Hydroplane Racing: Sport or Hobby?

First, and most importantly, let’s take a moment to honor and remember those armed services members who died while serving our country. Without their sacrifices, we would not enjoy the freedoms we dearly cherish on this Memorial Day and on every day of the year.

As someone who is pulling for our sport to achieve, grow and prosper, it is becoming increasingly difficult to push aside the tendency to think of Unlimited Hydroplane Racing as leaning toward being more of a hobby.

Harsh? Maybe.
Worth exploring? Absolutely.

It’s no secret our sport has had its share of challenges in recently years. Let’s take a look at some of the more recent issues, try to get a sense of direction, and see if we can get racing “off the trailers and into the water.”

Logistics and Resources, Baby!

IMG_1673 copyHistorically, races have been scheduled in such a way that teams could get their equipment to the next race, with adequate time to make course-specific modifications, in a safe manner, and along a logical route on the map. This year’s Unlimited Hydroplane Racing Schedule accomplishes that. Starting in Madison, then out west to Tri-Cities and Seattle, and then down the left coast to San Diego.

Fine, but there’s another component missing from a successful city-to-city transition.

Coeur d’Alene Leaves A Hole

With the 2015 CDA race postponed, there is now a 19 day hole in the schedule. Yes, that’s adequate to safely move equipment. However, one could also argue there’s an important resource missing during that time.

Let’s explore that missing resource as part of the Gold Cup story.

Gold Cup Heading West

With the Detroit River Regatta Association’s (DRRA) announcement of its intention to cease operations, a number of dominos are falling. First, some background. The Gold Cup belongs to the American Power Boat Association (APBA). With the DDRA no longer in existence, Tri-Cities has been successful in negotiating with APBA to host the Gold Cup July 24-26. They will have the honor of competing for the oldest active trophy in motor sports to celebrate 50 years of Water Follies. Congratulations to everyone in Tri-Cities!

Point 1

While efforts are underway to find a way to keep racing on the Detroit River, optimism isn’t rampant with no formal announcements made to date, now late in May. (See Steve David interview reference below, indicating a potential August date.) The discussion point here is of perceived strengths. If the relationship between H1 and DRRA was so weak that H1 truly did not know this was coming, it sends a tenuous signal about the potential strength as a sport. If H1 knew in plenty of time and still couldn’t place a race at such a storied location, they posses not much more strength than a hobbyist.

Point 2

Many Unlimited Hydroplane Racing teams have relied on Detroit not just as a race venue steeped in tradition, but also as a sort of land-based dry dock. With Madison (historically, the week before) being tough on boats — and Detroit tougher! — Detroit’s vast availability of industrial machine shops have been a strategic resource for quite some time.

IMG_9893 copy

In addition to race courses being hard on boats, boats need course-based tuning when courses are so different from week to week. For example, Detroit has long straightaways, one wide turn and in addition, the tightest turn on the circuit. Madison has comparatively short straightaways and wide turns. Boats are tuned differently for courses like these.

Tri-Cities is a wonderful area of the country and hosts a great event annually in the Water Follies. However, it could be argued that they do not possess the same sort of industrial resources as Detroit. Getting to Tri-Cities in plenty of time is one thing, but how will the boats be repaired and/or tuned?

With several teams based in the east, they of course could travel to their home garages for work prior to heading west to Tri-Cities. Most of the remaining teams could bypass Tri-Cities for Seattle and use their home bases in the region before heading out to Eastern Washington.

All of this is to say that a sport which relies heavily on one city, doesn’t necessarily constitute a hobby endeavor. However, it does cause a wake in the logistics, significantly complicating the planning. With 19 days between races, teams may be asking themselves, “Do we send the boat back home, do repairs, then travel, or should we move west and make repairs and modifications along the way?” Answers are probably different for east- versus west-based teams.


Additionally, that doesn’t even address the impact on volunteer crew members and how they manage the vacation allotted to them from their day jobs.

Monty Hall: Door or Curtain?

On Let’s Make a Deal, Monty Hall would pose this question to contestants. If magic happens tomorrow — and a Detroit Race materializes — where would they place it on the schedule?

Ideally, and traditionally, it would take place the weekend following Madison, especially since the loss of Coeur d’Alene creates that 19 day gap. But look at the calendar: we’re only seven weeks away – and counting quickly.

If a Detroit race were placed on the schedule between Seattle (July 31-Aug 2) and San Diego (September 18-20), considerable country criss-crossing would be required. (Out east for Madison, west for Tri-Cities and Seattle, east for Detroit, then finally west for San Diego.) I’m thinking… No. (More on this below.)

Another opportunity for our Damn Smart Fans: what do you think is the best option for Detroit? Either for this year, or maybe more realistically, in 2016

Doha: Too Many Eggs in One Basket?

Professional financial planners and money managers suggest diversification to mitigate investment risk. With another recent announcement of a race venue disappearing, Doha is further evidence of poor diversification.

Historically, teams have relied on Doha “Show Money” to support operations. Domestically, teams have earned in the range of $8,500 to $12,000 for each team participating in a race. While some performance-based payouts have been implemented more recently, the overall amounts pale in comparison to “Doha Dollars.”

Show Money from Doha appearances have been in an approximate range of $80,000 to $120,000 for each participating team, approximately 10 times that from domestic appearances. While not a true order of magnitude, 10X is substantial; substantial enough to cause a significant hole in a team’s operating budget.

Relying too much on one very deep-pocketed venue for sustaining operations shows short-sighted stewardship. If you or I had personal investments grossly overweighted in one stock, shame on us for not making appropriate adjustments just in case that one company hits a reef. The same is true in business. Relying too much on one “customer” is bad business.

Still Not Sure About H1

It is becoming harder for me to place a bet on either “sport” or “hobby.” Admittedly, this is a narrow view with just a few examples. To be fair, Steve David addresses some of these points briefly in his audio interview with Steve Montgomery posted yesterday on the H1 web site.

When asked about Doha going away, he touches on H1 being lean, conserving cash and as a result of not traveling to Qatar, lowering its expenses. That may be successful for the short term, but is “hunkering down” sustainable for the long term and what impact will it have on individual teams?

He’s very, VERY positive about a race taking place in August. If that comes to fruition, teams will be forced to travel to Madison, then from Madison to Tri-Cities and Seattle, then to Detroit and subsequently, back to the west coast’s San Diego mid-season. (See Monty Hall above.) Talk about adding expense!

One point giving rise to my own optimism is his reference to potential expansion in 2016 in Owensboro, Kentucky and the return of Coeur d’Alene. However, everyone knows the challenges new venues face just to put on an event.

Time Will Tell

Leadership is a key factor in how an organization is perceived, the tenacity it holds, and the results it achieves. Hobbies often thrive in a vacuum of serious leadership, but a true sport needs true leadership that can foresee and anticipate the future.

As Damn Smart Fans, what do you see for the future of Unlimited Hydroplane Racing?

UHR Dave


Share with your friends!

2 thoughts on “Hydroplane Racing: Sport or Hobby?

  • July 23, 2015 at 8:36 PM
    Permalink

    Have watched the races in Seattle since I was 6 0r 7 years old.. I have kept pictures of races and drivers way back from the Slo MO boats and Notre Dame Atlas Van Lines. The green Dragon Bardahl.

  • May 27, 2015 at 1:24 PM
    Permalink

    Great read Dave as always, pretty much hit the nail on the head. In my opinion the sport has to be run as a business. For too many years a select few have called the shots, made the rules to suit themselves, appointed who they wanted as a director because they could control them and because of this stupidity it’s going to be it’s final demise. Basically, if it’s not going to benefit a select few, it’s not going to happen. Keep the blinders on and the results will be in sucking the last bit of life from the sport. There is no truth in the new regimes promise of transparency.

    We have talked many times over the last few years and you have been with me sense day one writing stories on this site about the adventures and progress of trying to bring a new race site to Arkansas for our beloved boats. I have spoken to hundreds of people in the sport and behind the sport to gather as much information as possible. With that information I could make the decision to have an event or no. Strange thing, other than talking with H1 at a race site, I have been contacted by them one time in three years. Now, if they are wanting to grow the sport, why is this? Through all of my research I found out and made public that Qatar was going away, the response by the new chairman to me was quote, Frantz,
    Ive been patient with you, tried to help you with your proposed race, etc. But buddy, we’re thru . . . For you to post something so absurd, so blatantly unfounded goes beyond anything I would have expected from you. we will return to Doha for the next 4 years per our contract. You on the other hand no longer exist in my eyes.

    Nice thing to say on a public forum to a hopeful new site and it’s promoter don’t you think? Strange that someone in poe-dunk USA can find these things out six months prior to and H1 just now released the info to it’s validity.

    Also I made public months ago that Idaho would not happen this year and pretty much got the same response. Most recently I informed the fan that Oberto was pulling out after Seattle but that has not been officially announced at the present, why the secrets? Where is the transparency spoke of? The negative is outweighing the positive. The sanction is broke, no sponsorship, most of the teams are on a shoestring budget and the few that aren’t are calling all the shots. Most people don’t know that Budweiser was ran out of the sport by these same stupid ideas such as it’s my way or the highway! Point in case, we have a competitive piston boat that can win a race on any given day who would bring thousands more ticket sales and where are they? Sitting in a shop. New chairman says they welcome new engine combos, run what ya brung etc. etc. but this particular boat isn’t welcome because they are a threat to a select few and that select few has the new chairman by the yeng-yang who supposedly was to have full rein to make the changes necessary. Other budget teams could be competitive with simple rule changes, but that would make them a threat. Do we see the same ole song and dance? The rest is simple math, a team spends 20 plus K to get to a race and gets $6,500 to $10K for being there. Doesn’t make good sense. Are me and a few others the only ones with the blinders off? Can no one stand up to the select few and tell them how the cow is going to eat the cabbage before this thing goes in the toilet? Problem right now is no one can afford to drive across the country to a new site or one that looks like it might be resurrected (Detroit). I’ve been told several times, pay and they will come! Well, pay and get what? Well I guess we will have to wait and see. No advertising, no TV etc. and you wonder why attendance is way down. One other thing, APBA needs to go away, they do nothing but take the teams and subscribers money period. This is nothing more that a hobby these days!

Comments are closed.