1958 Apple Cup
Apple Cup Revisited: 1958
The second Apple Cup was held May 11, 1958. Hometown boy Norm Evans was in the seat of Miss Bardahl, which had been christened just one week prior to the race. Also engaging in their first competition were Miss Thriftway, (a replacement for the boat that disintegrated at the Madison Regatta in 1957), Miss Spokane, and Miss Pay 'n Save. The field of qualifiers was rounded out by William Waggoner's defending champion Maverick; cab-over Thriftway Too; Coral Reef, the re-christened Miss Rocket; Miss U.S. 1, the lone Eastern entry; Miss Burien, a former Miss Bardahl; and Miss Seattle, formerly Slo-mo-shun V.
Of the ten qualifiers, only one dropped out for mechanical reasons during the qualifying heats. Machinery was functioning perfectly and each section of each heat was a real contest. There is a reasonable explanation for this. The revised 1958 racing rules, calling for preliminary heats shortened from the former 30 miles to 15 miles, shifted the emphasis from endurance to speed.
The order of finish in the qualifying heats was Heat 1-A - Miss Thriftway, Miss Bardahl, Miss Seattle, Miss Burien, and Coral Reef. Heat 1-B - Thriftway Too, Maverick, Miss U.S. 1, Miss Spokane, and Miss Pay 'n Save. (Maverick was disqualified for fouling a buoy on her third lap.) Heat 2-A - Maverick, Miss Bardahl, Thriftway Too, and Miss Spokane. Miss Pay 'n Save did not finish due to gear box trouble. Heat 2-B - Miss Thriftway, Miss U.S. 1, Miss Burien, Coral Reef, and Miss Seattle.
The new rules provided that the contest be decided on points scored in the final 30-mile heat only, and that Final heat turned into a heart-breaker for the Thriftways, each of which had led the pack in the preliminary heats. Thriftway Too, in the early stages of the finale, suffered a hole in her bottom and fell out in the third lap. Miss Thriftway, looking as though she were going to make it three firsts in a row, developed engine trouble and dropped out during the eighth circuit.
Norm Evans, driving the Ted Jones-designed, Ron Jones-built Miss Bardahl, had a great duel with Fred Alter aboard George Simon's Miss U.S. 1 in the Final heat. With no intention of losing the $1,500 purse, Evans stuck his foot in the carburetor and roared over the finish line to get the first checkered flag in his unlimited racing career. Miss U.S. 1 finished second, followed by Miss Spokane, driven by jet pilot Dallas Sartz in his first boat-racing competition, and Bill Stead aboard the Maverick. Miss Burien lost part of her sponson and did not finish.
| Final Standings | ||
|---|---|---|
| 1 | U-40 | Miss Bardahl (2) |
| 2 | U-2 | Miss U.S. 1 (2) |
| 3 | U-25 | Miss Spokane |
| 4 | U-12 | Maverick (1) |
| 5 | U-60 | Miss Thriftway (2) |
| 6 | U-62 | Thriftway Too |
| 7 | U-4 | Miss Burien (1) |
| 8 | U-37 | Miss Seattle (1) |
| 9 | U-19 | Coral Reef |
| 10 | U-47 | Miss Pay 'n Save |
| DNQ | U-882 | Sudden Sunnee |
(Text reprinted with permission from the Unlimited NewsJournal, March 1983)