PORT ANGELES – Since he was 5 years old, racing has been a part of Wil Muncey’s life, and he’ll continue that tradition at the Saturday and Sunday Strait Thunder hydroplane races.
“I was in my first racing boat when I was 5, and I raced my first boat when I was 8,” Muncey said.
Now 54, he will race a Power Punch UL-83 in hydroplane races in the Port Angeles Harbor.
Drivers reach speeds as high as 160 mph.
“It is like playing chess and dancing at the same time,” Muncey said.
“Like in dancing, you don’t want to do something wrong and bump into someone, but you don’t want to be too courteous or the competitors will pass you.”
The races will include 15 or 16 hydroplane racers including two of the top racers in the nation – Jerry Hopp, 58, and Kayleigh Perkins, 19.
“Jerry and Kayleigh are within 150 points of each other in (all of the nationwide) races out of about 6,000 possible points,” Muncey said.
“So it will be a lot of fun to see them go up against each other in this race.”
This race will determine the year’s champion for the Unlimited Light Hydroplane Racing Association, which holds about eight races a year.
Spectators can watch the races, have a bite to eat, browse arts and crafts booths and watch demonstrations at City Pier at the north end of Lincoln Street in Port Angeles.
There is no admission fee for watching the races.
It is the fifth annual edition of the hydroplane races for the North Olympic Peninsula, which are organized by the Peninsula Water Sports Association.
