Whew!

Sorry for the time between posts, the 2 trips out of town put a kibosh on my being able to post with any regularity.

The boat races were a blast as usual. Getting to see all of the family is icing on the cake. Unfortunately this years Regatta was marred by two separate crashes one of which resulted in some serious injuries. My thoughts are with the people injured in both wrecks.

For those of you who aren't familiar with  Unlimited Hydroplane racing I'll give you a quick rundown. Hydroplanes are boats that fly (yes you read right, fly). They are mostly powered by turbines (though there is still one hold out piston powered boat), and the only parts that stay in the water when they are moving are the propeller, rudder, and skid fin. They have been clocked going 200+ mph on a straight a way and they are awesome to watch! http://www.h1unlimited.com/ has some great video footage as well a pictures and the history of the sport for those who would like to have more information. Here are some pictures that I took in Madison and Detroit for your viewing pleasure, I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Deck to deck racing in Detroit by the U-7 Valken & the U-88 Degree boat

This is the bottom of the U-1 Miss Oh Boy O'berto Hull

The U-5 Miss Graham Trucking being lifted via crane to go into the water

U-21 & the U-100 coming down the front stretch in Madison, In

To give you an idea of the size of these boats, their dimensions are approximately 30ft long by 14ft wide. They are put into the water by cranes like this:

U-17 Miss Red Dot is on the crane, the U-1 is on it's trailer below