1957 Mapes Mile-High Gold Cup
Miss Wahoo Nabs Tahoe Racing Title
By Jack Menges
Tahoe City, July 22 — A 28-year-old airplane pilot who fled communist Czechoslovakia today holds the fifth annual Mapes Gold Cup Speedboat Racing Championship.
Miro Slovak piled up a perfect score of 2,000 points in driving Bill Boeing Jr.’s Miss Wahoo from Seattle to victory in the unlimited hydroplane classic which wound up yesterday at Lake Tahoe.
Slovak won his heat Saturday, repeated the victory in his second heat yesterday and then emerged the winner in the final runoff.
The Czech refugee’s triumph was made somewhat easier when the Hawaii Kai, driven by Jack Regas, developed motor trouble and Miss Thriftway, with Bill Muncey in the cockpit, was penalized a lap for jumping the gun in the final heat.
Going into the runoff, Slovak and Regas each had scored 800 points for their boats by winning the preliminary heats, while Miss Thriftway had 600 points on the basis of two second place finishes.
Miss Thriftway actually completed the 10 laps over the three-mile course ahead of Miss Wahoo in the championship race but was required to take one more lap for crossing the starting line before the proper signal.
Hawaii Kai, which earlier in the day posted the fastest lap of 107.978 miles per hour for the regatta, ran into mechanical difficulties coming out of the second turn on the first lap.
Regas dropped back to last place before he got the tropical rose and coral mist colored boat going again. The Hawaii Kai picked up speed and moved into third place in the seven-boat field on the second lap.
However, the huge Packard Merlin-Rolls Royce engine started acting up again on the same turn. The former Livermore pilot then experienced difficulty every time he came out of a turn and was unable to complete the race.
It was a tough blow for Regas, who last year had the Mapes Cap in the bag when the Scooter Too conked out near the finish of the event.
Slovak completed the 90 miles of competition in the Miss Wahoo at an average speed of 95.974 m.p.h., far surpassing the old record of 88.602 m.p.h.
His first heat time was 95.821 m.p.h.. and he stepped it up to 98.093 m.p.h. in the second heat. The speed for the final1 runoff was 94.068 m.p.h.
Second place in the Mapes competition went to Miss Thriftway with 900 points on three second place finishes and an average of 92.025 m.p.h. for the 90 miles.
Hawaii Kai wound up third with 800 points and Miss Bardahl, piloted by Norm Evans of Seattle, was fourth at 750 points and an average of 88.801 m.p.h.
Other boats which figured in the point scoring were Gale VI, Lee Schoenlth, 394; Gale V, Bill Cantrell. 300; Thriftway, Too, Brian Wygle, 225. and Miss Seattle, Chuck Hickling. 169.
Boats which failed to complete a heat were Adios, the defending champion Shanty I, Maverick, and J. Phillip Murphy's duo of Breathless I and Breathless II.
Murphy decided not to run his boats in yesterday's heats because they were out of the running for failing to finish their races Saturday.
Hawaii Kai scored a mile and one-quarter victory over Miss Bardahl, while the Gale VI was third, being lapped by the winner at the finish line.
Slovak, then ran off with the second heat in Miss Wahoo. Miss Thriftway got off to a bad start but came fast to finish second.
The final found Miss Thriftway roaring across the starting line in front, followed by Miss Seattle and Miss Wahoo. Muncey stretched the lead with each lap but failed to wind up the victor due to the penalty.
However, he did manage to take second place by lapping Miss Bardahl, one of only three beats to finish Hawaii Kai Gale V, Gale VI and Miss Seattle were unable to complete the course due to mechanical difficulties.
Miss Wahoo was powered by a 1710-cubic meh Allison air craft engine in scoring the first victories both for herself and Slovak.
The boat was launched a year ago but it wasn't until over the weekend that the red and mahogoney craft took the checkered flag in front of the pack.
The following results give the boat, driver, city and speed:
Gold Cup Races
First Heat
- Hawaii Kai III, Jack Regas, Seattle, 95.037 m.p.h,
- Miss Bardahl, Norm Evans, Seattle, 39,978 m.p.h.
- Gale VI, Lee Schoenith, Detroit, 95.147 m.p.h.
- Miss Seattle, Chuck Hickling, Seattle, 82.098 m.p.h.'
- Shanty I, Russ Schleeh, San Francisco, did not finish.
Second Heat
- Miss Wahoo, Miro Slovak, Seattle, 98 093 m.p.h
- Miss Thriftway, Jack Muncey, Seattle, 94.513 m.p.h.
- Thriftway, Too, Brian Wygle, Seattle, did not finish.
- Gale V, Bill Cantrell, Detroit, did not finish.
- Maverick, Bill Stead, Reno, did not finish;
Final Heat
- Miss Wahoo, Slovak, Seattle, 84.068 m.p.h.
- Miss Thriftway, Muncey, Seattle, 89.397 m.p.h.
- Miss Bardahl, Evans, Seattle. 83.939 m.pdn
- Hawaii Kai, Regas, Seattle, did not finish:
- Gale VI, Schoenlth, Detroit, did not finish.
- Gale V, Cantrell, betroit.'dld not finish.
- Miss Seattle, Hickling, Seattle, did not finish.
Smaller Classes
225 Cubic Inch Hydro
The following results give the driver, city, points and time:
- Roger Murphy, Piedmont. 400, 7:07.4.
- Don Wright, Seattle, 300, 7:22.1.
- Eddie Silva. Hayward, 225. 7:31.4.
- Charles Wisdom. Tahoe City, 169, 8:34.1.
7 Litre
- Roger Murphy, Piedmont. 400, 7:33.4.
- A. L. "Red" Loomis, Monrovia, 300, 0:27.4,
- Hart Chan, Oakland, 225. 9:30.3.
136 Cable Inch Hydro
- Lloyd Delosier. San Diego. 800. 7:19.1.
- Chuck Hickling, Bellevue. 469, 7:28.2.
- Eddie Silva. Hayward. 450, 7:42.3.
- Rosts Lanim, San Bruno, 393, 7:312.
- Fred Gomes, Los Banos, 296. 8:00.1.
- Morey Hale. Modesto, 222, 8:21.3.
- Don Wright, Seattle, 71, 8:464.
- Paul Merchant. Berkeley, 71, T.N.T.
— July 22, 1957
Daring Slovak Pilots Wahoo to Tahoe Crown
Tahoe City, Calif. — Note to the hydroplane racing set: Look out for daredevil Miro Slovak, the transplanted Czechoslovakian who piloted the Miss Wahoo to victory In the Lake Tahoe Mapes Gold Cup Regatta here yesterday.
Slovak, who escaped from behind the Iron Curtain by stealing an airplane, finds the thrills and danger of motorboat racing just the type of life he loves.
The handsome young driver accumulated 2,000 points over the weekend — winning all three heats in which he competed in the Seattle boat These points will go towards what Bill Boeing, Jr. of Seattle hopes will be a national championship for his Miss Wahoo. There are only six races, including the Gold Cup at Seattle, in which to accumulate points.
Slovak, driving with a devil-may-care, completely blanketed his foes during two days of competition. He won his first heat Saturday, averaging better than 95 miles an hour. He won a second heat yesterday with a clocking of more than 98 mph. and the championship heat at 94 mph on the slightly choppy, ice cold waters of Lake Tahoe.
The Miss Thriftway of Seattle finished second in the final standings, followed by the Hawaii Kai, of Seattle, and the Miss Bardahl also a Seattle boat.
There was some confusion In the final race. Miss Thriftway, who had finished second in two qualifying heats, took the lead at the starting gun — aided by the fact that she beat tha gun across the starting line.
For this she was forced to go an extra lap, but even if she had been declared winner, she would not have had enough points to oust Miss Wahoo as the overall winner.
The Hawaii Kai also won its two preliminary heats and it was expected to hook in a duel in the finals with the Miss Wahoo. But pilot Jack Regas could get no power when the chips were down, and finally had to quit after staggering through seven of the 10 laps in the finals.
— July 22, 1957
Mile High Regatta
Mira Slovak, a Czech refugee, drove Bill Boeing’s unlimited hydro Miss Wahoo, to victory at Lake Tahoe’s Mile High Regatta, July 20-21 to win the Mapes Gold cup. Only three of the thirteen contenders in the unlimited class were able to go the full 90 miles of the course, run in three heats of 30 miles each. Most of these contenders will be seen in the coming Gold Cup Race to be run at Seattle on August 11.
In the Crackerbox Class Earl John’s It’ll Do and Bob Patterson’s Hot Cinderella were tied for first place with 700 points each, but It’ll Do made the fastest heat.
Winner in the 48-cu. In. hydro class was Vernon Dallman’s Fat Pants.
(Reprinted from Sea and Pacific Motor Boat, September 1957)