THE
UNLIMITED LIGHTS: 2009 IN REVIEW
By Fred Farley - ULHRA Unlimited Light Historian The Unlimited Light Hydroplane Racing Association did itself proud in 2009. A sluggish national economy not withstanding, the UL teams provided plenty of competitive action for the fans. When the roostertails subsided after the last race of the season in San Diego, Kayleigh Perkins had secured the National High Point Championship for her FOSTER CARE/CHANGE A LIFETIME/VITAMIN WATER (UL-72) team, co-owned by Joe Frauenheim and Phil Bononcini. After finishing second in team points during the 2008 campaign, Ms. Perkins won an unprecedented five races in a row in 2009 to outpoint second-place POWER PUNCH/ROXY RADIO 94.5/K & N FILTERS (UL-11), 8570 points to 5007. # # # # # 2009 WARNINGPOWER.COM REGATTA Phoenix (Chandler), AZ April 25-26 For the first time in Unlimited Light history, which dates back to 1995, two women drivers competed in the Final Heat and finished 1-2! Kayleigh Perkins and the UL-72 battled for the lead for two laps with Greg Hopp and the UL-1 before Hopp's boat lost power and went dead in the water. Elizabeth Wolfe, trailing slightly in the UL-93, took over second-place. And that's how they finished. The same fate had befallen Hopp in the 2008 Phoenix finale when his craft likewise conked out while competing with Perkins. This marked the fourth career victory for the 21-year-old driving sensation and her second victory on Firebird Lake where Perkins and the UL-72 likewise triumphed in 2008. # # # # # 2009 PEPSI RACING POWER CUP CHALLENGE Chamberlain-Oacoma, SD July 11-12 The 2009 race in South Dakota kicked off the opening round of "The Gauntlet" for the Unlimited Light hydroplanes--a grueling series of four races in four weeks that truly tested the mettle of equipment and personnel alike. Defending champion Kayleigh Perkins again stood at the top of the podium at Chamberlain-Oacoma and in so doing claimed her second straight triumph of 2009. Perkins and the UL-72 were third out of the first turn in the Final Heat but passed Vince Xaudaro and the UL-9 on the first backstretch. She then overhauled Paul Becker and the UL-14 at the end of lap #1 before sprinting on to the checkered flag and victory. # # # # # 2009 ANDERSON BROADCASTING "RADIO WAVES REGATTA" Polson, MT July 18-19 Mother Nature proved uncooperative at Polson. Montana, in 2009. High winds forced cancellation of the Final Heat for the Unlimited Lights and the contest had to be decided on the basis of points earned in the preliminary action. Kayleigh Perkins and the UL-72 won both of their preliminary heats for a total of 800 points, compared to 625 for Greg Hopp and the UL-1 and 600 for Chris Grant and the UL-3. Polson was a tough weekend for several teams that experienced major equipment damage. The worst of these was Darren Bartels' UL-11 team. The boat threw a propeller blade, which in turn threw the prop shaft out of balance and tore up the transom. Owner Bartels declared that this hull was done for the season. # # # # # 2009 GRAHAM TRUCKING THUNDER CUP Tri-Cities, WA July 25-26 Kayleigh Perkins and the UL-72 made it four for four on the 2009 ULHRA tour at Kennewick-Pasco-Richland on the Columbia River in the southeast corner of Washington State. Eight boats answered the call for the Final Heat. By the end of lap #1, Perkins had the lead. Second-place Greg Hopp in the UL-1 and third-place Ryan Mallow in the UL-19 kept the pressure on but couldn't overtake the front-running UL-72. With three races remaining on the 2009 schedule, Perkins led Hopp in the series points race by 1,955. (Greg had been unable to attend the race in South Dakota two weeks earlier on account of having to compete in the Unlimited Class at the APBA Gold Cup in Detroit, Michigan.) # # # # # GRAHAM TRUCKING CUP AT SEAFAIR Seattle, WA August 1-2 For the first time in Unlimited Light history, a team won five races in a row. This occurred at Seattle in 2009 with Kayleigh Perkins doing the honors with the Frauenheim/Bononcini-owned UL-72. The win did not come easy for Perkins. She had to work for it. After taking second in Heat One, the UL-72 failed to finish in Heat Two on account of a damaged engine.This forced Perkins into the B-Main in order just to qualify for the Graham Trucking Cup Final Heat. Perkins narrowly edged out Paul Becker and the UL-14 for first-place in the B-Main. The Final Heat was a triumph for the UL-72, which posted the fastest heat of the weekend at 111.272 miles per hour to defeat second-place Ryan Mallow in the UL-19 and third-place Greg Hopp in the UL-1. # # # # # SILVERDALE THUNDER Silverdale, WA August 15-16 The longest win streak in ULHRA history came to an end at Silverdale, Washington, in 2009. After achieving victory in the first five races of the season, Kayleigh Perkins and the UL-72 came in second at Dyes Inlet. Taking top honors this time was another Perkins, Kayleigh's older brother, Brian Perkins, who drove the POWER PUNCH/ROXY RADIO 94.5/K & N FILTERS (UL-11). As Brian Perkins noted, he wasn't even supposed to drive that boat and was planning to skip the Silverdale race altogether. However, when announced driver Mark Evans wound up with a scheduling conflict, Brian was called to substitute and made the most of the opportunity. This was not just any UL-11, however. It was the record-holding UL-12 hull, owned by Bob Schellhase, contracted to Darren Bartels' UL-11 program for the Silverdale race and the upcoming San Diego race.
BAYFAIR AT MISSION BAY/BILL MUNCEY CUP San Diego, CA September 19-20 The Bill Muncey Cup on San Diego's Mission Bay brought down the curtain on the 2009 season for the Unlimited Lights. And what a conclusion it was! The outcome would have amazed a Hollywood scriptwriter. Mark Evans, one of the sport's all-time great competitors, came out of retirement and finished in his familiar first-place, driving the POWER PUNCH/ROXY RADIO 94.5/K & N FILTERS (UL-11) for owner Darren Bartels. The veteran racer had been on the beach for six years, following a serious accident in an Unlimited race at Detroit in 2003. It was almost as if he had never been away. Evans and the UL-11 took over the lead from Paul Becker and the UL-14 on lap #2 of the Final Heat at San Diego and were never headed. Becker and third-place Kayleigh Perkins and the UL-72 went all out but couldn't overtake the front-running UL-11. It was the perfect storybook ending to a memorable campaign.
|