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USSBA Race Recap
Through hell and/or high water...Planes, trains and
automobiles
Weather and circumstance tries hard to
dampen raceday - FAIL!
By Jim DeFord
MARSING, Idaho (June 6, 2010) —
Mother Nature has been a little crabby lately. Not crying global warming or
climate
change
as we have seen this kind of weather before, but the rains the past week,
leading up to Friday's climax as the teams, officials, and fans were trying
to make it to the race on time were torrential to say the least.
Yours truly drove through massive rains from Vancouver, WA,
through Portland into Idaho that many times drove the speeds down to 40mph!
That was nothing compared to Hannah Macke driving through nearly two feet of
water on the highway near Council. The road was closed not much after that.
Rookie Super Modified driver, Eric Werner had to navigate
across the entire country from Florida to make the race. Flights were
overbooked, and the weather affected his flights coming into Boise. Normally
Eric is in the driver's seat when it comes to flying. He is a Navy pilot and
flies an F/A-18 (generation unknown) for a living. He was on duty in Key
West and was not sure if he'd be piloting the F/A-18 Jet Fighter or the Jolly Roger
Jet Sprint Boat on Saturday.
Several teams could not make it to the race for a variety of
reasons from weddings (not necessarily their own) to mechanical issues, or
boats/engines just not being ready:
Kyle Patrick: Blown engine
Todd Gary: Wedding
Pat Hampl: Boat & Engine not ready
Lee Rice: Blown gear in supercharger
Robert Cox: Engine not ready
Darin Hartwig: Engine not ready
John Gray: Engine not ready
Dave Pfeiler: Wedding
Dennis Hughes: Unknown
But, sixteen boats did make it with four of the being from
Canada! Yes, we have Cory Johnson returning and three more races, from the
Fat Buddy Racing Team in some fancy looking orange and black boats competing
in 2010!
As it turned out, the weather was near perfect. A pleasant
72-degrees, mostly sunny, a slight breeze to cool you off when the sun
was trying to blaze and absolutely no rain. Perfect racing weather!
The Race
The course selection was very tight and the boats spent most
of the day criss-crossing on the inside of the track. A nice, tight driver's
course with one final sweeper at the finish.
Six rookies would grace the field:
Saxton/Farrand - Group A-400
Werner/Young - Super Modified
Powell/Farrand - Super Modified
Lowney/Lamour - Super Modified
Johnson/Kuchmak - Super Modified
Gilder/Olson - Super Modified
In the Super Boat class it was Atkinson/Teichert vs.
Morrison/McGuire. Johnson/McNeil are also moving up to Super Boats but their
engine was not ready and they ran a waiver run in Jack Bright's boat for
points only.
Dan Morrison is now running the motor that Tom Nelson ran in
this same hull a few years ago. However, the motor was given a full overhaul
and is now pushing 900-plus horsepower and 700-plus torque at the crank.
But, when it doesn't start, it's hard to prove all that.
Benson Atkinson ran two successful qualifying sessions, but
flipped the boat in Q4 and cracked the rollbar putting him on the trailer
and not being able to show for the finals.
Once Dan and the Wicked Racing crew got the boat running, it
was smokin' fast and he pulled a 52.275 in Q3 setting the fastest time for
the qualifying session for Super Boats.
In the Group A-400 class Olson/Gilder ripped off a 58.531
right off the trailer in Q1 and was looking good until Hendrickson/Macke's
Wicked Racing boat started pulling 56's and then a 55 in Q4. 2010 champ,
Jack Bright with his other son navigating this race managed a 58.352,
securing the #2 spot followed by TNT's Gahr/Gahr, Canadian Fat Buddy team of
Saxton/Farrand and local favorite Healy/Bernard in sixth.
In the finals, while everyone expected Rock Chucker to be
right up there but it was the battle of the two Dougs. Olson/Gilder managed
to squeak into the 57's in the 4-cut, but it was Wicked Racing's, and
2007/2008 champions Hendrickson/Macke pulling 55's and one 56 that brought
home the trophy and kicking the monkey off their back that had them winless
in 2009. The team has never looked smoother and the boat is extremely fast
this year.
In the Super Modified class it was 2010 champion
Johnson/McNeil that clearly lead the field pulling 57's in Q3 & Q4.
Ackerman/Hall was right on his bucket with a 59 in Q4. TNT's
Cummings/Cummings managed a 60 second run in Q4 and they were followed by
Hines/Carriea in the beautiful Bowtie sponsored Nut Deep boat, F/A-18 pilot
Werner/Young, Henderson/Sleeman, Fat Buddy teams of Powell/Farrand and
Lowney/Lamour and then the Dream Team(s) of Johnson/Kuchmak and Gilder/Olson
both running the 710S boat with TNT's Cummings/Fuller scoring a DNF in Q1
with two thrown rods putting them on the trailer for the day.
In the finals it was Johnson/McNeil running consistent 57's,
but then they missed a corner in the inside of the track and parked their
boat for the afternoon.
That put Ackerman and Cummings head to head. Ackerman was
running about 2-tenths faster but then in the final clipped Cummings by over
a second taking the first trophy home for his new Shotgun hull that he spent
2009 working the bugs out. It's obvious that Scott has now come to know this
new boat because his driving has never been smoother.
Hines/Carriea took the bottom spot on the podium followed by
Johnson/McNeil, Werner/Young, Henderson/Sleeman, Lowney/Lamour and Powell/Farrand.
The next event will be June 19th at Webb's Slough in St.
John, Washington. See the race schedule page for ticket information and
directions to the track. Please note that there will be a film crew that
race weekend.
Seeya at Webb's Slough!
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USSBA Race Recap
Thrills, spills and chills at The Slough!
Webb's Slough delivers again!
By Jim DeFord
Photos by Jim and Mary Deford
SAINT JOHN, Washington (June 20, 2010) —
Webb's Slough never fails to deliver and this weekend–oh
my–yes she
did
ever deliver one of the most exciting, breathtaking races this sport has
seen in years to what looked to be a record crowd.
First off a huge bucket of kudos to Chris Bowman, head of
USSBA Safety, and the Slough Crew for their hard work on Saturday. They were
kept very busy as we has many crashes, rollovers and two boats (one driver -
two boats) stuck into the catch-fencing. Their response was immediate in
every case. And when I say immediate, I mean immediate!
At
The Slough, when a boat crashes, the Slough Crew, under Chris' direction,
are moving before the boat stops moving. It's an amazing thing to watch and
a comfort to everyone in the sport, knowing they will be there if and when a
crash occurs. Amazing work! Thank you for being there. No one was hurt
today.
Secondly, another huge bucket of kudos to Matt and Amanda
Webb for their detailed maintenance, upkeep and upgrading of Webb's Slough.
The teams love The Slough and the fans love The Slough! And a special thanks
for that awesome catch fence that did the job it was designed for! Twice!
It
was quite an amazing race day at Webb's Slough this past Father's Day Eve.
The track rotation was a 34-turn marathon that had both tight-n-twisties and
a super fast finish. Many were skeptical about the 8/13 transition, but it
ended up being the 6/12/10 turns that would cause the most angst among the
drivers with Cory Johnson stuffing both his Super-Modified boat and his
Super Boat into the fence on the west side of the track coming out of those
corners.
Cory and Gary did come back to win the Super-Mod class over
Scott Ackerman. They were not so lucky with the Super Boat as he also grazed
one of the large wooden poles that help form the catch fencing around this
awesome facility. The Super Boat will need some serious work. The Super-Mod
boat just has a few scratches from the fencing and safety cables as the boat
try to burrow unsuccessfully under the fence. Large hay bales were installed
as an extra safety
measure
in that corner.
Wicked Racing's Doug Hendrickson christened the hay bales
late in qualifying as Hannah Macke & Doug slid sideways off the course,
through the mud and into the bales. The navigator side was pushed in a bit,
but not enough to slow them down as they went on to win the Group A-400
class.
Tsunami
Racing's Benson Atkinson battled an ill handing boat all day and popped onto
the shore a few times. Cayle Johnson and Lindsey Kuchmak performed a
super-slow-motion slide and a 90-degree lean and was done after two
qualifying attempts. The #13 Fat Buddy boat of Scott Saxton and Frank
Farrand spent the day with its nose in the air or its hull in the mud and on
their finale, the driver's side buried in the water and never could make it
past qualifying.
Wicked Racing's Dan Morrison, in the biggest horsepower boat
in the series, had a near miss when attempting to take the 6/12/10 through
the center of the course. Running full power, he hesitated, thought twice
and then went straight at
the
last second. That could have been a very ugly crash.
Andy Gilder popped the 710S boat onto the island in an
uneventful DNF, but was also out after Q2 along with Cayle who share the
Dream Chaser ride. Doug Olson in the 710 Dream Catcher submarined himself
and Andy Gilder in the 8-cut and was on the trailer. Jack Bright
semi-submarined Rock Chucker in the upper loop, but made it out to run
against Hendrickson in the finals.
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There were a few other spinouts and such but this just shows
not only how tough the rotation was, but also how hard these guys are
running these boats. And when the boats are run this hard it makes more work
for the pit crews to clean out the run's mess, do whatever tuning or blade
changing that needs to be done and get the boat back in the water.
When the course is 34 turns it puts incredible pressure on
navigator to get the course memorized. Yes, the course must be memorized as
the teams are not allowed to have a course map in the boat.
Super Boats
This
played out to be a true head-to-head battle between Wicked Racing's Dan
Morrison with Cara McGuire against comeback driver Dean Lautenschlager with
Brian Goeckner in the Slipstream boat. The Slipstream was running AvGas as
opposed to methonal normally run in Super Boats.
Cory and Gary were tweaking the 55M Super Boat as this was
the first time it was in the water. The hull was built by Cory. Benson had
his hands full with an oddly handling and running boat, and Darrin Hartwig
was also battling engine issues in the return of Hi-Tech Redneck.
Todd Gary ran a 400-class boat under a waiver and finished on
the podium. It will be a challenge to catch up in the points battle, but we
have seen weirder things happen.
In the finals it was looking to be a classic battle between
Dan and Dean, but in the 4-cut, Dan's starter shorted out and they could not
make the 5-minute clock. That left Dean with the fastest time of the day of
all boats at a smokin' hot 50.621 and a he ran one more hard run to claim
the win in Super Boats.
A great comeback for Dean "The Machine" Lautenschlager in
addition to showing the Slipstream hull will run head-to-head with the big
boys.
Group A-400
Wicked
Racing's Doug Hendrickson and Hannah Macke were dead on today. Every turn
smooth as can be. No hopping or cavitating. This was turning out to be a
perfect day. But, we have seen Doug do this before here at Webb's Slough and
lose it in the finals.
Last year, his only win of a dismal 2009 season was here at
Webb's Slough. He had a minor crash in Q4, but pulled off the win. And today
was almost a mirror finish. Doug slid off
the track and whacked a hay bale in Q4 and then went on to win the finals
against Jack Bright.
Psycho Racing's Kyle Patrick was back after missing the first
race due to engine issues. He ran good all day but could only manage 57's
running flat-footed and finishing fourth. Look for the 151 boat to be fully
tuned and super fast at the Albany event next month.
Not
even Jack and Cody Bright could catch up to Hendrickson and Macke. Jack and
Cody claimed second place today in a hard fought run. Lee Rice and Travis
Tiechert ran a respectable race today finishing fifth.
TNT Racing's Paul and Josh Gahr ran what I feel is their best
race ever. Rarely did they put foot wrong as they claimed the bottom step of
the podium. Olson and Saxton finished sixth and seventh respectively due to
their problems mentioned earlier.
Super-Modified
Scott
Ackerman and Mike Hall were on a great buzz after what was the best run for
Scott in the Shotgun Sprint hull and what this writer feels was his best in
his Sprint Boat career. And now they were at their home track and ready to
rock and roll!
Ackerman and Johnson went back and forth all day with fast
times. In the 8-cut, Cory ran a 54.2 and Scott a 56.3, but right behind them
was Robert Cox with a surprising 55.5, Tim Cummings with a 56.6, Dennis
Hughes with a 58.7 with Larry Hines at 59.4 and Eric Werner running a 60.4.
In
the 4-cut Cory ran a 55.4 and then Ackerman pulled out the stops, and ripped
of a 55.125. Tim Cummings DNF'd and Robert Cox missed the finals by a hair
at a 56.095.
Cory came out in the finals and ripped off a 54.060. Ackerman
then came out and stuck it into the mud rounding turn 5. A disappointing end
to an incredible day of racing. The 54.060 was the fastest time of the day
in the Super-Mod class! All that after earlier stuffing Liquid Addiction
into the catch fencing!
So yes folks, it was quite an incredible day of racing in
front of what looked to be a record crowd at Webb's Slough.
USSBA Race Preview
Looking to be a Super weekend at The Slough!
Super Boats descend upon Saint John
By Jim DeFord
SAINT JOHN, Washington (June 11, 2010) — In what
has
quickly become the USSBA Racing Series' Mecca, our Daytona and yes, our
Indianapolis, the Sprint Boats of the USSBA are ready and will invade this
quaint wheat farming community and create some racing havoc on the tight,
twisty banks of Webb's Slough raceway on Saturday, June 19th at 10am!
And what so Super about this weekend?
Speed. Pure, unadulterated speed and the most Super Boats we
have seen in the series for several years. Here is the list and status:
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Dan Morrison - Wicked Racing - Confirmed
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Cory Johnson - Liquid Addiction - Confirmed
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Benson Atkinson - HydroBeast - Confirmed
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Lee Rice - Tsunami - Confirmed
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Darin Hartwig - Hi-Tech Redneck - Confirmed
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Dean Lautenschlager - CONFIRMED!
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Todd Gary - CONFIRMED!
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Dave Pfeiler - Climax - Not attending
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Pat Hampl - Venom - Not attending
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Six Super Boats with longtime racer Dean Lautenschlager
possibly racing. My inside scoop says Dean and his team are testing
somewhere in Spokane this weekend.
This is looking to be the fastest field of racing the USSBA
has seen for many years and should be a thrilling and chilling race weekend!
Not chilling as in COLD, but chilling as in chills up your
spine as these racers navigate the tight islands of The Slough on a
knife's edge!
The weather is currently forecasted to be 80° and sunny! So,
call the neighbors and wake the kids, it's time to go racing at The Slough!
Purchase your tickets now!
BrownPaperTickets.com
Order
by phone: 1-800-838-3006
Gates
open at 9:00am
Qualifying starts at 10:00am
Eliminations begin about 1:00pm
Trackside camping is available!
And don't forget that awesome Slough track food! The best
food on the circuit!!!
June 14th UPDATE:
It has been confirmed that longtime Sprint Boat
racer and multi-champion Dean "The Machine" Lautenschlager will be racing
this weekend in the Super Boat class.
Todd Gary will also be racing in the Super Boat class.
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