1929 Miss America VIII…
The brainchild of Garfield Wood and designer Napoleon “Nap” Lisee was built in 1929 to be the fastest boat in the world, and was considered by many to be the very best. Prior to his passing, Lisee was quoted “the Eighth was the finest boat he [Gar Wood] ever built, barring none… That’s my masterpiece – the Eighth. It’s even better than the Tenth.” Gar Wood himself once said in remembering Miss America VIII “she’s the best boat we ever had.”
Beginning with Gar Wood’s Miss America I in 1920, the Miss America series of racing boats were designed and built to do two things: win the British International Harmsworth Trophy for the United States, and win the world unlimited water speed record. Gar Wood dominated the sport of motorboat racing in the 1920s and early 1930s. Between 1920 and 1933, Gar Wood won the Harmsworth Trophy race eight times as a driver and nine times as an owner.
Miss America VIII won the Harmsworth twice! In 1929 it won its first Harmsworth race with Gar himself behind the wheel in front of Gar Woods home Detroit Yacht Club on the Detroit River in front of over 400,000 spectators lining the shores of downtown Detroit and Belle Isle. Gar edged out the second place boat, his own Miss America VII with his brother George Wood at the wheel by one one-hundredth of a second. The Eighth entered and finished the 1930 Harmsworth race, but finished second behind Gar Wood’s then-new Miss America IX.
Entered in the Harmsworth race again in 1931, Miss America VIII was to be driven by George Wood in one of the more controversial Harmsworth races in history. In front of over 600,000 recorded spectators, again on the Detroit River, the Eighth was again the victor after Miss America IX, driven by Gar Wood, and Miss England II, driven by Kaye Don both beat the starting gun by more than five seconds and were disqualified.
Gar Wood had met with Harry Miller at the Indianapolis 500 in May of 1931, and at the urging of Harry Miller, Wood commissioned him to custom build two of the most awesome Miller engines ever, the 1,113-ci V-16s. These engines were supposed to be installed in the Eighth in time for the Harmsworth race, but due to a “testing accident” they were not available in time for the race.
Soon after the 1931 Harmsworth race, Gar Wood’s men fitted the custom-built, supercharged 1,113-ci V-16 engines from Miller, with his sights set on more speed. Weighing much less than the Packard V-12s, the radical Millers saw testing in Miss America VIII on the Harlem River in the fall of 1931, where it was clocked at 104 mph. Nothing short of revolutionary, the Millers were designed to rev to 6,000rpm when the racing Packards, like most high-performance engines of the day had a maximum rpm of 2,500. The comparatively lightweight Millers were putting out an estimated 1,800-hp each. These Miller V-16 engines were the last to power Miss America VIII for competition with Gar Wood at the wheel.
Recently reunited after 70 years apart, the hull and the special engines designed for it are hitting the Mecum Auction block in Kissimmee, Florida is an unprecedented event. Perhaps more miraculous than the fact that this extremely famous one-off race boat and one-off engines have survived the last 82 years, is the level of restoration the two have received. While the hull is not quite completed the engines are finished and sound incredible! Over 75% of the hull in Miss America VIII is the original wood, for a wooden race boat, this is remarkable. Prior to the recent restoration, the Eighth was a running boat in the early 1990s (with two WW-II Packard PT boat engines), and exhibited at several boat shows across the country. Today, only three of the original ten Miss America boats exist (VIII, IX, and X), the Eighth is the only one with correct power.
Miss America VIII will be sold with a collection of original parts including the original Schweitzer / Cummins roots style superchargers. Also, Orlin Johnson, the chief mechanic for Gar Wood during the Harmsworth years collected a tremendous amount of photos and supporting materials from 1905 to 1975. Over 1000 items are included with the sale of Miss America VIII from his private collection! Virtually all of it is irreplaceable.
The next owner will need to complete the restoration. Both engines have been completely restored by the world class engine shop, Zakira’s Garage in Ohio to exacting specifications and are show quality. Stronger rods and replacable crank bearings make this a duty cycle stronger than original rebuild. They also were run-in on a dyno and are currently installed in the hull. A pre-auction inspection is available by contacting Scott Ales at 407-257-5854 or via email, scott@mecum.com
– Two-time winner of the British International Harmsworth Trophy, the top prize for unlimited power boats
HIGHLIGHTS :
– 30-feet long, Philippine mahogany planking, approximately 75% original wood in the hull
– Gar Wood quote: “She’s the best boat we ever had.”
– Gar Wood’s designer Napoleon Lisee quote: “the Eighth was the finest boat he ever built, barring none. That’s my masterpiece, the Eighth. It’s even better than the tenth.
– 1931 specially designed Harry Miller V16 1113 CI 930 horsepower (without original superchargers currently installed) one-off engines. 6,000 rpm double overhead cam, aluminum block and heads. With superchargers, estimated horsepower was 1,800.
– Engines and the hull were separated for more than 70 years.
– Many witnessed one of the engines running at Hershey show the 1980s as an exhibition. They are nearly 6-feet long and as loud as a top fuel dragster.
– 1931 challenge for the Harmsworth Trophy was the most attended event in the history of the world to that date. Over 600,000 recorded fans watched from the banks of the Detroit River.
– The 1931 Harmsworth was a very controversial race, newspaper articles all over the world. Press coverage immediately following the race.
– Extensive documentation in photos, and vintage movie reels
– Subject of a 30-minute BBC documentary.
– Engines completely restored originals by knowledgeable and experienced shop aided by the original drawings.
– One of only 3 original Miss America boats left of the 10 built from 1920-1932, one of two that won the Harmsworth twice.
– Only Miss America boat to win the Harmsworth without Gar Wood at the helm. His brother George Wood was driving in 1931.
