Detroit Thunderfest - August 22-23, 2015

[Serious News]

DETROIT NEWS
Hydroplanes chair: Detroit race to be 'action-packed'
David Goricki

H1 Unlimited Hydroplane chairman Steve David said the series will be making a stop on the Detroit River after all this summer and it will be better than ever.

David, who retired as a driver following the 2013 season, said the two-day event on August 22-23 will be known as the UAW-GM Spirit of Detroit Thunderfest and it will be "action packed with no down time to make sure the fans have a great experience."

David was a star on the Detroit River as a driver for decades, finishing runnerup a dozen times while also winning multiple series championships. He wanted to make sure Unlimited racing would remain in the Motor City.

"When the DRRA (Detroit River Regatta Association) disbanded, Mark Weber, Bruce Madej, Doug Bernstein and myself figured we had to find a way to keep Unlimited racing going on the Detroit River," pointed out David. "Really, failure was not an option. It was important to bring the race back since it had been a part of the city for more than seventy straight years.

"Mark Weber and his group did a great job. We're going to have a two-day event and all general admission area seating will now be free to the public and the price for the bleachers will be more fan-friendly.

"The event will be action packed. We're bringing the Grand Prix boats back for the first time in nearly 15 years and also adding F2 Tunnel Boats, V6 Mercury Outboards that are 16-to-17 feet long, go 130 mph and turn on a dime. It's going to be a blast."

David came back to the series when owners and drivers asked him to take on the role to bring new life into the sport.

"They wanted me to be Chairman so we've cleaned up the balance sheet where we have no debt," David said. "We're revolutionizing the sport where a new V12 motor is being developed, capable of 3,000 horsepower and we're hoping to get it on the dyno in November and have it ready for next year.

"We've signed 12 Unlimited race teams to performance contracts and we're going to have 11 of them at the season opener July 4th in Madison and all 12 for the Gold Cup two weeks later at Tri-Cities (on the Columbia River in eastern Washington). Our racing will also be on webcast free on ESPN3 so fans who can't attend the races can still watch them."

David feels fortunate UAW-GM came on board to show its commitment to Detroit.

"I think it really shows how thankful they are to the city of Detroit for hanging on with them through tough times," David said. "Now, they're giving back and we're thrilled to have them with us. And, this is a multi-year deal too."
http://www.detroitnews.com/story/spo...cked/29129177/

[Ratickle]

It sure is nice to know there will be a hydro race in Detroit this year. It is still bad enough there won't be the Unlimiteds and the Gold Cup will be in Washington, but maybe Detroit can get the Silver Cup back for this event.

[fund razor]

Failure is not an option, you know, other than losing the longest running trophy event in motorsports.

[rschap1]

A step in the right direction.
Hopefully

[fund razor]

Yes.
But it still feels like something was lost in the transition, although I do get that some new classes are in the mix. Maybe it's because it had to be watered down with land motorsports, or maybe because I know guys who were on the owner-operator-vendor side of the GM deal that did not fair as well as the UAW. Complicated feelings... so goes Detroit for anybody who gets close to it. I spent the years prior to, during, and after the recession working in and around the big world called "Detroit" and maybe I know too much to be "happy."
And I am a boat racing fan and a GM guy. But also proud of the history of the Gold Cup. This crazy thing called "way too much horsepower for any given hull design" is a wonderful phenomenon that goes back to early Gold Cups. Heck, wasn't the 100mph mark broken on the Detroit River?
It's complicated, but I'm not a hater.

[Serious News]

Deal reached for Detroit H1 race in August

Newspaper says UAW, GM have signed off on sponsorship deal

Unlimited hydroplanes are reportedly returning to Detroit this summer, ending months of speculation that the longest-running race on the circuit would not be contested in 2015.

The Detroit Free Press reported on Sunday that the United Auto Workers and General Motors have signed a sponsorship deal with Detroit Riverfront Events Inc. to stage the race the weekend of Aug. 21-23. H1 Unlimited acknowledged the report without going into further detail.

Hydroplanes have raced on the Detroit River since 1915 with only a five-year hiatus during World War II breaking the run. A year ago, the Detroit River Regatta Association announced that the traditional mid-July race was being moved to August. The DRRA dropped the Unlimiteds from the schedule in October and then ceased operations all together on Feb. 28.

Detroit has hosted the APBA Gold Cup every year since 1990 but with the uncertainty of this year’s race, H1 and the APBA moved the Gold Cup race to the Tri-Cities, Wash., which will be held July 24-26.

H1 Chairman Steve David has been working hard with Mark Weber, the former head of the DRRA, to organize a race in Detroit this summer. On several social media sites, as well as an interview with The Madison Courier last month, David said that he was confident that a race would happen.

The addition of Detroit gives H1 Unlimited a total of five races this season, which is still the shortest schedule the sport has had since the 1950s. There ended up being five races in 2013 after Madison was canceled due to high water, but six races were originally scheduled.

The H1 season kicks off July 3-5 at Madison and moves to Tri-Cities July 24-26, Seattle July 31-Aug. 2 and Detroit Aug. 21-23 before ending the season in San Diego Sept. 18-20

http://madisoncourier.com/Content/Sp...t/18/289/91120

[Serious News]

Hydroplanes to race on Detroit River in August

Mark Weber, president of Detroit Riverfront Events Inc., spells out plans for an Aug. 22-23 boat racing program on the Detroit River. The racing will include unlimited hydroplanes that will compete for the Spirit of Detroit trophy.
By George Pohly,

Boat racing fans can exhale.

Unlimited hydroplanes will thunder across the Detroit River this year, after all.

The boats of the H1 Unlimited Series will compete on the river Aug. 22 and 23, race organizer Mark Weber said Thursday night in St. Clair Shores.

Grand prix and tunnel boats also will be part of a racing program that came together at the 11th hour, Weber said at the monthly meeting of Unlimiteds Detroit, a group that follows and promotes boat racing.

The United Auto Workers and the GM Center for Human Resources will be the primary sponsors of the races, said Weber, who is president of Detroit Riverfront Events Inc., which has a multi-year deal in place to put on the event.

“The cool thing is, there’s going to be a race,” Weber said. “There is going to be a race in 2015, and a race in 2016. And I’m fairly certain that in 2017 there will be a race.

“There’s a lot going on,” Weber added. “We’re in this, and we’re dead, damn serious. We’re going to do it. I have a refuse-to-lose attitude. There is a lot of energy.”

The Detroit River course was for many years the site of the Gold Cup unlimited hydroplane race.

But competition for the prestigious trophy was moved to Tri-Cities (Wash.) after the Detroit River Regatta Association said last fall it would no longer stage the Gold Cup.

This year, the H1 Unlimited drivers will compete on the Detroit River for the Spirit of Detroit trophy, which, Weber said, will be designed by the UAW.

Detroit Riverfront Events Inc. is planning to have non-racing activities support the boat racing, Weber said.

“We need to diversify the event,” Weber said. “Everyone is teaming up right now.”

A mailing to purchasers of Gold Cup tickets will be sent next week, Weber said.

An Internet site, detroitboatraces.com, has been created.

“We have a lot of work to do,” Weber said.

The Detroit race will be the fourth of five stops on the H1 Unlimited circuit.

The Gold Cup will be July 24-26 on the Columbia River.

The H1 Unlimited season begins on the Ohio River at Madison, Ind., July 3-5.Jimmy Shane won the 2014 Gold Cup in the U-6 Oberto.

http://www.dailytribune.com/sports/2...iver-in-august

[fund razor]

Should call it the Spirit of Default, or alternatively, the Hoffa Memorial Cup.

[Ratickle]

It's also a lot of travel back and forth for the teams.

But, at least there will be an Unlimited Hydro race in Detroit.

[Serious News]

Free park access during Detroit hydroplane weekend

Thanks to UAW-GM, more parks along the Detroit River will be free and open to the public for viewing this year's hydroplane festival.

Earlier this month, the City of Detroit and H1 Unlimited announced the "UAW-GM Spirit of Detroit HydroFest" event Aug. 22-23 on the Detroit River.

The festival will feature Unlimited Hydroplane, Grand Prix and Formula Tunnel Boat racing.

With UAW-GM backing and organization from the newly formed Detroit Riverfront Events Inc. group, general admission to Henderson, Annex and Owen parks will be free for specators on event days, although a $20-per-day parking fee still will apply.

Grandstand seats will start at $45, with the VIP Club Gold Cup at $185.

There will be a limited number of RV camping spots available onsite.

To purchase tickets to the HydroFest, which continues Unlimited Hydroplane racing in the Motor City that dates to 1916, contact 313-329-8047. For more information on the festival, visit detroitboatraces.com.

http://www.freep.com/story/sports/mo...w-gm/29855861/

[Serious News]

UAW-GM Presents the Spirit of Detroit HydroFest, August 22-23

DETROIT, MICHIGAN (July 7, 2015) – UAW-GM, the global automotive union brand, and Detroit Riverfront Events, Inc., announced a multi-year partnership to host the UAW-GM Spirit of Detroit HydroFest, featuring the H1 Unlimited hydroplane series, on the Detroit River, August 22 and 23, 2015.

The collaboration marks a commitment by title sponsor, UAW-GM, and host organization, Detroit Riverfront Events, Inc., to the City of Detroit. The UAW-GM Spirit of Detroit HydroFest will allow the city’s longest-running community sporting event -- H1 Unlimited hydroplane racing – to continue. “The UAW-GM partnership has contributed to the reshaping of the automotive world and its workers, and they are going to be a major contributor in reshaping the City of Detroit and its people,” said Mark Weber, president of Detroit Riverfront Events, Inc.

The H1 Unlimited hydroplanes are the fastest and most powerful, closed-course racing boats in the world. The turbine engines have the boats reaching speeds over 200 mph on the 2 ½ mile Detroit River course. And this class of boats is just one part of the UAW-GM Spirit of Detroit HydroFest excitement.

"This year, we will be bringing back the Grand Prix boats featuring the ACHA series, with the big block 1300 plus horsepower automotive engines with top speed of 170 MPH," said Weber. "Not only will that bring back the thunder to the river with the noise, but it will be bringing those 500 cubic inch GM engines that power these boats back to the Motor City."

In addition to the H1 Unlimited and Grand Prix hydroplanes, Formula 2 tunnel boats will be added to the Hydrofest. The tunnel hull boats powered by 200 HP outboard Mercury engines are not like the hydroplanes. Instead of a flying start, the tunnel boats use a LeMans standing start, racing on a tighter course with one-pin left and right turns. The winner-take-all final will be 25 laps.

The announcement of the UAW-GM Spirit of Detroit HydroFest means the City of Detroit will keep its standing as the longest continuously running unlimited hydroplane race on the H1 Unlimited circuit. The first sanctioned hydroplane race took place on the Detroit River in 1916. Since 1946, a minimum of one unlimited hydroplane race has been contested each year on the Detroit River. Only a hiatus from 1941 until 1945, during World War II, has kept Detroit from hosting a century of uninterrupted championship boat racing.

UAW-GM's title sponsorship has ensured that all general admission parks will be free and open to the public. Grandstand seating starts at $45, with ticket prices increasing up to $185 for the VIP Club Gold Cup. There are a limited number of RV camping spots available on-site. To purchase tickets or reserve camping space, contact 313-329-8047.

For more information, visit detroitboatraces.com. Fans can also follow UAW-GM Spirit of Detroit HydroFest on Twitter.com/UAWGMHydroFest and Instagram.com/UAWGMHydroFest and Facebook.com/DetroitBoatRaces.com.
http://detroitboatraces.com/pressrelease_20150707-1.php

[Serious News]

UAW-GM Spirit of Detroit HydroFest

Southfield, MI (WXYZ) - The Spirit of Detroit HydroFest returns this year with a new partner.

UAW-GM is teaming up with Detroit Riverfront Events, Inc. to present the city's longest-running community sporting event.

The first sanctioned hydroplane race took place on the Detroit River in 1916, only taking a hiatus during World War II.

This year's race takes place on August 22 and 23.

The H1 Unlimited hydroplanes are the fasted and most powerful closed -course racing boats in the world.

They'll reach speeds over 200 mph on the 2 1/2 mile Detroit River course.

UAW-GM's sponsorship is making all general admission parks free.

Grandstand seating starts at $45.

More information can be found online: http://bit.ly/1hahUgl

http://www.wxyz.com/about-us/as-seen...roit-hydrofest

[fund razor]

The first sanctioned hydroplane race took place on the Detroit River in 1916

What was the name of that race?

[Serious News]

The first major race ever held on the Detroit River was the Gold Cup, in 1916.

The community-owned Miss Detroit won the Gold Cup in 1915 on Manhasset Bay, outside of New York City, and earned the right to defend it the following year on home waters.

Miss Detroit was a single-step hydroplane, equipped with a 250-horsepower Sterling engine. The designer was the distinguished Christopher Columbus Smith of Chris-Craft.

[fund razor]

The community-owned Miss Detroit won the Gold Cup in 1915 on Manhasset Bay, outside of New York City, and earned the right to defend it the following year on home waters.
When did the APBA become the owners of the Gold Cup?

[fund razor]

APBA history is of no help here.
But UIM history hints that the Gold Cup was always APBA.

So it was always APBA's. Why did Detroit let it go away? I just can't believe they would. This is a town with a restaurant called The Roostertail.
It's great that there are unlimiteds this year. Hopefully the Gold Cup can return to Detroit.

[Serious News]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APBA_Gold_Cup

[fund razor]

Interesting. Since 1963, it has been held in the city with the highest bid.

Kind of explains everything.

It's pay to play, and it would appear that Detroit blew it.

[Ratickle]

At least it will be back next year!!!

[Ratickle]

So who's gonna make it there this year?