2013 Diamond Cup August 30, 31, Sept 1 Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

[Serious News]

Shane Takes Diamond Cup, Moves Closer to Points Lead

Monday, 02 September 2013 10:15

The juggernaut that is Jimmy Shane in the 5 Graham Trucking continued to roll – all the way to the top of the podium at the 2013 Coeur d’Alene Diamond cup.

The 28 year old new dad from Havre de Grace, Maryland made it two wins in a row, following up his win at the Albert Lee Cup at Seattle Seafair in early August with a dramatic victory in the Diamond Cup Championship Final as Unlimited Hydroplanes returned to Coeur d’Alene after an absence of 45 years.

Shane used the inside advantage – secured before the start – to hold off a challenge from J. Michael Kelly in the 37 Miss Beacon Plumbing. After a review of the start, Kelly was ruled to have jumped the start clock. That set the Beacon driver back from second place to fifth and moved Steve David up to third in the 1 Oh Boy! Oberto.1 5 pits cropJimmy Shane starts his Diamond Cup win celebration. Rick Colby photo.

David, one of the pre-race favorites, found himself in an outside lane at the start and back a bit from Shane and Kelly and was only able to move up to second on the water before the call on Kelly moved him up the final ladder.

For Shane, who in the words of David, has become the “guy to beat in the Unlimited ranks,” it was a perfect weekend. First place in qualifying and four heat wins added 1700 points for the weekend and pretty much erased David’s lead in season high points.

On the awards stage, Shane said, “I just want to thank Ted Porter for letting me be a part of this great team. Rob Graham our sponsor was here and when we win for him it’s always special, and the crew that gave me such a great race boat. We knew it would be rough on the big lake and the winner would be the last man standing. I go out and drive as hard as I can and sometimes it works out.”

In a Sunday prelim, the Oberto lost a prop leaving the pit area and failed to score points giving Shane an opportunity to make up most of the advantage David had before the Diamond Cup in 2013 season high points. David’s 43 point lead Sunday night means the two are in a virtual tie. David said, “I think we are going to the final race of the season with the closest points race in history.”

On returning to Coeur d’Alene after the long hiatus, David added, “What a great place for us to race. The city and the people have been great and you could not ask for a more beautiful setting.”

A strong weekend in the 95 Spirit of Qatar for Kip Brown put him third as he also benefited from the call on Kelly. Tom Thompson was fourth in the 11 Peters & May but recorded a fuel flow violation, moving rookie Jessie Robertson up to fourth in the 57 FEDCO.

Next stop for the H1 Unlimited Series will be on San Diego’s Mission Bay September 13-15.



H1 Unlimited Press Release

[Serious News]

Shane outdrives Diamond Cup field to win, cuts David's points lead to 43




H1 Unlimited Hydroplane Series Diamond Cup
2013 DIAMOND CUP

at Lake Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

Length: 2 miles

David Campbell
Courier Sportswriter

Jimmy Shane took a page out of Steve David's playbook to cruise to an easy win and in the process turned the H1 Unlimited National High Points race into a virtual dead heat with one race to go.

Shane, who won for the third time on the H1 Unlimited series this season driving the Graham Trucking, used a running start to "slingshot" around a trolling field and run away with a dominating win in the renewal of the Diamond Cup on Lake Coeur d'Alene Idaho on Sunday.

It was a maneuver that David has used extensively over the past two seasons to great effect. But while the veteran Oh Boy! Oberto/Miss Madison driver was trolling with the rest of the field, Shane showed that he had learned a thing or two from the old master.

Shane circled the field then pounded the throttle as he cleared turn one. The head of steam he built up was more than enough for him to slide into lane one.

From there, the race was essentially over. Shane nailed the start and the former Miss Budweiser hull never missed a beat. David, stuck in lane three, never challenged and settled for second.

"We knew it would be rough on the big lake and the winner would be the last man standing," said the 26-year-old Shane, who won for a fifth time in just 15 career starts. "I go out and drive as hard as I can and sometimes it works out."

Kip Brown was third in the final aboard the Spirit of Qatar. Rookie Jesse Robertson, who was subbing for an ill Mark Evans, was fourth in the FEDCO entry.

J. Michael Kelly physically finished second aboard the Miss Beacon Plumbing, but was assessed a one-lap penalty for jumping the starting gun and placed fifth. Tom Thompson was sixth in the 11 Peters & May after his boat failed the post-race inspection.

The final heat win capped a perfect weekend for Shane who won all three preliminary heats and also earned his first top qualifier award.

As a result, the Havre de Grace, Md., native slashed 620 points off David's National High Points lead and now trails by only 43 heading to the 2013 series' finale at San Diego in two weeks.

"We gained a lot of points on (David) this weekend and it's going to be an incredible race for the championship when we get to San Diego," Shane told the Spokane Spokesman-Review.

The loss in the final heat capped a day in which nothing went right for David and the Oh Boy! Oberto/Miss Madison team.

The day started with David placing second in a heat he thought he had won. Kelly, who was leading David by less than a roostertail during lap one of Heat 2A, was called for a lane infraction after Brown crossed into Kelly's roostertail and went slightly airborne.

Kelly was assessed a one-lap penalty and David noticeably backed off to take the easy win and finished the heat 10 mph slower than Kelly. After reviewing the heat video, H1 officials determined that Kelly did not encroach on Brown's lane and awarded him the win.

It only got worse from there for the Oberto team. As the boat was leaving the dock for Heat 3A, the short shaft on the propeller sheared off, causing the team to miss the race.

It was the first time since Heat 2B of the 2006 Madison Regatta that the Oh Boy! Oberto failed to start a heat it was entered in, a span of 198 straight heats. In that case, the boat hit a submerged log that sheared off the rudder before the start of the race.

A week before the Madison race in 2006, the Oberto failed to answer the bell during Heat 2A at Evansville because of a faulty igniter, meaning it had been 202 heats since the boat failed to start due to a mechcanical malfunction.

"We needed a break today and we got it," Shane said. "We knew that if that happened we'd have to capitalize on it and we did."

Despite losing the propeller, the Oh Boy! Oberto did not suffer any hull or other mechanical damage in the incident. The boat was still available for the final and rescue divers were even able to recover the propeller.

"We lost a prop and it didn't hurt the boat but we knew we had to go into the final and try and maintain our points lead," David said. "During the race, I knew I had to catch him but we just came up a bit short. He drove a heck of a race and he beat us today. This will be the tightest championship battle the sport has seen in over 10 years."

The Oh Boy! Oberto wasn't the only boat to sustain mechanical malfunctions during the weekend. Both the 9 Miss RedDOT and 22 PayneWest Insurance suffered damaged propeller shafts and were forced to withdraw.

The damage on the RedDOT will force the team to miss the season finale in San Diego. The PayneWest Insurance blew up its last gearbox and engine in its incident and the team's status for San Diego is unknown at this time.


Shane outdrives Diamond Cup field to win, cuts David's points lead to 43 - The Madison Courier Daily Newspaper - Madison, Indiana - Madison, IN

[Ratickle]

The loss in the final heat capped a day in which nothing went right for David and the Oh Boy! Oberto/Miss Madison team.

The day started with David placing second in a heat he thought he had won. Kelly, who was leading David by less than a roostertail during lap one of Heat 2A, was called for a lane infraction after Brown crossed into Kelly's roostertail and went slightly airborne.

Kelly was assessed a one-lap penalty and David noticeably backed off to take the easy win and finished the heat 10 mph slower than Kelly. After reviewing the heat video, H1 officials determined that Kelly did not encroach on Brown's lane and awarded him the win.

It only got worse from there for the Oberto team. As the boat was leaving the dock for Heat 3A, the short shaft on the propeller sheared off, causing the team to miss the race.


Man, talk about a tough day. Hopefully that used up all of the bad luck for the entire year....

[Ratickle]