1949 New Jersey Governor's Trophy
Lynn Beats Lombardo Speed Boat in Regatta at Lake Hopatcong
Takes Two of Three 10-Mile Heats to Top Band Leader for the Governor's Trophy
By Clarence E. Lovejoy
Lake Hopatcong, N.J., July 17 [1949] — Two of the country's most spectacular top-flight speed boat pilots who have been fairly itching for a match race, finally came together this wet, rainy, rough afternoon and after three heats totaling 30 miles for the Governor's Trophy, it was Harry Lynn in his LaHaLa who took the honors, leaving Guy Lombardo in his Tempo VI the runner-up.
Both were in the cockpits of Gold Cup creations with aircraft Allison motors. At Detroit next Saturday they will be among the favorites in the elimination racing for places on the United States Harmsworth defense team.
Today, despite sloppy wind and weather conditions on this mountain lake, Lynn, who maintains a fleet of speed boats of several sizes and classes at his Halsey Island summer lake-side home, captured the first and third ten-mile heats with a surprisingly fast 69.898 miles an hour in the initial test and 63.789 m.p.h. in the last.
In the second heat, which the band leader won with a speed of 62.026 m.p.h., Lynn twice was forced to slow down almost to a halt and later reported a short supply of gas in his fuel tanks. This made his carburetors run dry when he planed at high speeds and compelled him to level off with his how down to get any fuel feed.
In a ceremony at the Lake Hopatcong Yacht Club tonight Acting Governor David Van Alstyne Jr., normally president of the State Senate but who becomes Jersey's Chief Executive when Gov. Alfred E. Driscoll is out of the state, awarded the silver trophy to a "local Lake Hopatcong cottager who made good."
| Governor's Trophy | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ten-Mile Heats | |||
| First Heat | |||
| 1 | LaHaLa | Harry Lynn | Halsey Lake, NJ |
| 2 | Etta | G.E. Sarant | Freeport, L.I. |
| 3 | Tempo VI | Guy Lombardo | Freeport, L.I. |
| 4 | Aljo | Joe Van Blerck, Jr. | Freeport, L.I. |
| 5 | Baby June | Frank Dubeshter | Jamaica, L.I. |
| Time 8:38 2/5; Speed 69.898 m.p.h. | |||
| Second Heat | |||
| 1 | Tempo VI | Lombardo | — |
| 2 | Etta | Sarant | — |
| 3 | Aljo | Van Blerck | — |
| 4 | LaHaLa | Lynn | — |
| 5 | Baby June | Dubeshter | — |
| Time 9:40 3/5; Speed 62.026 m.p.h. | |||
| Third Heat | |||
| 1 | LaHaLa | Lynn | — |
| 2 | Tempo VI | Lombardo | — |
| 3 | Etta | Sarant | — |
| 4 | Aljo | Van Blerck | — |
| 5 | Baby June | Dubeshter | — |
| Time 9:25 2/5; Speed 63.789 m.p.h. | |||
| Point Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | G-60 | LaHaLa | Lynn | 969 |
| 2 | G-1 | Tempo VI | Lombardo | 925 |
| 3 | G-12 | Etta | Sarant | 825 |
| 4 | U-45 | Aljo | Van Blerck | 563 |
(Reprinted from the New York Times July 18, 1949)