Hydros won't race on Lake Cd'A this summer

COEUR d'ALENE — Hydroplanes have been halted on Lake Coeur d'Alene for the third straight summer.

Coeur d’Alene Silver Cup General Manager Keith Allen announced Friday the Coeur d’Alene Silver Cup H1 Unlimited Hydroplane race will work toward hosting a race in 2017, but not in 2016.

Allen said $300,000 is needed before he would feel comfortable launching the event — especially after the financial mess under a different group and name three years ago — and more than $100,000 in pledges had been secured.

"We flat-out don't want to put ourselves or those who support us in a bad situation," said Allen. "It would not benefit our organization, the city of Coeur d'Alene, the sponsors or the local area if the event was not a success. We had a go/no go date and we didn't deviate from that."

The race was tentatively planned for Silver Beach on the east side of the lake July 15-17.

"Obtaining sponsorships has been challenging, but the biggest challenge with that is overcoming the stigma and lack of success from the other group that put it on (three years ago)," Allen said.

The previous group operated the race under the Diamond Cup name as unpaid debts piled up from the 2013 race. Races returned to Coeur d'Alene that year for the first time in decades, and they haven't been held since.

Allen said Silver Cup will still be able to use an Idaho Department of Lands permit next year if the races are held. He was working on another permit through the Kootenai County Sheriff's Office for this year, so a lot of the legwork on that end has been done.

Allen said he'll continue to seek potential sponsors for next year immediately to build on the momentum. He said some sponsors have seen his steadfast commitment to organizing a financially successful event and are bantering upping their sponsorship levels as a result.

Silver Cup is a nonprofit that planned to raise funds for Children's Village and the Kootenai Police and Fire Memorial at the event, as opposed to it being a for-profit group as Diamond Cup was.

Allen said due to his 14 years of experience organizing such races in the Tri-Cities, the hydroplane race-sanctioning body H1 Unlimited asked him to revive the races in Coeur d'Alene after the financial debacle of the previous group.

"Keith and his organization pledged from the beginning to the fans, the teams, to H1 Unlimited, the sponsors and the community that they would only run the event if they could do it right," said H1 Unlimited Hydroplane Chairman Steve David.

"They just ran out of time to do it properly, and they committed to upholding their pledge to everyone. And for that reason alone, I know we have the right people in place to bring unlimited hydroplane racing back to Coeur d’Alene in 2017."

Last April the Silver Cup group decided to also postpone the races for 2015 until this year because more time was needed to raise money.

Coeur d’Alene has a strong history in boat racing. The first inboard race was in 1913 with the first unlimited hydroplane race taking place in 1958 with Bill Stead in the Maverick grabbing the win. The unlimited hydroplanes continued to race on Lake Coeur d'Alene, in the Idaho Panhandle, until 1968. Billy Schumacher and the "Checkerboard Comet" Miss Bardahl won the 10th and final race until the boats returned in 2013 when Jimmy Shane in the Graham Trucking boat won the title.

The 2016 unlimited hydroplane season will begin on the Ohio River in Madison, Ind., July 1-3.

Allen said a hydroplane with the event dates has been on display at area businesses such as Super 1 Foods in the past year. Businesses can have their name on the hydroplane that's transported to their location for a tax-deductible donation of $500. Corporate and event naming sponsorships are also available. Community groups can also sign up to volunteer during the event and raise funds.

For more information, contact Allen at keith@cdasilvercup.com.