1955 Silver Cup
Seattle Boat Captures One Heat
Gale VI, Pepsi Tie For Second
DETROIT, Aug. 27.--(Special)—Guy Lombardo's; Tempo VII, with Danny Foster driving, roared to a smashing victory over a dozen rivals in the Silver Cup race on the Detroit River today.
But it was a hair-raising battle to the finish flag in the final five-lap, 15-mile heat.
Foster and the Tempo had lo fight it out with Gale V, piloted by Bill Cantrell, with Tempo finishing a bare 100 feet in front.
Miss Thriftway, the prerace favorite from Seattle, finished a disappointing last in the final heat; after winning her semi-final test.
The speedy Seattle craft was third in an earlier elimination heat, the first run of the day, losing out to Gale V and Such Crust III, but qualifying for the semifinals.
Great Comeback
Driven by Bill Muncey, Miss Thriftway did a great comeback In the next-to-last dash of the day, beating out Miss Detroit, Miss Supertest, Gale V and Miss Cadillac in that order to win her way into the windup, and deciding heat, of the Silver Cup classic.
But it wasn't to be Muncey's day.
Tempo VII wound up with 1,100 points. Miss Pepsi and Gate V tied for second place but Miss Pepsi was later given the call and Gale V placed third on a basis of elapsed time.
Horace Dodge's Dora My Sweetie, winner of the Silver Cup last year, was fourth with 675 points, Miss Thriftway, fifth, 625 points and Miss U.S., sixth, 569.
After the first lap it was strictly a race between Tempo and Gale V.
Miss Thriftway ran into trouble on the upper turn, in what looked like a shower bath, it was slowed to a sputter. By the time Muncey got the boat rolling along it was too late to catch up with the leaders and a chance at the Cup had vanished. She finished last.
Disqualified
Later race officials announced, disqualification of Miss Thriftway for cutting the course above the 1,000-foot buoy mark.
Willard K. Rhodes, the boat's sponsor, commented, "It had no effect on the result—it was a great race anyway."
All the thrills of five elimination heats were dwarfed by the two old pros of powerboat racing, Foster and Cantrell, as they raced the straightaways, bow-to-bow, made the dangerous upper turn side-by-side and swept through the broad lower turn without either lifting throttle foot much.
I never hit it any harder," Foster told photographers when he got to the judge stand.
Tempo went into the last 15-mile dash with a lead of 13 points on Gale V, 700 to 569, so Foster could have finished second and still have won the cup on points. Cantrell had replaced Lee Schoenith in Gale V's cockpit When Gale IV failed.
Flying Start
Six boats came flying at the line. Each driver wanted to be first at the upper turn. Bill Muncey, cutting Miss Thriftway from inside the course less than 500 feet from the line, was first over but Cantrell had Gale V almost alongside.
Close by were Tempo, Chuck Thompson in Miss Pepsi, Jack Bartlow in Miss U.S., replacing George Simon, and Don Wilson in Horace Dodge's Dora, My Sweetie.
The fastest lap of the climaxing heat was the fourth, which Tempo turned at 96.733 MPH, the day's fastest lap went to Miss Pepsi which did 97.633 if on the fourth lap of the preliminary heat. '
The fastest heat also was Miss Pepsi's, the same heat in which she made her fastest lap. The heat speed was 96.238 MPH.
The race average for Tempo VII was 93.120 MPH.
No records were broken.
The race started with 13 boats. They were separated into 1-A, 1-B, 1-C, 2-A and 2-B.
Led To Qualify
The six that failed make the final heat were Gale IV, Miss Detroit, owned by Bill Stroh and driven by Ray Crawford, of El Monte, Calif.; Jack Schafer's Such Crust III, Walter Kade and Al D'Eath driving alternately; Frank Saile's Miss Cadillac, Canada's Miss Supertest, Bill Braden pilot, and Wha Hoppen [Too], Marv Henrich driving,
The individual heat results were:
Heat 1-A (elimination) —1. Gale V; 2. Such Crust III; 3. Miss Thriftway; 4. Miss Cadillac. Winner's speed 95.381 MPH.
HEAT 1-B (elimination)—1. Gale IV; 2. Miss U.S.; 3. Miss Detroit; 4. Wha Hoppen Too.
HEAT 1-C—1. Miss Pepsi; 2. Tempo VII; 3. Dora My Sweetie. DNF: Miss Wayne. Did not start: Miss Supertest. Winner's speed 96.238.
HEAT 2-A—1. Tempo VII;, 2. Miss Pepsi; 3. Dora My Sweetie; 4. Miss U.S. did not finish: Wha Hoppen Too, Such Crust III. Winner's speed 93.408 MPH.
HEAT 2-B — 1. Miss Thriftway: 2. Miss Detroit; 3. Miss Supertest; 4. Gale V; 5. Miss Cadillac. Winner's speed 88.504 MPH.
CHAMPIONSHIP HEAT-—1. Tempo VII; 2. Gale V; 3. Miss Pepsi, 4. Miss Thriftway; 5. Dora My Sweetie; 6. Miss U.S. Winner's Time 93.120.
--- The Seattle Times