1979 Squire Seafair Trophy
Lake Washington, Seattle, Washington, August 5, 1979

Circus Faster; Muncey King
By Bill Knight

Muncey to Go For 7th U.S. Title Today The Boats in Review Hydro Handicap Ali, Unitas, Mantle, Palmer — ‘Outlived’ By Muncey Circus Faster; Muncey King Grass for a Grandstand Bill Muncey Wraps Up Hydroplane Championship Statistics

Steve Reynolds jumped the gun, a couple of other drivers were hopping mad and wily ol’ Bill Muncey took another leap toward an undefeated season yesterday on Lake Washington.

Reynolds was a split second faster than Muncey at the wrong place — and Muncey’s Atlas Van Lines boat went on to win its ninth straight unlimited hydroplane race over two seasons in the annual Seafair histrionics.

Muncey came oh so close to losing for the first time in more than a year not once but twice. As Atlas crew chief Jim Lucero said later with a forced grin, "I think we got pretty lucky."

It was no consolation to Reynolds, whose life long ambition has been to win on Lake Washington, that the hot pink and white Circus Circus came about as close to victory as possible — but didn’t.

Charging down the straightway for the start of the winner-take-all final heat, the bow of the Circus Circus hit the line early, by less than a boat length. Reynolds clutched the lead the entire five laps but when it came time to take the checkered flag symbolic of victory he got the green instead indicating he’d have to run an extra lap.

Meanwhile, Muncey moved from third ahead of Dean Chenoweth in the Miss Budweiser and steered the Atlas to his third straight Seattle victory, the 57th of his unparalleled career.

Muncey readily conceded later, "If the Circus had been a legal starter I couldn’t have caught him."

And Reynolds, the 32-year-old rookie driver from Kirkland who has yet to win on the circuit, agreed.

"I don’t think there was a boat out there that could touch us today," Reynolds said.

The victory cost Muncey $100 after his engine conked out in a preliminary heat (2-B) but the fine was only the minor part of a near disaster for the Atlas camp.

Muncey’s supercharger blew at the head of the backstretch on the second of lap. Fearing the 400 points he earned by winning his first heat wouldn’t be enough to make it to the finals, Muncey kept moving — but just barely. Race officials said he was black-flagged off the course for not keeping the boat on a plane but Bill said he didn’t see the flag.

"Each time I came around I looked up at the stand and when I didn’t see a black flag, or red flag, or anything I thought I’d continue on my merry, groovy little way and try and pick up the points to make the final heat," Muncey said.

So Bill Newton, the referee, fined him for not leaving the course. Later Muncey called it "a fair decision."

That heat, as it turned out, was one of the more unusual of the season. The Squire Shop blew its chances to make the final heat when its engine popped, sending the cowling flying off, near the end of the front straightaway of the first lap. When Muncey’s Atlas expired, 65-year-old Chuck Hickling took the lead and won the heat. His Tempus was the lone finisher as Bob Miller’s Electricraft joined the casualties near the end of the fourth lap.

Thus did Tempus join the big hitters in the finale and Muncey squeezed in on the basis of his 400 point win in the opening heat of the afternoon — a rout victory.

Circus Circus beat Miss Budweiser and the Squire Shop in 1-B as Reynolds blazed to a two-mile lap world record of 119.601 miles per hour .the first turn around the course.

Circus Circus and the Miss Bud tangled again in Heat 2-A and Chenoweth came out on top this time after a fierce deck-to-deck duel for almost two laps. The Miss Bud got the inside and the boat was riding and handling better than in 1-B.

So the Bud and Circus Circus went to the finale with 700 points each, joined there by Tempus, Barney Armstrong’s Machine, Atlas and Van’s P-X.

As the field formed up for the run to the start, Miss Bud was in lane two, Circus Circus in three and Atlas on the outside. Reynolds appeared to back off slightly but was over just ahead of the blast of the starting gun. Chenoweth in Miss Bud gave chase and managed to hold onto second with Muncey pressing in third.

Muncey didn’t know for certain the Circus had jumped the gun but he suspected it. "There’s no way I’m going to make that crummy a start — not since I was four," Muncey said. "I felt I was right on the money."

At the end of the first lap the starting clock was partially covered, indicating at least one boat had jumped. So Muncey went after the Miss Bud, catching the sputtering beerwagon on the north turn of the second lap. That was the race.

A minor flap developed when at least two buoys were dislodged on the south turn and the Barney Armstrong and Van’s P-X drivers — Chuck King and Ron Armstrong — were out of sorts.

Chenoweth admitted he might have nudged a buoy and Muncey said he hit one, after it was loose. But a review of films failed to detect the culprit and, even so, after the fact, the rules allow no provision for a protest.

But nobody felt any worse yesterday than Reynolds.

"I knew on the second lap I’d jumped and it was sickening. I felt terrible," he said. "I was just damn mad. I stuck my foot in it and went for it and tried to pass as many boats as I could."

Even with an extra lap be was fourth, behind Atlas, Bud and Ron Armstrong in Van’s P-X. The Circus camp burned some midnight oil all week on repairs and it was about 3 a.m. Sunday that Tacoma prop expert George Lockhart finished working on the wheel that made the Circus run better than it has all season.

"It’s our miracle wheel," said boat designer Dave Knowlen.

But the miracle didn’t quite come off yesterday.

Pit Patter — Bill Muncey did not clinch the national championship, simply because hydro officials have revived the possibility of a Long Beach, Calif., race, with Circus Circus involvement to the tune of $20,000. And the Salt Lake City race is on again. Muncey’s winning the title, though, is only a formality.

(Reprinted from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, August 6, 1979)

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