Deck2Deck.us: Fantasy Unlimited Hydroplane Racing

The fourth race of the H1 Unlimited season is upon us as the Albert Lee Cup at Seafair is about to take place this weekend in Seattle. This is the second pair of back-to-back races on the 2011 schedule after Madison and Detroit occurred in the first two weeks of July. The fleet will appear at Stan Sayres Memorial Pits in considerably better shape than they did in Detroit, with an incident-free Columbia Cup allowing teams a chance to breathe before testing and qualifying on Friday. In the case of the U-1 Oh Boy! Oberto, the Miss Madison crew will have had time to finish the paint job on their hull that won at Seafair in 2010, while Ellstrom Racing will have returned to their Ballard shop to give the U-96 Spirit of Qatar a thorough inspection after Dave Villwock’s cowling-off performance to take checkers in the final on the Columbia.

The hydros will arrive in the pits one fewer in number, reduced to 13 boats after word came that Leland Unlimited will campaign the U-100 Beacon Plumbing with Greg Hopp but not the U-99, piloted last weekend in Tri-Cities by heavy-footed rookie Ryan Mallow. Mike and Lori Jones’ U-9 hydroplane, still racing under the VisitTri-Cities.com banner, will return under the command of Jon Zimmerman.

The only sure forecast for this Seafair weekend is a breeze blowing through the Genessee Gap, but you can count on many Seattle-area H1 drivers to hang it out whatever the weather as they race for hometown bragging rights and a chance for glory on Lake Washington. Once again, it’s time to go racing, Deck2Deck!

HydroDan’s Three to Think About — Seattle:

Dominant: Should you have either the U-96 or U-1 at your disposal, make no mistake, these two boats have proven their dominance. The U-96 Spirit of Qatar is far and away the strongest performer this year, proving its mettle in Detroit and again at Tri-Cities as Dave Villwock ran around a greasy-fast field. If not for its incident in Madison the 96 would be working on a season sweep. If you are one of the many that has already selected the 96, the primary U-1 Oh Boy! Oberto hull is no doubt the second strongest. Following major repairs after the collision with the 96, “Boat Doctor” Michael Hanson and the Madison team have revived the shark to elite status.

On the Improve: Judging from the speed increase from the Gold Cup to Tri-Cities, the U-11 Peters and May appears ready for a breakthrough in Seattle. During a brief conversation with owner and crew chief Scott Raney in the hot pits at Tri-Cities, the mastermind of the U-11 effort disclosed that many changes were made during the three-week break. Those changes appeared to pay off with more speed and greater performance. Another boat worth consideration is the U-22 Great Scott presents from Reading, PA. The 22 showed flashes of speed and had two strong third place finishes on the Columbia, suggesting an epiphany may be pending for the former Oberto hull. If you are looking for a mid-pack, dark horse selection for Seafair then the U-11 or the U-22 may be the boats that could pay dividends this weekend.

Team Driving (Or Not): If you were wondering if the Precision Performance Team boats, The U-5 Graham Trucking and the U-7 Valken.com, are team driving this season, refer to Heat 2B in Tri-Cities in which the U-5 leapfrogged the U-7 during pre-race dicing to take lane 1, only to be out-dueled by the U-7 in one of the most exciting Deck2Deck heats of the season. The U-5 bested the U-7 in two other preliminary heats as well as the final. Look for these two team boats to continue to be factors in Seattle. Do not expect either teammate to give way to the other as this dynamic season progresses.

Where can I get some footage of the heats from last week?

Flying Boat,

The H1 Unlimited site has been posting video footage from the boats’ on-board cameras. You can see them here:

2011 Lamb-Weston Columbia Cup video

They will probably post more clips soon.