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Unlimited NewsJournal

Unlimited Hydroplane Racing the UNLIMITED NewsJournal is an enthusiast club, interested in promoting and documenting the sport of unlimited hydroplane racing.

The UNLIMITED NewsJournal is based around a full monthly edition, and now with the new website replacing the print version, we have the ability to provide more accurate, timely, & enhanced product.

10/01/2026

The October issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal is now available for your reading pleasure.

This month’s issue features part one of an in-depth interview of Mike Noonan, a former chief referee for H1 Unlimited. Noonan discusses how he got involved in boat racing as a young child, his early experience as a race official, some of the people who mentored him, and about some of the issues and rules he has influenced over the years.

As promised, the October issue also includes the republishing of a feature story about Jim Ranger and his My Gypsy hydroplane that we originally carried in 2001. The article is presented as a remembrance of Ranger, who passed away last summer. This month’s issue also includes a short interview to introduce you to Brandon Kennedy, Brad Haskin’s regular report about the latest news from the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum, and Chris Tracy’s report on recent news within the sport.

The Unlimited NewsJournal is always FREE. You can read, download, and/or print the October issue, or any of our previous issues, at unlimitednewsjournal.net. Happy Reading!

09/01/2026

The September issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal is now available for your reading pleasure.
This month’s issue features our in-depth coverage of the two Pacific Northwest races: the Apollo Columbia Cup in the Tri-Cities and the Apollo Mechanical Cup in Seattle. As always, our coverage of both races includes complete race reports, photos, notes and quotes from the pits, and detailed statistics.

The September issue also includes a conversation with Jimmy Shane, who talks about his return to the sport this year and about the boat that he is driving. We also remember the life and brief career of Jim Ranger, who was the last participant in hydro racing by the legendary Dodge family and, driving My Gypsy, the winner of the Seafair Race 60 years ago. Brad Haskin also tells us the latest news from the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum and Chris Tracy brings us up to date on recent news within the sport.

Unlimited NewsJournal is always FREE. You can read, download, and/or print the September issue, or any of our previous issues, at unlimitednewsjournal.net. Happy Reading!

08/01/2026

The August issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal is now available for your reading pleasure.

This month’s issue features our extensive coverage of the season’s first race—Jimmy Shane’s victory in the the APBA Gold Cup in Madison, Indiana. We also include a detailed interview of J.W. Myers, who tells about his experience racing outboards and about his adventures competing in the Unlimiteds from 2003 until 2017.

The August issue continues with a look at the career of Ron Armstrong, who passed away in late June. Armstrong saw action with some of the biggest teams in the sport during the 1970s and 1980s and also made a significant impact on the technology that is still used in all of motorsports. Brad Haskin also tells us the latest news from the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum, and Chris Tracy brings us up to date on recent news within the sport.

As always, the Unlimited NewsJournal is FREE. You can read, download, and/or print the August issue, or any of our previous issues, at unlimitednewsjournal.net. Happy Reading!

07/01/2026

When it’s time to turn the calendar to another month, it also means another issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal is available for your reading pleasure.

With the season’s first race only a few days away, our July issue features a report about what happened during the H1 Unlimited spring test session on the Columbia River several weekends ago. For readers who enjoy some history and the technology of these incredible boats, we also feature a first-hand account that describes Fred Leland’s efforts in the 1980s and early ‘90s to power his hydroplane with a monster Packard engine.

For the July issue we also reached into our vault and retrieved a story that we published more than 30 years ago about the sport’s legendary champion Bill Muncey and his talent as a musician. We also offer another quick look at the tragedy of 60 years ago that we featured last month, we preview next weekend’s Gold Cup in Madison, Brad Haskin tells us the latest news from the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum, and we remember a dear, kind friend of this publication and of this sport.

As always, the Unlimited NewsJournal is FREE. You can read, download, and/or print the July issue, or any of our previous issues, at unlimitednewsjournal.net. Happy Reading!

06/01/2026

Some say that summer begins with the arrival of June. If that’s the case, it must be time for the 2026 hydro racing season to get underway. It also means the June issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal has arrived.

This month’s issue is our annual season preview. Like he does each year at this time, the Swami puts on his turban, gazes into his crystal ball, and foretells what he believes will happen on H1 Unlimited racecourses during the season to come. We also offer readers our annual race program for the hard-core hydro fan. In it, we provide details about the boats and drivers that you won’t find in the race programs that will be sold at the race sites.

To recognize the 60th anniversary of one of the darkest days in the sport’s history, the June issue also looks back to the 1966 President’s Cup and reviews what happened on that Black Sunday when three of hydro racing’s top drivers were killed. After having featured the story of Rex Manchester the past two months, we also include a closer look this month at the career of one of the other victims of that terrible day: Don Wilson.

The June issue then wraps up with two of our usual features: a report about the latest happenings at the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum and Chris Tracy’s column about the sport’s latest news.

As always, the Unlimited NewsJournal is FREE. You can read the June issue, or any of our past issues, at unlimitednewsjournal.net. Happy Reading!

05/01/2026

The May issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal is now available for your reading enjoyment.

This month, we feature an entertaining conversation between David Williams, the recently retired executive director of the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum, and one of our former editors, David Speer. The two Davids discuss a range of topics that include how Williams got involved in hydroplane racing, his efforts to preserve the sport’s heritage, and how he thought he might have killed one of the sport’s biggest personalities during a ride in a vintage boat on Lake Washington.

The May issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal also wraps up the story we started last month about the hard-luck career of Rex Manchester, which ended tragically on Black Sunday 60 years ago. Also, as we do every May, the issue looks back to what was happening in the world of big-time boat racing 100, 75, 50, and 25 years ago.

The May issue also includes an update about museum activities from Brad Haskin and a report of the sport’s latest news from Chris Tracy.
As always, the Unlimited NewsJournal is FREE. You can read the May issue, or any of our past issues, at unlimitednewsjournal.net. Happy Reading!

04/01/2026

No joke. The April issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal is now available for your reading enjoyment.

This month, we bring back the first segment of a story we published in 1991 about the hard-luck career of Rex Manchester. We begin with the story of how the World War II hero got involved in the sport and the boats that he drove during the early 1960s.

We also continue with the fourth and final segment of our visit with Steve Reynolds. In this month’s issue, Reynolds talks about driving an Unlimited hydroplane and discusses the issues of safety and the sport’s future from the perspective of when the interview was conducted in 1982.

The April issue also includes a new feature. Brad Haskin of the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum begins a monthly column that will keep our readers informed about what’s going on at the museum. The issue also has a couple of our regulars. Chris Tracy talks about the latest news, and editor Andy Muntz shares his views about the sport’s new starting procedure.

As always, the Unlimited NewsJournal is FREE. You can read the April issue, or any of our past issues, at unlimitednewsjournal.net. Happy Reading!

03/01/2026

The March issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal is now available for your reading enjoyment. This month, we continue with the third segment of our four-part interview of Steve Reynolds, one of the most popular drivers of 40 years ago. In this month’s issue, Reynolds talks about driving Captran Resorts in 1981 and Miss Prodelco in 1982.

The March issue also includes information about the 2026 edition of our annual Hydro Record Book and a reprint of an interview from the past that featured three of the sport’s most successful boat designers, all from the same family. Ted Jones, designer of the revolutionary Slo-mo-shun IV and many of the most successful hydros of the 1950s; his son, Ron Jones, the designer of the “Winged Wonder Pay ‘N Pak and other revolutionary boats in the 1970s; and his son, Ron Jones, Jr., a successful designer and builder of the 1990s, all talk about their craft in a remarkable discussion.

The March issue wraps up with an editorial comment about an excellent new book about hydroplane racing. As always, the Unlimited NewsJournal is FREE. You can read the March issue, or any of our past issues, at unlimitednewsjournal.net. Happy Reading!

02/01/2026

February has already arrived, and with each new month also comes another issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal. The February issue remembers Brenda Jones, who passed away early last month. We tell the story of her legacy as the only woman to drive an Unlimited hydroplane in competition during the sport’s modern era. You’ll learn the events that aligned to put her in a hydro cockpit and what she thought of that experience.

The February issue also includes the second installment of our four-part interview of Steve Reynolds. This month, he talks about the trials and tribulations of driving Miss Circus Circus in 1980, his last with that team, and about his efforts to drive the team’s experimental four-point boat. Last month we learned that boat was considered by some as the worst of that decade. You’ll see why.

With rumors that the sport is considering a change in the way it starts races, we also review the history of the many different starting procedures (including the one that is again being proposed) that have been used during the past four decades, and why each variation was eventually dumped on the scrap heap by the sport’s decision-makers. Finally, you’ll read about the retirement party for the hydro museum’s long-time executive director, David Williams.

Best of all, as always, the Unlimited NewsJournal is FREE.

You can read the February 2026 issue, or any of our past issues, at unlimitednewsjournal.net. Happy Reading!

01/01/2026

Happy New Year! The start of another year, and of another month, can mean only one thing: it’s time for the January issue of the Unlimited NewsJournal. Reading it (along with maybe watching some football) will be a great way to celebrate today’s holiday.

With the 2025 season now behind us, and the 2026 season still over the next horizon, the next few NewsJournals will focus on the history of the sport. This month, we feature the beginning of a four-part interview with one of the most popular drivers of the late 1970s and early ‘80s: Steve Reynolds. Taken from our archives, the interview was conducted and was originally published by the NewsJournal in 1982, before the accident that would unfortunately cut short his driving career. In the first segment of the conversation, Reynolds discusses his first involvement with the Miss Circus Circus team in 1978 and he reviews the 1979 season, when he drove a new hydroplane for Circus Circus.

The January issue also travels back in time and resurrects a New Year’s article originally published in 1990 that identifies the best and worst hydroplanes of the 1980s. Can you guess which boat was Number One? Also in the issue is an interview of Peter Orton, who has worked on vintage hydroplanes for many years. He talks about the old Rolls-Royce Merlin engines and the beautiful restoration of the 1967 Miss Budweiser. Chris Tracy’s column this month is devoted to the latest goings-on, including some exciting news, at the Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum.

Best of all, as always, the Unlimited NewsJournal is FREE.

You can read the January 2026 issue, or any of our past issues, at unlimitednewsjournal.net. Happy Reading!

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