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2005 GOLD CUP |
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On May 1st Classic Thunder held its 2005 Gold Cup at Coulon Park in Renton, WA. Coulon is known for its challenging water conditions and deceptive swells. This day was no exception. The sun was shining and the weather was warm. All of this added to a day of racing which saw good fun and great competition. The event was sponsored by Classic Thunder and RC-Hydros.com. We would like to thank Andy Kunz of RC-Hydros.com for his involvement in Classic Thunder and for the two speed controllers that were given away at the end of the day. Dale Van Wyk and Mitch Dillard won the drawings for the controllers and will surely put them to good use. The day started with Division 1 qualifying for season
points. The top qualifier was awarded
Classic Thunder’s Gold Cup qualifying trophy and has their name added to the
checkered flag that is attached to it.
All of the top qualifiers from Gold Cups past are displayed on the
flag. This year that honor went to Mike
Campbell’s 57 Miss U.S. which bested a very fast group of boats. A grouping of several boats were within a
couple of seconds of each other at the top of the qualifying ladder. Congratulations to a very fast 57 U.S.
and Mike Campbell! Division 2 competition kicked off the day’s heat
competition and would give us some awesome racing. A field of 12 boats joined in the competition, some of which
included Danny Sacry’s Weisfields, Mike Campbell’s Vernor’s, Mike Krone’s
Island Security Systems, Jeff Campbell’s Squire, Mike Schultz’s Oh Boy! Oberto and
Dale Van Wyk’s Atlas Van Lines. The Division 2 Final Heat was a real “barn burner” right from the start. Pete Schille’s Llumar hit the start flying with Mike Campbell’s Country Boy right with him on the outside and Jeff Campbell’s Pride of Pay’n Pak on his hip, but slightly back. Mitch Dillard’s Miller High Life and Jeff Howard’s Elam hit the line just a hair behind them. Chris Cootsona’s Circus Circus started as the trailer, having advanced by winning the Consolation Heat. For four grueling laps the Llumar held off Country Boy. Llumar held the inside lane and the advantage in the turns while the Country Boy would keep his speed up and draw even in the straightaways. Lap after lap the Llumar fought to keep the Country Boy out wide. Meanwhile, the Pak steadily snuck up on both of them. The Miller was within striking distance for a short time until she swapped ends and fell back in fourth place. Llumar held a slight lead at the end of lap 4 with the brothers Campbell breathing all over him and each other. In an effort to protect the inside and keep the lead, Llumar cut completely inside the point buoy and plowed over the top of the exit buoy. That ended her chance at victory. At the other end of the course the Elam hit a hole and rolled over. Out in front the Country Boy held off the Pak for the final lap to take the win. The Pak finished a very close second. Miller was third and the Circus Circus came home fourth from the trailer position, a good showing from the new Circus. The Llumar damaged her rudder when she went over the buoy and joined the Elam with a DNF. This was outstanding competition, some of the best we’ve seen. There were plenty of cheers from onlookers and many smiles and excitement in and around the pits afterward. Good show guys! I’ll never get enough of that! Congratulations to Mike Campbell’s Country Boy, winner of the 2005 Classic Thunder Gold Cup in Division 2! This was Mike and Jeff Campbell’s first CT race. They are both experienced racers and certainly did themselves proud. The day also saw rookie Mike Schultz qualify as a driver and perform well. He scored his first points with the Oh Boy! Oberto. Good job Mike! Division 2 racing continues to bet bigger and better all the time. Division 1 competition would be no less dramatic than Division 2. Throughout the day, the race teams literally and figuratively saw their “ups and downs”. It was impossible to figure out who would end up on top when it was all over. 10 boats were on hand to compete including Bob VandenAkker’s Notre Dame, Dave Sacry’s Short Circuit, Jeff Campbell’s Little Buzzard and Mike Krone’s Hurricane IV. Dan Clark also brought his Miss Burien and Tahoe Miss up and put them on display in the pit. Dan injured his hand earlier in the week and was not able to compete. He acted as either camera man or turn judge for most of the day. We appreciate his help. Thanks Dan. Bill McGraw gave us a look at his refurbished outrigger Pay’n Pak. The outrigger Pak is expected to compete again some time this season, but wasn’t ready in time for this race. The grand finale of the day was the Division 1 Final Heat. Six boats were up for the challenge. The start saw four boats hit the line together in very close quarters. Mike Campbell’s 57 Miss U.S. got the best start and held a small lead over Pete Schille’s Blue Chip and Mitch Dillard’s 54 Miss U.S. on her inside and Chris Cootsona’s new Hurricane VI on her outside charging for the first turn. Dale Van Wyk’s Miss Seattle got a late start and was back a bit on the inside. Jeff Howard’s Miss Budweiser won the Consolation Heat and made her start from the trailer position. The 57 U.S. led at the end of lap one with Blue Chip and the 54 U.S. right on her tail, Hurricane in fourth and Bud in fifth. Miss Seattle cut the exit buoy in turn one and would have to run an extra lap. The 57 U.S. still held a slight lead when she unexpectedly rolled coming out of turn two. Blue Chip dove inside to avoid a collision and unfortunately drove inside the exit buoy altogether. The 54 U.S. went outside and took over the lead. Blue Chip would run an extra lap and thrill us all with a rollover flip as she crossed the finish line. The 54 Miss U.S. held on for the win followed by the steady running Hurricane VI who would finish second in this, her very first race. A persistent Budweiser came from the trailer position to finish third. Blue Chip was fourth and Miss Seattle would finish fifth. Congratulations to Mitch Dillard’s Miss U.S., winner of the 2005 Classic Thunder Gold Cup in Division 1! This is the fourth time this coveted piece of hardware has graced Mitch’s mantle. This was a very challenging and exciting race. Thanks to everyone involved. We look forward to eight more points races which will certainly provide more of the same excitement. Next on the schedule is the Harmsworth Trophy Race on May 15th at Woodlawn Creek Park in Lacey, WA. We’re excited to run down there as the place is great for racing. This is where we held the Governor’s Cup exhibition last year and we were impressed with the location. The race format for Division 1 will be slightly different than the match racing we’ve had in the past for the Harmsworth. You should receive details from Pete very soon. Llumar Window Film’s U-8 Race Team has offered their sponsorship for this event and it should be another race to remember. Let’s go down there, have some fun and put on another great show! “That’s what it’s all about!” Hope to see you all there. Sincerely, Mitch Dillard Classic Thunder Commissioner
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