Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum
We're racing through history!
By Fred Farley – Unlimited Hydroplane Historian Unlimited hydroplane racing lost one of its most respected veterans on April 4, 2012. John Humes, the sport’s first African American crew chief, passed… View »
By Fred Farley – Unlimited Hydroplane Historian The World Championship Race concept can be traced back to 1938. It was originally proposed by Count Theo Rossi, who was the head of the Italian vermou… View »
By Fred Farley - Unlimited Hydroplane Historian GRAHAM TRUCKING won four of the six battles in 2014, but OBERTO/MISS MADISON won the war. When the roostertails subsided after the last race of the sea… View »
San Diego’s Mission Bay was the setting for the most recent installment of the UIM World Championship series. In terms of boat-to-boat action, the 2006 race produced some of the finest competition im… View »
The World Championship series resumed in 2004 after a 20-year hiatus. In contrast to 1984, all of the entries in 2004 were turbine-powered. Madison, Indiana, the host city, had staged a World Champio… View »
By Fred Farley - Unlimited Hydroplane Historian QUESTION: Over the years, there have been a number of radically designed unlimiteds. One of the most interesting, from a design perspective, is the 199… View »
By Fred Farley - Unlimited Hydroplane Historian QUESTION: Mr. Farley, I was a fan of the NOTRE DAME boats, which Shirley Mendelson McDonald campaigned between 1962 and 1973. In reading one of your ar… View »
By Fred Farley - Unlimited Hydroplane Historian QUESTION: Fred, do you know what Horace Dodge, Jr., did with the original MY SWEETIE? - Dick Degener ANSWER: Regarding the original MY SWEETIE, the… View »
By Fred Farley - Unlimited Hydroplane Historian QUESTION: I was wondering if there ever was a dead-heat finish in an Unlimited hydroplane race. If so, how was it scored? - Glenn Winter ANSWER: Exhibi… View »
By Fred Farley - Unlimited Hydroplane Historian Andy Miller was the third of five drivers to play "musical cockpits" with Bob Fendler's LINCOLN THRIFT'S 7-1/4% SPECIAL in 1973. The other four were Ge… View »