TBT - Back in the 60’s and 70’s, I cheered mightily for my favorite hulls, the Bardahl, the Bud, the Pak and many other great hulls of the period but I think I cheered louder for the underdog that would occasionally show glimpses of brilliance. Even though I only saw her run competitively a few times in the mid 60’s, the one hull that comes to mind was the U-50 Savair’s Probe or simply known as the “Probe”. She started her career in 1960 as the U-4 Miss Burien (2). From early 1961 through the ’63 season, she then became the Tempest. In 1964 she only appeared in 2 events, first as Bernie Little’s U-11 Miss Michelob in Seattle and then the U-44 Roostertail in Madison. But from that point on, beginning in 1965 through her last race in 1980, she was the U-50. After the ’69 season the Probe went off the radar and did not campaign again until late 1973. The interesting part of this story was that this was the second to last hull built by the master Ted Jones, one of the greatest boat builders and designers in unlimited history. You may remember Ted’s last hull, the “Green Dragon” U-40 Miss Bardahl, 3 time gold cup winner and 3 time national champ. While these two hulls were similar in design, the main difference was power. The mighty Bardahl ran the superior Rolls Merlin while the underfunded Burien/Tempest/Prode ran a stock Allison throughout her entire career. Hydro history may have been re-written if she would have had the more powerful Merlin on board. Some say she could have been a winner, even a champion. Statistics show that these two final Ted Jones hulls were two of the most consistent finishers of their era. The Probe was donated to H.A.R.M. sometime after her final race and then was restored back to her rightful name and number as the U-4 Miss Burien in 1996.
Posted on: Thu, 02 Oct 2014 04:13:35 +0000
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