The Owensboro HydroFair is paying tribute to one of the biggest names in the sport, as the event has been named the Scott Pierce Memorial Race to honor the racer who died last year.
With Pierce’s wife and broter in attendance, the special announcement was made Friday morning at the Owensboro Convention Center by Owensboro Mayor Tom Watson and Race Director Randy Lientz.
Watson also declared Friday as Scott Pierce Day, saying “Scott was a loving and devoted father, brother, uncle, son, and husband and to his wife Sue for 24 years prior to his passing on July 19, 2020.” The full proclamation can be read here.
Lientz said Pierce, who has some distant ties to Owensboro, was “instrumental” in helping bring the hydroplane event back to the Ohio River after more than 40 years.
Pierce attended the races in Owensboro when he was a child watching his dad, Laird, race.
Scott Pierce’s long and successful Unlimited hydroplane racing career started in 1981. He won seven races for owners Bill Wurster and Bernie Little and drove Little’s “Miss Budweiser” — another tie to Owensboro — to the National Championship in 1991.
The “Miss Budweiser” boat is the same one — in namesake, as the physical boat itself was totally new — that legendary Owensboro racer Bill Sterett drove on his way to winning the Gold Cup. The Gold Cup is regarded as the Holy Grail of Unlimited hydroplane racing, according to an article on The Hydroplane & Raceboat Museum website.
In addition to the HydroFair being named in memory of Pierce, each driver this weekend will have stickers with his No. 55 on the sides of their boats.
For more information on the HydroFair, click here.
