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2006 HARMSWORTH TROPHY RACE |
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After enduring the winds of Coulon at the Diamond Cup, the moderate conditions at friendly Woodland Creek Park in Lacey, WA were certainly welcome. Classic Thunder members were greeted with great water and great racing on Sunday, May 21st. The wind and rain were manageable and for the most part held off until all was said and done for the day. We took full advantage of the setting in holding our 2006 Harmsworth Trophy Race. 16 Division 1 boats and 13 Division 2 boats took to the water to challenge each other in what turned out to be a day of very close racing and high-speed competition. Good driving kept the carnage to a minimum and we had a great time. We were again visited by the resident bald eagle that put on a display of complete control in the air over our pit area and racecourse. At one point he scared a seagull and stole her lunch away from her when she fled the scene. It spent most of the day perched atop an evergreen tree across the lake, showing off its majestic silhouette in the distance. On the water, the control went to the U-2 racing team. This is undoubtedly the best day of racing Mitch Dillard has ever had. Heck, it felt like the best day of racing anyone has ever had. Then again, I’m a little biased. The way I figure, he spent all of his good fortune in one shot and will be lucky to finish another heat during the rest of the season. It was the kind of day that makes you figure that things went so well that you’re bound to be struck by lightning on your way home. On this day, all of the elements came together to create two perfect days. Mitch would complete the day without losing a heat in either division. Mitch’s 54 Miss U.S. captured it’s first 2006 win. Finishing a close second was a very fast Miss Seattle driving by Dale Van Wyk. Dale displayed the most thrilling heat win earlier when he snuck up on and passed the unsuspecting Miss Budweiser and 66 Bardahl driven by Jeff Howard and Pete Schille respectively. The two had been concentrating on their own deck-to-deck battle while Dale had to swing wide and fall back in the early laps. He hung back, then closed in on one of the later laps of the heat and was just suddenly there beside them. Before they knew where he came from it was too late. He seemed to come out of nowhere. You’ve got to love that kind of racing. Third place on the day went to Pat Malaspina and his Miss Thriftway. Pat had a strong day, which was highlited by the most perfect flying start we’ve seen in one of his prelims. You can’t hit a start any better than that one. Pat’s really got that thing flying. We saw the debut of Mike Schultz’s 57 Miss Thriftway. It’s nice looking on the water and Mike will be working the kinks out of the boat over the season, trying to get some more top end out of her. This is his first division 1 boat. Other boats on the water included Mike Krone’s much improved Hurricane VI and Miss U.S.5, John Dyer’s Great Lakes 2, Clint Crain’s Parco’s O-Ring Miss, Brent Hall’s 66 Miss U.S., Dale Schroeder’s Miss U.S.1, Mark Beaty’s 68 Bardahl, Dave Sacry’s Short Circuit, Tony Minalia’ My Gypsy and our host boat, Dan Clark’s Tahoe Miss. Dan’s now got a couple of heat finishes under his belt and is off and running. Good work Dan and good work to everyone else on a great race. Division 2 saw the Mitch Dillard's Trendwest hit her stride in her third race since being launched earlier this year. The orange boat finished the afternoon out front, outdistancing Jeff Howard’s Elam who finished a strong second. Finishing a close third was Pete Schille’s Miss KYYX, now powered by an Astro 25 after having a brushless speed controller fry in the last race. A field of some very fast Division 2 boats also included Dave Sacry’s Circus Circus, which showed some real power in preliminary heat wins, Mark Beaty’s Lite All-Star, Mike Krone’s Island Security Systems, Dan Clark’s 76 Budweiser, John Dyer’s 72 Atlas, Brent Hall’s 85 Budweiser, Mike Schultz’s Oh Boy! Oberto and Griffon Bud, who gave us an awesome blowover early in the day, Pat Malaspina’s Blue Blaster and Tony Minalia’s Holset/Miss Madison. Let’s get ready for the next race. This will be Race# 4, the Presidents Cup at Coulon Park on Sunday, June 4th. The race is sponsored by Offshore Electrics. Hopefully we can get some better conditions out there this time. Looking forward to it. See you there! Sincerely, Mitch Dillard Classic Thunder Commissioner
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