1979 Squire Shop
Unlimited Hydroplane Restoration Project
The hydroplane community isn’t all that much different than any other sport out there, let's take professional baseball for example.
You always have those hardcore fans that can tell you how many strikeouts a certain pitcher got in a specific game………..little details most of us don’t pay much attention to in the bigger picture. In hydroplane racing, some can tell you how many races a specific hydroplane won in its career, and who the driver was at the time.
My point is, devoted fans gather as much knowledge as possible about their sport as they can, while most simply look to the “future” instead of appreciating the “past”.
It’s those small details that often get overlooked and/or lost to history, and in regards to our restoration project…………it’s no different.
Sure, most fans can find out how many victories a specific driver earned over their career.............but how many people would know who the actual crew members were of any specific hull and year?
When it comes to the 1979 "Squire Shop" restoration, those are the type of details we are after…………the little things.
In the content below, you will learn the ultimate fate (if known) of the major external components of the 1979 The Squire Shop hull.
So here we go......enjoy!
You always have those hardcore fans that can tell you how many strikeouts a certain pitcher got in a specific game………..little details most of us don’t pay much attention to in the bigger picture. In hydroplane racing, some can tell you how many races a specific hydroplane won in its career, and who the driver was at the time.
My point is, devoted fans gather as much knowledge as possible about their sport as they can, while most simply look to the “future” instead of appreciating the “past”.
It’s those small details that often get overlooked and/or lost to history, and in regards to our restoration project…………it’s no different.
Sure, most fans can find out how many victories a specific driver earned over their career.............but how many people would know who the actual crew members were of any specific hull and year?
When it comes to the 1979 "Squire Shop" restoration, those are the type of details we are after…………the little things.
In the content below, you will learn the ultimate fate (if known) of the major external components of the 1979 The Squire Shop hull.
So here we go......enjoy!
1979 "The Squire Shop" hull (1979-02)
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1979 "The Squire Shop" original trailer
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The original 1979 "The Squire Shop" trailer is currently under the ownership of Alex Bogert and Jerry Schoenith of the now "up for sale" UR-5 racing team, as our attempts to buy it awhile back came up short prior to them buying it from the Rutkauskas brothers. It was previously used on Jerry's "Miss Renault" team in the mid 80's, and the Rutt brothers "Edge Gel" team in the early 90's.
You never know what will happen down the road, perhaps someday we can bring this trailer back home underneath The Squire Shop.....where it belongs.
You never know what will happen down the road, perhaps someday we can bring this trailer back home underneath The Squire Shop.....where it belongs.
1979 "The Squire Shop" restoration trailer
The trailer the team will be using was originally the trailer for the 1970 Pay 'N Pak hydroplane. It has been a lot by various teams over the years, and the restoration team purchased it from Ed Cooper for use under the 1979 Squire Shop.
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stabilizer wing set #2 / 1980 version "Circus Circus"
In the pictures below, you will see the 2nd set of Circus Circus “ stabilizers that were later used on the 1984 “Island Security Systems” hull (driven by Mitch Evans) and eventually Wil Muncey's Z-9 hull .
Previously, this wing set was used on the 1981 "Spirit of the Air Force" version and the 1980 "Circus Circus" before that. This is the set we will use on the Squire Shop restoration. There were numerous separate coats of primer/paint to remove from this set, so it was repainted many times in its career.
Previously, this wing set was used on the 1981 "Spirit of the Air Force" version and the 1980 "Circus Circus" before that. This is the set we will use on the Squire Shop restoration. There were numerous separate coats of primer/paint to remove from this set, so it was repainted many times in its career.
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When the team sold the wings to Wil Muncey, he used them on his “Z” class hydroplane, The Z-9 Miss Canada II. You can see this horizontal wing in the photo below before it was repainted.
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The wings were then used on the hull, and he campaigned the boat in the now defunct "Z" boat class. We are 100% sure that this is the correct wing, because we can find traces of exposed yellow paint in its current condition.
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At some point down the road, Dave Bartush came into possession of this stabilizer wing set. This horizontal wing was then sold to Bob Steil, who in turn donated it and the 1979 "Circus Circus" hull to the Hydroplane & Raceboat Museum. Mr. Bartush also sold the before mentioned 1979 "Circus Circus" vertical stabilizer skins (used in in 1979 only) as well as part of the deal. The remaining Z-9 original 1979 Circus circus inner upright frames would be purchased from Mr. Bartush later on to complete the set. This is the set of vertical stabilizers the Squire restoration will be using. The horizontal stabilizer will be brand new and created from a reverse mold of the original Circus Circus one.
stabilizer wing set #1 / 1979 - 1986 version "Squire Shop"
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The most important set to us is original and only The Squire Shop" wing set, but we don't know what their ultimate fate was. The team only had the one set, as no spare was ever created. It was used in 1979, 1980, and 1981 for The Squire Shop.
This is also the set that eventually ended up on the former U-55 "Lincoln Thrift" hull that Bob Steil used as the teams display hull from 1984-1986. This hull was sold to Jim McBride, and then to Greg O'Farrell who continued using it as a display boat for his company "Lakeridge Paving".
Note: You can see the bolt pattern on the "spine" of the horizontal wing, which was exclusive to "The Squire Shop" set only. This set also had an extra "U" bracket installed to add strength the wing adjustment (turnbuckles).
This particular wing set was never seen again in use other than as shown on the picture to the left below, as the hull had modern looking stabilizers and turbine cowlings/canopy cockpit installed soon after by new owner Jim McBride. In a phone conversation I had with Jim, he stated that the "cathedral" wings did not come with the boat when he purchased it from Mr. Steil..................so nobody knows what happened to them.
Since no record of the wings ever being seen again after the sale to Mr. McBride, it is possible they could still be in existence somewhere..........cross your fingers that they turn up someday.
This is also the set that eventually ended up on the former U-55 "Lincoln Thrift" hull that Bob Steil used as the teams display hull from 1984-1986. This hull was sold to Jim McBride, and then to Greg O'Farrell who continued using it as a display boat for his company "Lakeridge Paving".
Note: You can see the bolt pattern on the "spine" of the horizontal wing, which was exclusive to "The Squire Shop" set only. This set also had an extra "U" bracket installed to add strength the wing adjustment (turnbuckles).
This particular wing set was never seen again in use other than as shown on the picture to the left below, as the hull had modern looking stabilizers and turbine cowlings/canopy cockpit installed soon after by new owner Jim McBride. In a phone conversation I had with Jim, he stated that the "cathedral" wings did not come with the boat when he purchased it from Mr. Steil..................so nobody knows what happened to them.
Since no record of the wings ever being seen again after the sale to Mr. McBride, it is possible they could still be in existence somewhere..........cross your fingers that they turn up someday.
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1979 "The Squire Shop" engine cowling
The original Engine cowling was lost when it blew off the boat during heat 2B of the Seafair race in 1979. it would be recovered many years later by The Squire Shop restoration crew in 2013.
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1980 "The Squire Shop"engine cowling
After "The Squire Shop" blew its engine cowling off the boat at Seafair in 1979 and it was lost in Lake Washington, the team decided to replace it the following season with another one................but with a couple minor changes. This cowling would find its way onto the teams display boat from 1984-1986, and then it returned one final time on the Miss Tubs in 1993.
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At the Columbia Cup in 1993, Jack Barrie was driving the U-4 "Miss Tubs" and lost the engine cowling when it blew off and sank into the Columbia river............never to be seen again.
1979 "Squire Shop" original drivers cowling (version #1)
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The original drivers cowling didn't last long, as it was heavily damaged from a fire in 1980 at Madison, Indiana. The cowlings remains were brought back to the teams shop in Seattle and a new cowling was made soon after. Call it good fortune if you may, but the original cowling made its way into private hands at some point and was still in existence up until the late 80's. It was last known in the possession of Leslie "Budd" Green out in Tacoma, Washington on a roof or in a garage. It was also mentioned that it may have been "lost" in the back of an old fish truck that was sold............and they simply forgot the cowling was stored in the back. However, all attempts to locate this drivers cowling have failed and it's current fate remains unsolved. Possible last known whereabouts are in the Burien and White Center neighborhoods of Seattle, Washington.
1979 "Squire Shop" drivers cowling (version #2)
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The 2nd cowling was used on the hull for the remainder of the 1980 season after the original one burned in Madison (1980). It was then "retired" to be used on the teams display hull (which was originally built as the u-55 Lincoln Thrift). It was a virtual clone of the original design in 1979 (as it came from the same original mold), except it had extra Fiberglass sections spliced in on the sides, as well as two small chrome vents . Edward Goodridge acquired this piece from Jim McBride and donated it to the restoration project. The "missing" back section (headrest) was reused on the Lincoln thrift hull when a canopy was added on (see Miss Tubbs picture).
1979 "Squire Shop" drivers cowling (version #3)
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The team modified the drivers cowling for the 1981 significantly by narrowing the width, removing the headrest, and adding in permanent "raised" side sections. It too would later be lost in a fire (Evansville, Indiana 1981). Hydroplane fans Kurt Karch and Brian Mans were gifted the remains and they salvaged what they could as souvenirs and scrapped the rest. Two such pieces remain from that cowling, the nose and one of the sides.
1979 "Squire Shop" drivers cowling (version #4)
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The 4th and final drivers cowling was destroyed upon impact on the crash while testing on Lake Washington in 1981. The only piece of it that remains is pictured above in the group shot, also donated by former crew member Paul Rosien.
1979 "The Squire Shop" hull team hauler: GMC Astro 95
The team used (from what we can tell) 3 heavy haulers in its racing career, but only one of them was used for the 1979 hull. This hauler was used until around the 1985 timeframe, where it was sold off. According to Scott Raney, this specific truck was last owned by Gary Manley (still painted in Squire Shop livery) and seen up on Ray Forsman's property (for "Dutchman" owner and driver) in the 90's sometime. It has since left Ray's and has not been seen or heard of since.....possibly ending up in the Nevada area.
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