He has been riding high all season.
In front of roughly 100,000 fans during a sun-splashed Seafair Sunday afternoon on Lake Washington, however, the high-riding Steve David was brought back down to the earth.
David, driver of the Kent-sponsored U-1 Oh Boy! Oberto, entered the Chevrolet Cup at Seafair – regarded as the biggest event of the weekend – leading the national points race and among a small handful of favorites to win. David also was coming off a win at last weekend’s Lamb Weston Cup in the Tri-Cities.
On Sunday, however, David was unable to repeat the successful formula. Engine problems struck the Kent-sponsored hydroplane midway through the third lap, leading to an uncharacteristic sixth-place finish.
“Today we got stuck between the seagull and the windshield,” David lamented.
A critical engine piece to the U-1 Oh Boy! Oberto’s cooling system was to blame for the malfunction and was what brought David’s boat to a considerably slower pace than the rest of the field.
“When that goes away, the temperature goes to the moon and you have to back off so you don’t blow up,” said David, who did collect two seconds and one first in three separate heats before Sunday’s finale. “I literally had to drop to 70 miles per hour.”
At the time of the incident, David was in second place, roughly seven boatlengths behind leader Dave Villwock of Auburn.
David and Villwock have been going toe-to-toe all season long. In fact, David came into the Sunday spectacular leading the national points race, just ahead of Villwock – 4,640-4,041.
Villwock, however, put a considerable dent in that lead, winning the Chevrolet Cup by blistering the two-mile oval with an average speed of 137.532 miles per hour. Villwock, driving the U-16 Miss Ellstrom Elam Plus, led all five laps of the championship race. Jimmy King, driving the U-3 Miss Chrysler Jeep, finished in second.
It was a historic performance for the Auburn hydroplane racer, who passed Bill Muncey as the winningest driver in Seafair unlimited hydroplane history. It was Villwock’s 10th win in the event.
“He had a great race and we were just unable to stop him,” David said of Villwock.
After Sunday’s race, David still held the lead in national points, but his gap over Villwock has narrowed considerably – 5,815-5,566. With two races remaining on the season – Aug. 23 in Evansville, Ind. and Nov. 14 in Doha, Qatar, a small country in the Middle East – the championship likely will go down to the wire.
“We have had seasons that go down to the final race,” David said. “And this year, it really could go down to Qatar.”
The top 10 drivers in the national points race are expected to compete in Qatar in what will formally by called the Oryx Cup. It’s also the first time the local hydroplane circuit has ventured into the Middle East.
“I am excited about the exposure this race will bring the sport internationally,” said David, whose average speed during the championship race was 126.703 miles per hour. “They are genuine gear heads.”
The tight-fisted battle between David and Villwock in the national points race should just heighten the event in Qatar. David won the points race three consecutive years from 2005 through 2007.
Part of the key to Oh Boy! Oberto’s success hasn’t only been David, but also the new state-of-the-art unlimited hydroplane that was built prior to the 2007 season. The boat was designed specifically for the Lake Washington course. The new, lighter design worked flawlessly the first season, when David won Seafair in the upgraded machine. David’s success at Seafair continued last year, when he took second to Villwock.
The run of success, however, came to a screeching halt this past Sunday when the U-1 Oh Boy! Oberto succumbed to engine troubles.
It’s the first time in the boat’s three-year run that it has come across any engine issues.
“It’s discouraging because it’s the first time in three years we have had any engine troubles with the boat,” David said. “Now it puts a little pressure on us heading into the final two races.”
HOW THEY FINISHED
FINISH BOAT DRIVER AVG. SPEED POINTS
1 U-16 Ellstrom Elam Plus Dave Villwock 137.532 400
2 U-3 Grandview on the Lake Jimmy King 133.072 300
3 U-37 Hoss Mortgage Investors J.W. Myers 130.322 225
4 U-5 FormulaBoats.com Jeff Bernard 128.574 169
5 U-17 USNW Express Kip Brown 127.29 127
6 U-1 Oh Boy! Oberto Steve David 126.703 95
7 U-7 Graham Trucking J. Michael Kelly121.139 71
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