HISTORY 2003

 Budweiser captures win and CT title at

Silver Cup!

Classic Thunder hosted its final race of the 2003 season at Coulon Park on September 21st.  The Silver Cup turned out to be an amazing race that I think all of us will remember for a very long time if not forever.  I would have to say it was a perfect way to end what has been the most fun and exciting racing season I have been a part of.  The water was horrible and took its toll on most of us, but the sun was out and there was plenty of action to go around.  As the day progressed, I think we could all sense that this would be an unforgettable ending to a 10-race battle for the Classic Thunder Division 1 Championship… and it was.

11 boats were on hand and competing.  Gale IV came in with a small lead over the Harrah’s Club for the season points championship.  Miss Budweiser lurked in a close third behind the Harrah’s.

Action started even before the first heat.  During testing it became apparent that the Gale was having some problems.  The boat would run and shut off over and over again.  This was not how Mitch wanted to start the day off.  Frantic work was ahead and the race had not even started.  As luck would have it, time was short.  Gale IV would be drawn into the first heat.

Heat 1A was won by Dale Van Wyk’s Miss Seattle followed by Bob VandenAkker’s Notre Dame.  Mitch Dillard’s Gale IV went dead in the mill lap and limped to the infield with continuing electrical problems.  Doug Tulip’s Checkerboard Bardahl made the start, but was unable to finish.  The Gale IV had just opened the door for the waiting Harrah’s Club to walk through.

Heat 1B saw Jeff Howard’s Miss Budweiser cruise to a win over Gary Simpson’s Chrysler Crew, Mike Krone’s Cabover Bardahl and Jessica Van Wyk’s Berryessa Belle.

Heat 1C was Pete Schille’s opportunity to capture the lead in the points race after the dismal performance of the Gale.  Oddly enough, the Harrah’s mysteriously came up with almost identical electrical problems and was unable to finish the heat.  Bob VandenAkker’s new Miss U.S. 5 captured the heat win.  This was its first time on the water.  Bob would do double duty all day, switching between his U.S. 5 and the Notre Dame.  Danny Sacry’s Miss U.S. 1 was unable to finish the heat.  At this point, the water was rough, but not too bad.

Chrysler Crew brought home a win in Heat 2A followed by the Cabover Bardahl.  Miss U.S.1 and Berryessa Belle did not finish.  The water was getting worse and starting to give drivers some trouble.

Heat 2B was a big one and saw the Budweiser win its second heat of the day.  Gale IV was back up and running with a radio and speed controller stripped from Mitch’s Griffon Bud.  Thanks Bernie.  The Gale survived to finish second followed by Notre Dame and the Harrah’s.  Yep, the three top dogs were all in that heat.  Harrah’s was unfortunate enough to have hit a buoy and was penalized an extra lap.  The points race was really heating up now.  Just wait.

Miss Seattle continued its winning ways in Heat 2C and prevailed over Miss U.S.5 and the Checkerboard Bardahl.  This heat marked the first points scored by the Checkerboard boat in 2003.  Congratulations to Doug Tulip, who has worked really hard to get the boat running.  Doug would also complete the last of his required rookie starts later in the day.  Next year he’ll be starting from the front row!

The Budweiser won Heat 3A over the Gale IV, Notre Dame and Chrysler Crew.  Everyone finished the heat, but the water was getting really ugly by then and boats were really starting to get pounded by the waves.  

Heat 3B saw Miss Seattle answer with another heat win followed by Miss U.S.5 and Berryessa Belle.  The Checkerboard Bardahl was unable to finish.

Heat 3C was won by Miss U.S.1 followed by the Cabover Bardahl and saw the championship hopes of the Harrah’s club disappear.  The Harrah’s was leading the heat before it became a victom of the wild water.  The bottom of the boat collapsed and one of the sponsons was almost torn off.  The Harrah’s would not finish the heat.  

At the end of the preliminary heats, the water was looking really scary.  A driver’s meeting was called and it was decided that we would take a break to see if conditions improved.  They didn’t.  If anything, they got worse.  We were in for a wild ride to the finish.  We would decide the race and the season points championship for division 1 in the next two heats.  

Let’s take a breath and consider the factors leading up to the big finale.  Going into the Consolation Heat, Gale IV held a 217 point lead over a dominant Miss Budweiser.  Gale IV did not accumulate enough points to make the final heat.  However, if she were to win the Consolation and score 200 points (half points are awarded in the Conny), she would clinch the season championship and would not need to run in the Final Heat.  It was clear that this had become a race of survival and there was no way of guessing how this one would play out.  It was also clear that the Budweiser had been dominant all day long.  The vultures were indeed circling the Gale camp.  During the break, it was announced that the Notre Dame would withdraw from the Consolation heat.  This allowed for the Harrah’s to move up and run instead.  The Harrah’s would have a chance to play spoiler if she could be repaired in time.  This would prove prominent in the day’s outcome.  The Gale boat was competing for a third straight championship for Mitch Dillard.  Harrah’s driver, Pete Schille is the only driver to have won three straight titles.  Jeff Howard, the defending Silver Cup champion still had a chance to win his first race of the season with the Budweiser and pull off an incredible jump from third to first for the season championship.  It doesn’t get any better than this!  Just a minute while I breath into a paper bag.  Did I mention the water was getting worse?

The Consolation Heat couldn’t have been scripted any better.  Things fell together as if it were being staged for a made-for-TV movie.  5 boats started the heat, but Lake Washington quickly claimed the Miss U.S.1, Berryessa Belle and Checherboard Bardahl.  That left the Harrah’s and Gale IV to do battle with each other and against the awesome waves of Coulon.  On lap three, the Harrah’s held a small lead on the Gale going up the backstretch.  The Harrah’s suddenly hooked and swapped ends.  The Gale veered slightly and slowed to take a safe route around.  Just that quickly, the Gale plunged into a hole in the water and was swamped.  Both boats struggled to get back on plane and finish the heat.  The Harrah’s prevailed and was able to limp around for another lap, leaving the floundering Gale IV in her wake.  Mitch could only stare in disbelief as the season championship began to slip from his grasp.  What had been two or three hungry vultures was now a whole gaggle of flying scavengers threatening to pluck out his eyeballs.  Before the day was over, the birds would have their feast.  The table was set.   If the Budweiser could finish in the top three in the Final Heat, a new champion would be crowned.

The much-anticipated Final heat would be run under almost unbearable water.  Just earning your way into the heat was a serious accomplishment.  Miss Seattle and Miss Budweiser were both sporting perfect days.  They were joined by Miss U.S.5, Chrysler Crew and Cabover Bardahl.  The Harrah’s Club, having won the Consolation heat, would start as the trailer.  I’ve got to commend Pete for putting that boat back together again and doing as well as he did with it.  That’s a competitor!  

Now you would have figured that the drama would be over for the Gale camp.  After luck abandoned her in the Consolation, her only choice would be to sit on the beach and watch  her fate be determined, right? Wrong.  Mitch’s roller coaster ride didn’t end that easily.  The Gale boat was the last boat still running before the Harrah’s won the Conny.  That made the Gale boat the alternate for the Final Heat.  With less than 2 minutes left on the clock, it was clear that the Cabover Bardahl had no power on the boat stand and Mike Krone was quickly trying to get her running.  If he failed, the Gale boat could advance into the Final as the trailer and would have a chance to battle head to head with the Budweiser for the season championship. This turned out to be not only unbelievable, but  too good to be true.  Mitch had batteries charged, boat in-hand and was ready to go when Mike got the Bardahl going with less than a minute to go on the clock.  That’s what I call a Rolaids moment.  On to the final heat!   

Miss U.S.5 led the Final Heat for the first couple of laps followed closely by the Miss Seattle, Miss Budweiser and Chrysler Crew.  The Cabover Bardahl had problems and was quickly passed by the Harrahs after the start.  Then the carnage began.  Before you knew it, Miss U.S.5 had stuffed.  Next to be swallowed up was the Miss Seattle.  Miss Budweiser was now in first place with two laps to go.  The Harrah’s had passed the Chrysler Crew, but was not gaining any ground on the Bud.  Half of a lap separated the two boats and the toughest, longest two laps were still to be driven.  The boats bounced and slammed their way slowly around the course for what seemed like an eternity.  I bet Jeff must have aged 10 years during those final laps.  One slip or one bad wave was all that it would take to end what had been a perfect day for the Bud.  All Mitch could do is stand on the dock and wait.  By the time the beer boat had crossed the finish line, the vultures had picked the Gale IV’s bones clean.  Miss Budweiser would not be denied this victory or her championship.  Congratulations to Jeff Howard’s Miss Budweiser.  Winner of the 2003 Classic Thunder Silver Cup and winner of the 2003 Classic Thunder Season Points Championship in Division 1!  Second place in the Silver Cup went to Pete Schille’s Harrah’s Club.  Third place and a first time top three finished went to Gary Simpson’s Chrysler Crew.  Way to go Gary!

Weisfields wins at Silver Cup!   First CT victory for VandenAkker!

 4 boats hit the rough waters of Coulon Park to compete for the Division 2 Silver Cup and to crown a new Division 2 season champion.  It would be an exciting day of thrills and spills.  The Griffon Bud came into the day with a commanding lead in season points, but the race for the Silver Cup would be fierce.

Heat 1 saw Mitch Dillard’s Griffon Budweiser clinch the season championship with a heat win followed by Bob VandenAkker’s Weisfields, Pete Schille’s Tide and Dale Van Wyk’s Executone.  The Tide started from the trailer position in its first three heats due to a race penalty assessed in the Gold Cup.  

Heat 2 was won by the Weisfields.  The Tide was giving chase when her cowling came loose and she was forced to shut down.  The Executone also did not finish.  The Griffon Bud withdrew for the day after the first heat.  Its parts were needed to try and keep the Gale IV running in division 1.

The Tide triumphed from the trailer position in Heat 3 over the Executone and Weisfields.

Heat 4 saw the Executone come home first.  Both the Weisfields and the Tide stuffed in the rough water and were unable to finish the heat.

Based on cumulative points for the day, Weisfields was declared the winner.  Congratulations to Bob VandenAkker’s Weisfields, winner of the 2003 Classic Thunder Silver Cup in Division 2!  This was Bob’s first race win in Classic Thunder.  Excellent job!  Second place went to Dale Van Wyk’s Executone.  Third place was Pete Schille’s Tide.  

Congratulation to Mitch Dillard’s Griffon Budweiser, winner of the 2003 Classic Thunder Season Points Championship in Division 2!

Wow, what else can I say?  The Silver Cup was all that we thought it would be and then some.  I would like to congratulate all of the drivers.  Despite the brutal water conditions, we had no boats collide with one another.  That shows a lot in the way of driving skill, consideration and sportsmanship.  What a race!  Mother Nature, the vultures and maybe a little Bernie mojo made this an incredible finish to our season.  I guess it’s only fitting that two Bernie boats win the championships this year.  Thanks to Pete Schille for putting together the new Bernie Little Memorial Trophy for the Division 2 championship. It looks great!  I would also like to thank Silver Cup sponsor Doug Tulip and co-sponsor, Tami Sadusky for providing the cool dash plates, trophy, Classic Thunder tote bags, buttons and boxer shorts.  I think we might be winning Tami over.  I also think Bob is still wearing those boxers.  The event was a load of fun for everyone.  We’ve got a good thing going in Classic Thunder and have surrounded ourselves with some pretty neat people to share it with.  Thanks to everyone who competed and supported us during the 2003 season.  This was certainly something we can all be proud to have been a part of.  I certainly am.  We have come a long way from last year and I figure that we’re just getting better.  Your cooperation and willingness to contribute to the club made my job so much easier.  The vultures finally got me, but I held on as long as I could.  Honestly, the best memories I will take from this season are the handshakes, the pats on the back, the smiles and the laughter with Jeff after the race. I remember what it was like for me.  It’s the kind of stuff you never forget.  Those kinds of memories got us through a long, hard season last year.  This season seemed to go by too quickly.  I’m confident that our new enthusiasm will carry us through the off-season and straight into next season.  Some of you have already built boats for next year.  I love it.  This is how it should be.  I’m looking forward to our end of the season banquet.  We’re still planning it, but it looks like we’re shooting for October 12th.  Thanks to Doug Tulip for trying to set that up with Bill’s Barbecue.  We’ll keep you posted on the details. I’m looking forward to it.  Thanks again for making this a great season for Classic Thunder.  “That’s what it’s all about.”

Sincerely,

Mitch Dillard

Classic Thunder Commissioner