Throughout the day, Dave Villwock was in control of the fastest boat on Lake Washington in the 2011 Seafair Hydroplane Races, finishing first in each of his three heats, including a narrow win over Steve David in Heat 2B. In the finals, David and Villwock were set to tee it up again, with the Albert Lee Cup on the line in the Unlimited Hydroplane Series' premier event. It was widely assumed the finals would be a two-man race again.
As the boats prepared for the start, Villwock took outside of where he would've liked, with David on the inside. A clean start led to what we all assumed as the Oh Boy! Oberto boat and Spirit of Qatar boat battled it our over the first lap. As they crossed the line to end the first lap, David had the lead, followed by Villwock and the Valken.com boat in third.
David maintained his spot on the inside, with Villwock blocked out on the outside through two laps, allowing the Oh Boy! Oberto boat to pull away. Scott Liddycoat, in the Valken boat, battled it out with Villwock during the second lap, eventually forcing him outside and nabbing the second-place spot. Liddycoat continued to block Villwock out, frustrating the prolific driver as David pulled away.
As they came to the checkered flag, David took the win several boat-lengths, with Liddycoat in second and Villwock third. After a superb weekend of heats, Villwock's Seafair ended in disappointment as he couldn't close and was shut-out by the Valken.com boat.
For more on the race, including a look back at all the action, check out the rest of our Seafair Hydroplane Race StoryStream.