Chesapeake Classic Cup Boat Racing in Annapolis. Really?
S
eptember 12-13, 1930, brought the fifth running of the President’s Cup Regatta to the Severn River’s shores off the U.S. Naval Academy seawall in Annapolis. The Maryland Yacht Racing Association and American Power Boat Association hosted the event, with help from the Navy and sponsorship from the Annapolis Chamber of Commerce and Baltimore News-American. Eighty-one years ago, cup boats rarely numbered more than a dozen and were built for only two events: New Jersey’s Gold Cup Regatta and the Chesapeake Bay’s President’s Cup. These costly water greyhounds were built to precise hull and engine specifications. If they measured up, they celebrated a second birthday. If they failed, they usually were scrapped.
##Cup boat Blue Streak
##Californian
78 August 2011 PropTalk
by Ruth Christie
Persuaded by William Rogers and his fellow Corinthian Yacht Club members, President Calvin Coolidge chartered the President’s Cup in 1926. Unlimited hydroplanes contested the cup until 1977, with time out for World War II. After 1977, the President’s Cup became a Limited event for several years. Most of the races were held on the Potomac River in Washington, DC, adjacent to Hains Point (see page 54 for a related story). A few pre-war races were run off College Creek’s mouth in Annapolis. If you know who won the regatta in 1930 and some of the event’s details, e-mail them to gary@proptalk.com. Learn more about the President’s Cup series by visiting thunderboats.ning.com.
##Imp II (cup defender)
##Hotsy Totsy
##Scotty Too
##El Lagartito
##Red Banker
##Miss Philadelphia
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