Hopp runs the table at Graham Trucking Thunder Cup.

Victory in the Final, two preliminary heat wins, plus #1 qualifier made for a huge weekend for the UL-15 Graham Trucking G.T. - Happy Go Lucky – Pump Tech of Moses Lake and driver Greg Hopp.

Sealing a perfect weekend of 1,240 points, Hopp took the lead from Paul Becker in the UL-14 Miss Critical Logic exiting the first turn and was never headed. Becker, with two second place finishes and a victory in 3 heats is now just 17 points behind second place Kayleigh Perkins in the UL-72 Miss Boat Electric, who now trails Hopp by over a thousand points. Perkins had her most difficult weekend in her season and a half long Unlimited Lights’ career. After sustaining engine failure a week ago at Polson MT the UL-72 team used their backup engine at Tri Cities, to disappointing results. Ms. Perkins finished third in her preliminary heat on Saturday and on Sunday the backup engine failed and she found herself attaching a towline to the boat for her first time ever as the Miss Boat Electric went through a very rare Did Not Finish (DNF).

Last week’s first time winner J. Craig Fletcher mistimed the score-up by one second, sustaining a 1 minute penalty which took him out of contention. He ultimately finished 6^th. Terry Troxell, substituting for his son in law Kip Brown in the UL-8 Numerica Credit Union had problems at the start but recovered nicely for his first ever ULHRA podium finish; third place. In his most recent appearance in an Unlimited Light hydroplane, prior to the formation of ULHRA, Inc. Troxell took second at Issaquah WA in the year 2000.

Fourth Place went to Michael Flaherty in the UL-11 Advanced Auto Glass-ROXY 94.5-Power Punch Oil Supplements in that teams first ever final heat appearance, following extensive repairs to the bottom of the hull that weren’t completed till 2:00am Sunday morning. The UL-11 was the alternate in the Final but entered the course when the UL-39 Rouly Heat Exchangers-NAPA Auto Parts driven by Joe Souza experienced starter problems. Fifth place went to Mike Sadlon out of Vero Beach FL in the UL-89 Lake Trash Apparel and Lake Trash.com

It was said from the outset that “The Gauntlet” as this 5 races in 5 weeks schedule has been referred, was a marathon not a sprint. It’s proven to be exactly that. In addition to mechanical failure with the UL-72 and UL-39 teams, the UL-929 Ice Harbor Brewing Co. driven by Vince “X-Man” Xaudaro lost its engine, as did the UL-40 King & Bunny’s Appliances driven for the first time since 2003 by Kelly Stocklin. The “Bunny Boat” as the team has dubbed the 40 hull had a productive weekend, qualifying for the Final on the strength of two very competitive efforts by Stocklin which resulted in second and first place preliminary heat finishes. Team majority owner and engine “guru” Chuck Dow said they will be ready for the Graham Trucking Cup at Seafair, August 1-3.

John Lynch
P.R. Directer and "Voice" of the ULHRA Racing

Changes for the Graham Trucking Cup at Seafair

The UL-8 will have its third driver in 3 weeks for the Graham Trucking Cup at Seafair. Ryan Mallow, the regular driver for the UL-19 Five Star Racing team and a crewmember of the U-37 Turbine team, will replace Terry Troxell this weekend at Seattle. According to team owner Bob Baker, Troxell has “another assignment this weekend” making him unavailable to drive the UL-8. Baker said he didn’’t know what Troxell’s assignment is, but he praised the U-37 team for making Ryan Mallow available. Mallow last raced at Port Angeles in September of 2007 in the UL-19. For Mallow it should be a reasonably simple transition as both the 19 and 8 teams utilize supercharged power. Mallow has 2 race victories in ULHRA competition and will be driving the UL-8 Numerica Credit Union, presented by Block Head Machine and Baker Equipment Company. Last weekend at Tri Cities WA Troxell finished third while substituting for his son-in-law Kip Brown, who drove at Polson MT. two weeks ago and at Richland WA two months ago. Brown is driving the U-17 turbine at Seattle.

There will be “Boots on the Ground” in the UL-39 pit area this weekend; Army boots that is. The “Army Strong” UL-39 presented by NAPA Auto Parts will be driven by Army veteran Sgt. First Class Joe Souza of Lakewood WA. The team is one of 14 to have qualified for the Graham Trucking Cup at Seafair through competition in 2008. Last weekend team owners Bob & Barbara Scribner celebrated their 50^th wedding anniversary in their home town of Odessa TX. This weekend their focus is Seattle where the UL-39 will try to reach the Final heat. At Tri Cities Joe Souza qualified for the Final by finishing second in the B-Main only to have starter failure when attempting to get on the course for the Final. That allowed alternate Michael Flaherty in the Advanced Auto Glass-ROXY Radio 94.5-Power Punch Oil Supplements to start in Souza’s place. Flaherty drove to a solid 4^th place finish in the first Final heat appearance for the Darren Bartels owned UL-11.

One team reaches Seafair this year as another team has had to step away. Oregonian Bob Smets had solidly qualified his UL-20 Smetco-Overtime for the Graham Trucking Cup at Seafair but in qualifying last weekend at Tri Cities his primary engine was seriously damaged. The backup engine had been in the shop for repairs but when Smets learned this week it would be unlikely that he could have either engine ready to race, he promptly withdrew his entry. That propelled the Al Carstensen driven MAACO of Bremerton-Gresham Well Drilling-Jesfield Construction into the 14^th and final position in this weekend’s race. There are only 14 positions available to ULHRA teams this year at Seattle due to limited space available in the Stan Sayers Pits. Could it be history repeating itself? Last year with co-owner Kerry Beynon as Crew Chief and Carstensen driving the UL-6 team was the first alternate for Seattle. Things broke their way then, they were moved into the pits Saturday morning, and Carstensen went on to reach the Final as the “trailer boat” in a 9 team field, and promptly raced to a podium finish in third place.

Testing and qualifying for the Graham Trucking Cup for Unlimited Lights at Seafair in Seattle will be on Friday, and again on Saturday morning. Preliminary heats will be conducted on Saturday afternoon with Friday and Saturday coverage of ULHRA teams on the water available on this website through ULHRA Video with audio provided by KPTK AM 1090 Radio on the live web casts. Sunday afternoon the B-Main and Final heats will be conducted with coverage from ULHRA Video and KIRO TV, Channel 7 in Seattle.

John Lynch

P.R. Director and “Voice” of ULHRA Racing

“Old age and treachery”………..and the Unlimited Lights

It’s Seafair week in Seattle and that means the premiere event on the ULHRA calendar; the Graham Trucking Cup for Unlimited Lights. It’s a big weekend for all the teams and for so many because they live and work in the vicinity of Seattle. This is the race they grew up watching and now they get to compete.

For some in racing it’s all about the “Young Guns”. In ULHRA there’s no age discrimination. In fact, just like a fine wine, age can bring about a great result.

Heading the list of the “senior circuit” in Unlimited Lights is of course, the patriarch of Hopp Racing, “Grandpa Jerry” Hopp. Three years after twin knee replacement surgery, he has regained his zest for competing, not retirement. Owning and driving the favored UL-15 is another incentive. All in all, Jerry likes to compete and he remains very competitive in the Graham Trucking G.T. – Happy Go Lucky. In fact he’s the second winningest active driver in the Unlimited Lights series with 7 trophies. The only active driver ahead of him is the winningest driver of all in ULHRA, his son Greg Hopp with 19 trophies.

Wil Muncey greatly resembles his famous father, not only facially but in mannerisms and even driving style. He gets a lot out of a little, and this weekend he’ll again be behind the wheel of the “Little Boat that Could”. Muncey will tell you that it’s not the ideal ride for the Seattle course; that’s why they acquired their “Big Red Boat” which unfortunately won’t be running this weekend due to engine damage sustained at Montana. But no matter the ride, Muncey will give it a competitive drive. He and the UL-00 Trafficade Safety Sales presents Warning Power.com have a tendency to run very competitively in even trying racing conditions. Don’t be surprised to see this veteran race his way into the big 8 boat Final Heat for the Graham Trucking Cup.

Comeback? Kelly Stocklin will tell you he’s never been away. In fact, Stocklin has been part and parcel of ULHRA, Inc. since the organization was formed in 2001 and currently is a member of the Board of Directors. But, competitively as a race driver he has been away. As a longtime stockholder of Thunder Valley Racing, Stocklin was the driver of record as the team tried to sort out the UL-40 King & Bunny’s Appliances “back in the day”……..actually 2002 & 2003. In those days if it wasn’t for their bad luck the Thunder Valley guys would’ve had no luck at all. To top it off, Stocklin was forced out of the cockpit by a construction accident shortly after Seafair in 2003. In stepped Harold Mills and while the change in late 2003 proved to bring no better luck, better things were on the way. In 2004 and 2005 Mills and the Thunder Valley team stepped up the performance of the 1989 vintage hull. In 2006 young Brian Perkins took over, and earned the team’s only victory at Issaquah in his first race. In 2007 Cal Phipps from Detroit drove the 40 with Perkins subbing occasionally as he moved into a turbine seat. This year Perkins returned but is now also racing a turbine so last week at Tri Cities Kelly Stocklin returned to what used to be referred to as the “Fabulous 40”. Only this time, it’s a lot more “fabulous” than it was 5 years ago. Stocklin showed that a 5 year layoff didn’t diminish his skills. He deftly found his way around the course, and after qualifying at just over 106 mph, Stocklin drove into a seeded Final Heat berth with a second place and first place finish in the preliminary heats. The heat win was Stocklin’s first ever in ULHRA competition. Unfortunately engine difficulties stopped the King & Bunny’s just prior to the start of the Final, but majority owner and engine builder Chuck Dow said they’ll be ready for Seattle. So is Stocklin. After all these years he finally has an opportunity to show what he can do behind the wheel, after demonstrating all that he can do for ULHRA outside of the cockpit. That may be one reason why you’ll see him smiling all through Seafair weekend.

How about Mike Sadlon? In fact, how about the “No Excuses Racing Team” sponsored by Lake Trash Apparel and Laketrash.com? The Vero Beach, Florida owner-driver, a veteran of offshore racing has developed a competitive Unlimited Lights team (UL-89) from a lot of sweat, guile, and determination. Plenty of money? Hardly, yet he and wife Paula are making it work. They are traveling the ULHRA circuit together, and adding volunteer crew members at each race site. The team has accomplished a very difficult assignment. They qualified as one of only 14 UL teams for Seafair based on their performance so far in 2008. The UL-89 is one of the smaller hulls in the Unlimited Lights field yet Sadlon qualified at just a shade below 107 mph last weekend which was sixth fastest out of 16 teams. Sadlon won the B-Main to earn his place in the Final last week where he finished in 5^th place and also vaulted his team to 5^th place in the season points standings. What could be better? Well, ever the businessman, Sadlon says “how about buying a Lake Trash Apparel ULHRA T-Shirt this weekend, and log on to www.laketrash.com.”

Yes, “Young Guns” in racing is a big deal and we have them in ULHRA, but as Waylon Jennings used to sing, “Old Age and Treachery always overcomes youth and skill”. With Jerry Hopp, Wil Muncey, Kelly Stocklin Mike Sadlon, and others, there’s a lot of skill to go along with their age. That’s part of what we call Racing, ULHRA Style!

John Lynch

P.R. Director and “Voice” of ULHRA Racing

Hopp, Flaherty and Fletcher take Round 1 at Graham Trucking Thunder Cup

With a fifteen boat field the Unlimited Lights were divided among 3 heats in the Saturday section. Two of the heats were drammatic right to the end.

In Heat 1A, Jerry Hopp, Al Carstensen, and Wil Muncey crossed the line together with Kelly Stocklin just a roostertail length behind. At the end of lap 1, Muncey, driving the Trafficade Safety Sales UL-00, known for years as the Little Boat That Could, held the lead. Hopp was right behind with Stocklin close in 3rd. Carstensen's boat expired in the first turn but he was able to restart before the heat finished and completed lap #1. Because of time constraints he was given the black flag and credited with 4th place.

Lap 2 found "Grandpa Jerry" in the UL-15 Graham Trucking G.T. - Happy Go Lucky - Pump Tech of Moses Lake take the lead and Stocklin moved into second as the two powerful supercharged boats overcame the lighter Muncey hydroplane. Stocklin, driving the UL-40 King and Bunny's Appliances for the first time in 5 years started to reel in Hopp on the final lap. Hopp said his son Greg, on the radio kept saying "he's gaining, he's gaining" and Stocklin kept gaining till the final turn. The gap was just a few boat lengths in an exciting Heat 1A. Actually it was the restart of 1A which had to be aborted just prior to the start when the UL-3 TheSuperZone.com-Wired EnergyDrink-T Machine driven by rookie Chris Grant went dead in the water and drifted into lane one right at the start finish line.

Heat 1B was a tale of two starts. Mike Sadlon, Michael Flaherty and Bryan Richards were in good shape while Joe Souza and Terry Troxell were well off the timing.

Sadlon, from Vero Beach FL driving the Lake Trash.com UL-89 led Flaherty and Richards over the line. Flaherty took command by the time they reached the backstretch and drove to victory in the UL-11 Advanced Auto Glass - ROXY Radio 94.5 - Power Punch Oil Supplements. Sadlon took second while Richard's UL-4 Shoreline Sign and Awning did not finish. Troxell, driving the UL-8 Numerica Credit Union in place of Kip Brown who's driving a turbine this weekend, failed to maintain his lane through the first turn. The resulting 1 minute penalty dropped him to 4th place behind Joe Souza in the UL-39 Rouly Heat Exchangers presents NAPA Auto Parts.

Joe Souza said afterward that his start was accidentally affected by Al Carstensen in the UL-6. When Carstensen left the pits for the first attempt at Heat 1A, his boat sprayed a strong roostertail over the UL-39 awaiting Heat 1B. This knocked out his on board clock and radio connection was affected. The team will have repairs made for tomorrow's second heat section.

In Heat 1C, Paul Becker in the UL-14 Miss Critical Logic had a slight lead at the start over J. Craig Fletcher in the UL-13 Celtic Racing, and Kayleigh Perkins in the Miss Boat Electric. Ms Perkins ride suffered engine damage to their primary "bullet" last week and so far this weekend the UL-72 has appeared to be a bit down in horsepower. Fletcher assumed second place on the inside lane out of turn one as Perkins dropped back slightly and Becker maintained first place. Fletcher made a sizeable gain through turn one on lap two and made a strong run down the backstretch, catching Becker as they entered turn two. By the end of the third and final lap, Becker stretched the lead to about a roostetail length, as the momenutum from last week's first career victory seems to be propelling the Celtic Racing team.

The heat draw for Heats 2A, 2B and 2C will be at the Sunday morning driver's meeting along with the setup for the B-Main and Final Heats.

Live coverage continues on Sundayhere on www.ulhra.org with audio provided by 610 Information Radio KONA on Sunday morning. KNDO/KNDU Television's live telecast of ULHRA Racing on Sunday will be streamed here.

John Lynch

P.R. Director and "Voice" of ULHRA Racing

Hopp sets new course record.

Greg Hopp and the UL-15 Graham Trucking-Happy Go Lucky-Pump Tech of Moses Lake set the tempo and became the story of day one at the Graham Trucking Thunder Cup at Tri Cities WA.

Hopp, driving the family owned hull built by Jamie Auld 11 years ago, and the winningest boat in Unlimited Light History, laid down one of the fastest laps ever, and a course & hull record. The Auld boat which has 33 race wins curcled the 1 2/3's mile Columbia River course at 124.118 mph. Greg Hopp will be trying for his 19th UL race victory this weekend which leads all drivers in career wins. Three retired drivers hold the next 3 positions and 5th all time in UL wins is Greg's father Jerry Hopp with 7.

Last weekend's career victory #1 for J.Craig Fletcher and the UL-13 Celtic Racing Team has built momentum. The Celtic ranks second on the qualifying ladder with a career best 117 plus mph lap. In third is Kayleigh Perkins in the UL-72 Miss Boat Electric, down to one engine this weekend after a parts failure occured in the team's #1 powerplant last week. A 112 mph lap propelled Al Carstensen in the UL-6 Gresham Well Drilling-Jesfield Construction into 4th place in the team's 2008 debut. Fifth place on the ladder is Vince "X-Man" Xaudaro in the UL-929 Ice Harbor Brewing Co. which may or may not be a hull record but it certainly is a hull record in ULHRA history.

Xaudaro is followed by Mike Sadlon in the UL-89 Lake Trash.com at just under 107 mph followed closely by Kelly Stocklin in the UL-40 King & Bunny's Appliances and Jerry Hopp who qualified the UL-98 Miss Atomic Screen Printing at 105 plus while filling in for regular driver Charles Xaudaro who was working his day job today but will be racing this weekend. Yes, ULHRA drivers and crews have real jobs outside of racing. Chris Grant with the UL-3 TheSuperZone.com-Wired Energy 3000, T-Machine rounded out the qualifying ladder with a 67.341 mph effort. This brand new team is ironing out the kinks of a boat that they finished this year, but was started by others in the mid 90's. It's a work in progress.

Also among the 16 ULHRA teams is the G-17 Thunderboat from Shockwave Racing, the Schucks Auto Supply driven by Dustin Echols. He drove a practice time Saturday morning of beter than 119 mph but in qualifying was about 3 mph slower. While several teams experienced mechanical problems today, the one team that had to withdraw was the Smetco-Overtime of Oregon's Bob Smets. The veteran Pacific NW racer's engine ran into an oiling problem and it appears consierable damage was done. Smets has headed back to his Wilsonville shop but hopes to be ready for the Graham Trucking Cup at Seafair, next weekend.

At the end of the day, the Western States Insurance Unlimited Lights Challenge preseted by Woodshed Embroidery of Everett and Western Cascade Truck and Tank made for an exciting end of the day. Greg Hopp edged Michael Flaherty in the Advanced Auto Glass Roxy Radio 94.5 Power Punch Oil Supplements by about 3 feet. Bryan Reynolds in the UL-4 Shoreline Sign and Awning, making his 2008 ULHRA debut trailed closely in third showing markedly improved performance compared to the last time the team competed in a ULHRA events. Jerry Hopp was leading in the UL-98 Miss Atomic Screen Printing going into turn #2 but missed the entrance pin and ultimately drove through the roostertail of the UL-11. Hopp finished 4th.

The rest of the Unlimited Lights teams in the Neil F. Lampson pits include...............

UL-00 Trafficade Safety Sales, driven by Wil Muncey

UL- 8 Numerica Credit Union, driven by Terry Troxell

UL-14 Miss Critical Logic, driven by Paul Becker. This boat sustained some hull damage which the team was correcting well into the Kennewick night.

UL-39 Rouly Heat Exchangers presents NAPA Auto Parts

The unique Columbia River course has the Unlimited Lights sharing turn one with the turbine series but to make a surveyed 1 2.3's mile course, the start-finish line is the exit pin of turn two. With that in mind ULHRA teams start each heat by rounding turn two of the 2.5 mile course and make a mile long run that crosses the starting line all the way to turn #1.

Saturday there will be a final test session from 10:00am - 11:00am Pacific Daylight Time, or earlier if the turbine teams conclude testing before 10:00am. Heats 1A, 1B and 1C will be conducted in the 2pm hour. All ULHRA on-the-water activity will be shown live via ULRHA video on this web site pm Saturday with audio provided by 610 Information Radio KONA. On Sunday, ULHRA Heats and Final will be streamed from the live telecast by KNDO-KNDU TV. Check the home page for details.

John Lynch

P.R. Director and "Voice" of ULHRA Racing

Radio Waves Regatta on Flathead Lake
Courtesy of Gold Cup Video

Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge presented by River City Racin'
Courtesy of Gold Cup Video

G-329 on Display

The G-329 tem started the “Gauntlet” early with several display’s on the way to the Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge in Chamberlain-Oacoma, SD. The first stop was Polson Montana, we met up with the President of Anderson Broadcasting, Dennis Anderson, The boat was on display at Regatta Beach the race site for the Radio Waves Regatta. The people of Polson were very excited for the upcoming hydroplane race in there hometown. It seemed everywhere we stopped whether it was a gas station or for a bite to eat that’s all anyone talked about when they seen the G-329 pull in. The second stop was Brookings Liquor Store in Brookings, SD. The boat was on display there for our sponsor Schade Vineyard. Third Stop was Al’s Oasis in Oacoma, SD. Once again a display for our local sponsor from Volga, SD Schade Vineyard. All three displays brought a lot of excited people wondering about these high horsepower machines that fly on water. We handed out hundreds of Thunder & Lights magazines along with over 200 G-329 Hero cards. Thanks to all who attended these displays all along our travels from west to east and east to west!!

Mike Langford (Crew Chief G-329)

UL-8's Kip Brown booted out...by father in law!

Booted from the ride of the UL-8 Numerica Credit Union, that is. Well, actually, temporary replacement is more accurate; just not as much fun to read.

Kip Brown, nephew of turbine U-17 owner Nate Brown will be driving for his uncle at Tri Cities and Seattle over the next two weekends so his father in law will return to Racing, ULHRA Style. His father in law is none other than Terry Troxell who won the Columbia Cup in the U-99 back in 2001 and has previously driven in the Unlimited Lights class with a career best 2^nd place finish at Issaquah WA in 2000. Troxell tested the boat earlier this season and impressed owners Bob & Kathleen Baker.

Kip Brown is married to Terry Troxell’s daughter Tiffany. He will return to the UL-8 cockpit for the final race of the 5 races in 5 weeks dubbed “The Gauntlet”, at Silverdale WA, August 8^th & 9^th and also for the season finale, Strait Thunder at Port Angeles WA, October 4^th & 5^th.

The UL-8 Numerica Credit Union currently ranks fourth in the Unlimited Lights season points race.

John Lynch

P.R. Director and “Voice” of ULHRA Racing

UL8 Sponsorship Statement

Spokane Valley, Wash. - Numerica Credit Union appreciates the opportunity to sponsor the UL-8 hydroplane participant. The sponsorship allows Numerica to be a part of a traditional family event, the Water Follies, in Tri-Cities, Wash., where Numerica currently has two branches in Kennewick and Pasco.

“Numerica strongly believes in giving back to the communities that helped make us successful. Supporting the Water Follies, an event that promotes economic growth and community pride, is a great way to do just that,” said Dennis Cutter, president and CEO of Numerica.

Numerica Credit Union currently has over 70,000 members throughout Central and Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho and over $750 million in assets. It offers a full line of financial products and services, including mortgages and business products. Membership is open to anyone who lives or works in the State of Washington or the Idaho Panhandle.

Points lead change at the top. (07-23-08)

Greg and Jerry Hopp and their UL-15 Graham Trucking G.T. – Happy Go Lucky, presented by Pump Tech of Moses Lake has moved into first place in the Unlimited Light Hydroplane 2008 points standings. The Hopp team, by their 2^nd place finish and 1100 point performance at Polson MT last weekend (July 19 & 20) moved ahead of defending series champion Kayleigh Perkins and the UL-72 Miss Boat Electric, who finished 4^th at Montana. The Hopp lead is slim, 81 points, and with 400 points for each heat victory is a very precarious lead. The Boat Electric team ran into their first mechanical failure of the season which resulted in a 3^rd place preliminary heat finish after winning their first heat, and 4^th place in the Final.

Paul Becker remains solidly in third place in the UL-14 Miss Critical Logic, 850 points behind Hopp. These are the 3 teams that will contest for the championship through season’s end at Port Angeles WA, October 4^th & 5^th.

There’s another point race taking place and it concludes this weekend at the Graham Trucking Thunder Cup at Tri Cities WA. (July 25, 26 & 27). It’s the race to qualify as one of 14 teams that will race next week (Aug, 1, 2 & 3) in the Graham Trucking Cup at Seafair in Seattle. Due to pit area limitations only 14 ULHRA teams are being accepted by Seafair and teams have been qualifying for the Graham Trucking Cup throughout the 2008 season.

The race at Tri Cities will feature the largest field of Unlimited Lights teams this season. Up to 16 teams are expected and they include………….

UL-13 Celtic Racing driven by J. Craig Fletcher who drove to his first ULHRA career victory last Sunday (July 20^th) at Polson, MT

UL-00 Trafficade Safety Sales presents Warning Power.com driven by Wil Muncey

UL-11 ROXY Radio 94.5 presents Power Punch Oil Supplements driven by Michael Flaherty who won at Tri Cities in 2005.

UL- 8 Baker Equipment Co driven by Kip Brown.

UL-20 Smetco-Overtime driven by Bob Smets

UL-39 Army Strong presented by NAPA and Rouly Heat Exchangers driven by Joe Souza

UL-40 King & Bunny’s Appliances, driven so far this season by Brian Perkins but at Tri Cities with Perkins driving the U-50, Kelly Stocklin drive the UL-40.

UL-89 Lake Trash.com and Lake Trash Apparel present No Excuses Racing driven by Mike Sadlon

UL-929 Ice Harbor Brewing presented by Wheat Montana Bakery & Deli driven by Vince Xaudaro.

UL- 3 TheSuperZone.com & Wired Energy Drink presents T Machine driven by Chris Grant

Other teams making their ULHRA debut this weekend include the UL-4 Shoreline Sign & Awning driven by Bryan Richards, the UL-6 BCS Enterprises team of Kerry Beynon & Al Carstensen and the Kennewick WA owned UL-98 Miss Atomic Screen Printing driven by Charles Xaudaro.

John Lynch

P.R. Director and “Voice” of ULHRA Racing.

Celtic Racing takes their first victory at Radio Waves Regatta (07-23-08)

G 17 Takes the win at Radio Waves Regatta (07-23-08)

Lighter than LIGHTS at Radio Waves Regatta (07-22-08)

Lucky 13? No way; they earrrrnnned it! (07-21-08)

Chalk up another first time winner in Unlimited Lights Competition. The UL-13 Celtic Racing Team owned & driven by J. Craig Fletcher dominated the Final Heat at Polson MT to win the Anderson Broadcasting “Radio Waves Regatta”. Fletcher’s win comes in his third season of Unlimited Lights Racing and only his third race with the boat he acquired from Bob & Janet Estes last winter. The original Ron Jones Sr. concept for an Unlimited Light hull was built in 1997 and is the third winningest hull in UL history. Last September Mark Echols drove this same hull to victory at Port Angeles WA.

Fletcher reached the Final on Flathead Lake by winning the B-Main on Sunday afternoon. That put him in a front row starting slot and he could battle Paul Becker in the UL-14 Miss Critical Logic for the inside lane. Challenging for lanes 3 & 4 would be Greg Hopp in the Ratcliff, Barce & Associates present Graham Trucking G.T. – Happy Go Lucky and Brian Perkins in the UL-40 King & Bunny’s Appliances…….both supercharged engine hydroplanes.

Ultimately Fletcher succeeded in winning lane one from Becker, and he also won the start with near perfecting timing. The Mercer Island WA owner-driver held the lead through turn 1 & down the back stretch, establishing a greater one roosterail length lead over Paul Becker and Greg Hopp. Fletcher led wire–to-wire for a popular win that resulted in the ceremonial first victory dunking, and a standing ovation from his ULHRA competitors at the awards ceremony. The Celtic Racing Team was also awarded the Mechanix Gloves “Grace Under Pressure” Awards. Fletcher has secured one of 14 slots at the Graham Trucking Cup at Seafair in Seattle, August 1, 2 & 3. Before that the Unlimited Lights will square off in the 3^rd installment of the 5 races in 5 weeks stretch dubbed “The Gauntlet”. Two more positions at Seafair will be decided on July 25, 26 & 27 at the Graham Trucking Thunder Cup at Tri Cities WA.

The Hopp Racing Team discovered after the Final Heat at Polson that one spark plug wire had shaken Ioose and Greg Hopp didn’t have full power. Still, the inspired Fletcher would have been a very difficult entry to overcome in the Montana Final. Becker wound up third with Kayleigh Perkins in the Miss Boat Electric finishing 4^th after qualifying through the B-Main in third place. Along with Kip Brown in the UL-8 Baker Equipment Co, Perkins started 5 seconds back as Trailer boats on a 1 25 mile course deemed capable of handling 4 wide competition, but no more.

Brian Perkins’ ride from the Thunder Valley Racing Team went dead in the water in the first corner on the third lap, while Kip Brown’s UL-8 started strong but faded, yet was in a position to challenge Kayleigh Perkins for 4^thplace in the Final Turn when his boat also went dead in the water.

The Polson event marked the second straight brand new race on the ULHRA calendar, following one week after the debut of the Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge at Chamberlain-Oacoma SD, won by Kayleigh Perkins. Both races were quite successful on their first installment and both races are on multiple year contracts with ULHRA so they will return on the same July weekends in 2009.

With their second place finish, Hopp Racing vaulted into first place in the Unlimited Light Hydroplane National Points race over defending champion Impact Racing and Kayleigh Perkins, Hopp now leads with 5,225 points compared to Perkins total of 5,144.

Three Thunderboats competed at Polson, led by Dustin Echols in the G-17 Schucks Auto Supply. He won all 4 heats, besting R.W. Dick Lynch in the G-13 Jet Chevrolet.com Tempo and David Warren in the G-329 My Town Motors presents Miss Schade Vineyards. On lap 3 of the 4 lap final, Warren pulled even with Echols briefly before falling back a couple roostertail lengths at the finish. As it turned out, Warren was disqualified for a course infraction when he crossed the course from the front straightaway to the back during the warm-up period. Warren was awarded third place in the Final. Echols now leads Lynch in the high points standings, 4,000 to 3050 with Warren in third at 2,400.

John Lynch

P.R. Director and "Voice" of ULHRA Racing.

From the Lighter Side…(Part 2) (07-21-08)
By Bud McKay

It’s ‘Perkins Glass’ and ‘Baker Equipment’ on LTLs’ winners circle

POLSON, Mont. -- The Perkins Glass 4-cyl Lighter-Than-LIGHTS hydroplane capped off a perfect weekend taking the final heat to win the Anderson Broadcasting “Radio Waves” Regatta Sunday. The “Radio Waves” Regatta is the first race on Montana’s Flathead Lake in more than 25 years, and only the second race outside of the state of Washington for the LTLs in the history of the Unlimited Lights Hydroplane Racing Association.

Yesterday, it was rookie Bianca Bononcini in the cockpit for the Perkins hull. Today she handed off to teammate Joseph Perkins, another rookie. The “Radio Waves” Regatta is the second LTL win for Perkins, cousin to Brian and Kayleigh Perkins.

Kevin Eacret, in the “Baker Equipment” hull took the 8-cylinder LTL title in the final, who like Perkins, also capped off a perfect weekend seeing nothing but checkered flags. And like Perkins, this was Eacret’s second LTL career win.

The Lighter-Than-LIGHTS is an affordable, entry-level style of inboard hydroplane racing under the Unlimited Lights Hydroplane Racing Association. Fourteen LTL drivers have graduated to drive the larger UL boats over the last five years.

The LTLs in the final heat at Polson saw the best racing conditions of the weekend. The 4-cylinders and 8-cylinders combined and ran together for the final heat. The 8-cylinders had to start 10 seconds behind the 4-cylinder boats and stay to the outside of them at all times on the course. Although the boats were on the course at the same time, there were two separate races going on at the same time.

Austin Eacret in “The Trainer” nailed the start to lead the 4-cylinder field to the first turn. As they came around for the end of the first lap, Perkins caught Eacret and passed him going into the very rough first turn.

“I was late at the start, and Austin had to be right on the start, from where I could see,” said Perkins, 28, from Renton, Wash. “But our boat was running awesome. I put as much air as I could under her without airing her out too much. I didn’t feel out of shape. I just try to learn more and more each race.”

Saturday, 18-year-old Austin Eacret was beached for the two preliminary heats because he had to rebuild his starter. He worked through the night, and that hard work paid off for him as he was solid for Sunday’s racing.

“(The boat) was running fabulous in the final – it was as fast as she’s ever gone,” he said. “We put a new, bigger prop on for the final, and that really made a difference.”

If it wasn’t for bad luck this season for Mukilteo’s “Lil Miss Boat Electric,” that team wouldn’t have any luck at all, so the saying goes. But owner Barry Eacret and driver Philip Eacret did just what they could to get the boat in the show for both heats Sunday.

“We’re just not getting the RPMs we should be,” Philip Eacret said. “We have it narrowed down to the carburetor and the points. We’re just going to quit rebuilding things and buy new ones. But we did all that we could to get the boat running and out there so we’re part of the show. Seeing all of the fans on the beach was crazy – that made the whole thing worthwhile.”

The fans along the beach wasn’t the only thing in Eacret’s vision. In the start of the final heat, all he saw in his mirrors were the 8-cylinders coming right at him.

“Oh yeah, I could see them coming,” he said. “I could see them all together, too. I just kept a straight line and held on.”

Big brother Kevin Eacret’s “Baker Equipment” was in the middle of the 8-cylinder boats, Steve Clark, of Belfair, Wash., had the inside in the refurbished “Power Punch Thunderstruck” hull. And right next to Kevin Eacret was Mike Jarvis, driving the other Belfair, Wash., hull, “The GEICO of Lakewood Presents the Namron Racing Team” hydroplane. All three hydroplanes were just inches apart at as they flew past the start barreling to the first turn.

“It was an excellent start,” said Kevin Eacret. “I had my timing marks right this time. That was fun."

Jarvis, on the outside of the field, held the flying Gecko hull to a boat-length lead over the “Power Punch” hull. But just couldn't catch Kevin Eacret.

“I’m glad they widened the course from yesterday,” said Jarvis, who was driving the two-time defending high points champion GEICO of Lakewood hull. “With all of those boats out there at one time, it really makes the course that much tighter. That first turn was still like an ocean, but compared to yesterday, it was a much calmer ocean.”

While he was a “happy puppy” yesterday feeling his boat run for just a few laps for the first time since an accident sidelined him for a year, Clark was a mad bulldog when the same problem bit him in the third heat – a loose battery cable. With the welding help from UL driver Mike Sadlon, driver of the “Lake Trash Apparel presents No Excuses Racing,” Clark was not going to be able to use the excuse the battery cable coming off for the final.

“We got the cable on – the only way that baby was coming off is if something really bad happened,” Clark said. “But we just didn’t have time to get the battery charger on the battery, and I really lost a lot of power as the race went on because the battery wasn’t fully charged. But I am still very happy. We got a lot of the bugs worked out, but I’ll be racing for the rest of the season – and that makes me really, really happy.”

Fans on the beach got to see both Perkins and Kevin Eacret battle it out for the checkered flag. Though not racing against each other, sort of, neither wanted to “lose.”

“I had to hip-check (Kevin) around the final turn to try and hold him off,” Perkins said. “I tried. I really tried.”But Kevin Eacret squeezed the “Baker Equipment” hull just in front of the “Perkins Glass” boat by a few panes.

“That was fun catching up to him,” Kevin Eacret said. “I had to work at it – that is one fast little boat. But it’s always more fun to watch a deck-to-deck race.”

Next up for the Lighter-Than-LIGHTS series is the Silverdale Thunder Cup in Silverdale, Wash., Aug. 9-10. The Unlimited Lights head to Tri-Cities, Wash., next weekend for the “Thunder Cup.”

From the Lighter Side…(Part 1) (07-20-08)
By Bud McKay

Lighter-Than-LIGHTS fly in ‘Big Sky’ country

Twenty-one-year-old Bianca Bononcini has spent the first few races in her rookie season taking things easy, learning how to race a hydroplane in the Unlimited Lights Hydroplane Racing Association’s 4-cylinder Lighter-Than-LIGHTS series. Now, a fully qualified driver, the gloves have come off for the “Perkins Glass” pilot, and she’s recorded two first-place finishes Saturday at the “RADIO WAVES Regatta” in Polson, Mont.

“I’m doing work and taking names,” said Bononcini with a laugh. “The boat is absolutely amazing. I’m so lucky to have just a perfect piece of equipment to drive.”

And she has the equivalent of the “Dream Team,” in hydroplane racing helping her – owner Kevin Perkins and his children -- Brian and Kayleigh Perkins, who both won heats in the larger unlimited lights today. And on the radios, veteran hydroplane driver Phil Bononcini; Bianca’s dad.

“Who couldn’t do good with all of those people helping me,” she said.

On the 8-cylinder side, while both Kevin Eacret in the “Baker Equipment” hull and Mike Jarvis driving the “GEICO of Lakewood Presents the Namron Racing Team” hull traded first-place finishes in the two prelims Saturday, the big news came from Steve Clark in the “Power Punch Thunder Struck” team.

This marks the first race for the Belfair, Wash., skipper since repairing his boat after a horrific crash in July 2007. Even though he missed the first heat, he got on the water for the second heat. While he went dead before the start of the race, if you didn’t know better you’d think he just won the Gold Cup.

“My tail is wagging – I’m one happy puppy,” he said after being towed in after running two warmup laps. “The battery cable fell off. But before that, the boat was running great. And I mean great!”

Clark spent the last two weeks working practically non-stop on the boat to get it ready after it came out of Ron Jones Jrs’ shop to put on a new right-side sponson.

“I wanted to be in this race so bad,” Clark said about the regatta. “Just seeing the shoreline packed of fans, and even getting to run just the little that I did today…man that was so worth it.”

Eacret won the first heat easily. It’s his first ULHRA event as well since he won the Silverdale race in 2007. He blew the boat over a few weeks later and just recently got the boat back on the water.

“Today I was playing with the boat a little more, trying to get it back up to where it was before the blowover,” Eacret said, who is also the backup driver for the UL-8 “Baker Equipment Company” unlimited light. “I’m starting to get the ride in the boat back. I’m pretty happy with the boat right now.”

The Lighter-Than-LIGHTS is an affordable, entry-level style of inboard hydroplane racing. Many of the ULHRA drivers have graduated from the LTLs to racing the big boats of the ULHRA. But even the “little guys” feel like the “big guys” at the “RADIO WAVES Regatta.”

“I think all of Montana is at the race,” said Jarvis, who is driving the two-time defending “GEICO of Lakewood Presents the Namron Racing Team” 8-cylinder boat for driver Bud McKay who is working at the McChord Air Force Base Air Expo in Washington state this weekend. “I’m going to be in the pits all night just putting the kids in the cockpit. This is great. This is my first ULHRA event as a driver. I ran out of the Gecko tattoos to hand out to the kids.”

Bononcini was a crowd favorite in the pit area as well. Long lines of fans surrounded her asking for autographs.

“Running on the course with the beach packed like it was today really pumps you up,” she said.

Eacret compared the crowd at Flathead Lake to the crowds of Seattle’s unlimited race.

“Man, there are people all over the race track” he said. “This is like Seafair to us, only we’re in Montana.”Racing in Montana continues Sunday at the “RADIO WAVES Regatta.”

Qualifying starts at 9:15am Mountain Time

In typical ULHRA fashion, the first ever Anderson Broadcasting "Radio Waves" Regatta will have an early start. Following the required driver physicals and driver's meeting ULHRA officials will launch qualifying at 9:15am Mountain time at Regatta Beach at Flathead Lake, Polson MT.

As of late Friday night most of the expected Unlimited Light and Thunderboat teams were in the pits with some of the Lighter than LIGHTS contingent expected early Saturday morning.

One team, the Grant Racing "T-Machine" UL-3 has arrived to compete in their first ever UL race. Driver Chris Grant intended to make his and his team's debut at Richland WA two months ago however structural damage to the hull occurred in their first test run. Subsequently the team entered a non ULHRA event and showed good progress and now they hope to build on that beginning here in Polson. This technically is a new hull having never been previously raced. It was actually constructed about 80% by Terry Troxell in the mid 90's from a Ron Jones Sr. tandem wing design. The Grant team acquired the unfinished hull a year ago and they are ready for their ULHRA debut.

Brian Perkins and the UL-40 King & Bunny's and Kip Brown in the UL-8 Baker Equipment Team have arrived and increased the UL "fleet" to 11 teams, with Charles Xaudaro and the UL-98 Miss Atomic Screen Printing expected in time for qualifying where 10% points are awarded to the top 8 teams. As an example, a heat victory is worth 400 points and the number 1 qualifying speed earns that team 40 points. Three years ago qualifying points played a role in the national championship as Greg Hopp outscored Michael Flaherty by 120 qualifying points over the course of the season and won the championship by 83 points.

Vince Xaudaro returns behind the wheel of the UL-929 Wheat Montana Bakery & Deli after taking last week off for the birth of his second son; Enzo Andreas Xaudaro. David Warren, owner-driver of the Thunderboat G-329 My Town Motors filled in for Xaudaro and the team scored their first points of the season and finished the Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge at Chamberlain-Oacoma SD in 5th place. The team is expecting improved performance this weekend.

Another team counting on improved performance is the UL-00 Trafficade Safety Sales presents Warning Power.com driven by Wil Muncey. The team which wound up 7th last weekend in South Dakota with the Lil Red Boat will now be racing their Big Red Boat. The concept of Muncey Racing has been to bring two boats to a race course and determine in qualifying which hull is better suited to a race course. The Big Red Boat; about 4 feet longer and nearly 2 feet wider than the Lil Red Boat is a work in progress. Idle for 5 years in a Mexico warehouse after being purchased from former UL team owner Bob Larimore, this Steve Balcer built hull is being brought back to racing shape on a step by step basis by the Muncey team. This weekend the choice of hull has been made, or maybe more accurately put, chosen for the team. The Lil Red Boat sustained some engine damage in South Dakota and has been returned to the team's Monroe WA shop for repairs. So f ar the Big Red Boat has been a puzzle but the Munceys believe they've finally isolated and corrected the problems that have kept the boat from even getting on a plane the last few attempts.

Paul Becker in the UL-14 Miss Critical Logic remains in third place in the standings following the South Dakota event, 900 points behind Kayleigh Perkins in the UL-72 Miss Boat Electric and Greg & Jerry Hopp in the UL-15 Radcliff, Barce & Associates present Graham Trucking G.T. - Happy Go Lucky. Ms. Perkins picked up her third career victory in Unlimited Lights at South Dakota when she edged Greg Hopp for the Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge and now the UL-72 leads the UL-15 by 225 points. That's exactly the number of points awarded for a third place heat finish. (First, 400, Second 300, Third, 225, Fourth 169,. Fifth 127, Sixth 95)

Live coverage of the "Radio Waves Regatta" begins Saturday morning on this website. Check the home page for details.

John Lynch

P.R. Director and "Voice" of ULHRA Racing.

UL 929 Xaudaro/Wilmot Racing Announce a New Sponsor

UL-929 Xaudaro/Wilmot Racing is proud to announce Montana Wheat Farms Bakery and Deli

as sponsor for the 2008 Radio Waves Regatta in Polson, Montana.

With locations in Montana, Idaho and Washington, Montana Wheat Deli offers Wheat Montana breads,

flours, and grains for purchase. Locations are open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner serving delicious rolls,

sweet baked goods, as well as, sandwiches, soups and salads. The Wheat Montana Delis carry

a wide variety of t-shirts, hats, aprons, and many Montana Made products. For location and product

information, please visit montanawheat.com .

On behalf of the Xaudaro/Wilmot Racing we would like to thank Montana Wheat Farms for their participation

with our race team in the 2008 ULHRA Race Series.

Vincent Xaudaro

UL-929 Xaudaro/Wilmot Racing

MARKETING PREVIEWS THE GAUNTLET, PART II

In about 14 hours, the driving time between Chamberlain and Polson, we make the transition from the plains to Big Sky Country. The buzz for a hundred miles around Polson, Montana is “The Thunder’s Back!” Dennis Anderson, President, of Anderson Broadcasting owns a group of four popular radio stations, serving the Flathead Lake region; KERR AM Polson, KQRK FM Ronan/Kalispell, KIBG FM Bigfork/Kalispell, and KKMT FM Pablo/Kalispell, with more under construction this year. Dennis’s father, Andy Anderson promoted the races at this very same site back in the 70's and 80's. Although this event was added to the ULHRA race schedule just recently, Anderson and his wife, Nila, have not let any grass grown under their feet.

A couple of months ago, UL-13 Owner J. Craig Fletcher took his display boat back for a trade show in the area at the request of Anderson. When Anderson learned we were coming thru with the UL-00 he had a large sign made up saying “The Thunder’s Back!” and sent us on a whirl-wind display tour with the station’s photographer. First Stop: S & S Sports about half way between I-90 and Flathead Lake. S&S is right on the highway and carries an impressive array of must-have toys. (The Corvette in the picture was actually not for sale.)

Visits to two different Les Schwab locations were also met with introductions to the employees and photos with the race boat and the “Thunders Back” sign.

Les Schwab is well known for their support of community events and Radio Waves Regatta is definitely community backed. It’s been decades since there have been hydroplanes racing on Flathead Lake and the excitement surrounding their return is everywhere.

A quick stop at Community Bank, another event sponsor and then over to the Best Western KwaTaqNuk Resort in Polson. The resort is right on the edge of the Flathead Lake, the largest natural freshwater lake in the Western United States and its pristine waters are among the cleanest anywhere in the world. I am told KwaTaqNuk is Indian for “Where the Water Leaves the Lake” (or slight variations thereof, depending on who you ask) as this is where the lake meets the Flathead River. The lake itself is 27 miles long by 15 miles wide. The Resort is owned and operated by the Flathead Indian Reservation, home to the Bitterroot Salish, Kootenai and Pend d’Oreilles Tribes. The 112 room resort features a 24 hour casino, lake cruise, marina and boat rentals. However the weekend of July 19-20, the Polson side of Flathead Lake will be filled with Unlimited Lights, G Boats and Lighter-than-LIGHTS hydroplanes. And my goodness, the area residents are excited about that fact. Traveling along I-90 through Montana, everyone who saw the hydroplane said, “You must be going to the boat races on Flathead Lake”. Presenting Sponsor, Anderson Broadcasting, has done an excellent job of spreading the word that “The Thunders Back!” via radio, television and print advertising.

The boat races will coincide with the Main Street and Cherry Festival downtown Polson. Trolley cars will run back and forth between the racing pits at Regatta Beach and downtown for those who want to experience it all. Admission to Radio Waves Regatta is only $5.

Debi Muncey

Muncey Marketing

Nothing “flat” about racing on “Flathead”

Flathead Lake, that is. There’s a rich history of racing in Montana, but that history was interrupted over 2 decades ago. Thanks to Dennis Anderson and his Anderson Radio Broadcasting Company based in nearby Polson MT, racing returns to Flathead Lake this weekend. And it’s not just any racing; it’s Racing, ULHRA Style!

2008 Unlimited Light Hydroplane points leader and the winner last weekend at Chamberlain-Oacoma SD, Kayleigh Perkins and the UL-72 Miss Boat Electric heads the field at the first “Radio Waves Regatta” with racing on Saturday and Sunday (July 19 & 20). It’s the second installment of the 5 races in 5 weeks known as The Gauntlet.

Going into the first race ULHRA has conducted in Montana, 13 teams have competed and scored points so far this year and at least two other teams will make their season debut this weekend. Points are very important as only fourteen teams total can be accommodated in the Seattle pit area for the big Graham Trucking Cup at Seafair; the premier event on the Unlimited Lights’ calendar, and points through the race this weekend in Montana, and the following weekend in Tri Cities WA will determine the Seattle Unlimited Lights field.

Ms. Perkins leads with 4,350 points after winning last Sunday in ULHRA’s first ever race in South Dakota. She edged Greg Hopp in the UL-15 Swenson Brothers’ Marine presents Graham Trucking G.T.- Happy Go Lucky by 3 boat lengths in a wire to wire victory. That increased her points lead to 225 points, which is the exact number of points awarded for a third place finish in a racing heat. 900 points behind Perkins in third place is Paul Becker, who also finished third at South Dakota in the UL-14 Anchors Grill presents Miss Critical Logic. 4^th place in the standings is held by Wil Muncey in the UL-00 Trafficade Safety Sales presents Warning Power.com. These 4 teams, along with the UL-89 Lake Trash Apparel driven by Mike Sadlon, and the UL-39 Rouly Heat Exchangers driven by “Smokin” Joe Souza are assured by points to be in the Seattle race. This weekend’s race in Polson will go a long way to determining the other eight Seattle race entrants. A field of 12 Unlimited Lights is expected including the UL-8 of Baker Equipment Racing driven by Kip Brown, and the UL-40 King & Bunny’s Appliances driven in testing by Kelly Stocklin who returns behind the wheel of the UL-40 for the first time since the Seattle race in 2003. Following that Seattle race Stocklin was injured in a construction accident and was replaced by Harold Mills through 2005, then Brian Perkins in 2006 and Cal Phipps in 2007. All the while Stocklin has remained a minority owner in the UL-40 team. Brian Perkins is scheduled to drive the King & Bunny’s hydroplane here in Polson and also drove two months ago at Richland WA where he qualified for the Final Heat. Kelly Stocklin will be behind the wheel during testing then turning the racing over to Brian Perkins. Perkins U-team has committed to a full season effort and he will withdraw from the UL-40 after Polson, hence the return of Kelly Stocklin.

Two other teams; the UL-4 Shoreline Sign & Awning driven by Bryan Richards of Shoreline WA and the UL-98 Miss Atomic Screen Printing of Kennewick WA driven by Charles Xaudaro are entered at Polson and have not scored UL points this season. When they do the 14 boat field will be established, and then “bumping” will begin; continuing through the Graham Trucking Thunder Cup at Tri Cities, July 25, 26 & 27 until the final roster of 14 boats for Seattle is set.

Several members of the ULHRA contingent have raced at Flathead Lake in the past. There’s even an Unlimited hydroplane history where in 1955, bandleader Guy Lombardo’s G-13 Tempo VII was the winner at Polson. Today, R.W. Dick Lynch drives the G-13 Jet Chevrolet.com Tempo in ULHRA’s Thunderboat series for co-owners Joe Frauenheim and Phil Bononcini, who restored and own Lombardo’s Gold Cup winning Tempo VI hydroplane. The G-13 was able to complete only one heat of racing at Chamberlain-Oacoma and has dropped to second place in the standings, behind G-17 Schucks Auto Supply presents Shockwave Racing driven by Dustin Echols. David Warren’s G-329 My Town Motors presents the Miss Schade Vineyard and Winery of Volga SD holds down 3^rd place and from first to third the gap is only 600 points. One heat victory is worth 400 points, followed by 300 points for second, 225 for third, 169 for fourth, 127 for fifth and 95 points for 6^th. The Thunderboats or “G-Class” are larger than Unlimited Lights (up to 28 feet in length compared to the UL maximum of 26 feet) and with all supercharged engines generating up to 1600 horsepower and up to 575 cubic inches of engine displacement.

The “Radio Waves Regatta” will also include ULHRA’s “Lighter than LIGHTS” series for 4 cylinder and 8 cylinder stock hydroplanes. Joseph Perkins in the Y-28 Perkins Glass, and two time defending LTL champion Bud McKay in the E-10 GEICO of Lakewood presents NAMRON Racing lead the 4 cylinder and 8 cylinder contingents into the race at Polson.

John Lynch

P.R. Director

Wolfe "thunders" to victory in South Dakota (07-14-08)

Illinois' Marty Wolfe, driving the G-93 Trafficade Safety Sales "Renegade" capitalized on a terrific start and won wire to wire in the Thunderboat Final at Chamberlain-Oacoma SD. Wolfe had finished second to Dustin Echols in the G-17 Schucks Auto Supply presents Shockwave Racing in the first 3 heats over the course of the weekend but in the Final, Wolfe made it to the top of the podium.

Echols showed to be the fastest of the Thunderboats; in fact the quickest boat of the weekend with competition laps in the "1-teens" and a heat average speed of 113.108 in Heat #2. However the savvy Wolfe took advantage of winning the start and maintained the lead throughout. Echols' boat contacted with the roostertail of Wolfe's hydroplane but officials ruled there was no call to be made. Echols wound up second, ahead of R.W. Dick Lynch in the G-13 Jet Chevrolet.com. For Lynch it was a relief just to race as in the first three heats of the weekend he was forced to return to the pits with mechanical woes prior to the start. David Warren in the G-329 My Town Motors presents Miss Schade Vinyards and Winery of Volga SD had to withdraw from the Final. He had taken 3rd place in the first two preliminary heats but in the third the G-329 suffered a broken propeller. Fortunately the damage wasn't huge and Warren believes he and his c rew will be ready for the next Thunderboat race at Polson MT this coming weekend, July 19 & 20.

As a result of the weekend's competition, Echols has moved ahead of Lynch in the North American Challenge Cup Series points race with 2,400 ahead of Lynch's 2,000. Warren is third with 1800. Marty Wolfe did not receive national points at Chamberlain-Oacoma nor at Phoenix as his boat doesn't have tails (vertical stabilizers) which are required by rule for NACCS points.

John Lynch

P.R. Director and "Voice" of ULHRA Racing

Perkins tops field at Pepsi Power Cup (07-14-08)

Borrowing from the NBA playbook, Kayleigh Perkins used the old "pick n roll" to hold off Greg Hopp and win the first ever Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge. The Chamberlain-Oacoma, South Dakota event was a tremendous success as fans flocked from several states to the first race ever held on the Missouri River in South Dakota. It will not be the last. Even the U.S. Coast Guard was there, and to the knowledge of the locals the Coast Guard had never been that far north on the Missouri River, previously.

In the Final Heat, Paul Becker in the UL-14 Anchors Grill Miss Critical Logic took lane one with J. Craig Fletcher in the UL-13 Celtic Racing entry in lane 2. Both were just a shade early to the line. Defending Series Champion Kayleigh Perkins in the UL-72 Miss Boat Electric held back just a bit and made a flying start in lane 4, and timed the effort excellently to lead over the line. She was just outside of Mike Sadlon in the UL-89 Lake Trash.com. David Warren, subbing for regular driver Vince Xaudaro in the UL-929 Schade Vineyards of Volga SD presents Welding Direct.com was a bit off the pace in lane 5 while Greg Hopp was charging in lane 6 in the Swensen Brothers Marine-Graham Trucking G.T. Happy Go Lucky. Hopp, as the only hydroplane in the Final with a supercharged engine was required by rule to start in lane 6 and maintain lane 6 for the first lap of the 4 lap, 5 mile Final Heat.

Off the exit pin of turn one, Ms. Perkins held the lead with Hopp about a roostertail length back. Hopp was being challenged by......Mike Sadlon! The Floridian was having his most competitive ULHRA weekend ever and was strongly in third place until issues developed with the UL-89 forcing him to end his heat before the checkered flag.....but not before he was unintentionally part of the climax.

In Kayleigh Perkins only previous race victory Greg Hopp's boat broke a propeller and did not finish. That would not be the case this time. Hopp steadily began to "reel in" Perkins' UL-72 a boat length or two per lap. At the white flag they were less than 3 boat lengths apart with the crowd on their feet screaming! But Perkins was up to the task. A fabulous effort at Turn One solidified her lead down the backstretch, and as they approached lapped traffic the question was which driver would benefit. Both passed David Warren without issue on the backstretch but at the exit pit of turn two heading for the checkered flag, Ms. Perkins ducked inside of Mike Sadlon's slowing UL-89, in effect using Sadlon as a "pick" which forced Hopp to go outside of Sadlon and she "rolled" to the checkered flag in the Miss Boat Electric.

Paul Becker took third followed by J.Craig Fletcher and David Warren wound up 5th. It was the first finish all year for the Celtic Racing owner-driver as Fletcher's first outing of the year at Richland WA two months ago found his boat dead in the water in the first heat with the UL-929 hull draped across it on the Columbia River. Neither driver was seriously hurt and both boats were repaired for Chamberlain-Oacoma. Fletcher pointed to his boat at the awards ceremony saying the "no parking stickers" he applied must have helped.

It was the first trophy for the new Xaudaro-Wilmot UL-929 team, which merged the talents and running gear of Vince Xaudaro's race team with the hull owned by Jim & Karon Wilmot....the former UL-21 of Thunder Valley Racing that was the first boat to compete in Unlimited Lights with a supercharged engine.

Fletcher and Warren were both surprise entrants in the Final, advancing from the B-Main after tinishing 3rd & 4th respectively. Elizabeth Wolfe in the UL-93 Trafficade Safety Sales "Desperado" defeated Wil Muncey in the UL-00 Trafficade presents Warning Power.com. However, Ms Wolfe was penalized for jumping the gun, and Muncey was penalized for a lane infraction in turn one. The resultant one minute penalties dropped the two racers to the bottom of the B-Main finishing order.

For a first time event, the Tom Davis led "River City Racin" committee looked to be savvy veterans. After a phenomenal beginning, look for the Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge to become another major South Dakota landmark in the future. Mark down the weekend of July 11 & 12, 2009 and make your plans to be there.

South Dakota was just the first race of The Gauntlet; 5 races in 5 weeks. This weekend, July 19 & 20 ULHRA will be at Polson MT on Flathead Lake for the first ever Anderson Radio Broadcasting "Radio Waves Regatta".

John Lynch

P.R. Director and "Voice" of ULHRA Racing

Becker, Echols and the wind top Saturday at SD (07-12-08)

Two heats early Sunday morning will conclude the first day of racing at the Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge here at Chamberlain-Oacoma S.D. Two heats were postponed till Sunday due to high winds on Saturday afternoon and have been rescheduled for Sunday at 9:00am (Central Daylight Time....7:00am Pacific time).

In the two heats conducted on Saturday Paul Becker crossed the line first, just in front of Michael Flaherty in Unlimited Light Heat 1A, while Dustin Echols defeated Marty Wolfe in the Thunderoat G Heat 1.

In Heat 1A, Wil Muncey took third in the UL-00 Trafficade while David Warren, subbing for Vince Xaudaro, had to return to the pits prior to the start in the UL-929. Co-owners Jim & Karon Wilmot of ULHRA Video, who provide the live web casts of ULHRA racing, say the problem turned out to be a minor engine issue that's been resolved and they expect to be strong in the Sunday heats.

Warren also drove his own boat, the My Town Motors presents Miss Schade Vineyards of Volga SD to third place in the Thunderboat heat. Points leader R.W. Dick Lynch had to return to the pits prior to the start with a throttle linkage problem that team members say has been resolved. The 4 Thunderboats are scheduled to race 3 heats on Sunday.

It was said prior to this event that the Chamberlain-Oacoma River City Racin' Committee was "raising the bar" for first time hydroplane events. Other than the wind which they could not control, the Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge is a hit. The city of Chamberlain and the town of Oacoma combined total less than 4,500 in population. To look over the event's first day one would think it was their 15th annual event, not their first and the first day's attendance well exceeded the local population. South Dakotans are used to driving some distance for events. About 100,000 people live within a 2 hour radius of the River City Racin' location.

The State of South Dakota Tourism Dept. got involved in this event and as time goes on the Chamberlain-Oacoma race weekend could achieve notariety not unlike other state landmarks such as Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse, the Black Hills and the badlands, and of course, Sturgis. The Missouri River is the location, and Chamberlain-Oacoma area is about 3 hours east of Rapid City and 2 hours west of Sioux Falls.

Heat 1B for the Unlimited Lights will lead off the expanded Sunday racing schedule at 9:00am (CDT) with.......

UL-13 Celtic Racing, drivin by J.Craig Fletcher

UL-15 Swenson Brothers Marine presents Graham Trucking G.T. - Happy Go Lucky with Greg Hopp driving in this heat.

UL-72 Miss Boat Electric driven by Kayleigh Perkins

UL-89 Lake Trash.com presents No Excuses Racing driven by Mike Sadlon

UL-93 Trafficade-Desperado driven by Elizabeth Wolfe.

ULHRA 2008 Schedule

Swenson Bros. Marine joins Hopp Racing in South Dakota (07-10-08)

Hopp Racing is proud to announce our new sponsor for this weekend's River City Racin’ in

Chamberlain/Oacoma South Dakota. Swenson Bros. Marine of Chamberlain will be the local sponsor for the Graham Trucking GT Happy Go Lucky. Jim and Kevin Swenson will be all eyes and ears like the rest of the crowd. The Unlimited Lights are the loudest and fastest race boats to hit these Missouri waters. Swenson Brothers Marine has been in Chamberlain South Dakota for 23 years. They are Central South Dakota’s full line dealer for sales and service for all of your boating needs while you’re having fun on the Missouri River. Whether it’s fishing or skiing, Swenson Bros. Marine will take care of your boating needs. Call 888-734-6677 or go to Swensonbrosmarine.com. Jerry, Greg and the Hopp Racing crew look forward to putting on a GREAT show this weekend. See you at the races!!!

Countdown to Chamberlain IV. “The Gauntlet” begins!

ULHRA teams are on the road as you read this for the first of “5 in a row”. We call it The Gauntlet and its going to keep ULHRA teams very busy over the next 5 weeks.

The 1^st Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge will be contested this weekend, July 12^th & 13^th at a brand new race site in South Dakota. The towns of Chamberlain & Oacoma along with the rest of the state have combined efforts to welcome the Unlimited Light Hydroplanes (UL) and the Thunderboats (G) this weekend in the first of 3 key points races.

Leading the pack, as has been the case all this decade is the UL-72 Miss Boat Electric driven by Kayleigh Perkins from Impact Racing, and the UL-15 Graham Trucking G.T. – Happy Go Lucky from Hopp Racing. “Grandpa Jerry” Hopp will drive the UL-15 this weekend while co-owner/co-driver and son Greg Hopp will be racing a turbine hydroplane at Detroit this weekend. The two teams are separated by a mere 125 points in the national standings. As a point of reference, fifth place in a racing heat is worth 127 points. This weekend there will be up to 4 heats of racing per team with 1600 points available if one team can “run the table”; win all of their heats including the Final on Sunday afternoon. For those new to hydroplane racing, each ULHRA “heat” is worth 400 points to the winner, 300 for second, 225 for third, 169 for fourth, 127 for fifth and 95 for sixth, plus 72 for seventh and 53 for eighth…….in the instances where a race course is large enough to handle seven or eight teams per heat. Qualifying will be held Saturday morning and 10% national points are awarded in qualifying. Those points are important. Three years ago the UL-15 team defeated the UL-72 team for the national championship on the strength of more points earned throughout the season in qualifying.

The Gauntlet is a marathon, not a sprint. Never before have Unlimited Light Hydroplane Racing Association (ULHRA) teams been asked to race over 5 consecutive weekends. Race #2 in this series is the Anderson Broadcasting Radio Waves Regatta on Flathead Lake at Polson MT (July 19 & 20) followed by the Graham Trucking Thunder Cup at Tri Cities WA (July 25, 26 & 27) then the Graham Trucking Cup at Seafair in Seattle (August 1, 2 & 3) and finally the Silverdale Thunder event in Silverdale WA (August 9 & 10). The round trip is virtually the distance of a one way cross country drive as it’s nearly 1400 miles from the Seattle area where many of the ULHRA teams are home ported. A couple teams are leaving at 3:00am on Wednesday morning. Why 3:00am? If you’ve ever experienced rush hour traffic in the Seattle area from 5:30am till 8:30am, well there’s your answer.

Among the challengers to the 72 & 15 teams at Chamberlain will be the UL-14 Miss Critical Logic driven by retired airline and Navy pilot Paul Becker. Through 2 races this season Becker has started 9 heats and finished second each time. Becker trails Perkins by 625 points going into Chamberlain-Oacoma.

One team that will be watched closely is Muncey Racing with their twin UL-00 race boats. There’s the Lil Red Boat and the Big Red Boat, both sponsored by Trafficade Work Zone Services. One boat will race this weekend. So far this season it’s been the tried & true Lil Red Boat, driven by Wil Muncey; son of hydroplane racing legend Bill Muncey that’s put the team into 4^th place in the UL national standings; the highest point in this team’s 3 year history. Wil and the team are trying to “dial in” the Big Red Boat which they acquired last year and plan to have it ready to compete this weekend. Last time the larger of the UL-00 hydroplanes raced was in 2002 and it took 2^nd place at Olympia WA and qualified third at San Diego at over 113 mph……which today is a very competitive speed. The Muncey team knows they have a capable ride. It’s all about getting it ready to race after being out of competition for 5 seasons.

Kayleigh Perkins made national headlines a year ago when she became the first woman (at the age of 19) to win a major hydroplane race (Silverdale WA) and a national championship. Starting this weekend she won’t be alone as Elizabeth Wolfe is scheduled to make her Unlimited Lights’ debut in the UL-93 Trafficade-Desperado, another strong entry from the team of Dennis Johnson & Marty Wolfe. Marty will be driving the G-93 Johnson-Wolfe Trafficade Renegade in the Thunderboats (G) portion of the Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge.

4 time UL race winner Michael Flaherty and the improving UL-11 Roxy 94.5 presents Power Punch Oil Supplements expects to challenge for the win this weekend. J. Craig Fletcher in the UL-13 from Celtic Racing is another strong entry. This is the hull that won the season ending race in 2007 before being acquired in the off season by third year owner-driver Fletcher. It’s one of two boats that were damaged at Richland WA in May when the UL-929 driven by Vince Xaudaro lost steering control and collided with the 13. Both boats have been repaired. Xaudaro welcomed his second child, daughter Andreas to the world last weekend and won’t be driving at Chamberlain. However the 929 team co-owned by ULHRA Video’s Jim & Karon Wilmot will be entered. Thunderboat owner-driver David Warren will drive for Xaudaro.

For those who cannot attend the race in person, live web cast coverage will be available on this website, courtesy of ULHRA Video. Check the home page of this website www.ulhra.org for times and the link to the web cast.

Expected entries include………….

Unlimited Lights (UL)

UL-00 Trafficade Work Zone Services Wil Muncey

UL-11 Roxy 94.5 presents Power Punch Oil Supplements Michael Flaherty

UL-13 Celtic Racing J. Craig Fletcher

UL-14 Miss Critical Logic Paul Becker

UL-15 Graham Trucking G.T. – Happy Go Lucky Jerry Hopp

UL-72 Miss Boat Electric Kayleigh Perkins

UL-89 Lake Trash Apparel presents No Excuses Racing Mike Sadlon

UL-93 Trafficade – Desperado Elizabeth Wolfe

UL-929 Xaudaro-Wilmot Racing David Warren

For the Thunderboat fleet, race # 3 of 2008 will pit four teams, all with championship goals and ability. The North American Challenge Cup Series (NACCS) for

Thunderboats (G) is currently led by R. W. Dick Lynch in the G-13 Jet Chevrolet.com Tempo with 1700 points. David Warren in the G-329 with sponsorship this weekend from Schade Vineyard, owned by Jim and Nancy Schade of Volga SD currently ranks second with 1200 points and Dustin Echols in the G-17 Schucks Auto Supply presents Shockwave Racing sits third with 800 points after winning at Richland WA in May. The 4^th entry, G-93 Johnson – Wolfe / Trafficade driven by Marty Wolfe currently has zero points but is a very quick entry and should challenge for top honors this weekend.

Thunderboats (25-28 feet in length) are bigger than Unlimited Lights (20-26 feet in length) with larger engines that are supercharged and can generate from 1100 to 1600 horsepower. When these craft “crank em up” on the Missouri River at Chamberlain-Oacoma, the sound will reverberate off the surrounding hillsides and will be heard for miles. That’s why they’re called “Thunderboats”.

Expected entries include……………..

Thunderboats (G)

G-13 Jet Chevrolet.com – Tempo R. W. Dick Lynch

G-17 Schucks Auto Supply presents Shockwave Racing Dustin Echols

G-93 Johnson – Wolfe Racing / Trafficade Marty Wolfe

G-329 My Town Motors presents Miss Schade Vineyard David Warren

John Lynch

P.R. Director and “Voice” of ULHRA Racing

G-329 On Display at My Town Motors (07.07.08)

G-329 Roostertail Racing was on display Saturday July 5^th 2008, The display was at presenting sponsor, My Town Motors car dealership in Auburn, WA. Crowds of curios people gathered around the hydroplane. From the inquiring fan to the individual who has never seen a hydroplane. They all had many questions. How fast is it?…….Where do you race? We were busy for many hours answering all the questions.

My Town Motors is owned by Lance & Sherri Hanson, they have been buying & selling cars for many years. My Town Motors is actually one of the three companies they own, among selling cars they also tow them (Hanson Hauling), as well as repair them (Hanson Enterprises). Lance also knows a thing or two about racing as well, he likes to race his 1969 SS Pro-Street Chevy Camaro down the dragstrip at over a 150mph in his spare time. It was a great display for all!…The G-329 Team would like to Thank My Town Motors all there support in the 2008 season!

Mike Langford
Crew Chief G-329

Hopp Racing Takes on a New Sponsor (07.05.08)

Hopp Racing is happy to announce a new sponsor. Ratcliff, Barce & Associates “RB&A” Your Montana Real Estate Professionals of Polson Montana will be our local sponsor for the big Unlimited Lights race on Flathead Lake July 19-20. “We are very excited to be participating in such a spectacular event” Karen Ratcliff, one of the owners, said by phone. She checked out Jerry’s Corner on The Hoppracing.com website, and was “Blown away” by the record setting accomplishments of Greg, Jerry and the crew of the Graham Trucking GT/Happy Go Lucky. Racing boats of this caliber haven’t been seen or heard for over 30 years in this part of the country. Flathead Lake is considered one of the most beautiful lakes in the United States. Karen Ratcliff & Joleen Barce owners of RB&A sells some of the most “Prime” Real estate in the area. Hopp racing is looking forward to putting on a GREAT show for the race fans, and our new sponsor Ratcliff, Barce & Associates. See you at the Races!!!!

Ratcliff, Barce & Associates

406-883-2700/883-2710 fax

Website: www.rbamontana.com

Karen Ratcliff 406-250-2420

Joleen Barce 406-250-7712

G-329 Corks a Fine One (07.03.08)

G-329 Roostertail Racing is proud to announce the addition of Schadé Vineyard as primary sponsor for the Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge in Chamberlain-Oacoma, South Dakota. Schadé Vineyard is the third bonded farm winery in South Dakota. The winery is owned and operated by Jim and Nancy Schadé at Volga, South Dakota. Their goal is to produce a wine that is made from South Dakota grown products. Currently seven wines are produced periodically throughout the year. For more info visit there website at schadevineyard.com

Remember it is always the right occasion to drink in the Schadé.

Wine, wine and more wine brought this dynamic duo together at the 2007 Chamberlain-Oacoma Exhibition race in July. Jim Schade, owner and operator of Schadé Vineyard, was a curious attendee at the Exhibition race when David Warren, owner and driver of the G-329, struck up a conversation about wine and hydroplane racing. Though they don't go hand in hand, Schadé wine sure makes for a fabulous celebration after the race.

Come see the G-329 on display:

Hydroplane display and wine tasting at Brookings Liquor Store, Brookings Mall, 4 - 8 pm Thursday, July 10th.

Hydroplane display and wine tasting at Al's Oasis, Oacoma SD Friday July 11th Afternoon, Times TBA.

Mike Langford
Crew Chief G 329

MARKETING PREVIEWS THE GAUNTLET (07.01.08)

From the Merriam-Webster Dictionary

Gauntlet - Noun Date: 1645

1 a: a double file of men facing each other and armed with clubs or other weapons with which to strike at an individual who is made to run between them —used with run

b: a line, series, or assemblage; especially : one that poses some sort of ordeal <a gauntlet of autograph-seekers>

2: a severe trial : ordeal

With two brand new race sites on the calendar this season, we thought we’d check out how they’re coming along. We actually left from Firebird Lake in Phoenix after that event the end of April, stopped by a potential new race site in Texas, went on to do the Exhibition at Pickwick Dam, Tennessee (Wow!) and then headed for Chamberlain-Oacoma, South Dakota. For most of you, just getting on I-90 would be a more direct route.

While both events are in many ways completely different from the other, both have done an amazing job of organizing a boat race and may well be raising the bar for what we’ve come to expect at first-time races. We were very impressed at both sites by the progress they’ve made in putting together their festivals.

Tom Davis, President of River City Racin’, asked us to stop first at event partner Sturtevant’s Auto Parts. Sturdevant's Auto Parts operates 38 locations throughout South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska. In addition, Sturdevant's S.A.E. Warehouse provides parts to more than 60 Pronto affiliated independent auto parts stores and other independent jobber locations. We almost didn’t make this stop due to storm warnings, something they seem almost comfortable with in the Midwest. I guess, we have our earthquakes…they have tornados. At least they get warnings. Just a tip - if you are driving along the interstate and see most of the 18-wheelers taking cover under the over-passes, that’s not a good sign. But the weather changes quickly in the Midwest, and soon enough the skies were blue and we were in Sioux Falls where Sturdevants is headquartered. After a brief visit and tour of the impressive facility, off we went to Chamberlain-Oacoma (pronounced much like Tacoma, for those of us from Washington State). We knew we must be close when we came upon a large highway billboard sign with pictures of Unlimited Lights. It seemed both really cool and yet a little eerie to be towing the same hydroplane that was one of those featured in the billboard we were driving by. I shot the picture through the canard of the UL.

Coming over the hill into Chamberlain, the sight of the Missouri River was breath-taking. Surveying the location of our next race course you had to wonder why on earth no one has put together a race here before! The wide river and the gentle slopes of the low hills on either side create a beautiful amphitheater just meant for boatracing! We remembered from the exhibition here last summer, how the roar of the thunder boat engines reverberated off those hills. The Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge spectators in Chamberlain-Oacoma are going to be in for quite a treat!

First thing the next morning, we stopped in to visit the Chamberlain Subway Shop. Subway will be handling all the catering for the event and seeing to our needs in the hospitality center.

We ordered our favorite sub sandwiches to go and headed out for the next stop – a small press conference at the Sanford Mid-Dakota Medical Center. The two local newspapers seem very excited about the upcoming boat races. Sanford which provides medical care for the TriCounty area is dedicated to improving the human condition and being involved in the community. Because of event partners like Pepsi, Sturdevant’s, Budweiser, Swensens Marine and many others, River City Racin is able to fill the weekend of July 12-13 with boat races, a street dance, outdoor concert, car & motorcycle show, plenty of vendors and a children’s play area.

Another recently added feature is the Cackle Fest. A local Funny Car is coming into the UL hot pits to see who can make the most noise – a blown engine UL or a funny car. Hopp Racing has taken up the challenge, stating, “No Contest”. The local fans will decide.

The Pepsi Racing Power Cup Challenge will be featured during the 2009 season on Speed Channel’s Lucas Oil “On the Edge series.

Having just driven nearly 6,000 miles, the jaunt from South Dakota over to Polson, Montana seemed like a hop, skip and a jump.

Click here for updates from June 2008