Duane Hagadone reminisces Wednesday about the inaugural Diamond Cup that he helped bring to Coeur d'Alene more than a half century ago. (Coeur d'Alene Press photo: Shawn Gust)

He brought back the hydroplane bacon 55 years ago, and this weekend Duane Hagadone will be able to watch it sizzle some more. He'll be watching from his sailboat - appropriately named Sizzler. Hagadone, who was 25 years old at the time, traveled with Lee Brack to Detroit in April 1958 for a critical sales pitch. Their mission: To get hydroplane races sanctioned for Coeur d'Alene that summer. "We had to prove we had the financial stability and could pull it off," said Hagadone, whose photo appeared with fellow hydro proponents on the front page of the Coeur d'Alene Press on April 14, 1958, under the headline, HYDRO COMMITTEE "BRINGS BACK THE BACON" FROM DETROIT MEETING/Mike Patrick, Coeur d'Alene Press. More here.

DFO: Although I don't plan to attend the hydroplane races this weekend on Lake Coeur d'Alene, I wish the organizers success. The races are being staged in the correct part of the lake, away from downtown Coeur d'Alene. I suspect problems in this first year of racing. But nothing insurmountable. How about you?

Question: Do you want to see this year's Diamond Cup race fail or succeed?