 January, 2001 Photos of Al
LaPointe's new UL "Here a couple of photos of Al LaPointes new UL. This is the old Wildfire Staudacher GP boat. Al has bought new UL sponsons from Ron Jones Jr. and is in the process of putting it together. Al will run the new UL blown engine. Al is the owner of Security Race Products. SRP makes many of the uniforms for the drivers and crews of the Unlimited Lights. They also supply much of the safety gear and radios." Here are the photos!
Another great way for
a new team to
enter the
series in 2001 San Diego broadcast date
change! How to register with the APBA
for 2001 Calls to the APBA about registration have been misinterpreted
and people have been sent down the wrong road. As the boats are known as
"Unlimited Lights" and the ULHRA is a new group, many have been
directed to pay the Unlimited fee. This is not necessary. If you
have any questions, simply drop us an e-mail
and we will help. We've moved, but you shouldn't see a difference... Without anyone really knowing, the Unlimited Lights site your visiting moved to a new web host over the last few days. The need to move arose out of an interruption in service that left us less than happy with our old host. E-mail addresses associated with the site are catching up following the change. For the time being, please send any messages to webmaster@hydros.org. Within a day or so everything should be solidly back on track. In the end, we located a better server that offers us roughly double the space. Everything works out for the best. Cheers, Vince Xaudaro is looking forward to 2001! We recently had a chance to talk with UL-929 pilot Vince Xaudaro. You may remember Vince from his brief time behind the wheel in San Diego where he also crewed with Steve Hook's UL-49 Lake Pateros Motor Inn. Letting Vince tell his own tale... "I have good news. Over the Christmas break, I completed a trade for a UL with Chip Reiter. Last week I drove down to Los Angeles and picked the hull after dropping my 5 litre off in Sacramento for Chip. The hull is a 22' Karelson, last raced in 1995 and was driven by Tony Stalder that year. Chip has decided to gain more experience in the 5 litre class before moving back up to the ULs, so this was a good match for both of us. Chip raced the hull in 1995 only and has since been making several updates to including an F-16 canopy, roll cage, composite belly pan, and sponson updates. There are just a few cosmetic changes that need to be done to the hull including a new cowling, tail feathers, and paint. Work is already underway and I expect to have the hull ready for display by the middle of March. I am expecting to have a web page withing the next 2 weeks. I will update you as soon as that happens. As I make changes and have updates, I will let you know. Right now the plan is to be ready for Tastin & Racin at Issaquah in June." Outstanding news as the 2001 fleet continues to grow! What has Charley Wiggins been up to lately? He may be retired, but his thoughts are still on the Unlimited Light fleet. Former UL-10 pilot, Charley Wiggins, dropped us an e-mail to let us know what he and his team have been up to during the off season. "We have been working on the boat and are making some progress, however, I am in the process of starting a new commercial construction company here in Birmingham. I formed Chase Building Group to pursue commercial construction projects as a General Contractor. I've spent the last 6 months trying to get this business off the ground. We are making progress on the boat, but it has been slow, because I have been spending most of my time working on the new business. We do plan to finish up repairs soon. We've been through the engine that went over in Detroit and it is ready to run. I spent most of the day Friday working on the boat. We have made the following repairs: Repaired damage to rear decks The following repairs are still remaining: Install new left sponson tip and deck
(it has been fitted and is ready for adhesive) Charley also asked that we update everyone on his new e-mail address. "I have canceled my AOL service and switched to telocity DSL service. Therefore my UL10@aol.com is no longer active. If you don't mind putting a little note out indicating that my new email address is cw@chasebuilding.net I would appreciate it." We here at the new ULHRA wish Charley,
Milton, Amie, Jason, Mitch and the rest of the UL-10 team our best and we
sincerely hope to see them again in 2001! UL-23 adds a new associate sponsor and moves forward on the Kilo run! There's a massive update on the UL-23 TeamPegasus site this morning. Owner Bob Larimore shares all the latest on the team and their early 2001 plans. In addition to their new associate sponsor (HARLEY DAVIDSON!!!), they elaborate on the upcoming Kilo record run and the associated Speedvision coverage and talk more about their planned shift to Chrysler Pro Stock power. Additionally, we would like to join the site in bidding
farewell to long time team member, Larry McClellan, who is retiring following
the 2000 season. The UL-15 is a great way to enter the series!
Jerry Hopp gave us a call today and asked us to offer a pointer to his site and his hull which is currently for sale. The UL/GNH-15 is a Ron Jones Hull and the sale includes the trailer. It's the former Buccaneer. Canopy, glass sponsons, air system, adjustable fin, oil cooler and fire system. During the 2000 season, this hull was the GNH Region 10 high point Champion. It also finished 3rd place in Unlimited Light high points, 2nd in the Automotive Gold Cup and 2nd in San Diego. The hull won it's last four GNH races. Jerry is asking $12,000 for the complete package: a race-ready
boat (with trailer) including a new Ron Jones canard wing added just prior to
the 2000 season. All you need is an engine and you are ready to go!
For more information, contact Jerry Hopp at (360) 568-7079. We had a chance to talk with UL-33 driver Denny Jackson and learned that the team has big plans for 2001. They hope to field two hulls at selected races. As you may remember, the UL-33 was crewed by high school students during the 2000 Madison Regatta. The plan is to bring a second group of dedicated kids to the course in 2001. The second hull is a Staudacher hull and Jackson will have his choice of rides. The remaining hull will be piloted by owner Joe Marshall. Also, the word is not good following the fire at Hinkle's, but the landmark Madison sandwich shop does plan to reopen and, prior to the fire, they planned to sponsor the team again in 2001. A sponsor search is underway for the second team that is forming at this time. The two boats hope to run in Madison, Evansville and Detroit
if the race sites are finalized following the February meetings in St. Louis. Click here for updates from December, 2000.
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