1986 Budweiser Indiana Governor's Cup
Hanauer hot heading into Governor’s Cup
United Press International
Chip Hanauer, the winningest active driver in the American Power Boat Association, leads 10 of the world’s fastest hydroplane drivers into Indiana this week for two races along the Ohio River.
Preliminary action begins Thursday in the Indiana Governor's Cup at Madison, with more than 100,000 people expected to attend the finals on Sunday. The teams will then Journey 180 miles downriver for next week's Thunder on the Ohio race at Evansville.
Hanauer, piloting the turbine-powered Miller American, won his fifth straight Gold Cup championship last week in Detroit, edging Jim Kropfeld in the turbine-powered Miss Budweiser.
"I always thought nothing could top winning the first one but I think this one does." said Hanauer, 30, of Seattle. “It means so much to me I can't describe it."
Hanauer, national champion three of the last four years, has 19 career victories and is a favorite in both Indiana races, the third and fourth of a record 11 stops in this year’s series. The Madison race celebrates its 35th anniversary while Evansville hosts its ninth speedboat race.
A course record average of 140.1 mph was set at Madison last year by Hanauer in the Miller American, which reached a top speed above 180 mph. Steve Reynolds of Kirkland, Wash., won the 1985 race in the turbine-powered Miss 7-Eleven.
Qualifying has been altered for this year's Madison race, with three 3-lap preliminaries replacing last year's two 5-lap qualifying heats. The final will remain a 5-lap race around the 2½-mile oval.
Hanauer will try to defend his Thunder title. He has won three of the last four races over the two-mile Evansville course.
A major rule change this year limiting the three turbine-powered boats to 2,650-horsepower has not kept Hanauer and Kropfeld from dominating the piston-driven hydroplane engines. Kropfeld, from Cincinnati, won the series opener in Miami and leads the series standings.
Ron Snyder, 47, Piqua, Ohio, drove to second place at Miami in the Miss Madison, a boat owned by the Indiana city. Snyder remained second in the series standings despite falling to finish in the final at Detroit.
Entries for the races include the three turbine-powered boats and the Miss Madison; the Budweiser Griffon driven by Scott Pierce; Cellular One, a boat based In Hanover, Ind., and guided by hometown driver Todd Yarling, 29: two Seattle-based boats. Oh Boy! Oberto and the Kenney Brothers special; the Thor racing special from Snohomish. Wa., and the Miss MerCruiser from Baton Rouge. La.
Squire Shop of Seattle, prevented from racing at Detroit because it missed the Miami race, might make its debut at Madison.
(Reprinted from United Press International, July 2, 1986)