| 7/1/2006 9:00:00 AM | Email this article • Print this article | Regatta Notebook
One of biggest questions surrounding the Madison Regatta every year is its financialoutlook and this year is no exception. But before the big boats ever hit the water, the Regatta is proud to say that most of its bills have already been paid.
At Thursday's media party, Regatta treasurer Crystal McHargue presented American Boat Racing Association representative Dr. Ken Muscatel a check for $65,000, roughly half of the ABRA's sanctioning fee.
The ABRA requires that all race sites come up with that sum before racing ever begins, with the rest due after the race. Anytime McHargue is able to sign a check for expenses, it's a reason to smile. For Muscatel, having a check for $65,000 was even more of a reason.
"Hey, let's head to Acapulco!" Muscatel joked.
All jokes aside, the check is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of what it costs to stage the Regatta and without a major sponsor the all-volunteer, not-for-profit organization is once again relying on wristband sales to finish in the black.
Wristbands cost $25 and are available at all gates today and Sunday.
•
Every citizen of Madison, Ind., is a co-owner of the U-6 Oh Boy! Oberto, and now everyone nationwide can have a piece of the erstwhile Miss Madison.
Oh Boy! Oberto Beef Jerky has stepped up its marketing efforts this season and some of the hottest merchandise being sold on the riverfront this weekend will have the familiar red, green and white colors of Oberto.
Keychains, which feature a floating mini-Oberto, small die-cast toys (both pictured), holographic buttons, inflatable hats, crew shirts and six-foot inflatable Oberto boats are among the many items being sold at the Oh Boy! Oberto souvenir booth along with the traditional T-shirts and some pretty tasty beef jerky.
Maybe the coolest thing of all for Madison fans is each item features the Miss Madison's traditional U-6 number, cementing the relationship between the legendary race team with the Seattle-based company.
•
The battered hull of Billy Schumacher Racing's U-37 Miss Seattle - damaged in Heat 3A of last weekend's Evansville Thunder on the Ohio - has been repaired and is scheduled to arrive in Madison today for this weekend's 56th Indiana Governor's Cup.
The boat, which sustained serious damage when it nearly barrel-rolled after hitting a roller left by the roostertail of the U-1 Miss Elam Plus, spent all week at Wright Motors in Evansville where the U-37 crew has worked around the clock to ready the boat for Sunday's Madison Regatta.
"We've pretty much been working night and day to get this thing back in order," said U-37 crew chief Scott Raney. "We've been getting help from the people at Wright Motors, and their support has just been awesome. They just opened their dealership up to us and dove in head-first. Employees from McClintock's, an Evansville-based Sikkens paint dealer, have been helping body work the hull and the new uprights too."
Driver Jean Theoret escaped injury in the crash, but the rollover essentially destroyed everything above the hull line with the exception of the cockpit where Theoret was seated. The crew as forced to manufacture new uprights, A-frames, the horizontal stabilizer and the engine cowling. More importantly, Raney's charges also replaced several feet of deck on the left sponson deck along with making repairs to the right sponson.
The boat partially submerged following the crash and was towed ashore by rescue boats. As a result water inflicted severe damage on the Lycoming T-55, L-7c engine as well as the electrical system of the boat.
"Its amazing what these guys have been able to do over the last three days," Raney said. "We even had an eighth grader named Jordan Tramel flag us down on Sunday as we were leaving, and offer to help us any way he could. He's been working with us since Sunday."
•
Despite a dangerous looking crash one week ago in Evansville, Canadian Jean Theoret, driver of the U-37 Miss Seattle, won't think twice about stepping back into the cockpit of his bright yellow boat this weekend.
"It is just another part of racing," Theoret said, minutes after he nearly barrel-rolled the boat.
Despite the boat-smashing accident, Theoret doesn't worry about the dangers of racing. Being a devout Christian, he entrusts his devotion to God to guide him to safety.
"He (God) gives me wisdom on the course," he said. "I thank Him for my safe return."
•
Miss Madison Racing owner representative Bob Hughes and driver Steve David think the Madison-owned hydroplane's troubles at Evansville are behind it.
The boat, the U-6 Oh Boy! Oberto/Miss Madison, actually had a solid season-opening weekend at the Thunder on the Ohio - with the except of a couple of snags along the way.
David was the runner-up to eventual Thunder winner Miss Elam Plus in its other two preliminary heats and was the third fastest qualifier at 150.696 mph - the first time the boat has eclipsed the 150 mph mark on Evansville's two-mile course.
However, the Oberto/Miss Madison scored it's first "Did Not Start" in three years in Heat 2B when an ignitor malfunction, leaving the boat stranded at the dock. Then David's cockpit windshield was doused with so much water at the start of the final heat that he was blinded to the point he had trouble timing the start. The two incidents put one of the most competitive boats in the field behind the eight ball.
Hughes described the ignitor problem as a "fluke" and David said the team is fashioning a permanent shield to deflect water and keep it from being such a problem on the cockpit windshield in the future.
In addition, the team is still trying to crank more speed out of its 1988 vintage hull. Hughes said Miss Madison Racing took delivery of a new propeller just this week and that if the new wheel lives up to the team's expectations, more and more miles per hour are surely on the way.
•
Someone else who is happy to be in Madison is Dr. Ken Muscatel (inset) , driver and team manager for the U-2.25 Superior Racing.
Muscatel, who is from the Seattle area, has fond memories of Madison. It was on this course in 1998 where he scored a second place, the highest finish of his Unlimited career. Last year, he claimed a win in preliminary heat action, just a week after mechanical failure forced him onto the beach at Evansville at nearly 100 mph.
It's also in Madison where Muscatel served as a stunt driver and advisor for the movie "Madison," based on the Miss Madison's 1971 Gold Cup win on her home course.
"I've been coming here to race a long time, and there's no place on the hydroplane circuit that has the hydroplane history that Madison has," said Muscatel, who has appeared in every Indiana Governor's Cup since 1992. "It is a special place and the fans here love boat racing. We're very happy to be a part of it and to have a legacy of so many consecutive years racing here."
Muscatel's 15 trips to the small Indiana town are the third-most among the current fleet behind only the Miss Madison and the U-3 Master Tire.
|
Article Comment Form
|
