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Gold'n Crust Question |
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By Fred Farley - ABRA Unlimited Historian |
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QUESTION: Can you tell us the story on GOLD'N CRUST? - Skip Young ANSWER: GOLD'N CRUST (G-98) was the former SUCH CRUST II (U-11) and future CRUSTY (U-81). It was designed and built (in 1949) by Dan Arena...and was one of Arena's few failures. Dan built it after MISS GOLDEN GATE III/MISS GREAT LAKES and before GALE II, MISS GREAT LAKES II, the original MISS U.S., and the second MISS WAYNE. As SUCH CRUST II, it won the 1950 Steel Cup at Pittsburgh, PA, with Arena driving. But only one other Unlimited (ETTA) participated. A 31-foot three-pointer, it used both Allison and Rolls-Royce Merlin power and was converted from a tail-dragger to a prop-rider in 1950. But it simply wasn't competitive with the top boats of that era, although it did manage some respectable finishes. It ran third in the 1950 Silver Cup at Detroit with Arena driving and second in the 1951 Maple Leaf Trophy (as GOLD'N CRUST) at Windsor with Roy Duby. The boat featured the distinctly flatter profile that Arena used on most of his hulls. The low-profile concept didn't gain wide acceptance in the Unlimited Class until popularized by the Ed Karelsen hulls of the late 1960s. Heat speeds for SUCH CRUST II/GOLD'N CRUST were undistinguished. It was generally 10 to 15 miles per hour off the pace of the frontrunners. Sold by original owner Jack Schafer, Sr., to Leo Mucutza, the boat showed up a few times as CRUSTY between 1954 and 1958 but never finished a heat of competition. Mucutza later donated the hull to a children's playground in Detroit. |
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