http://vintagehydroplanes.com/boats/full_house_mouse/fullhousemouse.html Crosley powered, Sonny Meyer ..
I've posted some photos on this great thread earlier of an Unlimited Step-Hydro, "My Darling", a boat that was built from John Hacker's plans in 1949. This boat has gone through several owners and is currently owned by Dr. Ken Muscatel, of Seattle, WA. Ken owned (and raced) Unlimiteds for many years (he's 76 now) and at this point, just collects them, so he can look at them and bring them to various Classic and Vintage Boat Shows. Although "My Darling" has to be one of my own favorites of the Step-Hydro style, the most known race boat, at least in the early 1950's, was duplicate of "My Darling" called "My Sweetie". Both "My Darling" and "My Sweetie" started out life at pretty much the same time. The difference is that "My Sweetie" (with Bill Cantrell at the controls) was the winner of the APBA Gold Cup the first time out, in 1949, on the Detroit River. Shortly after the victory, the boat was purchased by Horace Dodge, Jr. Horace was the son of the founder of the Dodge Bros. Automobile Company, a company that was also one of the largest single stock holders in Ford Motor Co. Although Horace Dodge, Jr. is listed as the owner of the "My Sweetie" fleet of Unlimiteds, he never actually owned any of the family's race boats. His mother did. Anna Thompson Dodge had control of Horace's money until the day he died (in 1964). It seemed that Horace had some "character weaknesses", such as wine, women and song, and Unlimited Hydroplanes (he never drove). As you can see, "My Sweetie" is an almost exact duplicate of "My Darling" All of John Hacker's Unlimited designs at the time used this unique "mid hull" prop shaft location. It gave these step designs a good ride and great turning ability. "My Sweetie" was built by famed hydro builder Les Staudacher, and kept in race ready condition for several years. But by mid-season 1951, she had seen better days and needed to be retired (coming apart at the seams would be more apt). But Horace was on the outs with his mother at the time. She refused to give him money for a new boat, but she would authorize repairs to the old one. Horace and Staduacher cooked up (literally) a scheme. The haulrd the old boat to Staduacher's shop near Detroit, MI, where the set it on fire burning it to a cinder. Staudacher sent Mrs. Dodge a bill for repairs, but it was really for construction of a new boat. The new boat was exactly like the old boat but the second "My Sweetie" was deliberately shrouded in mystery to keep Mrs. Dodge unaware of the skullduggery. Neither the media or the fans ever knew that the boat was actually a brand new hull. By 1953, relations between Horace and his mother had improved. He showed up at a race in Washington, DC with a new boat, called "Dora My Sweetie". it also a Hacker design was very similar, although just a little bit larger. Although these designs were not "prop riders" like the 3-point hydros, you can see that it still is riding on the mid prop shaft. For 1954, Horace kissed up to mom some more and had another new boat constructed, called "John Francis My Sweetie". John Francis Dodge was the founders late brother. The newest boat was a little larger still, and wider, but still the same basic design. This is the real boat, not an imposter. And it has not been "restored". This is owner Dr. Ken Muscatel cruising along at about 100, just enough to piss off the neighbors. I took these photos on August 7th, just before the Lake Tahoe Concours d'Elegance opened to the public. Once they open the piers, it's tough to get close the boats. Still looks pretty good, don't she? 1710 inches of Allison puts the "thunder" in "Thunder Boats. You will notice that just like "My Darling", the engine is mounted with the "front" of the engine facing the stern. It kind of looks like a "clutch can" on a dragster, but it's really a V-Drive. There is no actual transmission, the engine is either in gear or it's out of gear (it uses a dog-clutch). Needless to say, if you were ever looking to find a V-Drive like this for your own Unlimited, you had better by close friends with Dr. Ken, since there are only two of them in existence, and Ken has them both, as spares. In 1954, Dodge ran three boats; the new "John Frances My Sweetie", the "Dora My Sweetie", and the "second" "My Sweetie". By some miracle, all three of his boats made the final heat of the 1954 Detroit Silver Cup and, at one point, were running 1, 2 and 3. The "Dora" (with Jack Bartlow in the seat) won the race. This was Horace's last major win. Dodge continued in racing until 1956, before descending into alcoholism. The "Dora" vanished off the face of the earth after 1956, and has never been seen again. The second "My Sweetie" is in extreme state of disrepair, exposed to the elements in a marina in Michigan. And the "John Francis", is sitting in Dr. Ken's massive warehouse in Seattle (with is other half dozen unlimiteds) or at a Vintage Boat show somewhere, still proudly showing her stuff and making anyone who has seen it on the water, making the hairs on the back of your neck stand out straight...
Don't know if these are appropriate for this thread although one of them is a vintage hydroplane and the other a 50's era crackerbox. Both of these came to me for lettering and such. The hydroplane is a 1958 Turn A Craft that was built in Quincy Michigan by Thom Turner(who is still alive at 94).It is ten feet long and is(was)powered by a 10hp Mercury outboard. The boat was brought to me in the back of a Chrysler minivan(to give you an idea of it's size)and the cradle was on top of the van. The crackerbox(the Jenny B) was originally built from plans in 1955 by the current owner's father in upstate New York. The construction is fibrelglass over plywood.He learned to water ski on it when he was 10 years old. It originally had a 100 hp Ford flathead in it(must have hauled a** back then)but the motor was hopelessly seized and cracked when he ressurrected it. It now houses a Mercury Capri V6. It was obviously built for small people as there is precious little seating room.
Guys, keep posting this beautiful creatures up!! Many people have never been exposed to this waterborne "hot rods". Thanks
This on'e sitting out in front of Billy Schumacher's race shop in Seattle. For those of you who don't know, Schumacher drove the Miss Bardahl in the late 60's (The Checkered Comet), and now own/runs the Beacon Plumbing turbine unlimited. And it's like, just a couple blocks away...
Hey New England guys, the cranes and the hydroplanes return to Wolfeboro, NH next month with a vintage hydroplane meet on September 18 and 19, 2015. Done every other year here and you can get into the pits and out on the docks. They do controlled racing, it is vintage after all, on Wolfeboro Bay. Here is a link to the website: http://www.nhbm.org/vintage-race-boat-regatta/
Here's a follow-up on my photos of "My Sweetie" above. Everyone knows that old race boats don't like to just sit around floating on the water, tied to some pier, they want to get out on the lake and race. On the day I took the photos (Friday, Aug 7th), the owner (Ken Muscatel) told me that he was having a problem with his battery in the boat, that the batter charger didn't seem to be working correctly, either that or the bilge pump might be on the fritz. He never leaves his boats in the water overnight, but because of all the boats in the show, it was not possible to pull the boat out each night and re-launch it in the morning. The result... This is the view that Ken saw in the morning. Lucky we are in a draught, and the lake is not very deep near the dock. They floated her up, put her back on the trailer, no big problem, other than pulling the Allison apart. Always the optimist, Ken said, "we needed to freshen the mill up anyway". Back on the trailer and ready to head back to Seattle. One of the neat things about the early step-hydroplanes is that they were usually only about 8' wide ("My Sweetie" is 8' 6" wide), and do not need those super expensive hydraulic tilt trailers.
This thread brings back so many memories of Seafair and being on the lake's edge watching the hydros. The sound of those piston engine's was music to my ears. I, like other kids, made a hydro out of wood and strapped it onto the back of my bike and pedaled all around the neighborhood. What fun! Thanks to everyone for sharing their photos and memories!
Here are a few vintage Unlimiteds I may not have posted before. "Miss Cadillac" "Miss Pay 'n Pac" Finally, when is a 3-point hydro not a 3-point hydro? "Oh Boy! Oberto" "Miss Wahoo" (this is Bill Boing's boat, with Miro Slovak in the seat) Answer: When it's a 1-point or a no-point hydro. Here is "Fascination" back in the day. ...and here she is now. Just a shell of her once proud self, having gone through several owners and several name changes, and after the elements and the thieves picked her clean.
Here are a few more Unlimiteds, from the 1950's and 1960's. This is the first "Atlas Van Lines". "Miss Burien" "Miss Dixi Cola". Picture yourself in that cockpit. Now picture yourself giving up your life and medical insurance. "Miss Great Lakes II" "Mariner Too". Note that the other boat, "Gale V", is equipped with dual turbos instead of the centrifugal supercharger. "Miss Vernors". Has anyone ever drunk that stuff? I tried it......once. Les Staudacher's shop, with a couple of thunderboats under construction. You have probably noticed that most of these boats all looked the same. That's because most of them came almost exclusively from only two designers / shops. In the west (Seattle, WA) it was Ted Jones designs, and in the east (Detroit, MI) it was Les Staudacher. Some teams did build their own boats, but they were usually copies of either a Jones design or Staudachers. This photo also shows the two basic types of sponsons on these boats. The boat on the left has "detachable" sponsons and the one on the right has what I call the "one piece hull". Sponsons are frequently damaged, either by hitting a bouy or just by being ripped open by the water (water is not compressible). If that happens, you can install another sponson and make the next event. On the "one piece hull" design, there is a small weight savings, but if you rip off a sponson, you pretty much might need to right-off the entire hull, or most of it. "Miss Thriftway" in 1957, after hitting a swell at 165 mph. When these things come apart, they come apart. The "one piece hull" of "Miss Bardahl II" under construction, in 1958.
Not to many of you may know about a boat that was built in West Keyport N.J. 1947 to compete with the unlimiteds. Built by Joe Clayton, and powered by a single Allison V12 "Stubby VI" was a modified lapstrake Jersey sea skiff, driven by Jim Davis. Here Stubby is running about 90mph in her original configuration with Jim and his mechanic riding a bit forward. (This is one of the only two known pictures of Stubby underway.) Stubby was intended to make the 1948 National Sweepstakes Regatta in Red Bank N.J., however did not race due to fuel pump problems. Stubby had an unfortunate performance issue in that when pushed above about 95 mph she would drop her bow and become uncontrollable. this she did once in Sandy Hook Bay off Leonardo N.J. where she tripped and broke in half. Taken back to Clayton's she was rebuilt and modified This is after she was rebuild, with the cockpit moved aft. Stubby's last try at racing was again to be the National Sweepstakes Regatta in Red Bank, in 1950. This year however, when Jim was running trials out on the Navesink Stubby threw a blade off the propeller which came though the bottom of the boat right under Jim. He told me that he took off his life jacket and stuffed it in the hole to make it back to the pits. It is said that after this Stubby was converted into a rather odd looking cabin cruiser of a pleasure boat. These construction photos of Stubby were loaned to me by Jim Davis a couple of years ago. Here is Jim Davis at the wheel of Stubby, with his father Ed Davis by his side.
Thanks for all the great pics, all of you. George, especially you. The pic of Mira Slovak in the unlimited version of Miss Wahoo is fantastic. I have the pics of the 7litre Miss Wahoo, it is stored close to me, but I can`t say where. Has Bill Boeing`s signature on it, too. If any of you have an Email I can send those pics your way. I don`t have time or ability to post them here myself......
Like so many other things in my life, the 1960's seem to have been the dominant period, whether it was rock & roll, drag racing or loose women, and the term "terrorists" only applied to some of my high school teachers. The age of the Unlimited Thunderboats also seemed to crest during that decade. There were so many venues and so many races each year, and so many different boats and teams. And it's not that I don't like all forms of boat racing, I do, but the Unlimiteds were just so special for me. I'm going to post some photos that I have, so bare with me. If you are into the vintage big boats, before all the pickle forks and before the turbojet engines took over, stay tuned. It's going to take me a while. If the name of the boat is not legible in the photo, I will stick it under the photo (if I can remember the name). Also, you may note that a particular competition number (such as U-22 for instance) is on several different boats from different teams. It was not at all unusual that a boat would be used by one team for a year or two, and then sold to another team, and so on and so on. In many cases, the original number stayed with the boat, even if the name of the boat or team changed. Here goes. Miss Smirnoff (I think), sometimes called the "bat boat". Mis Bootheads, whatever that was. An early Miss Bud. There were so many I lost count. There were several teams that got sponsorship from a city, especially if that city also put on an event each year. Burien Lady. I think this negative got flipped, the rudder is on the wrong side. Pay 'n Pak had several boats over the years, this one was known as Lil Buzzard.
Some of these boats I've never heard of, which may mean that they attended one or two races and ran out of money and threw in the towel. Dr. Toyota Same team, newer boat.
Fascination Gale is another major electrical contractor, out of the Detroit area. You can see the evolution of the front engine boats, this one was near the end of the breed. My Gypsy. By the looks of the wind screen and the sheen on the deck, I would say that they need to add a couple of quarts of oil before the next heat (or another engine). It's all about marketing. If Hallmark was getting ready to open up a new home development in an area near the next race, they may "rent" the boat from a team that needs the money, just for the promotion.
My old boss, Henry J. Kaiser. He had been in boat racing before Noah built his ark. Bill Harrah, another "neighbor" from Lake Tahoe. He had the all time auto museum in Reno, NV. When he sold his hotel and resort chain to Holiday Inn, the broke up the museum and sold the stuff off piecemeal, what a shame. Kol Roy
An interesting design. Same boat, different paint job. One of the several Miss Madison's, sponsored by the good folks from Madison, IN (according to the movie). Miss Mariner. Can't tell if the driver lost his watch or if he's in prayer. One of the big money teams in the early years.
A later version. Nitrogen. On most of these boats, all the surface areas below the rub rail are sheet aluminum, just in case they run over a floating bottle or something, which can go right up through the hull and sink the boat, or worse. Many times the boats are transported less engine, to reduce the load on the hull on long trips. Rebel Suh. A crew with matching uniforms, not all that common. For alot of teams, the crew is two guys and a bunch of friends pitching in.
This team had several boats. Miss Seattle. This is the Slo-Mo-Shun V re-branded. Shakey's Pizza MYR Sheet Metal Miss Shanendoah. Twin turbo engine. The dive in the background, Sinbad's, I've been there, eaten there, drank there, and been carried out of there, too. Smyth's Smoother Mover. You will notice that the sponsons are hollow, and sealed off from the rest of the hull. As soon as the boat takes off and starts to accelerate, the water comes spilling out through the big hole in the back of the sponsons. You can see all the aluminum sheeting on the bottom of these boats, bolted to the plywood hull.
Twin engines. Faster on the straights, slower in the turns. Mr. Schaffer who owned the boat had to sell thousands of loaves of bread to pay for the engine swaps between heats. From Canada. The way it used to be. The driver is band leader Guy Lombardo. A new boat for Mr. Lombardo.
Takes a lickin' and keeps on ticking. Must have been before Harbor Freight. Looks like someone is going along for a ride. Miss Wiesefields. I threw this one in last. No name, no number, just some guy with too much money that wanted a Thunderboat of his own, so he could go out on the lake and show off, which is exactly what I would do if I could. That's it for now....
I grew up in CHCH and got to watch Peter Snr in his boats and then Peter Jnr carry on the tradition. Gone Heavy, Latimer Lodge and The Boss. Lake Forsythe and New Brighton were the two closest venues. Gone Heavy, another Lauterbach. Peter Jnr. in Latimer Lodge.
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