14 Boats – We’re Going to Need a Bigger Pit Area!

HAPO Community Credit Union Sponsors U-99 Hydroplane

Richland, WA – July 27, 2011 – HAPO Community Credit Union will sponsor the U-99 Unlimited Hydroplane during the 46^th Running of the Columbia Cup this weekend.

The U-99 is the black and maroon hydroplane that was driven by Greg Hopp in 2010.  This year it is being driven by Ryan Mallow of Tacoma.  Mallow drives the GP-19 Miss Everett on the Grand Prix Circuit.  The Miss Everett is owned by Tom Eckenberg.

This is the first year that HAPO will sponsor a hydroplane.  HAPO is the sponsor of the HAPO Over the River Air Show for the 4^th year.  The U-99 will feature HAPO’s logo during the races, and will be known as the Miss HAPO.

“Between the outstanding air show line-up this year and our sponsorship of the U-99 Miss HAPO, we are really excited and looking forward to a great weekend of fun.  See you at the races!” exclaimed Steve Anderson, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer for HAPO.

HAPO’s sponsorship of the air show and the U-99 is part of their “Official Sponsor of Summer” program.  HAPO sponsors a variety of local community events throughout the summer.

It’s only Tuesday, but hydroplanes have all ready started to arrive for the 2011 Lamb Weston Columbia Cup.  The National Guard display boat has been spotted at the Kennewick Comfort Inn.  Last night the U-5 Graham Trucking and U-7 Valken.com arrived at the Shilo Inn in Richland.   Also, the F-15 Strike Eagle Demo team for the Hapo Over The River Airshow flew into town today.

Keep checking Facebook and the web for more updates as boats & planes continue to arrive.

Miss Madison Team Announces Fundraisers

When a team prepares a budget for a racing season, there usually isn’t a line item for repairing massive boat damage sustained in an accident at the start of the season.  Such is the situation facing the U-1 Oh Boy! Oberto/Miss Madison team, who will have a sizable unplanned repair bill following the frightening accident that occurred in the  final heat of the Lucas Oil Indiana Governor’s Cup. Because of this situation, the team has announced a couple of fundraisers to assist in defraying the repair costs.

Press Release form Miss Madison Incorporated

(Madison, Indiana) — The U-1 Oh Boy Oberto/Miss Madison unlimited hydroplane racing team is combining a fund-raising dinner with its annual golf tournament Sunday, October 2, 2011.

The benefit is intended to help defray the cost of repairs from extensive damage sustained in the July 3rd Lucas Oil Indiana Governor’s Cup Regatta on the Ohio River at Madison. U-1 driver Steve David, Lighthouse Point, Florida, escaped serious injury when the three-time defending national champion crashed into the Spirit of Qatar on the third lap of the championship heat after Qatar spun in a turn into the path of the Oh Boy Oberto/Miss Madison. Qatar driver Dave Villwock was not
injured.

The Oh Boy Oberto/Miss Madison was running a very close second to Qatar at the time of the wreck but officials disqualified Qatar for causing the accident and declared the home port U-1 the
winner. It was the second victory in a row at Madison for David and the red, silver and green
unlimited.

The October 2nd golf tournament will again this year be held at Madison’s Sunrise Municipal Course. The dinner will follow at 6:00 p.m. at The Livery Stable on Broadway. The cost of participating in the golf tournament and attending the dinner will be $125.00 per person. The fee for taking part in the golf tournament but not attending the dinner is $75.00 per person and the cost of not playing golf but attending the dinner is $75.00 per person.
The dinner will be highlighted by the auctioning of contributions by Miss Madison, Incorporated President Bob Hughes and by hydro pilot Steve David. Hughes is donating a week at his Ft. Meyers, Florida golf course condo to the highest bidder. David is providing a free weekend at the acclaimed Hyatt Regency Pier 66 Spa and Resort in Ft. Lauderdale that includes a dinner cruise with David and his wife, Sabrina, on the couple’s 60-foot Sea Ray Yacht, Grateful. In David’s words, the yachting weekend in Fort Lauderdale “includes two nights at the renowned Pier 66 resort and spa, a cruise through the ‘Venice of America,’ dinner at one of South Florida’s waterfront restaurants on board Grateful, and an evening-ending cocktail cruise back to the Pier 66 resort.” The yachting cruise with Steve David could be taken any weekend between October and April. Boat racing memorabilia and possibly autographed pictures and/or items pertaining to the movie, Madison, will be available via a silent auction.

“The 13,000 owners of the Miss Madison have in the past come to our rescue and I’m confident they will do so again by supporting these fund-raising efforts,” says Hughes. “Too, I would like to thank Steve David, Libby Mann at the Broadway Tavern/Livery Stable, and the board members of Miss Madison, Incorporated who have worked to plan, schedule and stage the golf tournament and dinner.”
In an effort to expand fund-raising income the racing team is also planning to sell advertising space on the boat hull, trailer and team web site.

Persons interested in making a donation to Miss Madison, Incorporated, in contributing items to the dinner auction/silent auction or in having their company name on the U-1 unlimited hydroplane racing equipment can contact Charlie Grooms at Clifty Engineering, Rick Grote at The Grote

Manufacturing Company, Rick Russell at Midwest Tube Mills, Incorporated, Tony Steinhardt at Steinhardt Heating and Air Conditioning, or Hank Bentz, Ivy Tech Community College. Monetary contributions can be made on the web site www.missmadisonhydro.com.

David is expected to recuperate from rib injuries and the U-1 should be repaired in time to compete in the H1 Air National Guard unlimited series race at Tri-Cities, Washington July 29-31.
The $75.00 tickets to the fund-raising dinner will be available in the near future at River Valley Financial Bank, Broadway Tavern, Boneyard Grill, and Steinhardt Heating and Cooling in Hanover.

For more information contact:
Hank Bentz
812.265.2580, ext. 4155
hbentz@ivytech.edu

Additionally, an online fundraiser named has been initiated.  Here is the announcement from the Miss Madison website:

Miss Madison Racing Team Launches Online Fundraiser to Repair Boat

Madison, Indiana – The Miss Madison Racing Team turns to loyal race fans to help rebuild their hometown boat after the U1 was severely damaged in the final heat of the Madison Regatta.
The U1 Miss Madison team will turn to the fans for support through an online fundraising effort. The money raised will be used to purchase the parts and materials to bring the hydroplane back to its world class racing ability. Community members and fans alike can follow the link on the team’s website to make a secure donation. ChipIn, the web-based service the team is utilizing, simplifies the process of collecting money from groups of people.
Miss Madison Crew Chief Mike Hanson estimates the minimum impact to be $100,000 to repair the hydroplane without yet knowing the damage done to the motor during the crash. He and the crew will evaluate the motor and continue the rebuild upon return from Detroit.
“Mike and the crew will get her back on the water,” Board of Directors President Bob Hughes said. “The city of Madison and the fans are proud of their boat and we know they will come through to help us make this happen.”
Donations can be made by visiting the website at www.missmadisonhydro.com or by going to http://missmadisonhydro.chipin.com.
The team is leasing the U9 Jones Racing boat, piloted by Jon Zimmerman, for this weekend’s Gold Cup. Steve David is recovering from minor injuries sustained in the crash between the U1 and the U96.
Other fundraisers to support the rebuild will be announced later in the season.

Windermere Group One and the Tri-Cities Water Follies team up for Kids Zone at the hydro races

Windermere Group One is this year’s sponsor of the Kids Zone at the hydroplane races on the Columbia River, July 29-31.

The Kids Zone will operate on both the Kennewick and Pasco sides of the river, Saturday 9 a.m. to 4p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. to 3p.m.

Inflatable bounce houses will be donated by Bouncing Around.

The Kennewick Kid’s Zone is located at the Columbia Center Rotary Stage. The Pasco Kids Zone is just east of the Bulldog Beach Club.

The Kennewick Kids Zone will feature Big Top the Clown and Walter Chimal from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., with a meet and greet from 10 to 11 a.m. Spiderman will appear at the Kennewick Kids Zone on Saturday only, from  12 to 3 p.m.  Both Kids Zones will also have face painting and arts & crafts.  Appearance schedules subject to change.

About Windereme Group One:
Your Windermere Group One/Tri-Cities Realtors are committed to our communities, serving on boards, committees, participating in fundraisers, even selling newspapers on street corners for the annual Kids Day event.  We invest our time and money in the Tri-Cities and we are dedicated to helping build a great community and a great place to live.  Windermere is about building relationships.  We believe in the ability of our agents, staff, and management to create relationships that go beyond the ordinary and that make a difference in people’s lives.

About Bouncing Around:
BOUNCING AROUND will make your next event a memorable one.  Inflatable games are always a crowd pleaser, whether the occasion is a Birthday Party, Grad Night, Company Picnic, Corporate Team-building Event, or just plain old fun.  If you’ve never experienced the howls that these inflatables generate, you’re in for a treat!

Water Follies and New Traditions Homes team up to offer free Columbia Cup  tickets for kids

The Tri-Cities Water Follies is happy to announce a partnership with New Traditions Homes. New Traditions has generously agreed to be the Kids Ticket Sponsor for this year’s Lamb Weston Columbia Cup and HAPO Community Credit Union Over the River Air Show July 29-31.

Thanks to New Tradition Homes, Free race tickets for kids will be available at New Traditions’ model home locations in Pasco and Richland. They are located at Broadmoor Estates 9003 Durham Court in Pasco and The Heights 1595 Manchester St. in Richland. Business hours are: 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Kid’s tickets must be presented for children 6- 12 years of age. They are normally priced at $10.00.

Directions to Broadmoor Estates:
To Broadmoor Estates from I-182: Take the Broadmoor Blvd. exit. Go north on Broadmoor Blvd. to Sandifur Parkway, and turn right (east). Turn left (north) on Road 90 and enter Broadmoor Estates. The Model Home is straight ahead.

Directions to The Heights:
To The Heights from I-82: Take the Queensgate South exit, Exit 3A. Turn slight right onto Queensgate Drive, left on Keene Road, and right on Brantingham Road. To The Heights from WA-240 W: Take the Columbia Center Blvd exit, left on N Columbia Center Blvd, right on Quinalt Ave, right on Center Parkway, left on Gage Blvd, right on Keene Road and left on Brantingham Road.

About New Traditions Homes

New Tradition Homes began in 1987 with the Helmes family dream to build new homes of high quality, enduring design and lasting value. We named our company New Tradition Homes to demonstrate the combined excitement of building new lives, new memories, and new traditions in a new home. Today we are one of the largest homebuilders in Washington State, having built thousands of homes.

New Tradition Homes has become the regional leader in developing innovative and energy-efficient construction technologies. Through on-going research and dedication we continue to build homes that are healthier, more durable and more efficient than standard new homes. Every New Tradition Homes is Energy Star and Built-Green certified. This certification means that every home is third-party verified to meet our high standards. Our ongoing commitment is to provide homebuyers beautiful, better-built homes at an affordable price.

Whether you have an iPhone or an Android phone, the current generation of smart phones puts the internet in the palm of your hand.  But even though these phones can display most current websites, even waterfollies.com, the user experience can be somewhat frustrating.  Websites are designed for full screen computers and navigating them on the tiny screen of a smart phone requires a lot of zooming in and moving around.  Because of this, the Tri-City Water Follies is partnering with local company SalesMob to launch the official Water Follies mobile app.  The app will provide a platform to more easily access essential Water Follies information in a format optimized for the screen size of a smart phone.

SalesMob’s apps are easy for an organization to build and maintain, which is why Water Follies has partnered up with SalesMob to be their Official App Provider. With a few clicks of a mouse, a couple of drags and drops, and your own text and images, anyone can create an app. The app engine was developed to load content quickly, giving users more time on the go and less time waiting.

As part of this unique partnership, SlaesMob will have a booth in Columbia Park, on the driving range near the Official Barge, to help fans install the app on their smart phones.  Salesmob and Water Follies will also be keeping the application up-to-date with the latest race results and event schedule changes throughout the weekend. This year, you can leave your pen at home.  No need to fill out a score sheet to track results. Just open the Water Follies app and click the “Race Results” button.

SalesMob apps work with your iPhones, Androids, Windows 7 mobile phones and even some Blackberry devices. You won’t find SalesMob apps in any marketplace or store; you’ll only find them online at SalesMob.net. They’re free to download and use across all platforms.

“We are very fortunate to partner with Salesmob” says Kathy Powell, Tri-City Water Follies Event Director, “the mobile app will enhance the event experience by bringing real time race updates to the fans.”

Download the mobile app at http://waterfollies.salesmob.net

See the KNDU story about the mobile app

About SalesMob: Since 2010, SalesMob has been liberating small- and middle-sized-business owners from the shackles of static mobile websites. With our online app, we’ve done the heavy lifting so you don’t have to. We’ve meticulously developed and scripted with the everyman in mind — no coding know-how is required for you to mobilize your site’s content! Best of all, we’ve set it up so you can update your mobile content on your schedule without any extra cost. No frills, no hidden agenda, just your ideas, your work and pride in a job well done. That’s the SalesMob way.

SalesMob’s mobile app clients include H1 Unlimited, Cool Desert Nights, Hogs and Dogs, and the Tri-City Americans.

The Tri-City Water Follies is excited to present the 2011 Lamb Weston Columbia Cup / HAPO Over the River Air Show Poster.  Lockheed Martin, a long time partner of the Water Follies has been creating these works of art since 2004. The futuristic concept of this year’s piece presents a striking contrast to last year’s “vintage” style.

NEWS RELEASE
Commemorative Air Force Arizona Wing
2017 N. Greenfield Road • Mesa, Arizona 85215
www.azcaf.org
Telephone: 480-332-6046 for media
Rick Senffner, Public Information Officer

pio@azcaf.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – UPDATED (Note New Arrivial Date 7/28/2011)

May 20, 2011, Mesa, Arizona

WHAT:  Airplane enthusiasts and history buffs will want to see these famous aircraft of WWII coming to Tri-Cities Airport. B-17 Flying Fortress ’Sentimental Journey’ and B-25 Mitchell ‘Maid in the Shade’ from the Commemorative Air Force Arizona Wing Aviation Museum will be on display at Tri-Cities Airport offering rides and tours Thursday, July 28 through Sunday, July 31 the aircraft will also perform flybys at the Tri-Cities Water Follies Air Show July 29-31.

The restored WWII bombers will give the public an up-close and personal look of aviation history. The public is invited to tour these airplanes. There’s even the opportunity for some lucky individuals to actually take a flight in the bombers and experience flying in these aircraft first-hand. A portion of the flight cost is tax-deductible. Only a handful of these rare birds remain in the world today and even fewer provide the opportunity to experience flight just as the flight crews did during WW II.

B-17 Tours – $5.00 for adults, $3.00 for children ages 5 through 12 and free for children under 5

B-17 flights are available for $425.00 per person. You can make a reservation on the B-17 by calling
602-448-9415 or by visiting the bomber.

B-25 flights are for $395 per person. You can make a reservation on the B-25 by calling
480-322-5503 or by visiting the bomber.

WHERE: The aircraft will be on display at the Tri-Cities Airport

WHEN: The B-17 and B-25 are scheduled to arrive at Tri-Cities Airport

July 28 –  Arrival in the Afternoon.

July 29 – July 31 – 9:00 AM till 6:00 PM

August 1 Morning departure for Spokane

WHO: The Commemorative Air Force Arizona Wing Aviation Museum maintains and flies several WWII aircraft including the Boeing B-17 ’Sentimental Journey’ and B-25 ‘Maid in the Shade’. The Commemorative Air Force Arizona Wing Aviation Museum operates the aviation museum located at Falcon Field airport, Mesa, AZ (http://www.azcaf.org).

WHY: The WWII bombers are maintained and operated as a flying museum and memorial to all our veterans by the all-volunteer non-profit Commemorative Air Force, Arizona Wing Aviation Museum based in Mesa, AZ at Falcon Field Airport. The Arizona Wing members restored the 1944 WWII
B-17 Flying Fortress ’Sentimental Journey’ which is the most fully restored B-17 flying today. There are roughly 8 B-17 Flying Fortresses still flying in the world.  The B-25 Mitchell Bomber ‘Maid in the Shade’ is a veteran with 18 combat missions flying out of Corsica during WWII. The restoration to bring “Maid in the Shade” back to flying condition took 28 years and was completed May 2009. The Arizona Wing Aviation Museum and its restored aircraft and artifacts span over 90 years of aviation history.

The public will not only have the opportunity to look over the aircraft from the inside out, but to hear and see these famous aircraft fly. It’s a unique opportunity for aviation enthusiasts and history buffs young and old. Aviation gifts will be available for purchase through the PX. See the Arizona Wing CAF website for more information www.azcaf.org

Download the TriCities B-17 and B-25 Rides Brochure

Media requests for further information e-mail Rick Senffner for information or images at pio@azcaf.org

F-15C Over Waterfollies in 2008

F-15E Strike Eagle Demo Team to Make Water Follies Debut in 2011

The Tri-City Water Follies is pleased to announce that, for the first time in event history, the HAPO “Over the River” air show will be hosting the Air Combat Command F-15E Strike Eagle Demonstration Team.  Although the F-15 aircraft was previously seen at the Water Follies in 2008, that aircraft was the F-15C variant and the performance was limited to a number of flybys.  The 2011 show will be a full capabilities demonstration.  This will also be only the second time an F-15 has ever attended the event airshow since its inception and the first time for the F-15E Strike Eagle.

“While our crowds have been thrilled by the presence of the F-16 for the last three years, what we are going to see this year is twice as fast, twice as loud and really unique,” commented Water Follies Air Show Director Scott Meyer.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The F-15E Strike Eagle Demonstration Team is based out of Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in North Carolina.

Additional Information on the F-15E Demo Team

Now We’re Racing With Gas

The Tri-City Water Follies is thrilled to welcome Cascade Natural Gas as an Unlimited Hydroplane heat for the 2011 Lamb Weston Columbia Cup.  This is the first year Cascade Natural Gas has been involved with the Water Follies.

About Cascade Natural Gas:

Until the early 1950s, Pacific Northwest communities outside the larger metropolitan areas were passed over for natural gas service. In 1953, Pacific Northwest businessmen Lester Pettit, Spencer Clark, and Stewart Matthews formed Cascade Natural Gas Corporation to serve these communities with clean, affordable natural gas.

In those early days, the founders faced many financial, engineering and operational challenges as they strived to expand service and enhance their operations. The company grew steadily to become one of the fastest growing natural gas utilities in the nation.

Today Cascade’s 385 employees serve about 250,000 customers in 96 cities and towns in Washington and Oregon. Customers are served from four operational regions: Western–including Grays Harbor, the Kitsap Peninsula, and Longview; Northwest–including Bellingham, Mt. Vernon, and Oak Harbor/Anacortes; Central–including Sunnyside, Kennewick, Walla Walla, Wenatchee, and Yakima areas; and Southern–including Bend, Ontario, Baker City, and Pendleton.

Throughout our service areas, our mission is to be an integral part of the community with a firm commitment to being there when you need us. Through our friendly and dedicated employees and the services we provide, we hope you’ll find we are In the Community to Serve.