1909 Peoria Labor Day Regatta
Labor Day Regatta at Peoria
by A. T. Griffith
Helen C, owned by William Reese and son, was the surprise of the Labor Day Regatta of the Illinois Valley Yacht Club at Peoria, Ill. Over a triangular three-mile course, in the free-for-all event, this boat negotiated nine miles in 22 minutes and 30 seconds, or a twenty-four-mile-an-hour clip. Her hull is a new departure, designed and built by William Carrier, of Peoria. The boat is 25 feet 10 inches in the waterline, 27 feet 10 inches over all. He waterline beam is 37 inches, over-all beam is 42 inches. Her power plant is a four-cylinder 36-hp. Brownell-Trebert motor. With the usual long, slender racing bow and keel which slopes back flat, the bottom of the Helen C is drawn in just aft of midships, where a slight concave curve begins which is carried back to a flat stern. It was designed with the idea of giving the propeller more solid water in which to work, and it proved to be a success. The boat makes but little bow wave as evidenced by the fact that she was run without spray hoods, carried two heavy men, and it was necessary to slow her down on five of the eight turns in the course. She irons out a smooth wake and drags no water astern.
The races were attended by large crowds, and though the entries for the eight events were not numerous, the finishes were generally close. Harry G. Pratt’s Lady May won in the six-mile class; C. H. Chambers’ Facecia the eight-mile. Commodore Thos. H. Webb’s Saint III the ten-mile, F. R. Johnstone’s Comet the twelve-mile, G. E. Smith’s Pronto the fourteen-mile, and Helen C the free-for-all. H. E. Mulich’s Onaway won the slow race, and Webb’s Saint III took the trophy in the backward race.
Transcribed from MotorBoat, Sep. 25, 1909, p. 46.
[Thanks to Greg Calkins for help in preparing this page --LF]