1951 National Sweepstakes
Guy Lombardo Scores Again At Red Bank
Red Bank. Aug. 12 (U.P.) — Tempo VI, with owner Guy Lombardo at the throttle, sped to.victory today in the 19th National Sweepstakes Motorboat Race.
Thrilling a crowd of 15,000 on the Navesink River, the Freeport, N. Y., orchestra leader duplicated yesterday’s first heat triumph, copping the 10-mile second heat by a half mile. The masetro was clocked at 81.08 miles an hour.
Today’s win was Lombardo’s third in the Sweepstakes. He won in 1946 and 1950.
As in the first heat, Joseph Schoenith's Gale I from Detroit, driven by Al d’Eath, was second with Bob Rowland's You All, e South Norfolk. Va., 225-cubic incher, third. Ray Gassner's Sunshine Baby II from St. Petersburg, Fla., was last. Four other starters in the first heat did not appear today.
Rowland won the regatta’s co-feature, the Red Bank Gold Cup. as Tempo, with Lombardo’s neighbor, Joseph Van Blerck Jr., driving, had motor trouble and fell a lap and a half off the pace at the start.
The Virginian businessman won the final heat handily, coupling his points to those garnered yesterday when You All was second to Lombardo. Gale also was a late starter today and conked out after her second lap.
Rowland’s second heat victory for 225s, in which You All outdistanced national champion Sid Street's Z-Z-Zip by a boat’s length, was the day’s thriller. The Kansas Ctiy, Mo., titleholder, winner of the first heat yesterday, copped the event on better elapsed time.
--- August 12, 1951
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Regatta Finale Sees 2 World Records Fall
15,000 Watch Program On Navesink—Tempo VI Wins Feature Event
Red Bank—Two world speedboat records were written into the books yesterday afternoon as the National Sweepstakes regatta closed the pages on its nineteenth edition.
As in 1950, Band Leader Guy Lombardo was the big winner, driving his Tempo VI to victories in both heats of the National Sweepstakes regatta and the first heat of the Red Bank Gold cup. But his time in all heats was well below world and course records.
As on Saturday, mist again shrouded the Navesink River yesterday and showers late in the afternoon began dispersing an estimated 15,000 spectators who had watched from the banks and from a fleet of pleasure craft anchored along the 2½-mile race oval.
Two records which marked the 1951 regatta were posted Saturday among 48 cu. inch hydroplanes and runabouts of the same class.
A third world mark would have been made by Raymond M. Morris, Red Bank, in his Jersey speed skiff, Falcon, but the craft was disqualified for an oversized engine after a post-race inspection. Morris twice bettered his own existing world’s record in the first and second heats.
Local and county officials and a delegation from the Mexican Tourist bureau in New York visited the regatta yesterday. Many of the top prizes were donated by the Mexican government and officials in that country.
Exciting Finish
Far the most exciting race of the two-day regatta—and in the opinion of many the most exciting of any regatta—was the duel between the You All and the Z-Z-Zip in the 225-cubic-inch Division I final.
The Z-Z-Zip, driven by Sid Street, Kansas City, Mo., led all the way into the final turn of the 10-mile event, which the Z-Z-Zip has always won here in the past. Bob Rowland, the You All’s pilot from South Norfolk, Va., gunned his craft around the final turn to win by 10 feet in the best “225” time of this year’s regatta, 79.435 m p h. Street, won Saturday and he took top honors in the class with better total time.
The start of the race also provided a thrill as the Barracuda, driven by Gib Bradfield of Barnesville, Ohio, hit rough water, flipped up on one side but was righted without overturning. Bradfield went on to place fourth.
In the National sweepstakes event, Lombardo wasn’t even pushed as he sped to victory in the final heat over the 10-mile course at an average speed of 81.08 m.p.h.
Gale I Second
The Gale I, piloted by Al D’Eath of Detroit, finished second a half-mile back after encountering engine trouble in the pits and getting off to a late start. The You All, skippered by Bob Rowland, took an early lead but was quickly overtaken by the Tempo VI and finally, in the second lap, by the Gale. The 225-cu.-inch speedster finished far back for third. Lombardo said he hit a peak of 123 m.p.h. on the backstretch during the race.
In the Gold Cup race, final event of the afternoon, Joe Van Blerck, of Freeport, drove the Tempo for Lombardo but was delayed in starting. The Gale I started two laps late after having engine trouble and finally broke down. Winner of the event was the You All, which finished a full lap in front of the Tempo, averaging 75.726 m.p.h. With his second yesterday it made Rowland high point man for the event.
Victor C. Bieda. Buffalo, had an embarassing moment early in yesterday’s program. As he raced across the finish line in third place in the Class F outboard division, Bieda took one hand off the wheel to wave to the judges’ stand. His boat swerved out of control and flipped him into the river. He emerged wet but unhurt.
--- August 13, 1951