Andrew Tate, the young gun in H-1 Unlimited racing
Andrew Tate started racing boats when he was 11 years old, and while his H1 Unlimited hydroplane has a little bit more power than anything else he’s driven, the racing fundamentals are mostly what Tate has practiced his whole life.
“They’re definitely big and powerful — it’s all relative though,” said Tate, the rookie driver of the U-9 Gale-Rew Construction presents Les Schwab Tire boat. “They’re all boats and they all relatively react the same way. These obviously are a lot bigger and a lot faster, but you’ve just got to have the right mindset about it, just kind of think about it as just another boat race.”
Tate’s parents, Shelby and Mark, used to race hydroplanes, and Brent, his younger brother, started boat racing at the same time Andrew did.
You could say hydroplane racing is in Andrew Tate’s blood.
“It’s not that out of the ordinary for your father to be a boat racer, but it’s pretty extraordinary for your mother to be a boat driver, too,” said Tate’s crew chief, Jeff Campbell, who raced against Tate’s parents in the 1970s and ’80s. “I think it gives you good experience. You learn a lot and you see a lot and you understand how things work.”
Campbell said he reunited with the Tate family when he came to watch one of Andrew’s outboard races, and soon floated the idea to Mark and Shelby that their son could front an H1 Unlimited team. The two were on board with the idea, and Andrew jumped at the chance to further his racing career.
Needless to say, his father is proud the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.
“He’s turning out to be one heck of a driver,” Mark Tate said. “As any parent, to see your kid succeed in something that they love to do and enjoy, it’s just a tremendous feeling.”
Tate had a stellar performance in qualifying Friday at the HAPO Columbia Cup, recording a fast lap over 159 mph, finishing second behind Jean Theoret in the U-16 Oh Boy! Oberto boat. Both drivers finished ahead of Jimmy Shane, driver of the U-1 Miss HomeStreet Bank, who has won his last 12 consecutive heats and three of the last four main events at the Tri-City Water Follies.
Tate made his H1 Unlimited debut on the first weekend in July at the Madison Regatta in Indiana and managed to qualify for the final heat, where he raced his way to a fourth-place finish behind Brian Perkins in the U-21 PayneWest Insurance, J. Michael Kelly and the U-5 Graham Trucking, and Shane.
“I think Madison was a great place to go for me at first to really see how tight you can turn these boats and what they’re going to do at the end of a long straightaway,” Tate said. “Tri-Cities, at least so far, seems to be a little bit more forgiving. It’s more raw horsepower, speed. This is a wide-open race course, and it really is awesome.”
With Tate’s unique blend of talent, experience and youth, Campbell said the 26-year-old driver has a shot at becoming the next “it” driver on the H1 Unlimited circuit.
“Right now, I think he’s the greatest thing this sport has seen in a long time,” Campbell said. “I think in a couple years he’s going to be on par with Jimmy Shane.”
Shane, the winner of the past two national high point championships, said he was able to watch Tate during testing in the Tri-Cities earlier this year and was impressed with what he saw.
The gravity of the compliment from the hottest driver in H1 Unlimited boat racing wasn’t lost on Tate.
“Jimmy’s definitely one of the guys I watched growing up, and to have him say that is quite an honor,” Tate said. “He’s a great driver and someone I’ve watched and tried to learn from. So to hear that, it’ll definitely put a smile on my face.”
This story was originally published July 29, 2016 at 9:02 PM with the headline "Andrew Tate, the young gun in H-1 Unlimited racing."