The Detroit Hydrofest (branded as the Metro Detroit Chevy Dealers Detroit Hydrofest for sponsorship reasons) is a

H1 Unlimited H1 Unlimited is an American Unlimited Hydroplane racing league that is sanctioned by the American Power Boat Association (APBA). Until 2009, the series was known as ABRA Unlimited Hydroplane, in turn renamed from APBA Unlimited Hydroplane in 2004. ...

hydroplane boat race held in August on the

Detroit River The Detroit River flows west and south for from Lake St. Clair to Lake Erie as a strait in the Great Lakes system. The river divides the metropolitan areas of Detroit, Michigan, and Windsor, Ontario—an area collectively referred to as Detro ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...

History

The first race held on the Detroit River was the Gold Cup, in 1916. The community-owned Miss Detroit won the Gold Cup in 1915 on Manhasset Bay, outside of New York City, and earned the right to defend it the following year on home waters. Miss Detroit was a single-step hydroplane, equipped with a 250-horsepower Sterling engine. The designer was the distinguished Christopher Columbus Smith of Chriscraft fame. The race was run annually after being part of the Gold Cup, and later became known as the APBA Challenge Cup then

APBA Gold Cup The APBA Gold Cup (originally known simply as the Gold Cup, a speedboat race) is an American hydroplane boat race, named for the American Power Boat Association. It is now run as part of the H1 Unlimited H1 Unlimited is an American Unlimited ...

. Starting in 1963, the Gold Cup race location was determined by the city with the highest financial bid, rather than by the yacht club of the winning boat. Since 1980, Detroit has hosted the Gold Cup race 30 times, including every year from 1990 through 2014, and from 2016 through 2018. From 1990 to 2014 the Detroit River Regatta Association (DRRA) hosted the APBA Gold Cup. When the DRRA announced in 2015 that it couldn't continue hosting the Gold Cup, the Spirit of Detroit Hydrofest was formed and obtained a multi-year sponsorship from UAW-GM. In 2019, promoters in Detroit elected not to host the Gold Cup and the leaders of the Madison Regatta won the bid for the right to hold the Gold Cup.

Past winners

Note: * - The APBA unlimited hydroplane class began in 1946.

References

External links

Spirit of Detroit Hydrofest websiteH1 Unlimited website
{{H1 Unlimited Series H1 Unlimited Racing motorboats Hydroplanes Motorboat racing Recurring sporting events established in 1916 1916 establishments in Michigan Detroit River Sports in Detroit