Breathless

1954

U-22 Breathless ( USA )

Owner - J. Philip Murphy (Piedmont, Calif.)
Designer - Ted Jones
Builder - Fred Hallett (Hallett Boat Works)
Length - 29ft 6in
Beam - 12ft Hull - 2 pointer
Detail - Mobil horse on tail
Weight - 5,700 (also listed as 5,750)
Colour - blue (pale blue & white)
Power - V12cyl. Allison
Driver - Jay Murphy

Best finish - 5th

Breathless [Photo © Kirk Pagel]

55

Detail - added Mobil horse on sponsons
Driver - (?) Schmidt, 'Slim' Ciochon, Jay & Roger Murphy

Winner - of Lake Tahoe Cup & Mile High Trophy

56

Detail - U. No's close to end of sponsons
Mobil horse above burgee
Drivers - Jay & Roger Murphy
DNF

 

57

Driver - Roger Murphy
DNF

Breathless, 1958

58

 

1970's

Owner - John Murphy

 

1980's

Owner - ?

   

Boat being rebuilt by Peter Clauss

Now in Alameda, CA.

"One of the few California unlimiteds, Breathless flies the burgee of the Tahoe Yacht Club and is owned by J. Philip Murphy of Piedmont, Calif. The light blue boat was designed by Ted Jones and built by Fred Hallett in 1954. In 1955 she won the Mapes Trophy Race at Lake Tahoe. She measures 29½ feet, has a 12-foot beam, weighs 6,200 pounds [? --LF] and is powered by a G-6 Allison engine. In the 1957 Gold Cup Race she exploded in a qualifying run, suffering damage, and has not raced since. She raced out of the Tahoe Yacht Club."

(Reprinted from This is Hydroplaning by Paul Lowney [1959])

J. Phillip Murphy's Breathless was a Ted Jones-designed entry that flew the burgee of the Lake Tahoe Yacht Club. Usually driven by the owner's sons Jay and Roger, Breathless appeared at most of the West Coast Unlimited races between 1954 and 1958. Her two race victories were in the 1955 Mapes Trophy and LTYC Championship, both on Lake Tahoe. Using stock Allison equipment, Breathless didn't have the horsepower to be competitive on the national circuit, where her best finish was a fifth in 1955 at Elizabeth City, North Carolina.

(Fred Farley)

Competition Record

DNF

1954 APBA Gold Cup Seattle, Washington
5 1954 Mapes Mile-High Gold Cup Camp Richardson, California
6 1955 APBA Gold Cup Seattle, Washington
1 1955 Mapes Mile-High Gold Cup Tahoe City, California
9 1955 President's Cup Washington, DC
4 1955 Rogers Memorial Washington, DC
5 1955 International Cup Elizabeth City, North Carolina
DNF 1956 Mapes Mile-High Trophy Tahoe City, California
DNQ 1956 Seafair Trophy Seattle, Washington
DNF 1956 Sahara Cup Las Vegas, Nevada
DNF 1957 Mapes Mile-High Gold Cup Tahoe City, California
DNQ 1957 APBA Gold Cup Seattle, Washington
DNC 1958 Mapes Mile-High Gold Cup Tahoe City, California

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