Detroit, MICH - The water was rough in Detroit. Boats and drivers paid the price. Saturday, Mike Webster and the U-22 flipped. Sunday, Scott Liddycoat in the U-88 and JW Myers in the U-11 both landed upside down.
In the end, though, it was Dave Villwock - the all time winningest hydroplane driver - winning again, his tenth Gold Cup victory. Dave Villwock in the U1 Spirit of Qatar ran to victory in the H1 Unlimited Hydroplane tour stop in Detroit.
Final Unofficial Results:
1. U1 Dave Villwock
2. U6 Steve David
3. U37 J. Michael Kelly
4. U9 Jon Zimmerman
5. U57 Mark Evans (Started as a trailer boat)
6. U5 Jimmy Shane (one lap penalty)
It was Villwock's 67th career win and marked the sixth time Steve David has finished second in the Gold Cup.
David in lane one hit turn one first and held the lead coming out of the turn at the Belle Island bridge, but Villwock managed to edge in front on the back stretch. By lap two, Villwock had a one boat lead and kept it there, with the boats bouncing all over the water.
In lap three, coming out of turn one, Villwock moved inside and pushed Steve David to go wide. David ran through Villwock's rooster tail and dropped way back in lane four. Villwock lost the rear stabilizer bar at about the same time. Despite that, Villwock opened up a big lead and ran to victory.
Heat 4B
Scott Liddycoat and the U-88 had trouble coming out of the first turn and went airborne, landing upside down. Scott was OK and taken back to shore. That brought out the black flag and shut down the course for the third time in two days due to accidents. H1 Unlimited put the races on indefinite hold due to the winds and water conditions, but they were able to resume after a lengthy delay when the winds calmed down.
Heat 4B was restarted after the flip by the U-88. Kip Brown and the U17 was unable to get back out on the water due to mechanical issues.
Heat 4B Restart Results:
1. U1 Dave Villwock
2. U9 Jon Zimmerman
3. U100 Greg Hopp
DNS. U17 Kip Brown
Relatively easy run for Villwock in lane three.
Heat 4A
Heat 4A was also cut short when another accident happened. The race stopped when JW Myers hooked the boat and rolled over. JW was OK as well. The race was declared final since they had run three of four laps.
After the race, Steve David told the Madison Courier, "It's unraceable right now."
Heat 4A Results:
1. U6 Steve David
2. U37 J. Michael Kelly
3. U57 Mark Evans
DNF. U11 JW Myers
DNS. U5 Jimmy Shane
Heat 3B Results:
1. U1 Dave Villwock
2. U6 Steve David
3. U88 Scott Liddycoat
4. U11 JW Myers
5. U100 Greg Hopp
Both Villwock and David were docked points and given a fine for lame infractions, but it did not affect the order of finish.
U-1 wins again - PHOTO: Roger Schaaf
U-11 damage after flipping - PHOTO: Hydropage
Damage to the U-88 after flipping - PHOTO: Hydropage
U-22 flips - view from U-57 tailfin camera - PHOTO: H1Unlimited
Damage to U-22 after flip - PHOTO: U-22
