Raney team proves consistency pays entering Columbia Cup as national points leader
Long-time unlimited hydroplane race fans had to be tickled to see the U-11 Legend Yacht Transport and driver Jamie Nilsen sitting atop the national high points standings at the halfway point of the H1 Unlimited season.
But it shouldn’t come as a surprise.
Team owners Scott and Shannon Raney have assembled a dedicated and hard working crew, switched out boats in their Cle Elum area shop, found an enthusiastic sponsor, and found a comfort zone with fourth-year driver Jamie Nilsen.
The key, said Scott Raney, has been consistency.
“We didn’t have a bad year (in 2022). We started and finished every heat, and we were on every podium,” he told the Herald back in June during Spring Training.
The team may not have the fastest boat in the fleet. But by being right up there at the front of the pack, coupled with Nilsen’s ability to stay out of trouble, the team has a national title in its sight.
Going into this weekend, the U-11 leads in the team points race with 2,315 points.
Nilsen is also in first place in the drivers’ standings with 2,315 points.
J. Michael Kelly and the U-8 Beacon Electric were just one point behind at 2,314 points.
In Friday qualifying, though, Kelly and the U-8 scored 60 points, while Nilsen and the U-11 snared 30 points. That gave the U-8 team the national high points lead going into Saturday’s part of the races.
Raney is OK with that.
“You don’t win a race in Friday qualifying,” he said. “No. You just keep learning.”
That’s what Raney and crew have been doing since the offseason.
“We left no stone on the boat unturned this winter,” he said. “We wanted to upgrade our appearance. We upgraded everything. We’re going to fly under the radar and do our thing.”
It’s a running joke among the team that Shannon likes one of the team’s two boats that sit in the shop, and Scott relented to running hers this season.
“Shannon thinks it’s the boat,” said Scott Raney. “But we evaluated every aspect of the program in the offseason. It wasn’t just the boat change. We changed everything. I’m happy.”
But the boat does perform well.
“Last time we ran this boat was in 2019. It was sitting back at home,” said Scott Raney. “It goes down the straightaway faster. Maybe it does not turn as well.”
Doesn’t matter. It’s doing the trick especially with Nilsen at the helm.
“These two boats are very different,” said Nilsen, who then turns the attention to his teammates. “We’ve been doing this as a team. The crew has kept the boat running very well.”
It’s true.
But Raney wants to give Nilsen his credit.
“Jamie has been doing an incredible job,” he said. “We couldn’t be happier. He’s been that way in the outboards, the Grand Prix’s.”
Other racers have taken notice too.
“I swear, after every race I walk down to him and say, ‘Wow! You drove the hell out of that boat,’” said Darrell Strong, who owns the U-8 Beacon Electric and the U-9 Beacon Plumbing.
One of the big concerns each season is finding sponsors.
So for the U-11 team, it helped when Dave Holley — who helped in bringing the unlimited fleet to Qatar a few years back — stepped up to sponsor the team.
“Dave Holley is a fanatic of the sport. He loves racing boats,” said Scott Raney. “We’re excited to represent his new company.”
Winning won’t be easy. Every team in the fleet seems to be getting faster and more competitive.
“Everybody has been working their asses off up and down the beach. We have a lot of fast boats,” said Scott Raney. “This year multiple boats could win. Stocklin’s got a fast boat. The two Madison boats are tough. Strong has two great boats. And the piston boat is tough.”
All Scott Raney and Jamie Nilsen can do is concentrate on what they can do.
“Everyone on the team gets along well,” said Nilsen. “They work extremely hard. We try to get better every time out. We just need to stick to our plan, and we’ve gotta execute our game plan, not let anything get around us. Every heat is valuable.”
Raney agrees.
“It’s been fun, but we need to get more competitive,” he said.
It’s still a lot more fun looking at all of this from the top of the standings.
“I am a fan,” said Raney. “I still like to take a breath, step back and look at all of this. This is cool.”
Jeff Morrow is former sports editor for the Tri-City Herald.
