''Miss Supertest III'' was a hydroplane designed and built by

Canadians Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

that won the 1959 Detroit Memorial Regatta and the 1959, 1960 and 1961

Harmsworth Cup The Harmsworth Cup, popularly known as the Harmsworth Trophy, is a historically important British international trophy for motorboats. History The Harmsworth was the first annual international award for motorboat racing. Officially, it is a cont ...

races—the only four races she ever entered. She was the only three-time

winner and the first non-U.S. winner in 39 years. Racing out of

Sarnia Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes, ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, ''Miss Supertest III'' was owned by J. Gordon Thompson, owner of Supertest Petroleum (later acquired by BP). The team was managed by his son, Jim Thompson, and the boat piloted by Bob Hayward. ''Miss Supertest III'' was inducted into

Canada's Sports Hall of Fame Canada's Sports Hall of Fame (; sometimes referred to as the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame) is a Canadian sports hall of fame and museum in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Dedicated to the history of sports in Canada, it serves as a hall of fame and mu ...

. She is currently owned by Murray Walker. Her predecessor, ''Miss Supertest II'', was briefly the fastest propeller-driven

motorboat A motorboat or powerboat is a boat that is exclusively powered by an engine; faster examples may be called "speedboats". Some motorboats are fitted with inboard engines, others have an outboard motor installed on the rear, containing the inter ...

in the world, setting a water speed record of 296.96 km/h (184.494 mph) on November 1, 1957, at

Picton, Ontario Picton is an unincorporated community located in Prince Edward County, Ontario, Prince Edward County in southeastern Ontario, roughly east of Toronto. It is the county's largest community and former seat located at the southwestern end of Picto ...

, with Art Asbury at the wheel. She broke a record that had stood for five years, but a new record was set only a few weeks later. The Harmsworth Cup races near Picton were broadcast on

CJBQ CJBQ is a Canadian radio station licensed at Belleville, Ontario. It is owned by Quinte Broadcasting along with CIGL-FM and CJTN-FM. CJBQ broadcasts on 800 kHz at a power of 10 kW. The transmitter is located in Prince Edward County. The ante ...

radio by

Jack Devine Jack Devine is a veteran of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and a founding partner and President of The Arkin Group LLC. Biography Devine's career at the CIA spanned from the late 1960s to the early 1990s, including the fall of Presiden ...

. The first ''Miss Supertest'' was originally known as ''

Miss Canada Miss Canada is a beauty pageant for young women in Canada. It was founded in Hamilton in 1946. No title was awarded from 1993 through 2008. The trademark was purchased in 2009 by a Québec organization who produces the pageant under the name to ...

IV'' and competed in hydroplane races from 1949 to the mid-1950s. The ''Miss Supertest'' boats were retired following the death of Bob Hayward. He was killed while racing ''Miss Supertest II'' about a month after winning the 1961

with ''Miss Supertest III''.

Canada Post Canada Post Corporation (, trading as Canada Post (), is a Canadian Crown corporation that functions as the primary postal operator in Canada. Originally known as Royal Mail Canada (the operating name of the Post Office Department of the Can ...

issued a commemorative stamp in 2011 honouring ''Miss Supertest III'', her driver Bob Hayward and businessman Jim Thompson, who designed and built her.

References

{{Reflist

External links

''Miss Supertest'' Heritage Minute
on

Historica Canada Historica Canada is a Canadian charitable organization dedicated to promoting the country's history and citizenship. All of its programs are offered bilingually and reach more than 28 million Canadians annually. A registered national charitabl ...

Racing motorboats