1906 Seattle Mid-Winter Regatta
Lake Washington, Seattle, Washington, January 1, 1906

Tilacum Queen Of Lake

Speedy Motor Boat From Tacoma Proves Too Fast for the Union in the Great Midwinter Regatta

Power Boats to Race Tomorrow Tilacum Wins Big Motor Race Tilacum Queen of Lake Powerboat Race at Seattle Tilacum All Ready for Today's Contest Tilacum Again Beats the Union

Yesterday afternoon in the midwinter regatta held on Lake Washington the fast auto boat Tilacum of Tacoma demonstrated beyond all further controversy that it is a faster boat than the Union, though the margin was small. The race was a magnificent thirty-mile dash. Tilacum crossed the imaginary line only one minute and two and one half seconds ahead of the Union.

For some time the controversy between these two speed wonders as to which was the better, becoming at times very bitter, has been unsettled. But after yesterday's beautiful exhibition James Campbell, owner of the Union, gracefully acknowledged the Tilacum the better boat. Considering the distance over which the race was run, the time difference at the finish was very small, indeed.

From a spectator's standpoint the race had one bad feature. Instead of running past the park on the way up the lake within sight of the spectators, the racers sped up the eastern shore of the lake, both boats hugging close to the land. This caused a good deal of dissatisfaction, but the reason was advanced for this course that the danger of collision with launches, rowboats and canoes on the west side of the lake was too great to permit of the flyers taking the course. However, the graceful gyrations described by the Union in front of the pavilion after the finish amidst cheers, apparently of congratulation on the splendid showing of the defeated boat, made up for the race up the lake which the spectators did not see.

The Tilacum maintained the lead throughout the race. The Siwash, looked upon as a worthy rival of the Tilacum, got a poor start and because of an accident to her machinery was completely out of the running.

A number of launch races were pulled off. Among the sixteen-footers only about a third of the entries turned out because of the rough water. In the first race the Ion was victorious, running a two-mile race in twenty-three minutes and thirteen seconds. The Gander was the only other contestant.

Race No. 2 was omitted, and in No. 3, one mile and return, the Damit won by default, though the Keewatis, one of the scheduled rivals, was running up and down the lake full of merrymakers. Race No. 4 went by the board, and in the four-mile race between the Juanita and Mabel S., the latter won in thirty-six minutes and thirty seconds.

In an interesting race of three straightaway nautical miles, the Idlewild defeated the Dorothy and Lotto. The May defeated the Maid Marion; time, twenty minutes and thirty-eight seconds, for three nautical miles.

In spite of the bitter cold, many launches and even canoes were out, and the Xanthus, Cyrene and Falcon carried large crowds across the lake who followed the big race in its entirety by the aid of glasses. A regatta in midwinter is certainly a novelty that would seem incredible to easterners, where lakes like Washington are frozen solid.

Before the races the impatient launches were excited by a blaze in Mr. Atwood's small launch. The flame burst forth, but Mr. Frank Randall, who had the boat in charge, showed remarkable pluck by sticking to it in spite of the danger of explosion. Finally he got the blaze extinguished and his launch was towed ashore by a good Samaritan.

Mitchell Gilliam, John Schram, H. C. Henry, A. J. Balliett and A. M. Brookes were judges at the finish line and M. J. Johnson acted as starter.

[Thanks to Greg Calkins for help in preparing this page. —LF]

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