1952 Red Bank Gold Cup
The 1952 Red Bank Regatta - Red Bank Gold Cup
The first heat of the Red Bank Gold Cup was essentially a duplicate of the Sweepstakes insofar as starters were concerned. Casualties were heavy in this event as My Sweetie spun in the stretch of the third lap and Wildcatter overheated. The big Gold Cupper bounced off a wave, possibly from a moving spectator craft, and spun wickedly, tossing her driver Al D'Eath over the side and inflicting mortal damage to her structure. As D'Eath was taken to the hospital for a broken arm and two cracked ribs, My Sweetie was towed to the pits where her starboard side was found to be holed and her engine stringers cracked. Members of the crew of the boat indicated, after examination, that the boat was beyond repair in that the hull was sprung and the internal damage was quite severe. Because of the rescue fleet that converged on the sinking Sweetie, the remainder of the competitors slowed for the final lap and the winner, Rowland again, turned in a respectable 76.921 miles an hour.
(Reprinted from The Rudder, November, 1952)