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Lombardo's Boat Wins at Red Bank |
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The National Sweepstakes |
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Sweepstakes Won by Lombardo Boat |
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Statistics |
1951 National Sweepstakes
Navesink River, Red Bank NJ, August 11-12, 1951
Sweepstakes Won By Lombardo Boat
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RED BANK, N. J., Aug. 12, [1951] Guy Lombardo for the third time in National Sweepstakes history won today the championship on the all but landlocked basin that is the headquarters of the Navesink River in a four-boat final heat, the veteran bandleader who will be 50 when his birthday comes around again next June, got the checkered flag a full half miles in front of Al D'Eath of Detroit, driving Joe Schoenith's Gale, another Allison-powered Gold Cup job.
Coupled with the first heat he took yesterday, this gave Lombardo a perfect total of 800 points for the $3,000 sweepstakes prize, in competition since 1930, and with such speedboating names engraved on its base as George Reis, Vie Kliesrath, W. Melvin Crook, Jack Cooper, Jack Rutherfurd, Horace E. Dodge, Joe Van Blerck and George Schrafft. It was almost too easy today. Lombardo was clocked for the ten-mile heat in 7:24.9, which is translated into a speed of 81.08 miles an hour, a respectable performance for his often rebuilt Tempo VI. Some of his mechanics worked into the night pampering and tuning the craft.
Two 225 Class Rivals
Perhaps he had ninety, even a hundred-mile-an-hour speed under her engine hatches. But he didn't need more than 81 against Gale and the two persistent 225-class rivals, Bobby Rowland's You All from South Norfolk, Va., and the Florida entry from St. Petersburg, Ray Gassner's Sunshine Baby II.
After the finish Lombardo had a few moments of danger and the crowd some unscheduled excitement when Tempo VI caught fire in front of the judges' anchored barge. He had come up to the float at the request of camera men and then was trying to get back to the drivers' pits when the Allison aircraft engine backfired. In an instant Tempo's forward deck was a mass of flames from the exhaust manifold.
Coast Guard patrol craft converged on Tempo with fire-fighting apparatus, but Lombardo tossed off his lifejacket and had the blaze smothered before the rescuers arrived. A feature on a fog-shrouded race course, with a damp, muggy but chilly southeast light wind rolling in from the Atlantic was the final heat in the 225-cubic-inch class.
Scores in Close Finish
Rowland, with You All, won by a few feet from Sid Street of Kansas City, the national champion, who drives the Z-Z-Zip. Street, however, took the event because of his victory yesterday in the first heat and his faster elapsed time.
Two outboard events were annexed with perfect scores of 800 for two heats, Les Buchman of Baldwin, L. I., taking Class B and Douglas M. Creech of Charlotte, N. C., Class F.
Ray Morris, a Red Bank driver in the Jersey speed skiff class, set a new record in winning the second heat at 44.732 miles an hour, supplanting his old mark of 44.51.
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THE SUMMARIES All heats five miles unless indicated otherwise OUTBOARD HYDROPLANES — Class B. First Heat—1. Less Buckman, Baldwin, L. I.: 2. Gilbert Petermann, Malvern. L. I.; 3. Nick Allen Jr., Hilton Village. Va.; 4. Vic Scott, Levittown, L. I.: 5. Warren Kenny, Jericho. L. I.; 6. Joe Prins, Brooklyn: 7. Chet Webb, Niagara Falls, N. Y.; 8. Joe Stager, Flushing, L. I.: 9. William E. Fowler, Medford. Mass.; 10. George H. Andrews, Jackson Heights, L. I.: 11. Alfred J. Kery, South Norfolk, Conn.: 12. Robert W. Thornton, Atlantic City. Time—5:54.9. Speed—50.704 mph. D. M. Creech, Charlotte, N. C.; Robert P. Solliday, Dunellen, N. J., did not finish. Final Heat—1. Buckman; 2. Creech; 3. A. G. Broaddus Jr., Richmond, Va.; 4. Allen; 5. Scott; 6. Kenny; 7. Petermann; 8. Fowler; 9. Stager; 10. Solliday; 11. Thorton; 12. Rudy Reisert, Yonkers, N. Y. Time—5:55.8. Speed—50.590 mph. Andres disqualified. Frins did not finish. Point Score—Buckman 800; Allen 394; Petermann 371. Class F First Heat—1. Creech; 2. Emil Mayer Jr., College Point. L.I.; 3. Victor C. Bieda, Buffalo; 4. Scott; 5. ,Allen; 6. Byron Shannon, Audubon. N. J.; 7. Hudson Moses, Washington; 8, Harry Mandel, Philadelphia; 9. Harry M. Dennis, Waverly. N. Y.; 10. Martin Bill King, Irvington, N. Y. Time—5:25.2. Speed—35.351 mph. Carl Emig, Kings Park. L. I., did not finish. Final Heat—1. Creech; 2. Scott; 3. Shannon; 4. Mayer; 5, Bieda; 6. Moses; 7. Raymond Lucas, Richmond. Va.; 8. Mandell; 9. Emig; 10. Dennis. Time—5:31.0. Speed—54.381 mph. Point Score—Creech 800, Scott 469 (elapsed time). Mayer 469. 225 CUBIC INCH HYDROPLANES Final Heat—1. You-All, Bob Rowland, South Norfolk. Va.; 2. Z-Z-Zip, Sid Street, Kansas City, Mo.; 3. Sunshine Baby II, Ray Gassner, St. Petersburg. Fla.; 4. Barracuda, Gib Bradfield, Barnesville, Ohio; 5, Mi-Son, Bill Muncey, Detroit. Time—3:46.5. Speed—79.435 mph. Virginia Gentleman, Jimmie Broaddus Jr.. Fredericksburg, Va., did not finish. Point Score—Street 700 (elapsed time); Rowland 700; Gassner 394. Division II Final Heat—1. Sagana XII, Frank Foulke, Essex, Md. 2. My Ambition, Robert Schroeder, N. Tonawanda, N. Y Time—4:25.0. Speed—67.924 mph. Point Score—Foulke 800; Schroeder 600. JERSEY SPEED SKIFFS First Heat—1. Falcon, Raymond M. Morris, Red Bank. N. J.; 2. Hurricane, Leo R. Dixon, Rumson, N. J.; 3. Scat II, Harold E. Disbrow, West Long Branch, N. J.; 4. Suds, John B. Boland, Port-au-Peck. N.J. 5. Susan, Stephen J. Schmidt, Long Branch, N, J.; 6. Sea Bug, Henry Murata, Clifton, N. J.; 7. Zimmy II, Martin G. Zimmerman, Red Bank; 8, Jo Carol Too, Daniel A. Ardolino, West Long Branch. Time—6:42.4. Speed —14.732 m.p.h. Final Heat—1. Morris; 2. Disbrow; 3. Dixon; 4. Boland; 5. Ardolino; 6. Schmidt; 7. Zimmerman; 8. Murata. Time—6:40.1. Speed—44.989 m.p.h. Morris, Falcon, winner of both heats, disqualified. Every finisher moved one position higher. Point Score—Disbrow 700 (winner on elapsed time). Dixon 700. CLASS D RUNABOUTS First Heat—1. My Boy Woody, Elwood J. Pliescott, Cambridge. Md.; 2. Jo, R. Watson Lewis. Baltimore. Time—5:08.7. Speed—53.290 mph Final Heat—1, Pliescott; 2, Lewis. Time—5:18.8. Speed—56.491 mph Point Score—Pliescott 800, Lewis 600. CLASS E RUNABOUTS First Heat—1. Hell's Angel, Sherman Critchfield, St. Petersburg, Fla.; 2. T. M. Special, Edmund Thompson, Baltimore; 3, Wee Tommy Tucker, Edward A. Aleksandrowicz, Baltimore. Time—4:47.7. Speed—62.543 mph Final Heat—1. Critchfield; 2, Aleksandrowicz; 3. Thompson. Time—5:02.3. Speed—59.524 mph Point Score—Critchfleld 800; Aleksandrowicz 525 (elapsed time). Thompson 525. PACIFIC ONE DESIGN CLASS Final Heat—1, Cherub II, Dr. Louis J. Novotny, Los Angeles; 2. Maggie VIII, Jack Cook, Marydel, Md. Time—5:43.3. Speed—52.417 mph Point Score—Novotny 800. Cook 600. 135 CUBIC INCH HYDROPLANES Final Heat—1. Marbel, W. Curtis Martens, Hampton. Va.; 2. Why Not, Earl H. Jarrett, Albany; 3. Black and White Special, Jerry Powell, Richmond, Va.; 4. William D. Viets, Springfield. Mass.; 5. Skip, Ardson Bozarth, Vineland, N. J.; 6. Wa Wa, William A. Ritner Jr., Merlon, Pa.; Edee Pedee Jr. II, Silas S. Stein, Pleasantville, N. J.; 8. Spot Cash, Wesley C. Carman Jr., Freeport, L. I. Time—4:26.5. Speed—67.517 mph Point Score—Martens 800, Powell 525, Viets 333. RED BANK GOLD CUP Final Heat (10 Miles)—1. You All, Bob Rowland; 2. Sunshine Baby II, Ray Gassner; 3. Barracuda, Lou Butler, Zanesville, Ohio; 4, Tempo VI, Joe Van Blerck, Freeport. L. I.; 5. Virginia Gentleman, Jimmy Broaddus, Fredericksburg, Va. Time—7:55.4. Speed—75.725 mph Gale I. Albert D'Eath, did not finish. Point Score—Rowland 700. Lombardo 569, Gassner 527. NATIONAL SWEEPSTAKES Final Heat (10 Miles)—Tempo VI, Guy Lombardo, Freeport, L. I.; 2. Gale I, Albert R. D'Eath, Detroit; 3. You All, Bob Rowland, So. Norfolk, Va.; 4. Sunshine Baby, Ray Gassner, St. Petersburg. Fla. Time—7:24.9. Speed—81.48 mph Point Score—Lombarao 800; D'Eath 600. |
(Reprinted from the New York Times August 13, 1951)
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