After 19 tries, Steve David finally has a first-place trophy from Tri-Cities to show off.
David, driver of the U-6 Oh Boy! Oberto, took over first place after Jean Theoret lost a propeller blade at the end of lap three.
I knew we had to be on the inside, at least lane 1 or 2, David said. And we had to have the (E-Lam) and (U-5 FormulaBoats.com) outside of us if we were going to have a shot.
From there, penalties did the rest of the heavy lifting.
Miscues by Dave Bryant in the U-10 Miss Ahern Rentals and Dave Villwock in the U-1 Miss E-Lam Plus put the next two closest competitors a lap down and gave an unlikely second-place finish to Brian Perkins in the U-50 Miss Albert Lee.
For second-year driver Perkins, it was a dream come true.
Its absolutely incredible to me. We keep trying just to have fun, and we keep getting surprises like this, Perkins gushed. The team has done an awesome job
just unbelievable.
Perkins was at one point set to be the trailer boat in the final, but he earned a spot on the front row after the withdrawal of the U-3 Hoss Mortgage Investors Too. From there, luck went to work in his favor.
It was pretty crazy, he said. Theres a lot of luck thats involved in what weve done. The boats nicknamed Lucky, and I guess were just sharing what luck is still in the boat.
For Theoret, it was a bitter end to a race that appears as if it was going his way.
Things were going so good for the Beacon Plumbing. It was awesome, Theoret said. We had a good boat ride. We would have run this race if we hadnt broken
Nobody could touch us.
Third place went to Jeff Bernard in the U-5 FormulaBoats.com, followed by teammate Jimmy Shane in the U-7 FormulaBoats.com II.
After the penalties, Bryant finished fifth, followed by Villwock in sixth. The finish snapped a three-race win streak on the Columbia for Villwock's defending national champion team.
The ABRA series moves to Seattle next weekend and the Seafair Chevrolet Cup.
Qualifying begins Friday, with the final heat set for Sunday afternoon.
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Liddycoat declared of hydro race in Qatar
Liddycoat declared of hydro race in Qatar
Driver Scott Liddycoat completed a magical rookie season Saturday by capturing his first unlimited hydroplane victory during a controversial finish at the Oryx Cup UIM World Championship.
Liddycoat was declared the winner by officials after they reviewed film of the start and saw that drivers Steve David, Dave Villwock and J Michael Kelly had crossed the start line early. Those drivers were given a 1-minute penalty and Liddycoat got his first career victory on the H1 Unlimited tour.
“It’s not the way I would have liked to win the first one but I’ll take it,” Liddycoat said. “This year has been unreal. I don’t think it’s quite sunk in yet.”
Villwock wins again in San Diego
Villwock wins again in San Diego
SAN DIEGO -- Dave Villwock won his second consecutive Air National Guard Championship at San Diego Bayfair on Sunday, sweeping through all of his heats and closing in on his first national championship in four years.
Villwock won for a record ninth time on Mission Bay and as a result his U-96 Spirit of Qatar boat has more wins than any other hull in the sport's history.
Villwock also became the sport's all-time winningest driver earlier this season in Detroit. He has 65 career victories.
HYDROS: Villwock, David win second heats in Qatar
HYDROS: Villwock, David win second heats in Qatar
Veteran drivers Dave Villwock and Steve David each won their second heat races Friday at the Oryx Cup World Championships for unlimited hydroplanes.
Villwock, whose earlier victory clinched the season championship for his team, the U-96 Spirit of Qatar, had no problem starting in lane 2 of heat 2A as he raced uncontested to the win.
Greg Hopp, starting in lane 1 in the U-100, held off Scott Liddycoat in the U-7 Valken.com and Kip Brown in the U-17 Miss Red Dot to finish second.
HYDROS: David steers Oberto to Oryx Cup title
HYDROS: David steers Oberto to Oryx Cup title
Steve David and the U-1 Oh Boy! Oberto may not have defended their national high points championship, but at least they finished the season on a winning note.
David, running from lane 3, hit the start-finish line almost perfectly and was never threatened after that in the 5-lap final of the Oryx Cup World Championship unlimited hydroplane race Saturday in Doha, Qatar.
Rookie Scott Liddycoat, driving the U-7 Valken.com, had the inside lane in the seven-boat final. But he couldn't overtake David. Liddycoat still finished second.
Villwock top qualifier at San Diego
Villwock top qualifier at San Diego
SAN DIEGO -- Dave Villwock took advantage of a second opportunity and was the fastest qualifier in the U-96 Spirit of Qatar on Friday at the Air National Guard San Diego Bayfair.
Villwock posted a head-turning 164.759 mph lap during qualifying, the fastest qualifying speed he's done on the Mission Bay course under the series' current fuel restrictions.
It looked as if rival driver Steve David -- in the U-1 Oh Boy! Oberto -- would earn the fastest qualifying speed on the day, but Vilwock and his team opted for a second attempt.
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