The Vintage Hydroplanes

This 1972 photo, taken by Phil Kunz in St. Pete, is of the Henry Lauterbach built hydro, Kitty B. Phil was told back then that the decks were Cherry.
Editor note: If it is Cherry veneer on the decks, it is quarter-sliced. If it was the typical plain-sliced cut most folks are used to seeing, it would have cathedrals in the wood grain pattern and is a very pleasing, soft grain. This quarter-sliced Cherry also has a very heavy “flame” (which is the robust medullary rays you see and can be quite pronounced at certain viewing angles).
Below is some neat examples of Cherry, quartered-sliced, flamed.

A neat write up by Hagerty Insurance on the beginnings and evolution of the Buick aluminum V-8. A few of these motors ended up in the modified class hydroplanes. I had heard from a couple of former drivers that those Buick V8s could became almost a grenade motor when used in the highly-stressed situation encountered in a hydroplane race. [shrapnel def – fragments of a bomb, shell, casings and/or other objects thrown out by an explosion]

One of the best onboard video runs I’ve ever seen. Kirk Rodgers and his Miss Merion Bluegrass “wrings out the laundry” in this run. I also recommend viewing in full screen mode (or better yet, on your big screen TV) and crank up the stereo speakers as well.

The American Power Boat Association’s Vintage & Historic event dates are added to the APBA 2019 Events’ monthly calendars. Be sure to make your plans to attend! Please be aware there is a couple of new events and as of this posting (April 11), are tentative…so check out before making arrangements to attend.

If you want a consolidated calendar (below) click on the Jade Dragon F-888 or Miss Dinomytes GP-1001 for PDF versions or Jade Dragon F-888 or Miss Dinomytes GP-1001 for .jpg versions — and you can save these event calendars and/or print them and hang them in your shop or office. Or feel free to post them anywhere on social media, email them friends, etc. Spread the word!
Thanks to Phil Kunz for allowing us to use his photographic work for these 2019 event calendars.

This boat is coming up for auction soon. Note from the Auction house states: “It was designed by San Diegan Steve Ball and set a world record of 101.47 mph at the Modesto Reservoir in 1975”.
Folks on Facebook are saying it was a fast hydro. It was seen as far east as Morgan City. Butch Kropfeld remembers running against it when he won the 1977 Nationals at Castaic Lake in California.
Another observation was – fast in the straights, but you didn’t want to be next to the whipping tail in the turns. (I can see that)
…….Definitely unique!

John Lawrence wrote up an ACBS article on his hydro.

Bill Bunn has passed away recently, his daughter Amy Dahan has informed us. She is trying to contact the owner of her father’s boat as she has some memorabilia she would like to pass on. If anyone has the contact info for Tracey Coleman of Gambrills, Maryland, please send her an email.

Here’s the Media sheet this website has on the boat.

Hello,
I recently acquired an older wood Italian race boat. This is what I know about the boat, but nothing more. I wanted to research it a little more. Any ideas where to find more info?
Thanks!
Anthony

• 

Rare Italian 22’ Racer. 125mph on a bad day. Sounds amazing! Custom racing engine. Vintage race ready! This was a museum piece for over 20 years.

5000 V-6 engine Hemi 5.0 Liter
22′ hull custom built by Molinari
Hand-laid mahogany hull with Fiberglass
Hemi heads
3 Weber 2-barrel carburetors
Stemdrive equipped with cavitation injection
Hydraulic trim
Spare lower unit
3 propellers

BPM and Molinari are two revered Italian names that will quicken the pulse of anyone who loves speed on water. Born in 1946, Renato Molinari has racing DNA. His father, boat builder Angelo, took up hydroplane racing as the world returned to peace after World War II. After a period as a teenage test driver for Glastron, young Renato took up the mantle and propelled the family name into the spotlight, becoming one of the most successful powerboat racers of all time—with 18 world championships including three F1 titles—as the leading-edge boats built by Cantiere Molinari on the banks of Lake Como dominated many racing categories on both sides of the Atlantic. As for Botta Puricelli Milano, better known as BPM, the company founded in 1932 has forged an enviable reputation in the field of high-performance and racing marine engines, along with surface drives and other ancillaries. 

Exclusive boatyards such as Riva and Abbate specify BPM for high-performance applications, as do most Class 1 race teams. It was in 1984, as Renato claimed his third Formula 1 World Championship, that Molinari created a 22-foot single-seat custom off-shore racer for Vincenzo Tiozzo. At its heart is a rare aluminum Oceanic 5000 V-6 with hemi heads and three Weber two-barrel carburetors delivering power via a stern drive with cavitation injection, along with hefty hydraulically operated trim tabs. 

There are three propellers to optimize performance in different sea conditions and a spare lower unit. A twin-axle heavy-duty road trailer with cradle completes the inventory. 

The Tiozzo BPM Molinari resided for many years in a major Italian private collection where it was stablemates with 60 powerboats and 423 classic cars including a long-nose alloy Ferrari 275GTB/6C. 

The 10th annual Gull Lake Classic Boat Show was held at Bar Harbor on Gull Lake, MN. The 2018 show, presented by the BSLOL Chapter of the ACBS and hosted by the Bar Harbor Supper Club, was titled, “Gold Cup & Race Boat Regatta” and featured many of the famous Gold Cup race boats. The show offered a great opportunity to see first hand the craftsmanship that was used to construct some of the world’s fastest racing wood boats that campaigned back in the day.