1999 Budweiser Thunder on the
Ohio
Ohio River, Evansville, Indiana June 27, 1999
VILLWOCK- MISS BUDWEISER BEAT THE CLOCK TO WIN AT EVANSVILLE
Evansville, IN (June 27, 1999): Dave Villwock and Miss Budweiser gambled twice and won the one that counted Sunday to take the Budweiser Thunder on the Ohio at Evansville.
Second place went to Mark Weber of St Clair Shores, MI in the U-10 York International followed by rookie Greg Hopp of Seattle in the U-15 Miss WIKY.
Finishing fourth was the Miss Madison, driven by Todd Yarling. Both the York International and the Miss Madison were returning to competition after major accidents in last week’s event in Barrie, Ontario.
Chip Hanauer and the Miss Pico were penalized one lap for jumping the gun on the start of the final championship heat and placed fifth.
Earlier in the day, Villwock and Miss Budweiser were penalized one lap for jumping the gun in Heat 2A.
“Chip got on the gas just a split second before I did and he was over by a boat length, maybe two,” said Villwock. The competition is getting really tight and as a result everyone is squeezing the clock to get the lead on the start,” said Villwock. “I jumped the gun in my second heat along with two other boats (U-20 Appian Jeronimo and U-10 York International). We are all going to jump a few times this year, it just goes with being aggressive.”
“I wondered why Dave wasn’t up there alongside Chip at the start,” said Miss Budweiser team owner Bernie Little. “Then, when we realized that Chip had jumped, we knew why. These guys are really charging the starting line.”
The winning speed for Villwock and the Miss Budweiser was 138.557 miles per hour.
Next stop on the 1999 Ralph’s Unlimited Thunder Tour is the Budweiser Indiana Governor’s Cup at Madison on July 2-4.
This is Dave Villwock's second consecutive victory. Because of a new rule established during the off-season, Villwock will not be allowed to start in lane one for any heat (including the final) during next weekend's race in Madison, IN.
UNLIMITED CHAMPIONSHIP HEAT:
| Place | Boat # | Boat Name | Driver | Speed | Points |
| 1st | U-1 | Miss Budweiser | Dave Villwock | 138.557 | 400 |
| 2nd | U-10 | YORK International | Mark Weber | 133.408 | 300 |
| 3rd | U-15 | 104.1 FM Miss WIKY | Greg Hopp | 125.767 | 225 |
| 4th | U-6 | Miss Madison | Todd Yarling | 122.983 | 169 |
| 5th | U-100 | Miss
Pico One lap penalty for jumping gun |
Chip Hanauer | 140.493 | 127 |
| U-3 | Master Tire | Mike Weber | DNF | ||
|
Fast Lap: Lap 1, Chip Hanauer, 146.648 mph |
|||||
O'Doul's Unlimited National High Points
| Boat # | Boat Name | Points |
| U-1 | Miss Budweiser | 4,645 |
| U-100 | Miss Pico | 3,698 |
| U-15 | 104.1 FM Miss WIKY | 3,191 |
| U-10 | YORK International | 2,703 |
| U-3 | Master Tire | 1,544 |
| U-2 | Arc Construction | 1,469 |
| U-6 | Miss Madison | 1,455 |
| U-9 | Jones Racing | 1,432 |
| U-20 | Appian Jeronimo | 1,153 |
| U-16 | Miss Elam Plus | 1,099 |
| U-8 | Llumar Window Film | 1063 |
| DRIVERS | POINTS |
| Dave Villwock | 4,645 |
| Chip Hanauer | 3,698 |
| Greg Hopp | 3,191 |
| Mark Weber | 2,703 |
| Mike Weber | 1,544 |
| Steve David | 1,469 |
| Todd Yarling | 1,455 |
| Mike Hanson | 1,432 |
| Mitch Evans | 1,153 |
| Jimmy King | 1,099 |
| Nate Brown | 1,063 |
UNLIMITED LIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP HEAT:
| Place | Boat # | Boat Name | Driver | Speed (mph) | Points |
| 1st | UL-10 | Earl's Performance | Charley Wiggins | 111.923 | 400 |
| 2nd | UL-16 | ALAMO | Bo Schide | 109.165 | 300 |
| 3rd | UL-72 | Impact Equipments | Greg Hopp | 102.046 | 225 |
| 4th | UL-110 | Miss Compair/Coleman Eng. | Randy Haas | 98.346 | 168 |
| 5th | UL-23 | APEX Laser/River House | Cal Phipps | 74.881 | 127 |
| UL-15 | www.LadyspyPI.com | Jerry Hopp | DNF | ||
| Fast Lap: Lap 3, Charley Wiggins, 112.612 | |||||
Line up for the 4:10pm Championship:
U-100 - Miss Pico - 1,200 points
U-1 - Miss Budweiser - 1,025 points
U-15 - 104.1 FM Miss WIKY - 750 points
U-6 - Miss Madison - 569 points
U-10 - York International - 525 points
U-2 - Arc Construction - 427 point
TRAILER: U-3 Master Tire
The following have withdrawn from the Championship Heat:
U-8 - Llumar Window Film with hull damage
U-20 - Appian Jeronimo - not clear on reason
U-9 - Jones Racing - not clear on reason
Heat 3B:
Heat 3B saw Nate Brown in the Llumar Window Film across the start line first but the Dave Villwock in the Miss Budweiser had the lead by end of the first corner. Caught in tight quarters behind Miss Budweiser was Mitch Evans in the Appian Jeronimo who didn't make it out of the corner with the boat running.
Greg Hopp and Todd Yarling both finished and gained valuable points as the calculators are now busy determining who will make the six boat Championship Final based on overall points.
| Place | Boat # | Boat Name | Driver | Speed | Points |
| 1st | U-1 | Miss Budweiser | Dave Villwock | 142.434 | 400 |
| 2nd | U-8 | Llumare Window Film | Nate Brown | 134.139 | 300 |
| 3rd | U-15 | 104.1 FM Miss Wiky | Greg Hopp | 131.258 | 225 |
| 4th | U-6 | Miss Madison | Todd Yarling | 119.851 | 169 |
| U-20 | Appian Jeronimo | Mitch Evans | DNF | ||
| Fast Lap: | |||||
HEAT 3A:
| Place | Boat # | Boat Name | Driver | Speed | Points |
| 1st | U-100 | Miss Pico | Chip Hanauer | 141.408 | 400 |
| 2nd | U-2 | Arc Construction | Steve David | 137.085 | 300 |
| 3rd | U-10 | YORK International | Mark Weber | 134.627 | 225 |
| 4th | U-9 | Jones Racing | Mike Hanson | 124.781 | 169 |
| 5th | U-3 | Master Tire | Mike Weber | 100.883 | 127 |
| Fast Lap: Lap 1, Chip Hanauer, 146.190mph | |||||
HEAT 2B:
| Place | Boat # | Boat Name | Driver | Speed | Points |
| 1st | U-100 | Miss PICO | Chip Hanauer | 142.398 | 400 |
| 2nd | U-8 | Llumar Window Film | Nate Brown | 137.632 | 300 |
| 3rd | U-15 | Miss Wickie | Greg Hopp | 135.595 | 225 |
| 4th | U-9 | Jones Racing | Mike Hanson | 124.207 | 169 |
| 5th | U-3 | Master Tire | Mike Weber | 115.473 | 127 |
| Fast Lap: Lap 1, Chip Hanauer, 147.167mph | |||||
HEAT 2 A:
Three boats jumped the gun in Heat 2A with Mitch Evans in Appian Jeronimo leading the way. The extra laps gave the checkered flag to the Miss Madison, who was finally able to make a start after using the Commissioner's Option to gain entry into today's racing.
| Place | Boat # | Boat Name | Driver | Speed | Points |
| 1st | U-6 | Miss Madison | Todd Yarling | 126.923 | 400 |
| 2nd | U-2 | Arc Construction | Steve David | 116.860 | 300 |
| 3rd | U-1 | Miss Budweiser one lap penalty - jumped gun |
Dave Villwock | 148.425 | 225 |
| 4th | U-20 | Appian Jeronimo one lap penalty - jumped gun |
Mitch Evans | 134.893 | 169 |
| 5th | U-10 | YORK International | Mark Weber | DNF | |
| Fast Lap: | |||||
UNLIMITED LIGHT SEMI FINAL RESULTS:
The Unlimited Lights began today's racing where they left off yesterday, side by side, especially the two "yellow" boats, Bo Schide's UL-16 Alamo and Charley Wiggins'UL-10 Earl's Performance Products. Deck-to-deck during the entire three laps, Bo Schide kept Alamo's nose out front, but not by much.
Cal Phipps in the UL-23 APEX Laser managed to take the lead at the start of the race and kept it a three boat race through the first two laps. UL-72 Impact Equipment also made a gallant charge towards the front with Randy Haas in the Comp Air and Steve Kuhr keeping things interesting behind him. Kuhr did not finish the heat and Wiggins hit a buoy on lap two which resulted in a one minute penalty.
| Place | Boat # | Boat Name | Driver | Speed | Points |
| 1st | UL-16 | Alamo | Bo Schide | 111.495 | 400 |
| 2nd | UL-23 | APEX Laser presents River House | Cal Phipps | 106.981 | 300 |
| 3rd | UL-72 | Impact Equipment | Greg Hopp | 100.056 | 225 |
| 4th | UL-111 | Miss Compair / Coleman Engineering | Randy Hass | 97.503 | 169 |
| 5th | UL-10 | Earl's Performance Products one minute penalty for hitting a buoy |
Charley Wiggins | 107.630 | 127 |
| 6th | UL-317 | The Irishman | Steve Kuhr | DNF | |
| Fast Lap: Lap Three, Bo Schide, 112.657mph | |||||
HEAT 1B:
Dave Villwock showed Greg Hopp around the race course in Heat 1B this morning. Hopp managed to capture lane one for the start of the race but Villwock swiftly took the lead and easily held it through the three laps of racing.
Hopp gallantly held second place with Mitch Evans taking third place and Mike Weber in Ed Cooper's U-3 Master Tire finishing fourth.
| Place | Boat # | Boat Name | Driver | Speed | Points |
| 1st | U-1 | Miss Budweiser | Dave Villwock | 140.978 | 400 |
| 2nd | U-15 | 104.2 FM Miss WIKY | Greg Hopp | 135.147 | 300 |
| 3rd | U-20 | Appian Jeronimo | Mitch Evans | 131.801 | 225 |
| 4th | U-3 | Master Tire | Mike Weber | 115.354 | 169 |
| U-6 | Miss Madison | Todd Yarling | Did Not Start | ||
| Fast Lap: Lap 1, Dave Villwock, 154.308 mph | |||||
HEAT 1A:
It was a drag race all around the Ohio River this morning as Mark Weber and Chip Hanauer dueled side-by-side through three laps in today's first heat of racing. Mark, in lane two, hit the start line first and held the lead during the first lap.
Throughout lap two the lead diced back and forth. Hanauer, on the inside, finally got a boat length lead on Mark Weber in the final turn of the race and held Weber off as he crossed the finish line first.
Weber ran the fastest lap of the heat at 143.190 mph on the final lap.
| Place | Boat # | Boat Name | Driver | Speed | Points |
| 1st | U-100 | Miss Pico | Chip Hanauer | 141.991 | 400 |
| 2nd | U-10 | York International | Mark Weber | 141.551 | 300 |
| 3rd | U-8 | Llumar Window Film | Nate Brown | 127.152 | 225 |
| 4th | U-9 | Jones Racing | Michael Hanson | 125.594 | 169 |
| 5th | U-2 | Arc Construction one lap penalty for hitting a buoy |
Steve David | 119.026 | 127 |
| Fast Lap: Lap 3, Mark Weber, 143.190 mph | |||||
Notes:
1. Miss Madison has taken the Commissioner's Option and will be running in Heat 1B at 11:30 this morning.
SATURDAY REPORT:
Unlimited Light Heat 1 Results:
UL# / Driver / Team / Speed (mph)
UL-16 BO SCHIDE ALAMO
105.001
UL-10 CHARLEY WIGGINS EARL'S PERFORMANCE
101.098
UL-110 RANDY HAAS MISS COMPAIR - COLEMAN
ENGINEERING 98.098
GNH317 STEVEN KUHR THE IRISHMAN
94.134
UL-15 JERRY HOPP www.LadyspyPI.com
79.819
UL-72 GREG HOPP IMPACT
EQUIPEMENT
DNF
UL-23 CAL PHIPPS APEX LAZER presents
RIVER HOUSE DNF
Fast Lap: Bo Schide ALAMO 107.351mph
Unlimited Qualification Ladder:
| Boat Number | Boat Name | Driver | Qualifying speed (mph) | Comment |
| U-1 | Miss Budweiser (T-5) | Dave Villwock | 162.701 | |
| U-1 | Miss Budweiser (T-3) | Dave Villwock | 157.694 | |
| U-100 | Miss Pico (98-2) | Chip Hanauer | 152.591 | Speed Increase |
| U-100 | Miss Pico (98-1) | Chip Hanauer | 149.124 | N-2 Violation |
| U-10 | York International | Mark Weber | 148.350 | Speed Increase |
| U-15 | 104.1 FM Miss WIKY | Greg Hopp | 146.586 | Speed Increase |
| U-8 | Llumar Window Film | Nate Brown | 142.146 | |
| U-9 | Jones Racing | Mike Hanson | 141.771 | Speed Increase |
| U-2 | Arc Construction | Steve David | 141.102 | N-2 Violation |
| U-20 | Appian Jeronimo | Mitch Evans | 135.387 | |
| U-3 | Master Tire | Mike Weber | 123.616 | |
| U-14 | Miss Northwest Unlimited | Ken Muscatel | Pass | |
| U-6 | Miss Madison | Todd Yarling | (not in pits) |
Charley Wiggins in the UL-10 Earl's Performance Products Unlimited Light just ran a test lap of 120.321 miles per hour! Given the fact that his boat is automotive powered ... if he were an Unlimited... where the qualifying minimum is 120 mph... he'd be qualified for racing with the Unlimiteds this weekend.
FRIDAY REPORT:
Ten of the eleven Unlimited hydroplanes schedule to compete in the Budweiser Thunder on the Ohio are in the pits as of 4:00 pm Central time. The U-6 Miss Madison has not arrived on site.
Several boats have tested on the Ohio River today... the first one on the water was Dave Villwock (U-1) who ran a lap of 161.562mph. Following is the order of testing today with fastest lap speed (mph).
Testing Speeds (mph):
U-9 - 137.15
U-1 - 157.7
U-2 - 159.670
U-9 - 139.9
U-3 - 89.4
U-20 - 134.4
U-100 - 145.8
U-14: While on the water today - it was only so they could move his
boat trailer into place ... team is working non-stop in the pits as Dr. Ken
Muscatel hopes to qualify today so he can be the one to race his brand new boat
for the first time... if they are unable to make the 4:30 to 7:00 pm test
session then Dr. Ken will put someone else into his new boat to qualify so he
can race on Sunday. Dr. Ken is flying back to Seattle this evening in
order to participate in the Seafair activities in Seattle on Saturday. He's
expected back into Evansville late Saturday night.
UNLIMITED LIGHTS
As for Unlimited Lights, we have the UL-23 Apex Laser and UL16 Alamo in the pits. The UL10 has been spotted in the Evansville area... Total UL boat count should be eight for this event.
UL-10 Charley Wiggins Earl's Performance Products
UL-15 Jerry Hopp Ladyspy.pl.com
UL-16 Bo Schide Alamo
UL-23 Cal Phipps Apex Laser
presents River House
UL-72 Phil Bononcini Impact Equipment
UL-102 Scott McGregor Propulsion
UL-110 Randy Haas Miss CompAir
GNH317 Steve Kuhr The Irishman
BUDWEISER THUNDER ON THE OHIO RACING SCHEDULE
Saturday:
9 - 10 am - Testing Session - Unlimiteds
10 - 11 am - Qualifying Session B - Unlimiteds
11:15 - 11:45 am - Unlimited Drivers Autograph Party
12 - 12:30 pm - Lights practice
12:30 - 2:30 pm - Qualifying Session C - Unlimiteds
3:30 pm - Unlimited Driver's Meeting
3:30 pm - Unlimited Light - Heat 1A
4:00 pm - Unlimited Light - Heat 1B
4:30 pm - Unlimited Light - Heat 2A
5:00 pm - Unlimited Light - Heat 2B
Sunday:
8 - 9:00 am - Unlimited testing
11:00 am - Unlimiteds - Heat 1A
11:30 am - Unlimiteds - Heat 1B
11:45 - 12 Noon - Unlimited Lights Semi Final Race
12:30 pm - Unlimiteds Heat 2A
1:00 pm - Unlimiteds Heat 2B
2:30 pm - Unlimiteds Heat 3A
3:00 pm - Unlimiteds Heat 3B
3:10 - 3:25 pm - Unlimited Lights Championship Final
3:40 pm - Unlimited Provisional Heat
4:10 pm - BUDWEISER THUNDER ON THE OHIO FINAL HEAT
HYDROS BATTLE TO CONTINUE AT THE BUDWEISER THUNDER ON THE OHIO
Dave Villwock Leads Points; Chip Hanauer Returns; Greg Hopp Is Hot; And More
The 1999 Ralph's Unlimited Thunder Tour continues this weekend in Evansville, Ind., at the annual Budweiser Thunder on the Ohio. Miss Budweiser driver Dave Villwock, coming off a dominant effort this past weekend in Barrie, Ont., is the three-time defending champion at the Evansville event and currently holds an 839-point lead in the championship battle.
Chip Hanauer, the winningest driver in Evansville history with seven victories to his credit, returns to the Hydros circuit in the Miss Pico entry after a two-and-a-half year absence on the tour. Hanauer won the season-opening Hydros race in Lake Havasu, Ariz. Since his unlimited debut in 1976, he has amassed seven National Championships and ten Gold Cups, including a record seven straight from 1982-88.
Hanauer currently holds the following pre-restrictor records at the two-mile Evansville course:
Qualification lap: 165.975 mph in Miss Budweiser (1993)
Competition lap: 156.713 mph in Miss Budweiser (1993)
6-mile heat: 154.185 mph in Miss Budweiser (1993)
10-mile heat: 146.904 mph in Miss Budweiser (1993)
28-mile race: 144.869 mph in Miss Budweiser (1992)
Expected to give Villwock and Hanauer a challenge in Evansville is rookie Greg Hopp, who is currently third in Hydros points. He finished third in Lake Havasu and fourth in Barrie.
York International driver Mark Weber, currently fourth in points, will be racing in Evansville despite an accident last weekend in Barrie. The team reports that they will be working non-stop to repair the boat in time for testing on Friday.
Mike Weber, driving the Evansville-based U3 for Ed Cooper Jr. and Sr., will be looking to solidify his fifth-place points standings with the only piston-powered Hydro on the unlimited tour.
Testing and qualifying will get underway on Friday, June 25 and continue through raceday on June 27.
Website: http://www.evvthunderfest.org/
(Republished from Hydros™; text and images ©Hydros™; used by permission)
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