Villwock, Dream Ready To Pad Lead

Dave Villwock and PICO’s American Dream will get a chance to add more distance between themselves and the rest of the national championship challengers in the 31st running of the Budweiser Columbia Cup today in the Tri Cities.

PICO’s will run in Heat 1B beginning at noon, free of the direct challenge of its nearest challengers, Make Tate in the Smokin’ Joes and Mark Evans in the Miss Budweiser. Tata and Evans challenge each other in Heat 1A at 11:30.

Villwock, the top qualifier at 168:055, holds an 878-point lead over Tate in the Smokin’ Joes and will meet the DeWalt Tools (154:639), Spokane’s Appian Jeronimo (148.687), the E-Lam Plus (147.621) and Computers and Applications (146.982). Live Columbia Cup updates can be heard on KTRW AM970 throughout the day.

Team Spokane improves

Team Spokane’s 148.687 qualifying mark was the fastest the boat has gone in qualifying and was a slight improvement over Friday’s 147.013 effort.

“We still haven’t used our strongest bullet,” Hindley said, referring to the team’s best motor combination. “We’ll put it in and test it (Sunday).”

During a morning attempt to bump up its qualifying speed, Hindley said he felt odd vibrations. When the boat returned to the pits, the crew discovered cracks in the strut that helps hold the propeller on the boat.

“I had them magnaflex the strut and we discovered a bunch of cracks,” Hindley said. “If the strut goes, it could take the whole bottom off the boat.”

The cracks proved superficial.

Miss Bud keeps missing

It’s been a long time since the Miss Budweiser has gone five races without a win, but if there’s a place where their luck may turn, it could be today on the Columbia River.

Bernie Little’s boat has won four of the last six races here and always seems to save its best for when it counts.

Problems still seem to haunt the “Red Rocket” and driver Mark Evans early Saturday, but by the close of qualifying the defending national champs appeared to be back on track.

After posting a 160.068 Friday, Evans went out in testing and ran 155 and then a 147.505 lap in the second qualifying session. By Saturday afternoon, with a new motor combination, Evans pushed the boat back to a weekend-best lap of 162.402.

“It’s no big deal,” said boat owner Bernie Little. “We’re in the show at 160. Mark will be fine in competition.”

Muscatel irked

Ken Muscatel was noticeably unhappy with his early morning testing session aboard the U-14 Computer’s & Applications.

“It’s no good. We spoiled a good combination,” said Muscatel after turning a 145 mph lap.

Whatever Muscatel turned was better than his outing last year on the Columbia, where he flipped his boat in Friday qualifying and had to withdraw.

Weber works overtime

Mark Weber first had to qualify his boat, the U-11 Miss Exide II. Then he had to qualify himself. Weber is a rookie driver trying to land his unlimited driving license. To do that, he had to run 10 laps faster than 130 mph. He got five in the morning testing and qualifying session and the remaining in the afternoon session, posting a best of 138.604.

Hot laps

After a month off, it’s three races in three weeks, including next Sunday in Seattle for the Texaco Cup. In two weeks, the unlimiteds return to Kelowna, British Columbia for the first time since 1967. … Villwock’s lap of 168:055 is 1 mph under the course record set last year by Mark Tate. … PICO’s blew a motor in Saturday’s afternoon qualifying session. According to crew chief Ken Dryden, the power plant had five races on it and was not the one that put the U-100 on the top of the qualifying ladder.