Jimmy Shane, Graham Trucking Wins Columbia Cup
It was a day for the young guns on the Columbia River Sunday as Jimmy Shane in the U-5 Graham Trucking edged J. Michael Kelly in the U-37 Beacon Plumbing by less than a boat length for the the Columbia Cup title.
The Oh Boy! Oberto and Steve David left the dock in the final looking for the team's fourth Columbia Cup title in five years, but the race for that team actually ended before it even started when David was ruled to be ahead of that yellow buoy at the exit of turn two prior to the one minute mark before the start. He was penalized an extra lap, leaving the race between two of the younger drivers.
Afterwards, David renewed his call for more replay in the sport. He told KAPP/KVEW that his team's clocks and video did not show him to be early at the 1:00 minute mark, and that not having video replay and making judgment calls as if it were balls and strikes is "inexcusable".
Defending champ Dave Villwock, who had won the season's first two races in Madison, Indiana and Detroit, finished third in final, capping a tough day for the Spirit of Qatar team. The boat blew a gear box and engine and therefore did not finish heat 2A, and got squeezed during the fight for lanes in heat 3B, finishing third in the heat--still, the team had enough points to make the final after winning heat 1A yesterday.
In the end, however, it was Shane just edging Kelly for his first win on the circuit. The boats now head over the mountains for Seattle's Seafair next week.