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AMERICA’S U.S.A-TEAM SLUGS THEIR WAY TO A UIM BRONZE MEDAL AT THE OSY-400 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Kreibstien Germany, a sleepy little country town outside of Dresden, exploded to life with the roar of over twenty five outboard engines when the OSY-400 World Championships began last Saturday on August 4th 2012. Among those adding to the excitement and the group who had traveled the longest distance to participate was America’s U.S. A-Team. The team, consisting of Administrator Rachel Warnock from Pewaukee Wisconsin, Pit Boss Dudley Smith from Delaware Ohio, Photographer Dave Recht from Palo Alto California and Team Captain / Driver Billy Allen from Quincy Ma. were the only team on hand to represent The United States at this IOC Recognized International Event.
The event featured entries from all corners of the globe. The eclectic mix of nations would be vying for the coveted top three podium positions. On Saturday morning, the tension was as thick as the foam on a German Lager as the crews readied their charges for the first of two official timed practice sessions which would be held at nine o’clock. When the one hour session was completed, defending World Champion Sten Kalder from Estonia had posted the fastest lap time with a 1.05.74 lap followed by fellow Estonians Annika Suuk with a 1.05.75 and 2010 Silver Medalist Rasmus Haugasmagi posting a 1.06.04. Next was Slovakia’s Peter Stefanovic with a 1.07.01 followed by the only American entry of The U.S. A-Team’s Billy Allen running a lap time of 1.07.07. Poland’s Cezary Strumnik rounded out the top six with a time of 1.07.24.
One hour later, in the second timed practice, the American team seemed to uncork some hidden magic as Allen posted the fastest lap time of the two sessions when he ripped off an amazing 1.03.67. The American was followed by the two young but experienced Estonians, Hagausmagi with a 1.04.74 and Kalder with a 1.05.97. Two Polish drivers, Michael Sweirczynski and Cezary Srumnik followed with times of 1.07.01 and 1.07.07 respectively. This gave Allen the pole position for elimination heat B of the two elimination races which would be held later in the day. These elimination heats would be used to whittle the field down to the fifteen finalists.
Later in the day, in elimination heat A, the Estonians again showcased their consistent speed when Hagausmagi and Kalder raced to the first two finishing positions and posted the heat times to beat of 5.05.74 and 5.09.01. In heat B, with the American sitting in the pole position, the red light expired signaling the start but a hiccup on the jetty got Allen to the first turn late and out of the big sweeping corner in second place. Another fast Estonian, Annika Suuk led the field. After a tremendous two boat dual in which they left the rest of the pack behind, Allen finally overtook Suuk going into the corner on lap two. The American then used the remaining two laps to stretch out a sizable lead and post the only tour of the circuit under the five minute mark when he blazed to a remarkable 4.59.88. This impressive time would give Allen the fastest heat of the weekend and secure the all important pole position in heat one of the four heat feature final to be held on Sunday.
After a Sunday morning of more high tension combined with mandatory breath alcohol tests for all drivers, the fifteen finalists were on the jetty and ready to start heat one. With the American sitting in the pole position and another fourteen rabid dogs lined up to his right, the red light expired- the starters tugged with all their might and the pack of power plants exploded to life as one. With the scream of two cycle engines combined with the roar of the crowd reverberating through the Kreibstien Valley, the fifteen fastest OSY-400 Hydroplanes in the world rocketed like missiles to the first turn. At the entrance buoy of turn one it was the Estonian Hagausmagi leading the pack with the American Allen in second on the inside and Defending World Champion Sten Kalder in third as the riotous group rounded the corner. At the end of turn one Hagausmagi hugged tight to the exit pin forcing Allen to jump his wake and go to the outside. As the tight pack went screaming by the starting docks Allen again crossed to the inside and beat Hagausmagi to the one pin second corner. As the two combatants rounded turn two Allen wrestled the front position from the grip of Hagausmagi and went to the front. Allen began to stretch out a lead down the backstretch but it was not to be the American’s day as he looked up from his crouch position of the Kamp Kurz kneeler and for the first time noticed the red lights flashing and the red flags flying. A crash in turn one between 2009 World Champion Maroslav Basinsky from Slovakia and Igor Vallisa from Italy would send all the boats back to the jetty for a restart.
With Bazinski and Vallisa unable to restart due to UIM regulations forbidding any boats involved in heat stoppage to participate in the re-running of the heat, the thirteen remaining boats quickly refueled and got ready to do it all again.
This time Allen wasn’t as fortunate as a bad start saw him come out of turn one covered in spray as he trailed Leader Sten Kalder and the second place boat of Rasmus Hagausmagi. After two of the six laps Allen had gained the second spot from Hagausmagi but by now Kalder was long gone and cruised to an easy heat one win.
With a heat one victory securely in his pocket, Kalder now held the pole position for the start of heat two. Allen was in the second spot with Hagausmagi third and Germany’s Adrian Bernd on the fourth grid. As the little hydros again leaped to life to start heat two, Kalder held tight to the inside lane around the buoys and Allen was second coming out of the first turn as the pack rocketed down the front stretch. Allen hounded Kalder for the entire six laps but just didn’t have enough to get past the defending champion. This finish put Kalder in the catbird seat going into heat three with two wins against Allen’s two second place finishes. The drama, however, was just beginning.
At the start of heat three it was once again Kalder to the buoy first with Hagausmagi coming in hot from the outside to clip the second pin. Allen slowed at pin two to try to keep tight to the corner. As the American rounded the buoy the front end of his sponson caught on a wake and the boat went into a dramatic spin and barrel roll sending the driver into the lake where he was immediately slammed by German driver Adrian Bernd who was rounding the corner near the middle of the pack. Once again the red flag flew. The crash again brought all remaining boats back to the jetty for a restart. Although unhurt, Allen and Bernd were unable to participate in the restart of heat three due to the UIM regulation. At the heat three restart it was Bazinski who went to the front as the boats came out of turn one. It took two laps of hard driving but the speedy Estonian driver Sten Kalder was able to reel in the Slovakian and make the pass. The win gave Kalder three consecutive heat wins and secured two Gold Medals in as many years for the defending World Champion.
With two seconds and a third, the other strong running Estonian, Rasmus Hagausmagi had put himself in a good position to bring home the Silver and as Allen was seemingly out of the picture with significant boat damage to the combings, airtraps, bottom and chine, it looked like the heat four race for the Bronze was stacking up between Slovakia’s Bazinski, Poland’s Cezary Strumnik and the upstart British pilot, 20 year old Luke Hugman who had quietly but consistently been garnering points just behind the leaders. What these drivers didn’t realize at this time however, was the resilience and resolve of the Americans and their friends.
As the Battered #16 boat of The U.S. A-Team was unhooked from the tow boat and wheeled back to their pit area, The Americans, with the help of many of their competitors’ crews, especially Germany’s Team-33, began to assess the damaged hull. After a quick but intense discussion, it was concludeda that an attempt would be made to get the boat repaired and the engine dried out and ready for heat 4. Luckily, the heat was not to be run for another two hours.
Like lions devouring a fresh kill on the savanna, the members of Germany’s Team-33 pounced on the boat repair project. With wood, generators, air compressors and power tools magically seeming to appear from nowhere, the obviously experienced Germans went to work. For the next hour, as a multi-national crowd gathered around the American pit area; hammers banged, screw guns whined and a mix of different languages flew through the air along with clouds of sawdust. After completing the boat repair and drying out the engine, the official UIM scrutineers were called to examine the repair and give their blessing that the craft was once again seaworthy and could, in fact compete in heat number 4.
to be continued.....
Kreibstien Germany, a sleepy little country town outside of Dresden, exploded to life with the roar of over twenty five outboard engines when the OSY-400 World Championships began last Saturday on August 4th 2012. Among those adding to the excitement and the group who had traveled the longest distance to participate was America’s U.S. A-Team. The team, consisting of Administrator Rachel Warnock from Pewaukee Wisconsin, Pit Boss Dudley Smith from Delaware Ohio, Photographer Dave Recht from Palo Alto California and Team Captain / Driver Billy Allen from Quincy Ma. were the only team on hand to represent The United States at this IOC Recognized International Event.
The event featured entries from all corners of the globe. The eclectic mix of nations would be vying for the coveted top three podium positions. On Saturday morning, the tension was as thick as the foam on a German Lager as the crews readied their charges for the first of two official timed practice sessions which would be held at nine o’clock. When the one hour session was completed, defending World Champion Sten Kalder from Estonia had posted the fastest lap time with a 1.05.74 lap followed by fellow Estonians Annika Suuk with a 1.05.75 and 2010 Silver Medalist Rasmus Haugasmagi posting a 1.06.04. Next was Slovakia’s Peter Stefanovic with a 1.07.01 followed by the only American entry of The U.S. A-Team’s Billy Allen running a lap time of 1.07.07. Poland’s Cezary Strumnik rounded out the top six with a time of 1.07.24.
One hour later, in the second timed practice, the American team seemed to uncork some hidden magic as Allen posted the fastest lap time of the two sessions when he ripped off an amazing 1.03.67. The American was followed by the two young but experienced Estonians, Hagausmagi with a 1.04.74 and Kalder with a 1.05.97. Two Polish drivers, Michael Sweirczynski and Cezary Srumnik followed with times of 1.07.01 and 1.07.07 respectively. This gave Allen the pole position for elimination heat B of the two elimination races which would be held later in the day. These elimination heats would be used to whittle the field down to the fifteen finalists.
Later in the day, in elimination heat A, the Estonians again showcased their consistent speed when Hagausmagi and Kalder raced to the first two finishing positions and posted the heat times to beat of 5.05.74 and 5.09.01. In heat B, with the American sitting in the pole position, the red light expired signaling the start but a hiccup on the jetty got Allen to the first turn late and out of the big sweeping corner in second place. Another fast Estonian, Annika Suuk led the field. After a tremendous two boat dual in which they left the rest of the pack behind, Allen finally overtook Suuk going into the corner on lap two. The American then used the remaining two laps to stretch out a sizable lead and post the only tour of the circuit under the five minute mark when he blazed to a remarkable 4.59.88. This impressive time would give Allen the fastest heat of the weekend and secure the all important pole position in heat one of the four heat feature final to be held on Sunday.
After a Sunday morning of more high tension combined with mandatory breath alcohol tests for all drivers, the fifteen finalists were on the jetty and ready to start heat one. With the American sitting in the pole position and another fourteen rabid dogs lined up to his right, the red light expired- the starters tugged with all their might and the pack of power plants exploded to life as one. With the scream of two cycle engines combined with the roar of the crowd reverberating through the Kreibstien Valley, the fifteen fastest OSY-400 Hydroplanes in the world rocketed like missiles to the first turn. At the entrance buoy of turn one it was the Estonian Hagausmagi leading the pack with the American Allen in second on the inside and Defending World Champion Sten Kalder in third as the riotous group rounded the corner. At the end of turn one Hagausmagi hugged tight to the exit pin forcing Allen to jump his wake and go to the outside. As the tight pack went screaming by the starting docks Allen again crossed to the inside and beat Hagausmagi to the one pin second corner. As the two combatants rounded turn two Allen wrestled the front position from the grip of Hagausmagi and went to the front. Allen began to stretch out a lead down the backstretch but it was not to be the American’s day as he looked up from his crouch position of the Kamp Kurz kneeler and for the first time noticed the red lights flashing and the red flags flying. A crash in turn one between 2009 World Champion Maroslav Basinsky from Slovakia and Igor Vallisa from Italy would send all the boats back to the jetty for a restart.
With Bazinski and Vallisa unable to restart due to UIM regulations forbidding any boats involved in heat stoppage to participate in the re-running of the heat, the thirteen remaining boats quickly refueled and got ready to do it all again.
This time Allen wasn’t as fortunate as a bad start saw him come out of turn one covered in spray as he trailed Leader Sten Kalder and the second place boat of Rasmus Hagausmagi. After two of the six laps Allen had gained the second spot from Hagausmagi but by now Kalder was long gone and cruised to an easy heat one win.
With a heat one victory securely in his pocket, Kalder now held the pole position for the start of heat two. Allen was in the second spot with Hagausmagi third and Germany’s Adrian Bernd on the fourth grid. As the little hydros again leaped to life to start heat two, Kalder held tight to the inside lane around the buoys and Allen was second coming out of the first turn as the pack rocketed down the front stretch. Allen hounded Kalder for the entire six laps but just didn’t have enough to get past the defending champion. This finish put Kalder in the catbird seat going into heat three with two wins against Allen’s two second place finishes. The drama, however, was just beginning.
At the start of heat three it was once again Kalder to the buoy first with Hagausmagi coming in hot from the outside to clip the second pin. Allen slowed at pin two to try to keep tight to the corner. As the American rounded the buoy the front end of his sponson caught on a wake and the boat went into a dramatic spin and barrel roll sending the driver into the lake where he was immediately slammed by German driver Adrian Bernd who was rounding the corner near the middle of the pack. Once again the red flag flew. The crash again brought all remaining boats back to the jetty for a restart. Although unhurt, Allen and Bernd were unable to participate in the restart of heat three due to the UIM regulation. At the heat three restart it was Bazinski who went to the front as the boats came out of turn one. It took two laps of hard driving but the speedy Estonian driver Sten Kalder was able to reel in the Slovakian and make the pass. The win gave Kalder three consecutive heat wins and secured two Gold Medals in as many years for the defending World Champion.
With two seconds and a third, the other strong running Estonian, Rasmus Hagausmagi had put himself in a good position to bring home the Silver and as Allen was seemingly out of the picture with significant boat damage to the combings, airtraps, bottom and chine, it looked like the heat four race for the Bronze was stacking up between Slovakia’s Bazinski, Poland’s Cezary Strumnik and the upstart British pilot, 20 year old Luke Hugman who had quietly but consistently been garnering points just behind the leaders. What these drivers didn’t realize at this time however, was the resilience and resolve of the Americans and their friends.
As the Battered #16 boat of The U.S. A-Team was unhooked from the tow boat and wheeled back to their pit area, The Americans, with the help of many of their competitors’ crews, especially Germany’s Team-33, began to assess the damaged hull. After a quick but intense discussion, it was concludeda that an attempt would be made to get the boat repaired and the engine dried out and ready for heat 4. Luckily, the heat was not to be run for another two hours.
Like lions devouring a fresh kill on the savanna, the members of Germany’s Team-33 pounced on the boat repair project. With wood, generators, air compressors and power tools magically seeming to appear from nowhere, the obviously experienced Germans went to work. For the next hour, as a multi-national crowd gathered around the American pit area; hammers banged, screw guns whined and a mix of different languages flew through the air along with clouds of sawdust. After completing the boat repair and drying out the engine, the official UIM scrutineers were called to examine the repair and give their blessing that the craft was once again seaworthy and could, in fact compete in heat number 4.
to be continued.....
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