June 30th- WE ARE UNDERWAY IN EVANSVILLE! We’ve just run heat 1A. Jean Theoret in the U-37 Miss Beacon Plumbing went up against the U25, the U100 Leland Racing, the U5 Formula boats and the rookie driver in the U10 Leland racing boat who was required to start on the outside. Word from the pits is that Theoret NAILED the start and opened up a HUGE lead to start the heat and built on that lead winning the heat by almost 8 seconds. GREAT WIN not only for Theoret but for the crew who is finally getting their hard work validated on the race course! Our next race will be tomorrow July 1st. We’ll get you the heat draws as soon as we know them.
July 1- It was a wild day in Evansville with three boats blowing over. Thankfully all of the drivers are are doing fine and Jean Theoret came back to end the day with a second place finish.
Heat 2A- Jeff Bernard was running a strong heat but was penalized one lap due to jumping the gun. While racing Villwock hard on the back stretch the boat flipped, landing tail down and then rolling several times. Bernard had some difficulty opening the hatch while the rescue crew arrived but everything worked out fine. Bernard was able to get back in the boat for the last chance heat but had to shut down before starting the race.
Heat 2B- saw a similar ending for Jean Theoret and the U-37 Miss Beacon Plumbing. Jean Theoret was up agains the U3, the U1, the U10 and the U100. Theoret was leading the heat. In the last turn of the final lap the boat suddenly flipped 360 degrees, landing right side up with the engine still running. Theoret was not injured. We’re not completely sure what caused the boat to flip.
In both cases we must stop for a moment and remember what is truly important. While we all are looking for trophies and championships, we are thankful that the safety equipment and the regulations in place are keeping our drivers from suffering serious injuries. We are very happy that in both cases today, the drivers virtually walked away.
Heat 3A- Unfortunately we have another blow over to report. In the exact same spot that Jeff Bernard in U-5 flipped, Mike Allen in the U-1 blew over. It is being reported that Allen got in to Villwock’s roostertail and this caused the flip. Word from the pits is that Allen was standing on his boat after the accident and this is very good news.
Heat 3B- FINALLY NO CRASH TO REPORT! With an unfortunate crash in heat 3A, causing a delay in running heat 3B, Scott Raney and the team were able to dot their i’s and cross their t’s to give Theoret a boat he could run with. Jean Theoret went up against the U100, the U13, the U10 and the U16. The U16 Miss Elam took the heat. Theoret in the repaired U37, saved his equipment, and took second place to put the Miss Beacon Plumbing in the final heat. Set for 5:15pm CDT.
Final Heat- Jean Theoret, after flipping earlier in the day, got back in the cockpit for the final heat to take on the U-16 and the rest of the finals field. Theoret had to avoid hitting a buoy at one point, which slowed him down, but still made a good run at winning the race. Theoret ends up with a second place finish and a great start to the 2007 season. Hats off once again to the entire U-37 crew for their great preparation and team work in Evansville.
This brings the first race weekend of the season, to a close. We are very pleased to see all of the drivers that blew over preparing for Madison. We hope for the sake of everyone’s equipment, that Madison is just a fun weekend of racing. Thanks to all of the fans that came out to the merchandise tent and the pits. And above all, thanks for coming out and supporting hydroplane racing. We’ll see you next year.