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Hanauer Retires from Unlimited Hydroplane Competition |
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April 25, 2000 |
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(Seattle) -- Chip Hanauer, one of the most legendary drivers in the history if Unlimited hydroplane racing today announced his retirement from competition. Hanauer returned to competition in 1999 after a three year lay-off and quickly claimed three race victories including his eleventh American Power Boat Association (APBA) Gold Cup in Detroit. That victory was the 61st of his Unlimited career, leaving him just one shy of the ;ate Bill Muncey’s record 62 wins. "There is a part of me that is happy to leave that record for Bill and his family," said Hanauer. He retires with a 20-year career winning percentage of 40 percent. Hanauer, now 46, is the youngest driver from any form of motorsports ever inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America. He was recognized in 1995 joining Roger Penske, Bruce McLaren, and Keith Black in that year’s class. Diagnosed in 1996 with spasmodic dysphonia, a neurological disorder which affects the vocal chords, Hanauer hs relied upon quarterly injections of a botulism toxicin (registered name – Botox), to maintain his voice for the past five years. "I long ago exceeded my initial dreams and goals," said Hanauer. "Through the years, I have had the honor of working with a lot of great people and just wish that I could properly thank my family, friends, and teams for all of their support. Last year (1999) was a gift. I wanted to see if I could still win driving a boat that wasn’t the quickest for a team that wasn’t the richest. I started as an underdog and that was how I wanted to finish," said Hanauer. "It gave me the chance to create the bookend to my first Gold Cup. Now that Pico has decided to leave the sport, I think it is appropriate that I go out with them. They say that the hardest thing for a driver is to know when is the right time to leave. I am happy, healthy, and a t peace. There are other things I would like to do in my life. This is the time to move on," said Hanauer. "Chip always said that he ‘didn’t want to be the next Bill Muncey, he just wanted to be the first Chip Hanauer, and try to be as successful as Bill was, but in his own way,’" said Fran Muncey. "Actually, he did both. Chip proved himself as a great driver and a true champion. Chip has always brought great honor to Bill’s name and to our family," said Fran Muncey. An honors graduate of Washington State University, Hanauer entered unlimited competition in 1976 having already claimed five APBA Inboard National Titles. He captured his first victory in 1979 at Ogden, UT aboard The Squire Shop and scored his second win at Ogden the following year. He won the Tri-Cities, WA event in 1981 by hiding in the roostertail of the favored Miss Budweiser until the final turn then outsprinting the more powerful champion to the finish line. Taking over as the driver of the Atlas Van Lines hydroplane following Muncey’s death in October, 1981, Hanauer, driving for a team owned by Muncey’s widow Fran, won the 1982 APBA Gold Cup and Unlimited Series championships. He then backed up both championships in 1982. In 1984, he switched to a new turbine-powered Atlas Van Lines hydroplane and became the first river to win the Gold Cup in a turbine-powered boat. Hanauer eventually ran his Gold Cup streak to seven consecutive victories from 1982-88, topping the 65-year record of the late Gar Wood, who won five consecutive Gold Cups from 1917-21. He scored his third Unlimited series championship in 1985 aboard the Miller American. Hanauer then joined the Circus Circus team where he earned his fourth and fifth series titles in 1989 and 1990, the latter the result of a dramatic come form behind charge that saw him win the title by taking four of the five races. When the Circus Circus team was disbanded following their 1990 championship, Hanauer accepted an offer to drive a factory sponsored Toyota MR2 for the Dennis Aase team on the IMSA Firehawk series. Hanauer scored his first win in just his fifth start and finished seventh of 127 drivers in the season championship winning the Exxon Supreme Driver of the Race award at Portland. He retired to Unlimited competition in 1992 aboard Miss Budweiser and claimed his sixth series title and eighth APBA Gold Cup to match Muncey’s record. He successfully defended both crowns in 1993 to break Muncey’s Gold Cup record and match his series championship mark at seven. Hanauer fractured four vertebrae when the escape hatch imploded during warm-ups for the 1994 APBA Gold Cup in Detroit, but returned to competition just three weeks later to win the next three races and help the Miss Budweiser team secure the series championship. He scored his record tenth Gold Cup in Detroit in 1995, but tore his rib cage in the process and missed the next two races. But, he was back at the controls of the Miss Budweiser for their historic 100th victory in Seattle that season and again helped the team secure its record 15th series title. Hanauer suffered a concussion in a spectacular cartwheeling flip during the 1996 Detroit Gold Cup and withdrew from competition. He returned from a nearly thee year layoff with a vengeance in 1999 driving the Miss PICO, to victories in the 1999 season opener at Lake Havasu, AZ, and the Indiana Governor’s Cup at Madison, before claiming his 61st and final victory at the Detroit APBA Gold Cup. |
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