Gale V - The Gold Cup Champion

By Fred Farley - Unlimited Hydroplane Historian

In the summer of 1955, a boat from Detroit, the GALE V, scored a controversial victory in the race of races, the APBA Gold Cup, on Seattle's Lake Washington. Owned by Motor City industrialist Joe Schoenith and driven by his son Lee, GALE V outpointed the team of Bill Muncey and MISS THRIFTWAY in the final standings, 1225 points to 1025. This was in spite of the fact that MISS THRIFTWAY had posted heat finishes of third, first, and first, while GALE V had run second, second, and third.

On the strength of their victory, the Schoeniths won the right to defend their title in 1956 on home waters in Detroit, which hadn't hosted a Gold Cup since 1950. All of the races from 1951 through 1955 had been run in Seattle and hosted by the Seattle Yacht Club. The SYC team of SLO-MO-SHUN IV and SLO-MO-SHUN V, owned by Stan Sayres, had won an unprecedented five consecutive Gold Cups. Thanks to GALE V, the "Golden Goblet" returned to the trophy shelf of the Detroit Yacht Club, much to the chagrin of Seattleites accustomed to considering the Gold Cup their own.

The saga of GALE V's victory in the 1955 race ranks as one of the more fascinating stories in the annals of Unlimited hydroplane competition. It is a story that, to this day, continues to create controversy.

From the outset, the 1955 Gold Cup contest seemed predestined to go down in history as one of the more memorable. The first indication was in the form of a bombshell dropped by referee Mel Crook. In a declaration aimed at SLO-MO-SHUN V pilot Lou Fageol, Crook threatened disqualification for reasons of safety to any contestant attempting a "flying start" from under the Lake Washington Floating Bridge. The "flying start" issue was rendered moot when Fageol and SLO-MO V turned a complete backward somersault at 165 miles per hour during a qualification trial on Friday, August 5. Fageol was badly injured and the boat had to be withdrawn.

Lee Schoenith witnessed Fageol's flip and was shaken by the sight of it. Lee later admitted to being "spooked" by the SLO-MO's crash, but it didn't seem to affect his performance on Sunday, August 7th. On the contrary, Schoenith drove one of the finest races of his career in the 1955 Gold Cup.

Under the direction of crew chief Bud Meldrum and his assistant "Doc" Terry, the GALE boats were really on a roll in the middle fifties. With Lee driving, the team had won the National High Points Championship in 1953 with GALE II and in 1954 with GALE V.

A 29-foot, Allison-powered creation of Les Staudacher, GALE V had won the Maple Leaf Trophy, the Detroit Memorial Regatta, the Imperial Gold Cup, and the International Cup in 1954. Teammate GALE IV with Bill Cantrell at the wheel had captured the President's Cup and the Indiana Governor's Cup in 1954 and the Detroit Memorial in 1955. GALE V was winless in 1955, but had finished third in the Maple Leaf Trophy and second in the Detroit Memorial.

Heading into the 1955 APBA Gold Cup, GALE IV and GALE V were widely regarded as the team most likely to break up the Seattle monopoly of that famous cup.

In addition to the two Schoenith entries, the Detroit contingent that year included MISS U.S., owned and driven by George Simon, SUCH CRUST III, owned by Jack Schafer and driven by Walt Kade, and MISS CADILLAC, owned by Bud Saile and co-driven by Saile and Bill Braden. From Freeport, New York, came TEMPO VII, owned by bandleader Guy Lombardo, driven by Danny Foster, and maintained by a Detroit crew.

The Seattle team consisted of the veteran SLO-MO-SHUN IV with Joe Taggart and the defending champion SLO-MO-SHUN V with Fageol. A couple of new boats, the REBEL SUH and the MISS THRIFTWAY from Seattle, also appeared. Both of the latter were designed and managed by Ted Jones, who had designed and driven both of the SLO-MOs but had departed from the Sayres team after 1951 under acrimonious circumstances. The REBEL SUH, which he co-owned with Kirn Armistead, and the MISS THRIFTWAY were Jones's "comeback boats."

Assigned by Jones to drive REBEL SUH was U.S. Air Force Lt. Col.. Russ Schleeh. The seat in the Associated Grocers-owned MISS THRIFTWAY went to Detroiter Bill Muncey. Muncey had once served as a riding mechanic with Lee Schoenith in the original GALE at the 1950 President's Cup in Washington, D.C. Lee and Bill were still personal friends, but Muncey was now in the enemy camp as a representative of the SYC rather than the Detroit Yacht Club.

Rounding out the field at the 1955 Gold Cup was a trio from southern California: J. Philip Murphy's BREATHLESS, driven by his son Jay, Henry Kaiser's SCOOTER TOO, piloted by Jack Regas, and ZEPHYR-FURY, co-owned by Ray Crawford and Howard Gidovlenko and driven by Crawford.

SLO-MO-SHUN IV qualified fastest for three laps around the 3.75-mile course at 117.391 miles per hour. TEMPO VII was second fastest at 116.917 followed by GALE V at 112.782.

By race day morning, the thirteen boat field had been reduced to ten. SLO-MO-SHUN V and MISS U.S. had withdrawn with mechanical difficulties and ZEPHYR-FURY could not qualify.

The Gold Cup rules in 1955 called for three heats of 30 miles each. First-place in a heat was worth 400 points, second place 300, and third 225. Additionally, a boat could earn 400 "bonus points" for the fastest heat and 400 for the fastest race.

In those days, up to a dozen boats were allowed to start in a heat of Unlimited competition. It was not mandatory to divide the field into sections.

In the Final Heat of the 1954 Gold Cup, GALE V had been beaten by SLO-MO-SHUN V. but had defeated SLO-MO-SHUN IV. And although the SLO-MO team was the defending champion, they had been absent from the competitive arena for a year and lacked the sharpening of a recent race experience.

The two new Seattle boats were brand new. Schleeh of REBEL SUH had never started a heat of competition in his life. Muncey of MISS THRIFTWAY was an obscure inboard driver who had briefly handled two other Unlimiteds (MISS GREAT LAKES in 1950 and DORA MY SWEETIE in 1955), but sank both boats.

Clearly, the SYC defense team had its work cut out for itself when race day dawned, bright and warm, on that memorable Sunday.

Schoenith and GALE V took the lead at the start of Heat One but were overhauled by Taggart and the Rolls-Royce Merlin-powered SLO-MO-SHUN IV. SLO-MO went on to establish lap and heat records of 107.965 and 103.159 miles per hour. GALE V kept the pressure on SLO-MO-SHUN IV throughout and averaged 102.469 for the 30 miles. Muncey checked in third at a conservative 97.232 with MISS THRIFTWAY, 64 seconds behind Taggart and 57 seconds astern of Schoenith. Cantrell and GALE IV took a distant fourth, followed by Saile in Miss CADILLAC and Murphy in BREATHLESS.

Signals from the official barge were strangely vague toward the end of Heat One. As a result, the competing boats ran several more than the required eight laps, while the drivers wondered if perhaps they had jumped the gun. But no one had.

Schleeh and REBEL SUH failed to finish, along with Foster, who suffered severe burns when TEMPO VII caught fire. Foster had been running in third-place on lap-one when the gas cap blew off. Regas and SCOOTER TOO struck a floating bottle and sank at the entrance to the pits and did not cross the starting line. Kade and SUCH CRUST III also scored zero points. After having qualified a half hour before the race, Kade's crew could not restart in time for Heat One.

Attempts to repair TEMPO VII for Heat Two with owner Lombardo ready to step in as relief driver proved futile, and the craft was withdrawn for the day. Eight boats returned to the water for the middle stanza with Braden subbing for owner Saile behind the wheel of MISS CADILLAC.

MISS THRIFTWAY grabbed an early lead in Heat Two and held it to the checkered flag at an average of 100.944, followed by GALE V at 99.103. SLO-MO-SHUN IV ran an unfamiliar fourth place prior to overtaking SUCH CRUST III at an average of 97.631 to the CRUST's 96.392. MISS CADILLAC and BREATHLESS ran way off the pace in fifth and sixth positions, while GALE IV did not finish. REBEL SUH sank in nearly the same place and manner as had SCOOTER TOO in the earlier round.

For the third and deciding heat, Taggart and Muncey were tied with 625 points apiece with the SLO-MO driver in line for the 400 bonus points for the fastest heat, provided he complete the 90 miles. Schoenith possessed 600 points but stood in the best position for the 400 bonus points for fastest match, with an elapsed time edge of ten seconds over Taggart and 37 seconds over Muncey.

SLO-MO-SHUN IV charged to the front at the start of Heat Three, followed by SUCH CRUST III, MISS THRIFTWAY and GALE V in that order with MISS CADILLAC and BREATHLESS trailing.

The positions remained unchanged until the fifth backstretch, when MISS THRIFTWAY roared by on the outside of SUCH CRUST III, which was attempting to lap BREATHLESS. On the same lap, SLO-MO-SHUN IV's manifold started to crack. Taggart eased off to nurse SLO-MO along as Muncey moved closer.

Finally, two laps from victory, Taggart elected to save the boat, and himself, from fire. He shut off the engine, forever dashing the hopes of Stan Sayres for an unprecedented sixth consecutive Gold Cup triumph. Later, a strip 30 inches long and 1-1/2 inches deep was found burned in the side of the hull. One can only speculate as to what effect, if any, the running of the extra laps in the confused first heat had on the hometown favorite's inability to finish.

With Taggart out of the race, Bill Muncey, in his first appearance with a competitive Unlimited, had the Gold Cup in his grasp. He had compensated for the 37-second elapsed time differential between himself and Lee Schoenith. But on the final backstretch, the inexperienced MISS THRIFTWAY pilot forgot or ignored or was unaware of the critical bonus points factor. He committed the costly error of reducing his speed and allowed his approximate 38-second lead over the third-place GALE V to dwindle.

At the finish, it was MISS THRIFTWAY the winner at 99.990, SUCH CRUST III second at 98.460, GALE V third at 97.080, MISS CADILLAC fourth at 88.390, and BREATHLESS fifth at 77.201. But while Muncey had eased down to 93 for the last lap, Schoenith had maintained his same steady previous pace.

Although despondent over the demise of the SLO-MO winning streak, Seattleites generally consoled themselves over the apparent victory of another local boat. They jubilantly proclaimed Bill Muncey as the hero of the day for having "saved" the Gold Cup for the Pacific Northwest. There were many references to a long and successful career for the 26-year-old driver who, ironically, resided in Detroit.

It was a shining moment as well for Ted Jones, back in the limelight after having designed yet another top-notch hydroplane. The smooth-riding MISS THRIFTWAY used a stock Allison, but was several hundred pounds lighter than the other boats. In posting a competition lap of 105, THRIFTWAY compared favorably to SLO-MO-SHUN IV, which had set the record at 107.

Meanwhile, out on the judges' stand, the team of APBA officials checked and rechecked the overall average speed and discovered a startling statistic. Lee Schoenith and GALE V had completed the 90 miles 4.536 seconds faster than MISS THRIFTWAY. The three-heat clocking, 24 laps of 3.75 miles each, showed a match speed for GALE V of 99.552 miles per hour, compared to Muncey's 99.389 for the 90 miles.

This entitled GALE V to the bonus points for the fastest race. His accumulated points increased from 825 to 1225. The Detroit Yacht Club challenger held a victory edge of 200 points. For the first time since the introduction of the Gold Cup bonus point system in 1937, a boat had won the race without winning a single heat.

The announcement proclaiming Detroit the winner and Seattle the loser generated something akin to a cultural shock wave throughout the Pacific Northwest. Even persons not otherwise inclined toward boat racing were inevitably drawn into the debate over the invocation of a "technicality" in a civic-supported sports event of national significance. Lack of understanding by the general public of APBA "fine print" was partially responsible for the uproar.

The local press capitalized on the public disenchantment with harsh criticism of the Gold Cup rules and expressions of sympathy for the crestfallen Muncey. The Seattle media even went so far as to accuse SUCH CRUST III pilot Walt Kade with intentionally blocking MISS THRIFTWAY in the last heat so as to slow her down, an allegation without basis in fact and absolutely denied by Kade in a 1965 interview with this writer.

According to Kade, "I didn't even know Muncey was behind me. I was trying to get by the BREATHLESS. I didn't know Muncey was there until he went by both of us on the outside."

The bottom line was that Bill Muncey just plain "blew it" by not following the rules. Conversely, Lee Schoenith followed the rules and reaped the benefits of doing so. Muncey never made that mistake again and vindicated himself by winning four of his next seven Gold Cup contests for the MISS THRIFTWAY organization.

When Schoenith returned to Detroit following the Gold Cup, his plane was greeted in the middle of the night by a crowd of cheering hydroplane fans.

For Schoenith, the 1955 Gold Cup marked the beginning of the end of his driving career. At the very next race, the Copper Cup in Polson, Montana, a substitute occupied the GALE V's cockpit. Lee began to devote more time to administration and less time to racing.

With Schoenith, Terry, and Cantrell in the driver's seat at one time or another, the Gold Cup winning GALE V concluded the 1955 campaign with a third in the Copper Cup, a second in the Detroit Silver Cup, a third in the President's Cup, a third in the International Cup, and a second in the Indiana Governor's Cup.

Danny Foster and TEMPO VII emerged as the dominant team in the second half of the season and won all of their races, but GALE V finished all of its heats and retained its National High Points Championship on the strength of being consistent. In eight races, GALE V had started 24 heats, finished first four times, second ten times, third nine times, and fourth once.

Then, surprisingly, after only two seasons of activity, the Gold Cup-winning GALE V was retired by the Schoenith organization and vanished forever from the Unlimited scene.

For 1956, a new hull, vastly inferior to the original, carried the GALE V name. It was retired after an unsuccessful season and a half and replaced by a third GALE V. It was on board this craft that Lee Schoenith made his final appearance as a driver in competition--a third-place performance at the 1958 Gold Cup in Seattle. With Cantrell driving, the third GALE V won a few secondary races in 1960 and 1961, but never achieved the level of its predecessor.

The first GALE V is remembered as being half of one of the most successful two-boat combinations in the history of the sport. Together with GALE IV, GALE V was a competitive force with which to be reckoned, back in the glory days of Unlimited racing's amateur heyday.

More than anything else, the lime-green and mahogany GALE V will be remembered for re-capturing the Crown Jewel of APBA racing for Detroit on that unforgettable August afternoon in Seattle. Love it or loath it, it is the stuff of which legends are made.