistible to barbecue anybody who upsets tradition and has the temerity to ask you to pay.

I arrived at Sand Point on Gold Cup Day determined to find fault. It was a short search.

The sun was too hot, and there were almost no trees. The grass was not green, and it was beat down. There were a lot of terrible places to sit, where you could see no more than a passing roostertail, and that’s where most of the people sat.

But there were glimmers of ingenuity.

A dozen or so fans, on folding chairs, had a splendid view of much of the course from the concrete loading platform of the Navy’s old Small-Arms Pyrotechnic storehouse.

Another dozen were atop a Marine Corps display—one each tractor, medium, full-tracked, low-speed Model 82-30 (53,500 lbs., $36,000).

Twice that many covered the roof of a giant Washington National Guard van.

I watched one heat from the summit of Bunker 21, a concrete mound overlaid with wild grasses and floating thistledown. It commanded a sweeping view, through binoculars, of three-quarters of the course. But it was no place for hay fever.

I trudged the length of the course and watched another heat from the swimming pier of the Sand Point officers’ beach, my feet barely dangling over the lapping water.

Though limited, it was the most dramatic view I found, as the boats exploded into sight from the starting buoy and thundered into the south turn. But I could not see Miss U.S. when she burst into flames in the north turn.

At almost the same moment, however, a grass fire crackled nearby, and the flames licked dangerously near hundreds of automobiles parked on the airport runway.

Firemen controlled that blaze, I gather, somewhat more quickly than the fire was subdued on Miss U.S.

I found an even better vantage point a few hundred yards farther south, looking straight up the course from a low, unpopulated promontory thick with wild broom, blackberry canes and thistle.

I would like to have watched a heat from there. But a young man and a girl, wearing suntan lotion and not much more, were paying very close attention to each other, lying in the thistle, only a few feet away.

I was embarrassed that, if they discovered I was there, they might be embarrassed.

For variety, I watched one heat from an assigned seat on the official tower.

The entire course lay before me. Every time the boats roared into the south turn, all I could see through my binoculars was the tattoo on a photographer’s bicep.

When U-95 went down, I had an excellent view. I then was on a slope almost directly behind the official tower, very close to a sign reading: "Let’s Return the Race Back to the Stan Sayres Pits."

Beside the sign was a table, where you could sign a petition.

I managed a little added elevation by climbing onto a big, green litter-disposal bin. It was the best view I had all day.

A man with an official badge made me get off.

The most comfortable place to watch was in a tree-shaded strip of 300 yards immediately south of the pits. About half the area was roped off for "military personnel" and guests of Pay ‘n Pak.

But, as in most spots directly on shore—at Sand Point and Seward Park—the boats were visible only as they passed.

It broke on me that there was no overwhelming evidence that most of the people who go to a hydroplane race are obsessed with seeing the race.

The attraction seems to be the atmosphere, the noise, the crowd itself.

It is a day for suntan lotion and the plastic frost chest, gaudy halters and grungy cutoffs, flying Frisbees and inflatable rafts, watching the imperturbable ducks, ogling the string bikinis—more string than bikini.

For all those purposes, Sand Point proved itself eminently adequate, with one horrible difference. The other place was free.

Third equals 1st for 'Pak'

Reprinted from The Seattle Times, June 10, 1974

WASHINGTON, D.C — (Special) — For the second week in a row, the worth of unlimited hydroplane racing's "fan plan" has been increased.

George Henley, driving the Pay 'n Pak, yesterday won the President's Cup by placing third in the final heat.

A week ago, in the season-opening Champion Regatta in Miami, the Budweiser took regatta honors with a second in the final.

Yesterday's go was more of a parade than a race, with Henley piling up 800 points in preliminary heats to establish a near unsurmountable lead over his hottest rivals — Bill Muncey in the Atlas Van Lines and Howie Benns in the Bud.

Henley needed only a third in the final heat to win his first unlimited race. And that's exactly what he did. The Eatonville, Wash., driver quickly settled into third behind Benns and Muncey and did not force the issue throughout the five-lap heat.

Henley scored 1,025 points. Muncey finished second with 900 and Leif Borgersen in the turbine-powered U-95 took third with 827. Despite the final-heat win, Benns with forth with 800 points. A supercharger failure in Heat 2B stalled the beer wagon and Benns watched Henley scoot to an easy 400-point win in the prelim.

For years, hydro fans have been complaining about the sport's scoring system whereby a boat can accumulate points during early heats and then "coast" in the final.

Two years ago, Seattle took the hind and initiated a fan-plan format which gives the overall win to the winner of the final heat. This year, Detroit, Tri-Cities and Seattle will use the fan plan.

But Miami, Washington, D.C., and other cities haven't come around yet and fans along the Potomac yesterday were "treated" to the dullest race in years.

Borgersen got the U-95 its first-ever heat win with an average of 90.289 miles an hour in Heat 2A. The U-95 was in contention with 700 points going into the final, but the new craft was not running with the hot dogs when they are on the course at the same time. Borgersen gathered his points against second-line competition.

It was the third President's Cup win for Dave Heerensperger, owner of the Seattle-based Pay 'n Pak. Bill Sterett, Jr. won here with the Pride of Pay 'n Pak in 1972 and the late Col. Warner Gardner took the 1968 Potomac race with the Eagle Electric.

The win puts Pay 'n Pak atop the national points standings with 1,825. Miss Budweiser is right there with 1,800, followed by U-95 with 1,596 and Atlas Van Lines and Miss Madison with 1,125 each.

Tom Sheehy, Miami, quit as the driver of the Miss Cott's Beverages (former Notre Dame) after yesterday's race. Roger D'Each of Hialeah, Fla., is expected to be Sheehy's replacement.

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.

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.

Bud wins by (—) that much

Pak edged at Detroit

Reprinted from The Seattle Times, July 1, 1974

DETROIT— (Special) — George Henley ran out of time in his game of "catch up" with Howie Benns, but the unlimited hydroplane jockey from Eatonville, Wash., still leads in the chase for national high points honors.

Howie Benns, Miss Budweiser driver, after a heat victory. Photo by Bill Knodell.

Henley, at the wheel of the Pay 'n Pak, was washed down by Benns in the Budweiser as the two boats battled for the lead late in the second lap of the winner-take-all final heat of yesterday's Gar Wood Trophy Race on the stormy Detroit River.

The splash pushed the Pak inside the buoy line and allowed Benns to build a commanding lead.

But Henley circled back to pick up the missed buoy and methodically gained on Benns to set up one of the most exciting finishes in the long history of hydro racing on the Motor City.

The two boats were side by side in the backstretch of the fifth and final lap, but Benns had the inside lane and held it through the final turn. Benns' margin of victory was three tenths of a second (about one boat length).

"I had to eat his water," Henley said of the incident. "But that's all part of the game."

Henley, trailed Benns by about four boat lengths at the apex of the turn, headed for the inside. But Benns had the necessary lead and cut for the exit buoy and Henley ran through the Budweiser's roostertail.

"We don't play any dirty game," Benns said when questioned about a possible infraction. "I wouldn't do anything like that and to him and he wouldn't to me."

Benns, a 35-year-old rookie from Grand Island, N.Y., received high praise from his boss, Bernie Little, owner of the Bud.

"It took him about three races to really get with it," Little said. "But he's a thousand percent better. You should have seen the move he put on Muncey in 1B."

Bill Muncey, winningest driver in unlimited history, ran forth in Heat 1B and did not finish 2B.

It was a Pak-Bud race all the way. Savair's Probe, driven by Bob Miller, ran third in the final but its speed was more than 10 miles an hour under the second-pace Pak. Tom Kaufman ran forth with his Mister Fabricator and Roger D'Each placed fifth in the Miss Cott's Beverages.

Benns' speed was announced at 109.800 m.p.h. But, in actuality, it was much slower. The Detroit course was shortened during time trials. Bill Newton, chief referee, ordered the sharp turns to be "rounded off" and this the course is about 2¾ miles. But a three-mile speed chart was used "for comparison purposes only."

The Pak leads in the points race with 3,750. Budweiser closed to 3,694.

Next stop on the unlimited circuit will be the World Championship Regatta in the Tri-Cities on July 21.

Driver Pitched from Boat during Regatta

June 2, 1974, MIAMI — Tragedy nearly struck during the first heat at yesterday's Champion Spark Plug Regatta at Miami Marine Stadium, as Leslie Rosenberg's new Valu-Mart unlimited hydroplane lost its rudder in a close race with the Pay 'n Pak, driven by George Henley.

Driver Ron Armstrong (lower right) was thrown from his boat, the Valu-Mart, when it lost a rudder and crashed near the finish line during Heat 1A of yesterday's Champion Spark Plug Regatta at Miami Marine Stadium.
Photo by Bill Reinke, Miami News staff photographer.

Valu-Mart driver Ron Armstrong was thrown out as the boat hooked and spun to the right. Miraculously, Armstrong was not seriously injured, suffering only a bruised neck. His boat, however, was not so lucky. With its transom completely torn out, the boat sank before it could be retrieved.

Pay 'n Pak Wins Seafair Race

Reprinted from Propeller magazine, September 1975.

Continuing to state one of the greatest comebacks in thunderboat annals, defending national champion Pay 'n Pak, driven by George Henley of Eatonville, Wash., won the Seattle Seafair Unlimited hydroplane race on Aug. 3 for its forth consecutive 1975 victory. Seemingly out of contention early in the season, the famed Pak took on new life with the return of Henley who retired at the end of the '74 circuit.

Pay 'n Pak, driven by George Henley, wins in Seattle.

The 39-year-old marine propulsion manufacturer drove the Rolls Royce powered craft to a record seven wins in 11 starts last year and added four more this season to make Dave Heerensperger's Pay 'n Pak the second most successful Unlimited hydro in history. In three years the Pak has won 15 races to eclipse the 14 wins by Bill Muncey in Willard Rhodes' Miss Thriftway which was also campaigned as Miss Century 21 and it is just one shy of the 16 conquests of Guy Lombardo's Tempo VI.

The Seattle Seafair victory, Pay 'n Pak's third straight on Lake Washington, was not an easy one for Henley who had to overcome the record-setting Miss U.S. and take on the Bill Schumacher chauffeured Weisfield's in the final heat. The thread from the Detroit-based Miss U.S. with Tom D'Eath driving to a new course record of 120.000 for a 2½ mi. lap in competition, dissolved when the hull ran into a double dose of problems. George Simon's turbo-charged Allison powered hull first suffered a broken prop, then ironically, caught fire for the second straight year in Seattle during Heat 1B.

Weisfield's, winner of Heat 1B, also captured the final heat, but trailed the victorious Pak in total race points, 1100 to 1025.  Schumacher also established a new course mark of 109.330 mph for a 37½ mile race on a 2½ mi. course.

The Pak's only other major threat, Bob Fendler's Lincoln Thrift which one Heat 2A, was knocked out of contention when roostertail spray from another boat shattered the windshield and flying debris struck driver Milner Irvin of Miami Fla. Despite the accident, Irvin managed to restart the boat's turbo-charged Allison engine and finish the race in third position. Irvin was taken to Providence Medical Center where official regatta physician, Dr. William Merrill, said that Irvin's condition was not serious. Irvin set a 12½ mi. course heat record of 113.151 mph.

Veteran Bill Muncey of San Diego, Calif. was forth in Lee Schoenith's Atlas Van Lines despite being unable to finish his first heat. Bob Miller of Seattle drive Jerry Kalen's Miss Vernors to fifth place overall.

Miss Budweiser Wins Final Race

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Oct. 20, 1974 (AP)—Dean Chenoweth brought the unlimited hydroplane season to a close today by piloting Miss Budweiser to a narrow victory over the Pride of Pay 'n Pak in the Admiral's Cup race.

Chenoweth, of Tallahassee, Fla., took two of the three heats at average speeds above 100 miles per hour. George Henley of Seattle, who had previously clinched the national title with Pay 'n Pak, took the final heat.

Pay 'n Pak Wins Hydroplane Regatta

WASHINGTON, June 9, 1974 (AP) — The defending national champion, Pride of Pay 'n Pak, driven by George S. Henley of Eatonville, Washington, won the 43rd Presidents Cup Regatta for Unlimited hydroplanes today, although finishing third behind Miss Budweiser in the final heat.

Pay 'n Pak scored 1,025 points in winning heats yesterday and earlier today. Second place went to Atlas Van Lines driven by Bill Muncey of San Diego, which scored 900 points for finishing second in the heats, including the final one.

Miss Budweiser, with a rookie, Howie Benns of Grand Island, N.Y. at the wheel, broke a supercharger yesterday but won the final heat today to move into fourth place behind U-95 in the final standing.

Memories of the 1975 Season

By John Woodward
Reprinted from Facebook, April 10, 2019

Today, our throwback goes back to a pivotal time during the 1975 season, the first two races on the western circuit, Tri-Cities and Seattle. Not having instant news or the Internet like we do now, I had no idea what was at stake when the boats were en route to the 1975 Gold Cup in the Tri-Cities.

The Seattle Post Intelligencer, Monday August 4th, 1975. 

I was a nerdy 16-year old who occasionally watched the Sunday evening news on TV or saw a clip in the newspaper here and there but nothing I heard or saw indicated the battle that was forthcoming.

I was not aware that the U-74 Weisfield’s driven by Billy Schumacher held a sizable lead of 2,335 points over the Pay 'n Pak after the first three races and was pretty much picked to win the national championship. I also had no clue that Jim McCormick was hired to drive the Pay 'n Pak and was then replaced after just two races.

But when I heard that George Henley was back in the seat, I knew that it was not good for the rest of the field. After Schumacher won in Owensboro, the advantage started to shift. Heading into the Tri-Cities, the points race between the Weisfield’s and the Pak had been cut in half thanks to Henley and the surging Pay 'n Pak team.

I remember being riveted to my transistor radio as I listened to Jim Hendricks call the race live from the Tri-Cities.

Surprisingly, the other player in the middle of that points race was one of my personal favorites, the turbo-charged, Allison powered U-55 Lincoln Thrift driven by Milner Irvin. If it had not been for a loose distributor wire in heat 2B, the Lincoln Thrift could have easily swept all three heats and quite possibly the Gold Cup.

The other surprise was the Bud's quick exit when the hull suffered structural damage and sank in heat 1B. By virtue of the Weisfield’s misfortunes and the Pak's good fortune, by days end the Pak had taken the lead in the points race over the Weisfield’s and the Gold Cup belonged to George Henley for the second straight year.

The next day, the newspaper made reference to several infractions called on Billy Schumacher by head referee Bill Newton. Even though it appeared that the war of words had been cleared up, it was apparent that tension still existed as the fleet headed west.

The 1975 Seafair trophy race in Seattle a week later would be billed as a “destruction derby.” Before heat 1A had even started, the U-6 Hamm’s Bear bumped the Pak causing significant damage to the hull’s left side.

In a bizarre set of circumstances, every boat except for the Atlas jumped the gun. It was pretty much hand Bill Muncey the win. Ironically, it was not meant to be. All the other boats DNF’d except for the busted up Pay 'n Pak. Muncey’s huge lead quickly evaporated as the U-71 Atlas Van Lines (7) ran out of gas nearing the end.

The damaged Pak passed the Atlas and limped across the line for the unbelievable win and 400 points. And that was only the first heat! In 1B, the Miss U.S. nailed the start and was way out in front when the boat suddenly slowed to a stop with a lost prop as the culprit. Schumacher claimed the victory along with the much needed 400 points.

Heat 2A would be the game changer for the Weisfield’s as the crafty Milner Irvin in the U-55 Lincoln Thrift grabbed the inside lane and held off Schumacher for several thrilling deck to deck laps until the Thrift pulled away as the Weisfield’s engine soured with a burnt piston. Billy only got 225 points as the Atlas snuck by to grab the extremely critical 300 second place points.

In 2B, the Miss U.S. caught fire for the second year in a row. Not as bad as Sand Point the year before but bad enough to end their day.

Those points lost earlier by the Weisfield’s now weighed heavy in the Pak’s favor. Thanks to the “fan plan”, Henley could place 2nd in the final and still win the Seafair Trophy.

The start of the final heat only added to the carnage and controversy surrounding Muncey and his driving style as the slower Atlas Van Lines chopped the Lincoln Thrift off going through the first turn causing injury to Irvin and damage to the hull. Karma came quickly calling when Muncey’s bold and brazen move would not be enough to overtake the dynamic duo as Schumacher and Henley would leave the Atlas far behind in their roostertail mist.

The race was exciting for several laps, but Henley, knowing what was at stake eventually yielded the race to Schumacher and settled for second place which was enough to claim the trophy making it Pay 'n Pak’s fourth straight win.

These two action packed events proved to be a major factor in deciding the 1975 National Champion.

The final race in San Diego was the exclamation point for the Weisfield’s up and down season, finishing in a distant 7th place as smiling George Henley and the mighty Winged Wonder took home the 1975 “Weisfield’s Trophy race” (Bill Muncey Cup) along with the Pay 'n Pak’s third straight National Championship.

Billy Schumacher did end up with something as he won the drivers title based on points. It would be many years before I realized how important these two crazy races were, both of which were soaked in driver/referee controversy.

It sure was a great time to be a kid in Seattle, or in Madison or Detroit or wherever the pied piper caravan of fire breathing thunderboats lead you!

Until next time, see you at the races.

It’s a local thing: hydroplanes echo through Seattle history

By Feliks Banel
Reprinted from MYNorthwest.com, July 25, 1025

It’s a noisy summertime tradition and popular spectator sport here in Seattle and it has been for decades. But old-timers say that the new arrivals just don’t get it, that they don’t appreciate the heritage and the meaning of a contest that’s still near and dear to so many local hearts.

Of course, the “spectator sport” and “contest” of which I speak is the annual debating of the relevance of the Seafair hydroplane race.

Back in 1975, a Seattle Times editorial asked, “Are the hydroplanes passé?” In August 2003, a Seattle Times headline questioned, “Have we outgrown Seafair hydros?” For that 2003 article, a numbskull was quoted saying, “The hydro races have been losing relevance for a long time. Not to denigrate it, but people’s tastes change.”

We’ll come back to that numbskull in a minute. First, the reason for that 1975 editorial is worth taking another look at. That year, for the first time, Seattle’s annual thunderboat races were in real danger of not happening at all.

It was one year earlier, in 1974, that the hydro races were held in a new location. Seafair, the community organization with roots in Seattle’s post-war boom years and the city’s centennial celebration in 1951, moved the race from south of the I-90 bridge near Stan Sayres Memorial Park to what’s now Magnuson Park. Back then, the area was known as Sand Point and it had been a Navy base for decades.

In 1974, the city was in the process of taking over the old base from the Navy to turn it into a park. The move to Sand Point happened because Seafair had been losing money on the races for years and expenses were going up.

For all previous years of the race, from 1951 to 1973, there was no charge to watch the races at Stan Sayres. In 1974, Seafair wanted to charge admission to help cover their increasing costs. Sand Point, as a former Navy base, had a fence around it, which made it easier to control than the shore around Stan Sayres. Race fans got into Sand Point for $6 a carload.

The 1974 Seafair races weren’t exactly a disaster, but many spectators and hydro teams weren’t pleased. The course was shorter, so the boats couldn’t reach the high speeds they could at the old location, and some say it was windier and the water choppier. And since Sand Point was not yet a park — it was an old Navy airfield — it lacked the amenities of Stan Sayres, there were no trees and no shade, and the view for most of the spectators turned out to be not very good.

“It was a bad idea,” says legendary broadcaster, concert promoter and raconteur Pat O’Day of the move to Sand Point. O’Day, who did play-by-play for the hydros for decades, broadcast the races for KJR that year and he remembers that the place was called Sand Point for a reason.

“Sand Point is a point,” O’Day said, “And as a result, half of the crowd could only see the south end of the course and the other half of the crowd could only see the north end of the course because the pits were right on the point itself, along with the start-finish line tower.”

The winner that controversial year was the Miss Pay 'n Pak, driven by Smiling George Henley of Eatonville.

As it came time to plan for the 1975 races, the Unlimited Hydroplane Commission refused to sanction the Sand Point location for a return engagement, saying that the course was too windy and not conducive to holding a good race. Then, Seafair said it couldn’t afford to hold the races at Stan Sayres if they couldn’t charge admission. It turned into a standoff.

The UHC threatened to bypass Seattle that season and sanction a hydro race in Dallas instead. It looked pretty grim for a while. But, at the last moment — just weeks before the race — the Seattle City Council stepped in and provided support in the form of an additional $20,000, boosting the city’s contribution to $56,000, and then two local hydro owners pledged $17,000 to help defray costs. The races went back to Stan Sayres where they’ve been held ever since.

And good thing, according to O’Day. He says that the original race location is, “memorable because of one thing: Stan Sayres pits is magic. It’s a beautiful race course, with Mount Rainier smiling down at everybody. That’s a magical, magical event.”

But the business of professional hydroplane racing has changed and many people say that the sport is not as popular as it once was in Seattle and other communities. As recently as the 1980s, local kids all over Puget Sound made their own miniature plywood hydroplanes and towed them behind their bicycles in neighborhood races. If that still happens, I personally haven’t seen it recently.

The truth is, hydroplanes had their biggest years in Seattle long before the Seahawks and the Mariners ever made it to the playoffs (and earned a spot in our professional sports-hearts and sucked up all those sponsor and ticket dollars). O’Day also says the current crop of turbo-powered boats lack the thrills and especially the sounds of the old piston-engine boats that dominated the sport from the 1950s through the 1970s, and he hopes that the industry will shift back to the more retro boats.

As for that numbskull quoted by The Seattle Times in 2003, he went on to redeem himself a bit later in that article by saying, “Seattle is at a stage where it is wrestling with being a small, out-of-the-way city vs. a big city connected to the rest of the world. As a result, there will always be debates and questions over whether Seafair is relevant or worth keeping.”

And yes, that numbskull was me, when I was deputy director of the Museum of History & Industry. Informed debates about what’s important to a city and region and how that can change over the years are critical conversations to have, officially and unofficially, if we want to live in this ever-changing place and have some say in choices that are made. Let’s keep Seattle’s present in dialog with its past as a means of preparing for the future.

But let’s give O’Day the final optimistic word on the hydros’ role in Seattle’s future, as he says it simply, and he says it best.

“Seafair was a nice community event, but the hydroplanes made it explode,” O’Day said. “The community needs the race and the sport needs the community.”

Pak hydro wins in Kentucky

U-95 sets heat record

Reprinted from The Seattle Times, June 17, 1974

The Pay 'n Pak of Seattle, driven by George Henley, today won the delayed Kentucky Governor's Cup unlimited hydroplane race for its second successive triumph on the thunderboat trail.

Pay 'n Pak, which also won the President's Cup in Washington, D.C., a week ago, won the final heat with an average speed of 104.384 miles an hour. The Pak accumulated 1,100 points in winning one heat and placing second to Budweiser in another.

Another Seattle-based boat, U-95, placed second with a time of 101.328 in the final heat. Atlas Van Lines was third at 89.794 m.p.h., followed by Budweiser and Sunny Jim.

The U-95, driven by Leif Borgersen, clocked off an Ohio River course record in winning Heat 1A at 112.952 m.p.h.

Pay 'n Pak won Heat 1B, Budweiser turned back the Pak in a rousing race to win 2A and Atlas Van Lines placed first in 2B.

Racing was postponed yesterday when unseasonable northwest winds whipped the course into a frothy ferment.

The race did get started, but an accident in the second lap of Heat 1A sent Charlie Dunn to the hospital and race officials into a quick huddle to mull over the weather situation.

Dunn, driver of the Just-A-Pest, spun out in the first corner of the second lap and the Pest was run over by Tom Kaufman in his Mister Fabricator. Dunn was pinned between the boats. He suffered an cracked rib, pelvic bruises and took some water into his lungs. He was listed in stable condition late last night at Owensboro-Davies County Hospital.

The Just-A-Pest sank to the bottom of the Ohio.

Race officials delayed the race, hoping the wind would calm down. But at 5:30 p.m. the decision was made to put the race over to today.

"The wind is out of the northwest," reported Dick Toth, a race official. "That's really rare here. The wind is blowing just opposite of the current, so it's pretty choppy out there. Lots of whitecaps."

Several drivers reportedly refused to go on the course when the wind came up.