Articles recapping races
1938 Gold Cup Remembered By Fred Farley – Unlimited Hydroplane Historian The U.S. team held back the foreign challenge in 1937 but bowed to Count Rossi in 1938. Rossi pushed his 19-foot 7-inch ALAGI, powered by half of an Isotta-Fraschini…
The Madison Regatta – 50 Years of Thunder By Fred Farley – Unlimited Hydroplane Historian 1950s For 50 years, the city of Madison, Indiana, has played host to “Water Racing’s Greatest Show,” the Unlimited hydroplanes-the Thunderboats of the racing world.…
A Detroit Debacle (Source: Mark Douty) A Seattle Hydro Roared Home First In The Gold Cup But Then Officials Stepped In, And The Affair Became A Detroit Debacle. By Jim Atwater – (Reprinted from Sports Illustrated, September 10, 1956) Covered…
The Muncey Era Comes to a Sad End By Joanne A. Fishman (Reprinted from The New York Times, October 25, 1981) ”Dangerous? This is defined as one of the cruel sports. We figure anything less than death is a minor…
A Brief History of the President’s Cup (Source: Gary Todd) Warner Garner won the only President’s Cup of his career driving the Miss Eagle Electric in 1968 on the Potomac River in Washington DC. By Fred Farley – Unlimited Hydroplane…
1989 APBA Gold Cup Remembered (Photo: Mike Johnson) Tom D’Eath wins the 1989 APBA Gold Cup driving Bernie Little’s Miss Budweiser. By: Fred Farley – Unlimited Hydroplane Historian The longest string of consecutive race wins in Unlimited history has ended.…
SHANTY I WINS 1956 SEAFAIR TROPHY By Bob Walters – (Reprinted from Sea and Pacific Motor Boat, September 1956) The roaring, highly successful August Seafair Trophy Race established Seattle as the world’s Mecca and Capital of Unlimited Hydroplane Racing. And…
1946 APBA Gold Cup Remembered By: Fred Farley – Unlimited Hydroplane Historian After time-out for World War II, Gold Cup racing resumed in 1946 with a rejuvenated format in evidence. The 732 cubic inch piston limitation had been abolished. This…
The Notre Dame Story (Photo: Patrick Gleason) The restored 1962 Notre Dame makes an exhibition run on Lake Chelan during Mahogany & Merlot. By: Fred Farley – Unlimited Hydroplane Historian Between the years 1935 and 1973, one of APBA racing’s…
Hydroplane Racing in Tri-Cities By: Fred Farley – Unlimited Hydroplane Historian For 47 years, the Tri-Cities of Eastern Washington have played host to “Water Racing’s Greatest Show,” the Unlimited hydroplanes–the Thunderboats of the racing world. Since 1966, the mighty Unlimiteds…