Tri-Cities unlimited hydroplane field will be small but mighty. Who’s missing and why
Back in June, a couple of unlimited hydroplane owners felt there would be nine boats vying for the HAPO Columbia Cup title.
Unfortunately, that number has dwindled to six, which as far as this writer — who has watched the races since 1974 and covered them for the Herald since 1987 — is concerned, is the lowest number ever in the pits.
To make up for that, five or six Grand Prix boats are expected to race.
And Kathy Powell, who is finishing her run as Water Follies event director, said there “is a swarm” of 5-liter boats (or E350s) competing.
“The show of all shows will be the vintage hydroplanes,” Powell said.
She might be right. Four of them will be in the pits: the Griffon Bud, Pay N Pak, Atlas Blue Blaster, and the newest one, the Squire Shop.
Still, what happened to the unlimiteds, which the majority of fans come to see?
“It’s just been a strange year,” said Powell.
First off, here is who is coming:
▪ The U-1 Miss HomeStreet Bank, with driver Jimmy Shane.
The defending national high points champion boat is currently in first in this season’s standings after two races.
It should be considered the favorite.
▪ The U-3 Grigg’s presents Miss Ace Hardware, with driver Jimmy King.
The league’s only piston-powered boat makes its annual appearance in the Tri-Cities — Pasco’s Charlie Grigg sponsors the team here. However, this will be the team’s second appearance on the water this season, after competing in the APBA Gold Cup in Guntersville, Ala., in June.
Always a crowd favorite.
▪ The U-9 Lynx Healthcare presents Miss Tri-Cities, with driver J. Michael Kelly.
This actually started the season as the U-8 Miss Tri-Cities.
But in Madison, Ind., a few weeks ago, driver Corey Peabody flipped the U-9 Lynx Healthcare in the Madison Regatta final. The boat landed upside down, and there was enough damage that owner Darrell Strong announced that the boat had to be rebuilt for the 2023 season.
Peabody, who drove the U-9 to the Gold Cup victory in June in Alabama, was not hurt in the accident.
But that left Strong’s team with just the one boat for the remaining three 2022 races.
In order to battle for the season title, the boat’s number was changed from U-8 to U-9. Kelly, who was the 2021 national high point driver champion, has the cockpit.
▪ The U-11 Miss Joker’s Casino, with driver Jamie Nilsen.
Team owners Scott and Shannon Raney, and driver Nilsen, have done a great job with consistency this year, placing third in each of the first two races.
The team will be looking for its first win ever this weekend.
▪ The U-40 Miss Beacon Plumbing, with driver Dave Villwock.
The team had to pull out of Madison early after the boat hit a log on the Ohio River, severely damaging the hull.
But there is enough experience on this team — Villwock and team owner Kelly Stocklin leading the way — that they fixed the boat back in the Seattle shop the past few weeks.
The team has shown some decent speed on the water.
▪ The U-91 Miss Goodman Real Estate, with driver Jeff Bernard.
This boat is the old Miss Madison, and it actually has 25 career victories.
This is not just a race filler. Bernard could drive this hull to another victory.
Those boats not here
Who’s missing?
Obviously, the original U-9 and Peabody — who drove the hull to the 2021 Columbia Cup title — are missing.
But Rob Graham has decided not to bring his U-12 Graham Trucking (and its driver, Andrew Tate) out on the circuit this season.
Part of the reason is Graham lost a lot of crew members who left last season to race for the Strong team.
Then there is the U-21 Go Fast, Turn Left team.
Team co-owner Greg O’Farrell brought the boat to the Tri-Cities in early June for the annual Spring Training event. The boat looked fast, with Brian Perkins back as driver.
In addition Gunnar O’Farrell, Greg’s grandson — got qualified at that same June testing session as a qualified driver.
But Greg O’Farrell is still recovering from a kidney transplant and open heart surgery, and he told the other owners that he’d be back as soon as his health improved.
One other boat not in the pits, which has been the last few years, is Stocklin’s 440 Bucket List Racing.
Stocklin and the team made the decision before this season to dry dock the boat and put all of their energy into the U-40.
Notes
It may sound like a cliché, but any one of the six unlimiteds could win this weekend.
Shane and HomeStreet may be favored, but it’s also no certainly that the Madison boat will win.
▪ As of Monday, the unlimited schedule will feature four preliminary heat races on Saturday, four more on Sunday, and the final late Sunday afternoon.
That means each heat race will have three boats in it.
▪ This will be the 56th running of an unlimited hydroplane race in the Tri-Cities.
▪ With Peabody essentially out for the season, Shane has a stranglehold on the drivers national high points title. Entering Tri-Cities, Shane has a 571-point lead over Bernard.
Shane has compiled 3,300 points. Peabody, with no boat, has 3,049 points; and Bernard is at 2,729.
However, it’s been five years since Shane has won on the Columbia River.
The last four winners here: Kelly, Tate, Kelly again, and Peabody.
▪ Villwock has won the most races in the Tri-Cities, with 8.
Chip Hanauer is next with 7, followed by Bill Muncey with 5. Shane and Steve David are next with 4 each.
▪ Villwock is the winningest driver in unlimited history with 67 (Muncey has 62, and Hanauer finished with 61).
Villwock is also the all-time leader with most national titles, with 10. And he holds four of the five speed records — qualifying, competition lap, 12.5-mile heat (5 laps), and race average (42.5 miles) — on the Columbia River course.
Jeff Morrow is former sports editor for the Tri-City Herald.
