Winnipesaukee Power Boat Association

[mcdude]

I thought perhaps you "boat people" might be interested in this item I found on e-bay....not so much for the item itself but because of the extensive historical narrative provided with the item. I will cut and paste the narrative as the link will expire soon after the item is sold. By the way, I am not the seller of the item or associated with e-bay in any way. Below the text I have provided the link to the item and also a few associated links. McD

"Fresh from a Boston estate is an Important WPBA Wooden Speed Boat racing trophy Circa 1927. This Event was the First Speed Boat racing event that took place in the United States. The trophy being offered is from that event. It was manufactured by Wallace Silver. It is in exceptional condition and stands 8 inches tall by 5 1/2 inches wide. The trophy was presented to the third place winner of that racing event . In the mid 1920’s, a few boating enthusiasts decided to generate some excitement on Lake Winnipesaukee by establishing a Winnipesaukee speed boat championship. Boaters, of course, had been racing each other since their boats had been traveling around the lake but most races had been impromptu and poorly documented. The history of boat racing in the early 20’s is still under research, but for now, our story starts in June of 1926 when a local businessman, James R. Irwin of the Weirs, donated a prize cup to be awarded at the end of the boating season. This beautiful silver cup stood two and a half feet high and had at its base, a motor boat in action. The prize, called the Irwin cup, would be awarded to the fastest boat that completed six, 2 ½ mile laps over a triangular course. Points were awarded to all entrants with a maximum of 200 points awarded for 1st place. At the end of the season, the owner with the greatest number of points would be awarded the cup. Further, if any owner could win a series of races three times over the summer, he would be able to keep the cup permanently. The races were scheduled to be run at Weirs Bay three times every two weeks starting on the July 4th weekend, but were extended to include a forth race that was scheduled to be run over the Labor Day holidays. Although difficult to imagine today, the lakes region of the mid 1920’s was a fairly isolated area. New Hampshire’s total population in 1920 was 440,000 with only 36,000 recorded in both Carroll & Belknap Counties. Travel in and out of the area was primarily by train as most roads were simple one or two lanes and unimproved. Travel during the winter months was very difficult and attempted only by the hearty. Only the western portion of the lake, specifically Weirs, Lakeport, Laconia, and Alton Bay, had any sort of substantial buildup. The eastern shore of the lake, from Meredith clockwise around to Alton, had no connecting paved road. Travel around the east side of the lake was accomplished over rough dirt roads. Rail service was available into Wolfeboro, but was both slow and laborious, requiring layovers and train changes. People who lived in Concord, Manchester or Nashua had no direct route they could take to the eastern shore of Lake Winnipesaukee and instead were required to take the railroad east to Rochester or even Portsmouth before they could head north into Wolfeboro. Route #28 from Alton to Wolfeboro wouldn’t be paved until late 1929. The boat race organizers were hoping the scheduled races would draw people into the region but knew great efforts would have to be made to insure easy travel in and out of the area. To help people attend the Weirs races, Irwin, along with city officials and other local businessmen, worked closely with the local Boston & Maine railroad executives to finalize plans for advancing their mutual interests. Funds were raised for a series of band concerts that were given every Sunday through Labor Day. Music hours were scheduled from 2-3 and 4-5 in the afternoon. The band that regularly performed was the 387th Infantry Band stationed in Laconia and other plans were put in place to help provide amusements for the expected crowds. Railroad officials scheduled special excursion trains that left Boston at 8 o’clock and ended up at the Weirs at 11:20. The trains came to the Weirs not only from Boston, but also Lynn and Lowell, as well as southern NH. Local hotels scheduled special meals to coincide with the arrival of all excursionists. People started arriving at the Weirs before the holiday weekend to enjoy an extended time in the lakes region, many courtesy of the special Boston & Maine RR service. By Saturday afternoon, hotels, camping grounds and boarding houses were all full to capacity with weekenders and other vacationists. Monday, 5 July, started early at the Winnipesaukee Gardens for the thousands of spectators that packed the Weirs. The Infantry band was busy entertaining the crowds that were estimated at over 6,000 strong and the race judges were setting up their official barge. By 10:00, the last of the speed trials were held and all handicaps were set. Spectators arrived by land, and by boat. Every type of craft from canoes to cruisers were milling about the Weirs to witness the afternoon’s racing program. At 1:00 in the afternoon, the steamer Mt. Washington left the Weirs and a few hours later, the afternoon’s racing events began in earnest. The first race was an outboard motor race that started sharply at 3:30. The second race was a semi-speedboat event, with older boats that raced between 15-30 mph. The third race was for the Irwin cup, and was the crowning event of the afternoon. Boats were expected to reach up to 55 mph and represented some of the fastest on any lake in New England. This third and final race began at 4:22 in the afternoon and the starter’s flag was dropped by the Mayor of Laconia, the Honorable George Stevens. Only four contestants made it for this final race, the fifth scheduled contestant was Sam Dunsford who had already entered one of his other boats, Babs II, driven by a friend. Dunsford was saving himself to drive his new racing boat, Rainbow IV, which was delivered to the Weirs earlier in the morning. Dunsford had been racing on the water for a number of years and with the growing success of his business supplying the burgeoning automobile industry with electrical parts, was in a position to spend serious money on his favorite hobby. Rainbow IV was a perfect ‘step up’. Built in 1924, she had a most distinguished, if controversial, racing career, having won the 1924 Gold Cup race, only to be disqualified by the APBA. The Gold Cup races were seen as among the greatest of all international powerboat racing events and the chance to buy a racer like this, one designed by the noted designer George Crouch, must have been irresistible. As a racer, Rainbow IV held numerous records, including a 24 hour speed record set in October the previous year, in Canada, while powered by a Liberty V-12. Dunsford bought Rainbow IV from Harry Greening and had a Packard Gold Cup engine installed. To Dunsford’s considerable dismay, she could not be readied in time for the inaugural Irwin cup race. The race started well, with all four contestants close together but after six laps around the triangular course, twenty eight minutes after the start, RIP III, a Chris-Craft driven by owner Robert Peterson, crossed the finish line and carried away the honors. Wildcat, a Ditchburn designed and built boat driven by Glenroy Scott came in second and Babs II, Dunsford’s Chris-Craft driven by Arthur Smith, came in third. The forth boat, Jean L driven by Frank Lane was forced to withdraw on the second lap due to a broken rudder. The head race official was Jim Irwin and his daughter Eleanor presented a metal shield to Robert Peterson signifying the win. The second race in the series was held two weeks later on July 18th, again at Weirs Bay, on a triangular course laid out by Jim Irwin and Sam Dunsford. Dunsford’s mechanic, Elmer Folsom, had worked around the clock over the previous two weeks while located on Dunsford’s estate on Tuftonboro Neck. By race time, Folsom had Rainbow IV’s Packard engine ready and the crowd was very excited. Rainbow IV’s reputation as a fast, record holding boat was well publicized and known. Her running style was also very distinctive as her surface piercing propeller threw up a spray almost 20 feet in the air when she was at speed. When Dunsford, accompanied by his trusty mechanic Folsom, finally rounded Governor’s Island a few minutes before the races were to begin and came in full view of the assembled throng, there was much cheering and horn blowing. She was clearly the favorite. However, there were a number of competitors who took up the challenge including the first race winner, Robert Peterson in RIP III. Also racing were Jean L, Wildcat and Babs II. The crowds were again estimated at over 6,000 people on land and over 100 craft of all sizes were surrounding the edges of the bay. Rainbow IV did not disappoint as she easily won the race with an average speed of 50 mph. Dunsford and Folsom were given a standing ovation. Jean L and Wildcat were second and third respectively. Both Babs II and RIP III were disqualified as they ran faster in the race than in the trials.

This is the 3rd Place trophy that just sold on e-bay.