The Diamond Cup

When the Coeur d’Alene Unlimited Hydroplane Association (CUHA) planned the first Diamond Cup in 1958, they faced many logistical challenges. It was indeed an up-hill fight. They did not have any money. They did not have a racecourse. They did not have an official barge. They did not have a pit area to park the boats. All they had was a lake.

By the time the big unlimited hydroplanes took to the course some 90 days later for the first time on June 29, 1958, the challenges had been met.

The Lake City community stepped up, raising most of the seed money needed to purchase the infrastructure for the race and to provide a major portion of the prize money needed. The race committee partnered with the organizers of the Chelan and Seattle unlimited races to design a three-mile racecourse and to dress it with brightly colored buoy markers and a spectator log boom.

The CUHA also took a seldom used section of the city’s waterfront and transformed it into a usable pit area for the big boats by leveling the land, making it useable for parking, repairing and improving a large wooden seawall structure, installing boat docks, and putting in place water, power, and telecommunications equipment.

While the race appeared successful to most everyone on the surface, that first race committee acknowledged that there were a few problems. Despite a well-attended event, revenue fell short of expenses, and the CUHA entered year two with a $7,500 deficit, which translates to $61,545 in 2014 dollars. Several committee members covered that debt with a promissory note from their own funds just to insure that there would be a second Diamond Cup.

On the logistical side, the pit area proved to be too small for the number of boats that were in attendance, and the channel adjacent to the pit area was too shallow. To remedy the problem, the seawall was expanded by 38 feet to allow a full 100 yards for boat parking, and the channel was deepened using a dragline excavator to a depth of six feet. With the expanded seawall, more docks were added along its base.

Over the ten years of the vintage races, more enhancements were made. The Tubbs Hill trail system received attention; a floating official barge was built to make the race course safer; a new city youth sports and recreational park was built adjacent to the pit area; and the city boat launch was renovated to allow for improved recreational boater access.

When the races abruptly disappeared after the 1968 Diamond Cup, the city found itself left with vastly improved recreational facilities on the waterfront, allowing for greater use by visitors and Coeur d’Alene’s citizens alike.

Moving ahead to the 2014 Diamond Cup, and we see some stark similarities and differences between what the two race committees experienced. The race committee that put on the 2013 race event soldiered through a similar first year full of huge challenges to overcome, and despite what appeared to be good attendance numbers, an unexpected funding deficit was found when all the receipts were counted.

Like the vintage era of Diamond Cup races, the committee worked with race volunteers from another race site (the Tri-Cities Water Follies) and local equipment providers to put in place the needed infrastructure for the race in record time.

The Silver Beach race site had to be modified so to accommodate the race, and there were some minor improvements realized to the state park land on which most of the lakeside seating and the two pit areas were located.

Trees that had not been pruned or groomed for several decades were professionally trimmed to allow better sight lines for spectators and officials at no expense to the Idaho State Parks system. In addition, rotting wooden posts used to hold cabling along the Centennial Trail and parklands were replaced by the committee when they were discovered.

Media coverage of the 2013 and 2014 races reflects a vast improvement over the coverage afforded the inaugural race. The 1958 media package included a live television broadcast of the race in the Spokane and Seattle viewing areas only and radio coverage was restricted to the Seattle, Spokane, and Detroit markets. Live coverage of the 2013 race was beamed to over 100 countries via the Internet, and viewers around the world saw a delayed broadcast of the race via the CBS Sports Network. The media plan for 2014 expands on that coverage with additional regional coverage through the facilities of KHQ and the SWX network.

Where the boats racing in 1958 were competing solely for a U.S. National Championship trophy, the H1 Series Unlimiteds in 2014 will be racing at six sites in the United States and will also competing for the UIM World Championship in Doha, Qatar in November. Unlimited hydroplane racing is now truly an international event, and Coeur d’Alene is considered to be one of the best places in the entire world to watch a race.

Because of the increased media coverage and the international status of the race series, the financial benefits of Coeur d’Alene hosting a race are greatly enhanced as well. It is estimated that the 2013 race brought 3 million new dollars to the community. The potential is there for that number to grow exponentially.

Be a part of the new improved Diamond Cup experience. Get your tickets early and be ready to enjoy the bigger and better 2014 races on Labor Day Weekend, August 29th, 30th, and 31st.

Tickets are available from all Inland Northwest Bank (INB) locations, all six Super 1 Foods locations, the Angel Gallery at 5th and Sherman in Coeur d’Alene, and Kootenai Lawn and Garden on Best Avenue in Coeur d’Alene.

You also can buy your tickets and reserve log boom spaces online at www.diamondcuprace.com.While visiting the website, can also scroll down the page and like the race site on Facebook.

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