Coeur d'Alene, ID

Right near the boat docks at The Resort at Lake Coeur d'Alene on a stone pedestal some four feet cubed is a brushed metal hydroplane boat, and sweeping up from its metal wake was a jet fighter. The plaque on the pedestal reads "In Memory of Warner E. Gardner, Lt. Col. U.S.A.F. (Ret.) and Fellow Drivers Who Devoted So Much To Hydroplane Racing."

While Hydroplane races were extremely popular in the Pacific Northwest in the 1950s and 1960s, they have been permanently banned in the town of Coeur d'Alene by a voter initiative, due to the unruly crowds they attracted. Harrison, a small town on the lake, still occasionally hosts smaller limiteds.

Fifteen drivers and crewmen have been killed in the sport:

1951 Orth Mathiot Seattle, WA
1951 Thom Whittaker Seattle
1961 Bob Hayward Detroit, MI
1966 Ron Musson Washington, D.C.
1966 Don Wilson Washington
1966 Rex Manchester Washington.
1966 Chuck Thompson Detroit
1967 Bill Brow Tampa, FL
1968 Warner Gardner Detroit
1970 Tommy Fults San Diego, CA
1974 Skip Walther Miami, FL
1977 Jerry Bangs Seattle
1981 Bill Muncey Acapulco, Mexico
1982 Dean Chenoweth Kennewick, WA
2000 George Stratton, San Diego, CA