Boeing has put up $75,000 to fund the Unlimited Hydroplane portion of San Diego's annual Bayfair, Sept. 19-21 on Mission Bay.
The tripleheader will include drag boat racing off Crown Point Shores and offshore powerboats sharing the 2½-mile Bill Muncey Memorial course between East Vacation Isle and Fiesta Island.
That's right, the Pacific Offshore Power Boat Racing Association will be staging a points race inside Mission Bay.
A first? It should be, but it isn't.
“Last year we contracted with POPBRA to have an offshore exhibition during Bayfair, but it turned out they ran a points race without telling us,” Bayfair chairman Bob Davies said this week during the formal announcement of the Boeing sponsorship.
Bayfair officials still haven't worked out the logistics of mingling the Unlimiteds and the offshore boats on the same course.
“All I can say is we'll have a packed weekend,” said Davies.
As for Boeing ... why would the aircraft manufacturer get involved in Unlimited Hydroplane racing?
The Unlimiteds are powered by turbine engines. And Boeing is developing a biofuel to power commercial jetliners. It turns out the Unlimiteds are a good test platform.
Plus, Boeing is underwriting the first Unlimited Hydroplane tour to the Mideast – with races scheduled for Dubai and Qatar – in December.
That tour, which will number four boats and could lead to an international series, could impact the San Diego finale to the 2008 season. The Elam team is still undecided about racing in San Diego.
If Elam, with driver Dave Villwock, is in, the San Diego race could number 11 boats.
Las Vegas to Reno
El Cajon's Andy McMillin finished fourth overall in last weekend's Las Vegas to Reno off-road race.
Escondido's Chuck Hovey was 15th overall and seventh among the buggies; Mark McMillin was 20th overall. The Barstow truck team of Rick Johnson (not the motocross champion) and Brian Sallie was the overall winner of the longest race of the Best In The Desert season.
Other top local four-wheel finishers were Campo's Kyle Conlon (23rd overall and first in class), El Cajon's Daniel McMillin (51st and third in class), Alpine's Tanner Harris (58th), Escondido's Dave Mason (60th), Valley Center's John Sunderland (75th and second in class), Ramona's Mike Falkosky (77th and second in class) and San Diego's Kent Kroeker-Rudy Iribe (83rd and third in class).
Vista's Dylan Lane was part of the team that finished eighth overall in the motorcycle division. El Cajon's Jimmy Lopez and A.J. Stewart were ninth overall.
CHECKERED FLAGS
Helio Castroneves: Ends a 29-race winless streak, leading a 1-2 Penske sweep at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma to keep his IndyCar Series hopes alive. Castroneves' victory came four days after the two race-ready Penske cars were destroyed in a trailer fire.
Joey Logano: Logano, 18, will move into the No. 20 Sprint Cup car being abandoned by Tony Stewart. And guess what: Greg Zipadelli is remaining with Joe Gibbs Racing to be Logano's crew chief rather than going to Stewart's new team.
Reed Sorenson: The promising 22-year-old is leaving Chip Ganassi Racing to join Kasey Kahne and Elliott Sadler with Gillett Evernham Motorsports.
SCHEDULE
NASCAR Weekend
Auto Club Speedway, Fontana
(2-mile, D-shaped oval)
Tomorrow
Sprint Cup: Practice, noon; Qualifying, 3:30 p.m. (Speed Channel).
Saturday
Nationwide Series: Camping World 300 (150 laps; ESPN2, 6:45 p.m.; Qualifying, Speed Channel, 2:30 p.m.) – Jeff Burton passed Kyle Busch eight laps from the finish to win last year's race. Brad Keselowski took advantage of a rare bobble by season points leader Clint Bowyer with 24 laps to go last Friday at Bristol, Tenn., to scored his second victory of the season. Keselowski took over second in the standings and trails Bowyer by 122 points. But Keselowski has never cracked the top 30 at Fontana.
Sunday
Sprint Cup: Sprint Cup 500 (250 laps; ESPN, 4 p.m.) – Last year, the air temperature was still about 108 at the start of the race. Jimmie Johnson endured the oppressive heat to score his second victory at Fontana. With two races to go before the 12-driver field is set for the 10-race Chase for the Championship, Denny Hamlin (11th), Bowyer (12th), David Ragan (13th) and Kasey Kahne (14th) are battling for the final two spots. Kyle Busch and Carl Edwards have clinched berths in the Chase and Dale Earnhardt Jr., Johnson and Burton can clinch spots Sunday. Of course, the focus will be on Edwards and Busch this weekend after their heated battle and subsequent debate last Saturday at Bristol. Edwards shoved points leader Busch out of the way with 30 laps to go to score his third win in four weeks.
ELSEWHERE
Saturday
Barona Speedway: Street, factory and pony stocks; 600cc mini-sprints, Dwarf cars; qualifying and practice, 2:30 p.m.; racing 5 p.m.
Sunday
IndyCar Series: Detroit Belle Isle Grand Prix (90 laps, 2.096-mile, 13-turn road course; Channel 10, 12:30 p.m.) – Last week's win by Helio Castroneves reduced Scott Dixon's points lead from 78 to 43. Tony Kanaan is the defending champion at Detroit. Danica Patrick ran second. This is the penultimate race of the season. Castroneves is the only driver who could take the title away from Dixon.
Monday
NHRA Drag Racing: Mac Tools U.S. Nationals, Indianapolis (ESPN2, 4 p.m.) – Tony Schumacher has won five straight Top Fuel events and has 10 wins on the season. Schumacher is the defending U.S. Nationals champion. Vista-based Larry Dixon was second last year . . . and second two weeks ago at Reading, Pa.
RACING NUMBERS
3 – Craftsman Truck wins for Kyle Busch this season.
4 – Formula One wins by Ferrari's Felipe Massa this season.
51 – Top Fuel drag racing wins by Tony Schumacher.
52 – Five-time champion Joe Amato's record for career Top Fuel wins.
