Four Teams, Five Drivers Set For Spring

KENNEWICK, Wash. --- Call it spring training, pre-season practice or a mini-camp, but whatever you call it, on Friday, May 29th, the Tri-City Water Follies will host more unlimited hydroplane teams than ever before will be assembled for pre-season test sessions on the Columbia River.

Four teams and five drivers have committed to the testing session. The U- 9 Jones Racing with Scott Liddycoat, the U-96 Ellstrom Racing with Jean Theoret, the U-12 Centurion Racing team with rookie driver Patrick Sankuer and U-7 Team Porter Racing II with drivers Jesse Robertson and J. Michael Kelly both piloting the U-7 will take to the river for multiple test runs from 9:00 am to 5 pm.

“I do not remember ever having four boats on the Columbia River for a pre-season testing session,” said Tri-Cities Water Follies past president and H1 Unlimited Hydroplane Board Member Mike Denslow. “The last time I remember three boats running pre-season testing sessions here was during the Miss Budweiser era in the 90’s.”

Last year, only the U-9 Jones Racing team tested in Kennewick prior to the national circuit.

“This is exactly how we want our teams to prepare for the season,” said H1 Unlimited Hydroplane Chairman Steve David. “We have 11 teams committed to compete at each race site on the national circuit and to see the pre-season work and now the practice sessions scheduled for the majority of our race teams is great for the sport.”

From July 24th thru the 26th, the Tri-City Water Follies will host the 50th annual Unlimited event as the H1 race teams will compete for most coveted prize in all of power boat racing -- the Tri-Cities HAPO American Power Boat Association Gold Cup. This race will be 116th running of the APBA Gold Cup, the oldest motorsport trophy in the world.

The H1 Unlimited Hydroplane season opens with the Madison Regatta on July 4th thru 6th on the Ohio River in Madison, Ind. Go to www.H1Unlimited.com for links to the schedule, race sites, tickets, race teams, and all the information about the sport.