1995 Texas Hydrofest
Lewisville Lake, Dallas (Lewisville) TX, July 16, 1995

LEWISVILLE (July 16) -- Two weeks later [after the Madison race], and a thousand miles away at Lewisville Lake, immediately north of Dallas, the competition resumed with the Texas Hydrofest. The Budweiser camp had repaired its so- called "T-3" hull and Chip Hanauer was back, relatively healthy again, to drive it. This led to Chip setting a qualifying record, eclipsing the earlier efforts of Mark Tate in the Smokin' Joe's, and it was the Hanauer-Budweiser combination that ruled the day.

The race itself was close fought, with the major item of concern being high winds in the late afternoon. They forced a delay in the race program and it wasn't until nearly 6 o'clock in the evening that the winner-take- all final was run. The Budweiser, as noted, won it going away, with Tate second and Dave Villwock -- again assuming a bride's-maid role -- finishing third in the PICO.

The Smokin' Joe's did manage to beat the Budweiser in one preliminary heat, and won two others, so it stayed with 196 points of its rival in the high point standings.

(Reprinted from the URC Electronic Thunderletter No. 29 September 28, 1995)

*  *  *

Yes, Virginia, Bernie Little is Sitting on A Hundred . . .

DALLAS (Sunday, July 16) -- While the Chip's away, the Smokin' Joe's will play . . . but 41-year-old Chip Hanauer came back to action at Lewisville Lake today and drove the Miss Budweiser past its archrival on the first turn en route to victory in the Texas Hydrofest some 30 miles north of here. Hanauer had been out for two races with nagging rib muscles. The boat he drove had been absent for one race while having an entire new right sponson fitted to the hull.

Obviously, to the sundrenched throng that sat out a 75-minute delay occasioned by high winds, both repair jobs were successful.

The win was No. 56 in the illustrious career of the crafty Hanauer. Even more importantly to those with an eye on milestones, it was victory No. 99 for Bud owner Bernie Little. It will be difficult to deny him the coveted century at either Tri-Cities or Seattle, but Smokin' Joe's owner Steve Woomer remains stout in his resolve that he has the best boat going at present.

"If Chip doesn't squeeze us out of room in Lane One going into the first turn," Woomer fumed, "we beat him today." Chief referee J. Michael Noonan failed to concur with that assessment, saying that the initial turn -- with Hanauer and the Bud getting the jump in Lane 2 -- was conducted in orderly fashion. Hanauer never looked back while slightly upping the Budweiser's Eagle Snacks Presents O'Doul's High Points lead to 196 over Smokin' Joe's with four races to go. The latter's lead-footed driver, Mark Tate, seems headed for a second straight individual championship -- having taken full advantage of Hanauer's absence to win at Evansville and Madison.

And Woomer says Tate remains a solid bet to win at Tri-Cities and Seattle, too, even with Hanauer back in harness. "Our boat is handling the best, no doubt about it," declared the 12-year-veteran owner, who really has his heart set on a win in the Texaco Cup at Seafair. In 10 previous tries, his boats have never won, managing second-place finishes on three occasions.

Here, Dave Villwock got past Steve David's T-PLUS Engine Treatment to put PICO American Dream into third place. Ken Muscatel's locally sponsored U-14, running as Miss Lewisville, wound up fifth. Jerry Hopp retired early after water punched a hole in his right sponson and Mark Evans was dead in the water with Miss Wellness Plan at the start of the final heat.

(Reprinted from the URC Electronic Hydroletter, No. 19 July 17, 1995)

Unlimited hydroplane racing arch-rivals Mark Tate and Chip Hanauer -- after a two-race hiatus due to the latter's aching ribs -- today resumed hostilities on wind- tossed Lewisville Lake north of here. Tate had won those two races and appeared to have a competition edge here, but when the five laps of the winner-take-all final were complete, the result was...as they like to say in the Lone Star State: "Same ol', same ol'."

Hanauer, spotting the inside lane to Tate, rushed past him in the first turn and never looked back to record his 56th career unlimited victory and present owner Bernie Little the 99th of his 33-year career.

Tate had won all three preliminary heats, including a rousing, Heat 1A victory over Hanauer. The latter's four-time defending world champion Bud boat, with just two heat wins, thus came into the final holding onto a slim season point lead of just 96.

High winds kicked up at about 2:30 pm (CDT) to delay the action for some 75 minutes. Smokin' Joe's, thanks to the fact that Hanauer then had to run Heat 3B, had more than three hours of uninterrupted shore time to prepare for the big finish.

But it couldn't account for the sudden burst of speed that the Bud was able to muster as it stretched its still slim Eagle Snacks Presents O'Doul's High Points lead to 196. Tate at least continued to stretch his individual points lead, 8365 to Dave Villwock's 6796. Hanauer, out those two races, is next at 6125.

Villwock's day in the PICO American Dream got off to a rough start when, trailing Steve David's T-PLUS Engine Treatment/Chief Auto Parts in the day's first set-to, he chose to go inside of the latter's wake and illegally cut a buoy, prompting a one-lap penalty. After running second to Smokin' Joe's in Heat 2B, the Aubuurn driver then took third in 3B when unable, again, to run down David's T-PLUS craft in a close battle behind Hanauer.

Some measure of revenge was achieved in the final, when Villwock came from back in the pack to snatch show money away from David.

Wenatchee's Mark Evans, back in Miss Wellness Plan after spending two weeks in the Budweiser for the ailing Hanauer, became a cropper in the second heat when he couldn't start. He took the blame, having failed to reseal a sponson plug, so that the boat took on too much water and couldn't achieve a proper plane. Even with seconds in two other heats, he was relegated to winning the provisional heat (from his brother Mitch in the Mill Bay Casino Presents The Spirit of Lake Chelan) and settling for the trailer-spot in the seven-boat final. But Evans had more bad luck at the end, his boat going dead in the water before the start.

HEAT 1A

U-2 Miss T-PLUS Engine Treatment Steve David 1/400 140.511 *
U-99.9 Miss Wellness Plan Mark Evans 2/300 128.370
U-3 Mill Bay/Spirit of Lake Chelan Mitch Evans 3/225 107.610
U-100 PICO American Dream Dave Villwock 4/169 97.737 **

* - Fast lap: U-2 (1st): 143.526
** - One lap penalty for a buoy infraction


HEAT 1B

U-10 Smokin' Joe's Mark Tate 1/400 144.648 *
U-1 Miss Budweiser Chip Hanauer 2/300 142.941 **
U-14 Miss Lewisville Ken Muscatel 3/225 124.182
U-7 Miss Kasey Jerry Hopp 4/169 114.243

* - Fast lap: U-10 (3rd), 149.710 (lap and heat are records)
** - Led from the inside until getting out of attitude in turn 4 of lap 2,
allowing the U-10 to pass by the next turn.


HEAT 2A

U-1 Miss Budweiser Chip Hanauer 1/400/700 141.957 *
U-2 Miss T-PLUS Engine Treatment Steve David 2/300/700 131.517 
U-14 Miss Lewisville Ken Muscatel 3/225/450 122.928
U-99.9 Miss Wellness Plan Mark Evans DNS/0/300 

* - Fast Lap: U-1 (3rd), 144.712


HEAT 2B

U-10 Smokin' Joe's Mark Tate 1/400/800 135.108 *
U-100 PICO American Dream Dave Villwock 2/300/469 132.444
U-7 Miss Kasey Jerry Hopp 3/225/394 110.238
U-3 Mill Bay/Spirit of Lake Chelan Mitch Evans 4/169/394 99.915

* - Fast Lap: U-10 (3rd), 139.063


HEAT 3A

U-10 Smokin' Joe's Mark Tate 1/400/1200 136.581 *
U-99.9 Miss Wellness Plan Mark Evans 2/300/600 127.734
U-7 Miss Kasey Jerry Hopp 3/225/619 111.072
U-3 Mill Bay/Spirit of Lake Chelan Mitch Evans 4/169/563 102.264

* - Fast Lap: U-10 (3rd), 137.344


HEAT 3B

U-1 Miss Budweiser Chip Hanauer 1/400/1100 139.545 *
U-2 Miss T-PLUS Engine Treatment Steve David 2/300/1000 134.220
U-100 PICO American Dream Dave Villwock 3/225/694 132.600
U-14 Miss Lewisville Ken Muscatel 4/169/619 112.404

* - Fast Lap: U-1 (1st), 141.845


PROVISIONAL

U-99.9 Miss Wellness Plan Mark Evans 1st 114.759 
U-3 Mill Bay/Spirit of Lake Chelan Mitch Evans 2nd 114.486


FINAL HEAT

U-1 Miss Budweiser Chip Hanauer 1/400/1500 137.630 *
U-10 Smokin' Joe's Mark Tate 2/300/1500 133.560
U-100 PICO American Dream Dave Villwock 3/225/919 132.135
U-2 Miss T-PLUS Engine Treatment Steve David 4/169/1169 122.650
U-14 Miss Lewisville Ken Muscatel 5/127/746 114.440
U-7 Miss Kasey Jerry Hopp DNF/0/619 
U-99.9 Miss Wellness Plan Mark Evans DNS/0/600

* - Fast Lap: U-1 (5th), 139.103

Summary written by J Michael Kenyon

(Reprinted from UHRA.com)

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