H1: 'Looking for a long-term solution'

COEUR d'ALENE - H1 Unlimited is evaluating a proposal by Diamond Cup officials describing how Coeur d'Alene's hydroplane race officials can pay debts from last summer and make future races financially viable.

Sam Cole, H1 Unlimited hydroplane racing's chairman, said Thursday he has forwarded the proposal to H1's attorney and its executive committee.

The proposal, Cole said, describes how Diamond Cup officials like president Doug Miller can pay debts racked up last year, including a $71,000 bad check given to H1 after the 2013 event.

H1 wants to see a race plan that lays out specifically the resources and financial backers needed to ensure the Diamond Cup's long-term viability.

"I rely on our executive committee for input," Cole said. "I don't want to jeopardize H1."

He said H1 wants Coeur d'Alene on its race circuit year after year, and teams seem to want to return for future races.

"We're not interested in having a race in 2014 if there isn't going to be a race" in 2015, 2016 and beyond, Cole said. "We're looking for a long-term solution."

"Our goal was never to come back for one race," he added.

Cole said he would be happy to meet with community and business leaders in Coeur d'Alene to ensure the race continues.

Miller said Thursday that Diamond Cup's primary goal is "doing a better job capturing the revenue going forward."

Last week, Carrie Edwards of TraffiCorp in Coeur d'Alene said Diamond Cup organizers didn't fully pay her business for a traffic control plan it completed, which was approved by Idaho transportation officials.

"The race was only allowed to commence based on following the approved plan," Edwards wrote in an email Thursday. "They decided not to follow the plan, which caused traffic build-ups along Coeur d'Alene Lake Drive and made it easy for thousands of people to walk right in without paying!"

The plan, she said, provided an outline to control crowds and make sure spectators paid to watch the event.

"Who is going to pay when they know they don't have to?" she said last week.

Along with not paying fully for the traffic plan, she said, Diamond Cup organizers didn't pay in full for the personnel and devices TraffiCorp used to control traffic.

Miller declined to comment on the proposal recently submitted to H1.

"This is a legal matter between two corporate entities," he said.

Earlier this month, The Press obtained an email from Cole to the Diamond Cup officials saying the race is going to be canceled if debts aren't paid right away. The deadline has come and gone as Cole leaves open the door, hoping to find a solution.

In his email, Cole demanded that Diamond Cup officials provide a "written agreement and payment schedule for the $71,000 balance of the insufficient funds check that was given to H1 at the conclusion of the 2013 event."

Cole had other demands, too, including payment up front for this year's anticipated race.