San Diego Bayfair 2017 - September 15,16,17

[Serious News]

Race Schedule

Friday, September 15, 2017 No Engine Starts Prior to 0800

0715 – 0725 Working/Perimeter Boat Roll Call (each morning check in)

0800 – 0900 Stock Outboard Testing & Heat 1 – ASH, CSH, 20SSH

0800 H1 Driver/Crew Chief Meeting – H1 Office

0900 – 1000 H1 Testing – 2.5 mi course

1000 – 1030 Stock Outboard Heat 2 – CSH, ASH, 20SSH

1035 – 1100 1 Liter Mod Testing #1

1105 – 1130 Grand Prix World Testing #1

1130 – 1210 Testing (SE, GPS 95– 20 Mins,Formula Light- 20 Mins)

1210 – 1225 1 Liter Mod Heat # 1

1225 – 1325 H1 Testing – 2.5 mi Course

1330 – 1335 Heat # 1 – SE Runabout

1340 – 1410 Grand Prix World Testing #2

1415 – 1420 Heat #1 – GPS 95

1425 – 1440 1 Liter Mod Final

1445 – 1455 Final – SE Runabout

1455 – 1520 Testing Formula Light

1525 – 1530 Final- GPS 95

1530 – 1730 H1 Qualifying presented by Davies Electric – 2.5 mi Course



Saturday, September 16, 2017 No Engine Starts Prior to 0800 (Stock Outboard Exempt)

0800 – 0900 Stock Outboard Heat Racing – ASH, 20SSH, CSH Heat 1 & Final

0800 – 0900 H1 Driver Physicals

0915 – 0955 Limited Test – SST-45 (20 mins), SE, GPS 95(20 mins)

0915 – 0945 H1 Driver Meeting

0950 – 1020 1 Liter Test

1025 – 1100 Grand Prix World Testing # 3

1105 – 1205 H1 Testing – 2.5 mi Course

1205 – 1210 SE Runabout Heat #1

1215 – 1315 Driver Autograph Session

1215 – 1240 SST-45 Qual. # 1

1240 – 1245 GPS 95 Heat #1

1250 – 1305 1 Liter Mod Heat # 1

1310 – 1325 Grand Prix World Heat #1 (Group A)

1330 -- 1345 Grand Prix World Heat #1 (Group B)

1350 – 1450 H1 Testing – 2.5 mi Course

1455 – 1500 SE Final

1505 – 1535 SST-45 Qual. #2

1540 – 1545 GPS 95 Final

1550 – 1605 H1 Heat 1A presented by HomeStreet Bank – 2.5 mi Course

1610 – 1625 1 Liter Mod Final

1630 – 1645 Grand Prix World Heat #2 (Group A & B)

1650 – 1705 Grand Prix World Heat #2 (Group A & B)

1710 – 1730 H1 Heat 1B presented by HomeStreet Bank– 2.5 mi Course



Sunday, September 17, 2017 No Engine Starts Prior to 0800 (Stock Outboard Exempt)

0800 – 0900 Stock Outboard Heat Racing – ASH, 20SSH, CSH Heat 1 & Final

0800 – 0900 H1 Driver Physicals

0900 – 0920 SST-45 Test

0920 Opening Ceremonies – National Anthem

0925 – 1030 H1 Testing – 2.5 mi Course

1030 – 1040 SE Runabout Heat #1

1040 – 1055 1 Liter Mod Heat #1

1100 – 1115 Grand Prix World (Group A)

1145 – 1150 GPS 95 Heat #1

1155 – 1225 Formula Light Heat #3

1225 – 1240 Grand Prix World (Group B)

1245 H1 Helicopters On-site for Heat Racing

1300 – 1315 H1 Heat 2A Presented by Davies Electric – 2.5 mi Course

1320 – 1330 SE Runabout Final

1335 – 1410 Formula Light Final

1415 – 1420 GPS 95 Final

1425 – 1440 H1 Heat 2B Presented by HomeStreet Bank– 2.5 mi Course

1445 – 1500 1 Liter Mod Final

1535 – 1550 Grand Prix World Final

1600 – 1615 The Bill Muncey Cup Presented by HomeStreet Bank – 2.5 mi Course

 

[Serious News]

H1 Unlimited Media Release
NATIONAL HIGH POINT BATTLE COMES DOWN TO SAN DIEGO BAYFAIR

SAN DIEGO—When the H1 Unlimited Hydroplanes take to Mission Bay for the HomeStreet Bank presents San Diego Bayfair (September 15-17) not only will the teams be racing for the prestigious Bill Muncey Trophy they will also be battling for the 2017 H1 National High Point Championship in this season's final event.

Three teams have over 5,000 points going into this weekend's race with Jimmy Shane and the U-1 Miss HomeStreet leading the pack with 5,979 points. Andrew Tate in the U-9 Delta/Realtrac is close behind with 5,700 and J. Michael in the U-12 Graham Trucking is third with 5,385.

Shane, the winner of the Albert Lee Appliance Cup in Seattle and the APBA Gold in Detroit, is looking for his fifth consecutive National High Point Driver Championship and his fourth consecutive with the Miss Madison Racing Team, owner of the Miss HomeStreet. Shane won the H1 National High Point title in 2013 driving for owner Ted Porter in the Graham Trucking boat.

"Once again, we’re in a tight points race heading into the last race of the season,” said Shane. “This will be a weekend of action-packed racing and drama building up to the final race deciding the national championship. I am very proud to represent HomeStreet Bank, as they are the title sponsor of this final race in 2017."

On the other hand, the community-owned Miss Madison Racing Team is looking to claim its fourth consecutive team high point title and eighth championship in the last 10 years.

Community-owned by the City of Madison, Indiana, 2017 is the Miss Madison team's 57th consecutive year of competition. No other team can match the Miss Madison's record for consecutive seasons of participation. Eight different hulls have raced as the Miss Madison in the past 56 years, although two of those were temporary substitutes. The Miss Madison Racing Team has 30 race victories.

In Detroit, Shane added another record to the team's and his own resume. The average speed for Miss HomeStreet in the Championship Final Heat was the fastest ever in APBA Gold Cup history. The five-lap average of 152.759 mph on the Detroit River Course eclipsed the records set by Dave Villwock in 1999 as he drove the Miss Pico to a five-lap average of 152.591 mph and the 2012 mark of 151.089 mph in 2012 as Villwock won the prestigious trophy in the Spirit of Qatar.

While Shane has two victories to his credit, Tate won the President's Cup in Detroit and the Indiana Governor's Cup Shootout in Madison. (The Governor's Cup event was a non-high point event.) Kelly was the HAPO Columbia Cup champion on the Columbia River in Tri-Cities, Wash.

Tentatively, five boats are scheduled to be in San Diego. Besides the U-1, U-9, and U-12, the U-11 driven by Tom Thompson will make the field. After qualifying over 157 mph in Detroit, the U-11 team threw a propeller and lost the long shaft in the first heat of Saturday's President's Cup, knocking the team out for the remainder of the weekend. It was the second long shaft the team lost in Detroit.

The Unlimited Racing Group LLC, the owner of the U-11, announced last week that Reliable Diamond Tool from Phoenix, Ariz. will be the team's presenting sponsor for the San Diego Bayfair race. The U-11 team will be called Reliable Diamond Tool presents J&D's for the event this week.

The U-440 Bucket List Racing Team with Dustin Echols in the cockpit blew an engine in Detroit. Owners Kelly and Sharon Stocklin are working to make the repairs to compete at Bayfair.

The U-99.9 Miss Rock powered by CARSTAR suffered major damage in the Detroit President’s Cup after a blow over accident in one of the preliminary heats. It cannot be repaired in time for Bayfair. Kevin Eacret was not injured in the accident.

 

[Serious News]

SAN DIEGO, CALIF. (Sept. 15, 2017) –Miss HomeStreet’s Jimmy Shane was the fastest qualifier Friday at the HomeStreet Bank San Diego Bayfair on Mission Bay, posting the top qualifying speed of 162.739 mph.

The day’s second-fastest qualifier was Andrew Tate in the U-9 Realtrac/Delta Gear boat laying down a 159.988 mph lap speed on the 2.5-mile saltwater course. Qualifying third was J. Michael Kelly in the Graham Trucking Boat.

“Our whole goal this weekend is a national championship,” said Miss HomeStreet Bank’s Shane. “With the format this weekend every race counts and we have to bring our best.”

The national points race going into HomeStreet Bank San Diego Bayfair was unusually close for the final race of the season. Just 279 separate Shane and Tate, who have been doing battle all summer long on the H1 Unlimited tour.

“Every heat is a final,” Tate said. “As a competitor it’s an ideal situation because you’re going up against the best every time you’re out there.”

Qualifying fourth was Tom Thompson in Reliable Diamond Tool/J&D’s Hydraulic.

Heat racing continues Saturday on Mission Bay with two five-boat heats and the final is slated for Sunday afternoon for the Bill Muncey Cup presented by HomeStreet Bank.

Tickets to HomeStreet Bank Bayfair on San Diego’s Mission Bay can be purchased at the gate or online at www.sandiegobayfair.org.

 

[Serious News]

San Diego Bayfair powerboat races will be roaring across Mission Bay

Jerry Hopp has witnessed a lot of powerboat racing during his 48-year career as a driver.

“Highs and lows,” he said earlier this week. “I’ve seen a lot of great races and racers.”

Hopp and his son have raced in some of the more memorable races on Mission Bay and will return this weekend as participants in the annual San Diego Bayfair Unlimited Hydroplane races presented by HomeStreet Bank.

But 70-year-old Jerry and 49-year-old Greg are no longer in the main event. They are the biggest fish in the Grand Prix West support class — the piston-powered complement to the turbine-powered Unlimiteds that will be competing the next three days on the 21/2-mile Bill Muncey Memorial course between Fiesta Island and Ski Beach.

Greg Hopp has won the past five season championships in the Grand Prix class — once known as Unlimited Lights — while Jerry was the champion just before his son’s run began. The senior Hopp also holds three Grand National class speed records.

Both Hopps, however, have raced against the best in Unlimited racing as the world’s more powerful raceboats have gone through a number of changes since Jerry first climbed into an Unlimited in 1983.

While en route from their Washington base earlier this week, Jerry Hopp discussed some of the best Unlimited drivers he has raced over the years.

“It’s not easy to compare today’s drivers to the drivers of 40 years ago,” Jerry Hopp began. “The sport has gone through tremendous change. When started, the boats were all powered by engines from World War II fighter plans and the driver sat behind the engine.

“The drivers were moved ahead of the engines in a design change. Then the turbine engines were introduced. And the biggest change was the introduction of the canopy cockpits, which made the sport a lot safer.”

So the changes to the boats changed the requirements of the drivers.

“In my mind, my son is the greatest driver I’ve ever seen,” said Jerry. “But he never was in the boat he deserved to be in.”

Still, we put the question to Jerry Hopp. “Over your almost five decades in the sport, who were the best drivers you saw?”

“The drivers that I always respected were the drivers who were great starters,” said Jerry Hopp. “So much of the outcome in Unlimited and limited racing is decided by the start, you have to be a great starter.”

And the driver at the top of Hopp’s list — aside from his son — is Chip Hanauer.

“Chip could definitely drive a boat,” said Jerry Hopp. “I’d have put him at the top of the list. We started racing each other in limiteds when I came back from Vietnam in 1969. I was 21 and he was 12 . . . and he was already a winner.”

The next drivers Hopp named on his list were Scott Pierce and Steve Reynolds.

The next name that popped into his head was all-time wins leader Dave Villwock. “He not only knew how to drive a boat, he knew what went into making Unlimited go fast,” said Hopp. “He improved boats.”

The last two names were the late Bill Muncey of La Mesa and Muncey’s main rival in the ’60s and ’70s, Dean Chenoweth. Each died in racing accidents.

“Bill and Dean were on par,” said Hopp. “You didn’t like Muncey, but you did. His driving made up for everything.”

San Diego Bayfair Unlimited Hydroplanes

What: Powerboat races featuring the turbine-powered Unlimited Hydroplanes and Grand Nationals powered by automotive piston engines. Limited class hydroplanes and flatbottom powerboats will also race.

When: Today through Sunday — Practice and qualifying, today starting at 10 a.m. Final-round qualifying and heat races, Saturday starting at 9 a.m. with Unlimited heats in the afternoon. Championship races, Sunday culminating with the Unlimited Hydroplane HomeStreet Bank Bill Muncey Cup championship race at 4:15 p.m.

Where: 2 1/2-mile Bill Muncey Memorial Course between Fiesta Island and East Vacation Isle. The pits for all classes are on East Vacation Isle.

Who: Jimmy Shane enters the Unlimited Hydroplane season finale seeking a third consecutive win and a third straight season championship in the HomeStreet Bank entry. He enters the weekend with a 300-point lead (roughly a one-heat margin) over driver Andrew Tate in the U-9 Jones Racing boat. J. Michael Kelly, who won Bayfair in 2015, trails Shane by nearly 600 points.

Tickets: Three-day passes are $45. Single-day admission is $25. Children under 12 free.

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sports/

 

[Serious News]

Renton’s Jimmy Shane wins fifth consecutive unlimited hydroplane national championship

Andrew Tate wins the season-ending race in San Diego, but the U-1 HomeStreet Bank had already clinched the seasonlong race.
Seattle Times

Andrew Tate won the battle but Jimmy Shane won the war.

Tate took home the Bill Muncey Cup at the season-ending San Diego Bayfair unlimited hydroplane race on Sunday.

Tate, who drives the Kent-based U-9 Realtrac, held off J. Michael Kelly and the U-12 Graham Trucking to win the race.

“The Bill Muncey Cup is definitely a prestigious award that I’m very proud to have my name on with the U-9 team,” said Tate, who won his third race of the season.

But Shane won his fifth consecutive National High Points Championship.

Shane, who calls Renton home, locked up the national title for the U-1 HomeStreet Bank in Heat 2A when Tate, who was close behind him all season, was disqualified for a prerace infraction. Tate had the Seafair title taken away from him last month for another prerace infraction, which could have changed the seasonlong race.

Shane, who was third in the final, won his first title with Graham Trucking in 2013 and the next four with the Miss Madison Racing team (which has been sponsored by HomeStreet for the last two years). It’s the 10th title for the Madison team, all since 2005.

“Our team goal is always the national championship, and we accomplished that goal this year,” Shane said. “I’m honored to be in great equipment with a great team, great sponsor, and that’s what it takes to win a national championship.”

With only five boats in the race, the four preliminary heats were raced by the same boats. Normally a field of 8-10 boats are mixed and matched. Shane and Tate won all four heats.

http://www.seattletimes.com/sports/...e-unlimited-hydroplane-national-championship/

 

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