Gold Cup Hydroplane Races!

G

ghuskin

New Member
Jul 10, 2007
1,089
Lake St. Clair, DYC
Boat Info
SRV225 Cuddy Cabin, 1983
Engines
228 Mercruiser w/ pre-Alpha1 "R" Drive
Anyone going to the Hydro's this weekend? Is there anywhere to set anchor and watch? I know they shut down that part of the river fri./sat./sun.
 
I'm hoping to get down there on the boat Sunday.It will be my first time so no advice from me.Let's hope others can give us some tips!I'm just going to go real early and hope for the best.Mike
 
I got a slip at Harbor Hill Marina which should be just north of the start/finish line. I talked to the Belle Isle Coast Guard today and they will be closing the US side of the river from 7-7 from Keans to the Belle Isle bridge. The river will be open though on the Canada side of Belle Isle. When I double checked my slip reservation this morning, I was told there were plenty of slips left so...you may wanna give it a shot. 1.50/ft is pretty decent considering the location. We'll be there Saturday and Sunday.
 
Jason,

Can you see the races from your boat in the slip at Keans? or are you bringing chairs and watching from shore?

Gregg
 
From what I understand you can see a little bit (ill be at harbor hill) but we'll have chairs for the lawn and pier their. I have a friend who docks there and he says that from the end its a nice view of the pits and the start/finish line, last turn. I'll probably be more concerned with chillin and sippin than watching all the races. Hell I think they go on all day.
 
We will be at Kean's with 10 other boats. Most of them are already there... I am running tomorrow morning. If you want to flaot and watch, go around Belle Isle on the Canadian side and wath from the north end. Many other were doing the same last year.
 
Docked at Kean's as we speak (thanks to the posts of DGRUMM from last year) . Been here since lunch on Friday. Other than the grandstands, the ends of the docks (which offer a view of the river) are the best seats in the house. We are actually closer to the action than the boats anchored out in the river are allowed to be.

Some great racing so far. The vintage boats are a hoot. The offshore class is just all horsepower. The sound of the big piston engines wide open is insane. :smt038:smt038 The unlimiteds are just ridiculous.

Also got rocked by the sonic boom of the F-18 demonstration. Shook the freakin canvas... it was so close.
 
Races were great this year, and so was the F18 on Fri, Sat, and Sunday!! We partied a little hard on Sunday night, but all had fun. We set up Rock Band (Wii) on the bridge and attracted quite a crowd!
 
My son & I (and his friend) went on Friday only. Watched from the DYC up until the off-shores went out. We missed the F-18. My neighbor's brother took some awesome pics. One is of the F-18 breaking the sound barrier!
 
ghuskin said:
My neighbor's brother took some awesome pics. One is of the F-18 breaking the sound barrier!
Click to expand...

Usually, they do not exceed the speed of sound over such a heavily populated area, what he probably got a picture of is
a condensation cloud. Under the right conditions, and even at lower speeds, they sometimes cause a vapor cone effect.

Understand that these condensation clouds can also occur at lower speeds, and are not really a visible manifestation of some kind of a sound barrier being broken.

A popular picture that was taken at sub-sonic speed.
f18.jpg
 
KayKook said:
Usually, they do not exceed the speed of sound over such a heavily populated area, what he probably got a picture of is
a condensation cloud. Under the right conditions, and even at lower speeds, they sometimes cause a vapor cone effect.

Understand that these condensation clouds can also occur at lower speeds, and are not really a visible manifestation of some kind of a sound barrier being broken.

A popular picture that was taken at sub-sonic speed.
f18.jpg
Click to expand...


Admittedly, I am no military or aviation expert, but I have heard this before (in Germany, where at least 20 years ago the US pilots routinely went supersonic).

In Detroit, the condensation clouds were visible, but make no mistake....the deafening boom that accompanied this vapor ahead of the sound of the afterburner(s) was just that, supersonic. I will say that on Friday it was incredibly loud and pronounced. On Saturday I think the pilot was just on the verge of supersonic (or just over) as the accompanying boom was not as loud or sharply distinct, yet still obvious.

My .02.
 
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