All News Posts (267)

In his attempt to win still another racing trophy, defeated Champ Bill Muncey was frustrated by a wall of water and an oilman's boat.

By Hugh Wahll

Reprinted from Sports Illustrated, July 15, 1963

"Washing down" is an old tool in the lockers of most hydroplane racers. A tactical maneuver, now illegal under the racing rules, it consists of deliberately aiming the fierce fire-hose power of the towering rooster tail from the stern of your…

Don Mocks report from December 9th

By Fred Farley - H1 Unlimited Historian

A boat racer since age 16, Dave Villwock accepted his first Unlimited Class assignment in 1989 as crew chief for Bill Bennett's MISS CIRCUS CIRCUS. Chip Hanauer was its driver. In 1990, Chip and Dave emerged as National High Point Champions with six wins in eleven races.

Following years of success in the flat-bottom inboard category, Villwock was High Point Champion in the 6-Litre Hydroplane Class in 1988 with Jerry Yoder's SUNSET…

I recently purchased Jim Sharkey's amazing book, "HYDRO'S WHO'S WHO, 1946-2008". It lists all of the boats, all the drivers who drove them and what year(s) they raced. There is a chonological listing of a) all the Unlimiteds and their name changes; b) all the drivers and all the boats they drove; and c) a yearly breakdown as to how each boat finished in each race. The book is absolutely amazing with all the infomation and details. If you need to know about a hydro hull,…

As we have progressed on the restoration of Bill Muncey’s Atlas Van Lines at the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum, the topic often comes up on which year of the boat should we recreate. To the casual observer, the Blue Blaster looked pretty much the same throughout its illustrious career. But like most race boats, the Blaster underwent subtle changes from its…

On October 19th the Hydroplane & Raceboat Museum launched an exciting new web site. We are approaching 250 members on the new site. You can read about, and participate, in Museum events, post and/or enjoy many hydroplane racing photos and videos, create a blog, startd a discussion on the Forum or join the group for your favorite hydro. But please understand that by registering on the site, you have only become a member/participant of the web site, it does NOT include membership in the…

Future Hall of Fame driver Dave Villwock will be the guest speaker at Saturday Nights Annual dinner meeting.

Villwock is currently tied will Bill Muncey for all time unlimited wins with 62!…

By Fred Farley - H1 Unlimited Historian

The Rolls-Royce Griffon-powered MISS BUDWEISER of 1980 is one of the sport's legendary champions. Nicknamed the "Juggernaut," the Griffon BUD won 22 races and defined the state of the art in Unlimited racing between 1980 and 1984.

There were actually three Griffon MISS BUDWEISERs. The first appeared in 1979 and the last in 1985. But it is the "Juggernaut" that inspires awe.…

A historical look at skid fins and how they help hydroplanes turn left.

By Doug Ford

Reprinted from h1unlimited.com.

Everyone that has watched modern Unlimited Hydroplanes race has seen the so called "second roostertail" of spray that comes off the skid fins in a corner. That spray is very indicative of the tremendous loads these fins carry when the big boats enter a turn. It…

By Fred Farley - H1 Unlimited Historian

Future Unlimited Class luminary Dan Arena made his first impression in the California Gold Cup Class of the 1930s with a series of boats named MISS GOLDEN GATE. Dan drove the first of these, a step hydroplane, to victory in the Pacific Motorboat Trophy at Newport Harbor in 1936 and 1937.

The three-point hull design of racing hydroplane caught on in a big way in the years just prior to World War II. Most of the early three-pointers were…

The Hydroplane Museum will be closed Tuesday November the 23rd due to snow.

It is too early to make a call for Wednesday the 24th.

We will also be closed on Thursday November 25th and Friday the 26th for Thanksgiving.

We plan to be open for normal operation on Saturday November the 27th.

David Williams

On our last full day in Doha, as planned, we went down to the pits and did the final prep on the boat for shipment. Hatches were given a final dry-out where needed, covers put in place, hatch screw plates and internal hardware was sprayed down with rust inhibitor, and we placed the big plastic cover on the trip to keep it clean on journey home. Last word is that the boats won’t head out…

After going down to the pits this morning to finish packing up the truck and grabbing some pieces off the Gearbox to send home, we high-tailed it back to the Mariott, changed into some clean clothes, and went off on the “Safari”. Safari can mean a couple different things, but this particular connotation involved a 4-wheeling caravan out into the Qatar desert and sand dunes, about a 45 minute ride from Doha.



We had a caravan of about 8 vehicles, mostly Toyota Landcruisers, Nissan…

Hi friends,

Your obedient correspondent is a little woofed tonight, so I don’t have a ton of piffle for you. The U-17 struggling with some overheating and fuel issues, so it was another late night in the pits while we pulled the motor, pulled the PT wheel out, changed a fuel control and got…