Classic Thunder Seafair Trophy Race 2009

Seafair Trophy 2009

2009 Seafair Trophy Race Recap August 30, 2009 Coulon Park

Another nice day welcomed 17 Division 1 boats and 14 Division 2 boats to Coulon Park. On a day that had tough water conditions, the racing was very good with a lot of close competition. We also had a special treat with Ron Jones Sr. coming by and spending some time with the drivers.

DIVISION 2

The Free I with Mitch Dillard at the wheel took home the win and the 400 points. Mike Schultz and the Griffon Bud were second and Dave Sacry in the Notre Dame ran third. Dale Van Wyk in the U-13 had a DNF.

Brent Hall in the Turbine Pay N Pak and Mike Krone in the Design 360 had a great battle going before the Pak went over. The Design 360 went on to the win. Pete Schille in the Miller American ran second after getting hit by the Beacon Plumbing driven by Mark Beatty disqualifying the Beacon boat from the heat. Matt Sanders in the 83 Squire Shop also had some problems and got a DNF.

The first heat that all four boats that took the water finished as Brent Hall in the 80 Squire shop got the win followed by Mike Schultz in the Coors Dry. Third was the Pride of Pay N Pak driven by Danny Minalia and Gene Melang came home fourth after missing two buoys in the Red Man.

This heat featured some fast boats as the Free I went on to the win. The Notre Dame ran second followed by the Griffon Bud. The Beacon with a trailer start closed some ground but still ran fourth.

Two flight one winners were matched up in heat 2B with both the 80 Squire Shop and the Design 360 running in this heat but the best they could do was run second and third respectively as the U-13 came home with the win. The Red Man ran fourth and the Coors Dry took home a fifth place finish.

The Miller American and the Turbine Pak hooked up for a great 5 lap battle as the Miller American won in a very close race. The 83 Squire Shop ran third and in fourth was the Pride of Pay N Pak. Every boat that ran in the second flight finished which, for the water conditions, was very good.

Once again the Turbine Pay N Pak was in a great race, this time with the Beacon Plumbing, with the Beacon winning by a nose. The Red Man ran third with the Miller American taking home a forth. The Design 360 flipped entering turn two and got a DNF.

The five boats in heat 3B were all capable of taking home the win and that’s what the Notre Dame did, followed by another strong run by the Griffon Bud. The 83 Squire Shop was third followed by the 80 Squire Shop. Steve Dumanis driving the Coors Dry came home fifth.

Tony Minalia and the Frosted Flakes made its first run of the day but had problems and did not finish the heat. The Free I and Pride of Pay N Pak also had problems and did not finish. That left the U-13 as the only boat running and going on to the win.

D-2 Cony

Six boats ran in the Cony but only three would be running when it was over. TheDesing 360 went on to the win with the Turbine Pay N Pak coming home second and the Coors Dry taking third. The 83 Squire, Red Man and Beacon Plumbing all did not finish.

D-2 Final

No one transferred from the cony to the final since there was a tie for fifth after the first 3 flights. On the mill lap the Miller American had problems and could not get going and got a DNF the U-13 chased the Free I for the entire race but Mitch Dillard was not shaken at all by the pressure Dale Van Wyk was putting on and took home the win, his third career Seafair race victory. The U-13 took second and Mike Schultz in the Griffon Bud finished off a great day with a third place finish. The 80 Squire Shop took fourth and the Notre Dame ran fifth.

DIVISION 1

Running up front from the start Mitch Dillard and the Slo-Mo-Shun IV took the win. Mike Schultz in the Exide ran a strong second followed by Bryan Deatherage in the Budweiser. Bill McGraw in the Outrigger Pak took home fourth. Steve Dumanis and the Wahoo flipped and did not finish.

The Miss Seattle and Dale Van Wyk took home the win with Dan Clark and the 63 Miss US taking second. Kevin Hansen and the Notre Dame making their first run of the year ran third. The Thriftway Too and Dave Sacry did not finish.

Steve Dumanis in the Thunderbolt took home the win followed by Mark Beatty in the Gale’s Roostertail. Mike Schultz brought home third in the Seattle Too and Gene Melang ran fourth in the Red Man

Pete Schille in the Barney Armstrongs Machine and Brent Hall in the Bobtail Miss US had a great battle going and made contact in turn two. The Barney Armstrongs Machine went on to the win the Bobtail getting DQ. Tim Becker in the Hawaii Kai took home second and driving the Chrysler Crew to third was Hall of Fame hydroplane driver, Harold Mills. Harold is a rookie driver in CT, but is well known for his many years as an accomplished Limited Hydroplane driver.

Heat 2A once again had the Slo-Mo-Shun IV leading the way as the Bobtail Miss US ran second. The Seattle Too had a nice strong run bringing home a third place finish. The Notre Dame ran fourth and the Wahoo flipped and did not finish.

The Thunderbolt kept his perfect day going by getting a second consecutive heat win. The Outrigger Pak ran second followed by the Chrysler Crew. The Red Man caught some air and came back down into a swell, putting the boats nose into the water popping the dummy motor into the water. By rule it, without it's dummy motor, it was done for the heat.

The Hawaii Kai followed up a strong second place finish and took the heat win followed by the 63 Miss US and the Thriftway Too. The Budweiser flipped and was not able to finish.

A third boat made it two for two as the Barney Armstrong Machine took the win edging out the Gale’s Roostertail. Miss Seattle took home third and the Exide did not finish.

This heat featured two boats that had perfect days going so something had to give. The Barney Armstrong Machine and the Thunderbolt battled it out with the Barney Armstrong Machine getting the win. Thunderbolt took home second and the Notre Dame third. The Chrysler Crew and the Outrigger Pak failed to finish.

Miss Seattle ran strong and took the checkered flag. The Seattle Too ran second with the Hawaii Kai taking home third. The Exide was unable to finish the heat.

Budweiser overcame problems from the previous heat and took the win. The 1963 Miss US ran second and the Bobtail Miss US and the Red Man both ended the heat upside down.

The Slo-Mo-Shun IV kept his perfect day going taking home the win. The Gale’s Roostertail took home a solid second with the Wahoo grabbing third. The Thriftway Too ran forth.

D-1 Cony

Six boats in the cony and only one transfer spot. The Gale’s Roosertail took the win and the transfer spot to the final. Seattle Too ran second and the Outrigger Pak ran third. The 63 Miss US the Budweiser and the Notre Dame all did not finish.

D-1 Final

In a race that was close from the start to the finish the Barney Armstrong Machine and Thunderbolt ran deck to deck for most of the heat and were never more than a couple of boat lengths apart. They were followed closely in a stalking manner by the Slo-Mo-Shun IV. They came out of the final corner close, but the Barney Armstrong Machine took home the Seafair win. The Thunderbolt was second and the Slo-Mo-Shun ran third. After a trailer start the Gale’s Roostertail was fourth. The Miss Seattle and Hawaii Kai did not finish.

A perfect day for the Pete Schille's Barney Armstrong's Machine puts him within easy striking distance of Mitch Dillard's Slo Mo IV in their ongoing battle for the season high points championship in division 1. There are several other close battles within the ranks of both divisions that will also be decided in a couple of weeks. Yep, this season has just flown by and we're down to our last race of 2009, the Governors Cup in Lacey on September 13th. The event is sponsored by Bryan Deatherage and will again include a barbecue put on by Dan Clark. It should be a great race with lots of fun, food and excitement for everyone. See you in Lacey.

Gene Melang

2009 CT Seafair Race Coordinator

Red Man Racing Team