Spring Boat Shop Tour – 6
6 Oh Boy! Oberto Miss Madison at home In the shop.
For the community owned Miss Madison Racing Team – the commute to the pit area for the season opener is just a few minutes…the time it takes to get from the team’s Madison shop to the riverfront.
In 2011, the trip back to the shop included a badly broken race boat and the beginning of a heroic effort by the crew to get the boat back into competition. For driver Steve David, crew chief Mike Hanson and the 13,000 owners of the race team, a less eventful start to the 2012 season would be very welcome.
Crew Chief Mike Hanson at work on the skid fin bracket.
Hanson says, “It was frustrating because we were really loaded for bear and expecting great things last year. We had new wings, cowling and a lot of new stuff on the boat and it all got used up the first race.”
A horrific collision in the final heat with Dave Villwock in the Spirit of Qatar badly damaged both boats.
Villwock’s boat was repaired in time for the Gold Cup in Detroit the following week, but the damage to the Madison hull was more severe, requiring the team to lease a backup hull for the Gold Cup and putting the remainder of the season in doubt.
But Hanson and the team were determined to have the boat back on the water for the Washington State races three weeks later. Thanks to an incredible effort and the expertise of the veteran crew, the Oh Boy! Oberto Miss Madison was in the Tri-Cities and race ready when it came time for the Lamb-Weston Columbia Cup in late July.
In 2012, the boat will have new bull noses, wings, cowling and other new parts.
“It wasn’t pretty. We rolled some color on the bondo from the repair and it looked okay from a distance,” said Hanson. “it looked a little rough up close, but the real problem was that it had picked up some weight and the balance wasn’t the same.”
Both sponsons had been damaged in the accident, with the most severe damage happening on the left side in the area of the skid fin bracket when the fin sliced through the deck and motor of the 96.
The repair to the left side added a little more weight to that side of the boat and took away the team’s ability to move weight in the boat to adjust the boat ride.
David, recovering from rib injuries, was not able to get the boat to perform the way it had before the accident. But as the event and the season continued, the team was able to re-tune their race boat to the point where it would again challenge for the top of the qualifying ladder and go to the front.
Sharks teeth and the rest of the boat's intricate color scheme have been freshly repainted.
A week after the Columbia Cup, Steve David held off challenges from Villwock and rookie of the year Scott Liddycoat to win the team sponsor’s home town race at Seattle’s Albert Lee Cup at Seafair.
The Oh Boy! Oberto Miss Madison Race Team had come all the way back from disaster in a remarkably short time.
“In fact, in Doha I think we were about the best we’ve ever been,” added Hanson. “We saved some good stuff for the final and it was going to be a good one for us. But we were one of the boats that started a little too early.”
While waiting for the boat to return from the trip to Qatar, the team was busy fabricating new backups for the wings, cowling and other spare parts.
Turbine engines are race ready - after spending time at the Budweiser dyno in Seattle.
Hanson then put the emphasis on the team’s motor program, spending time at the Budweiser dyno in Seattle and adding new parts.
The bondo is gone now and the boat’s bright multi-colored paint job has been redone. More important, the hull is back down to weight and will check in again at the minimum weight for the H1 series.
Since the debut of the current Oh Boy! Oberto Miss Madison in 2008, Steve David, Mike Hanson and crew have been consistent front runners. Indications are that they are well positioned for a run at another season high point championship in 2012.
Spring Boat Shop Tour – 6
6 Oh Boy! Oberto Miss Madison at home In the shop.
For the community owned Miss Madison Racing Team – the commute to the pit area for the season opener is just a few minutes…the time it takes to get from the team’s Madison shop to the riverfront.
In 2011, the trip back to the shop included a badly broken race boat and the beginning of a heroic effort by the crew to get the boat back into competition. For driver Steve David, crew chief Mike Hanson and the 13,000 owners of the race team, a less eventful start to the 2012 season would be very welcome.
Crew Chief Mike Hanson at work on the skid fin bracket.
Hanson says, “It was frustrating because we were really loaded for bear and expecting great things last year. We had new wings, cowling and a lot of new stuff on the boat and it all got used up the first race.”
A horrific collision in the final heat with Dave Villwock in the Spirit of Qatar badly damaged both boats.
Villwock’s boat was repaired in time for the Gold Cup in Detroit the following week, but the damage to the Madison hull was more severe, requiring the team to lease a backup hull for the Gold Cup and putting the remainder of the season in doubt.
But Hanson and the team were determined to have the boat back on the water for the Washington State races three weeks later. Thanks to an incredible effort and the expertise of the veteran crew, the Oh Boy! Oberto Miss Madison was in the Tri-Cities and race ready when it came time for the Lamb-Weston Columbia Cup in late July.
In 2012, the boat will have new bull noses, wings, cowling and other new parts.
“It wasn’t pretty. We rolled some color on the bondo from the repair and it looked okay from a distance,” said Hanson. “it looked a little rough up close, but the real problem was that it had picked up some weight and the balance wasn’t the same.”
Both sponsons had been damaged in the accident, with the most severe damage happening on the left side in the area of the skid fin bracket when the fin sliced through the deck and motor of the 96.
The repair to the left side added a little more weight to that side of the boat and took away the team’s ability to move weight in the boat to adjust the boat ride.
David, recovering from rib injuries, was not able to get the boat to perform the way it had before the accident. But as the event and the season continued, the team was able to re-tune their race boat to the point where it would again challenge for the top of the qualifying ladder and go to the front.
Sharks teeth and the rest of the boat's intricate color scheme have been freshly repainted.
A week after the Columbia Cup, Steve David held off challenges from Villwock and rookie of the year Scott Liddycoat to win the team sponsor’s home town race at Seattle’s Albert Lee Cup at Seafair.
The Oh Boy! Oberto Miss Madison Race Team had come all the way back from disaster in a remarkably short time.
“In fact, in Doha I think we were about the best we’ve ever been,” added Hanson. “We saved some good stuff for the final and it was going to be a good one for us. But we were one of the boats that started a little too early.”
While waiting for the boat to return from the trip to Qatar, the team was busy fabricating new backups for the wings, cowling and other spare parts.
Turbine engines are race ready - after spending time at the Budweiser dyno in Seattle.
Hanson then put the emphasis on the team’s motor program, spending time at the Budweiser dyno in Seattle and adding new parts.
The bondo is gone now and the boat’s bright multi-colored paint job has been redone. More important, the hull is back down to weight and will check in again at the minimum weight for the H1 series.
Since the debut of the current Oh Boy! Oberto Miss Madison in 2008, Steve David, Mike Hanson and crew have been consistent front runners. Indications are that they are well positioned for a run at another season high point championship in 2012.