2005 NEW YEARS DAY FUN RUN

BOATS HIT THE WATER ON NEW YEARS DAY!

Cold and thankfully dry weather was on hand as some of the members of Classic Thunder welcomed in 2005.  Several people and boats showed up for the annual New Years Day Fun Run at Coulon Park in Renton.  The campfire was blazing in the cabana and the atmosphere was relaxing as we gathered to see projects, talk about boats and watch some roostertails fly!

Chris Cootsona graced us with the first launching of his nearly completed Hurricane VI.  This is Chris’s first crack at a scratch-built boat and it looks like he’s got the right idea.  Though the water was rough, the boat got on plane smoothly and ran very well right out of the box.  Good work Chris!  We look forward to seeing some paint and some other stuff on that boat.  Scratch building is truly an art and it’s cool to see guys doing it. 

One of our newest members, Jim Rowland is in the process of building two boats.  He gave us a sneak peak at his now decked 1970 Miss Budweiser 2 and 1955 Thriftway.  Two boats at a time, now that’s impressive!  Jim is very enthusiastic and obviously loves the boat building too.  Welcome to the frenzy Jim.  Good to have you.

John Dyer came out and gave us a glance at his new Miss Great Lakes 2.  He has completed the hull and detail work.  It looks great!  It’s getting the cowling and running gear soon and then we’ll see it hit the water.  Can’t wait.

Doug Tulip was on hand with his new Miss Exide that he recently purchased from Gary Simpson.  He talked Pete Schille, it’s builder, into taking it out for a quick spin.  It was a wild ride, but the boat came back in one piece.  Doug also brought out the Executone hydroplane that he bought from Dale Van Wyk.  It’s a little battered, but Mitch Dillard has plans for it.  We’re not sure what’s in store for the hull, but a transaction was made and the boat went home in the back of Mitch’s Durango.  I’m sure there’s more to come on that story.

Jon Zimmerman made a rare appearance with his Red Man and ran impressively.  He just knows how to put together a boat.  This is one of the original two Classic Thunder hulls and it’s still running great.  It’s always good to see Jon out running a model boat.  He’s got his hands full keeping his 5-liter boat, Chop! Chop!, running strong.  I’m sure there are modifications he’s planning for that boat during the off-season.  If you ever get a chance, go out and watch him drive that thing, it’s a lot of fun and the boat is getting better all the time.

Pete Schille brought out his new, Craig Mullen built, Llumarhydro.  This time it had the air scoop engine cowl on it.  The boat was fast enough, but the rough water ride kept Pete guessing.  Something tells me that he’ll be scratching his head to figure out how to improve the boat ride a little.  I’m sure he’ll figure it out.  Look for him to be out testing hard and often with this good-looking new boat. 

Jeff Howard was out running his very stable past champion 1964 Budweiser.  The boat looked solid as usual and is one other best rough water boats I’ve ever seen.  It hasn’t missed a beat.  Jeff is currently working on a ’58 Bardahl to replace her for the 2005 season.

Bob VandenAkker put his Such Crust IV on the water and it’s still as steady as ever.  This is the first one he bought from Roger Newton when he joined the club.  It’s a fiberglass hull that has been driven at one point in time by several people.  It is suited for the rough water and made it around the course without incident.  The Such Crust IV that he recently bought from Dale Van Wyk is lighter, quicker and is awaiting some running gear.  Judy Fenton will be at the wheel when it debuts.  Judy was on the water with the Zig Zag boat on New Years, but soon she’s stepping into the old Crust for some wheel time.  You go girl!

Though the hydros are always exciting to see and are the focus of our club, they took a back seat on New Years Day.  I think the coolest thing on the water had to be the rescue barge that “Battery” Dave Sacry put together and launched for the first time.  You’ve got to see this thing.  It was slow, methodical, could go in forward and reverse and looked just like a big grey barge.  It runs on on D sized nicads and lumbered out to retrieve dead boats.  He tried it out on some non-dead boat first and though a little tricky to line up, did the job just fine.  It actually had its first official call to duty when Jon Zimmerman blew over his Red Man in the backstretch far from the dock.  Maneuvering out in the wind was tough, but the barge pulled up along side and pushed the stranded boat back to the pier where Jon was able to reach down and get it.  It was awesome!  Dave plans to work on the front end of the barge a little to make cradling parts and boats more secure.  We want to thank Dave and Chris for bringing out the fire wood too.  The fire was a good place to sit around and talk to one another.  We really enjoyed it.

The event was a fun one and I hope we keep doing it.  I can’t see why not.  It may be cold, but it’s a great excuse to get together.  It was good to see Tim Knowles and Jim Clark join us too.  Forgive me if I left anyone out, but my brain may have been partially frozen when I talked to you.  I do have memories of some of us having lunch together at Kidd Valley afterward.  There was Jeff, my son Andre, my fiancé Lynda, Toto, Auntie Em and….. It was very relaxing and capped off a really neat day at the lake for me.  Thanks for all of those were came out.  I look forward to doing it again next year.  Now it’s time to go work on some boats!  Have a Happy New Year and God Bless you all.

Sincerely,

Mitch Dillard

Classic Thunder Commissioner