CALYPSO
  Racing Team

Home


BIOS


Frank Schneider

Born: June 7, 1938
Attended: Fairview Elementary, John Marshall Jr. High School, Roosevelt High School, all in Seattle Washington
Married: Patty Schneider
Children: Wendy Owen, Jeff Schneider, Tom Beatty, Tara Beatty/Dale, 5 Grandchildren, 3 Great Grandchildren and one on the way!
Career: Construction 1956-2001 Retired

I began in boat racing helping Herb Kitchener with his 135 hydroplane while I was a senior in High School.  After a few years I helped Bruce McDonald finish building his 145 class Sooy hydroplane named "Lil Squirt".  I crewed with Bruce for numerous seasons with the 145 and also after he acquired the Lauterbach 280 hydro which he also called "Lil Squirt" and later "Hilton Hyperlube".

In 1965 I helped John Forbes with the rebuilding of the sponsons and a new engine for the 280 hydro "Calypso Too".  I then joined the crew of brothers Ray and Jim, brother in law Lloyd Hawkinson and friend Jim Willis.  George Henley was doing the driving and we did well that season.  Toward the end of the 1966 season George bought his own 225 hydro and named it "Miss Tide Air".  George relinquished his driver's seat in the "Calypso Too" and recommended I take over the driving duties for the 1967 season.  The following year we decided to build a new "Calypso Too", which I designed and helped John and the crew build.  We were more competitive throughout several years and won many races and Region 10 High Points.  In 1970 we won the National High Point honors.  In the quest for the championship, the boat was badly damaged in San Diego California.  At this time John decided to ask Ed Karelsen to build a new boat.  A Viking funeral was given to the #3 hull and it was burned during a party in our back yard.

The "New Calypso Too" was quite fast and on Memorial Day in 1971 at Seattle's Green Lake I set a new Worlds Record at 79.929 mph.  The record only held for several weeks.  Attempting to recapture the record at Dexter Dam in Eugene Oregon the boat became airborne and came down hard damaging the cowlings.  After several weeks of repair we were back with our winning ways.

I retired from racing in 1972 as construction work took me to Alaska and then to the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in Richland Washington. During my years of being a crew member and driver I also held the positions of Treasurer, Vice Commodore and Commodore of Seattle Inboard Racing Association.  I also designed and built several other race boats.  I had started a 145 hydro for a friend Herb Getty but Herb became to busy in the restaurant business to devote time to racing.  I sold the frames and lumber to Ernie Lauber, a Metal Shop teacher at Roosevelt High School.  Ernie completed the boat and built all the hardware and engine.  He asked a young outboard driver, who had just turned 16 to drive for him. The boat was called "Little Rambler" and thus began the Inboard career and Unlimited Hydroplane future for Chip Hanauer.

All in all I had many great times as a crew member and driver for over 15 years of boat racing.  I look forward to driving the "Calypso" boats that are being restored for the Vintage Racing Class.

Patty and I live in a 40' Motorhome and spend our summers in Birch Bay/Blaine Washington and travel to the sunshine areas in the wintertime.  I'm also finding time to help Jeff rebuild the "New Calypso Too" for Vintage Racing in the near future.



Brian Parker

Born: September 9, 1937, Died: February 14, 2009
Attended: West Seattle High School (Graduated 1955), University of Washington
Married: Molly Parker (1955 - 1979), Kathryn Parker (1981 - 2009)
Children: Tim & Jan Parker, Peter & Gloria Parker, Steve & Sharleen Parker, Christy & Mike Marzetta, Ronda Stewart, Christopher Stewart, 11 Grandchildren, 5 Great Grandchildren
Career: Insurance 1964-2009

Brian's love of family and passion for racing is what eventually led him to hydroplane racing.  The story, as it was told to me many times, goes like this...

Brian always loved cars and engines.  At the age of 14, he could tear apart and rebuild an engine in a day.  In high school, he joined the car club.  The officers of the car club were chosen by how fast their cars were.  They would drag race late at night on California Avenue in West Seattle to determine who had the fastest car.  That person would become the president of the car club.  The second fastest would be vice-president, and so on.  Brian was president of the club more than once.  Brian's car club days ended after he graduated.

A few years later, he and his young family were members of a local CB Radio club.  One of the club members was also involved with a local car racing organization (Foreign Stock Car Racing Assoc.) and got Brian involved.  Shortly after, Brian purchased a 1949 Austin A40 and modified it to make it a racer.  The final touch was painting it pink naming it the "Pink Lady".  Within a short time he was winning races.  But, as much as he loved car racing, it was not a family friendly sport - not a place for his wife and kids to hang out.

After a race one evening in 1968, while Brian was getting ready to leave, two gentlemen approached him and introduced themselves as John Forbes and Frank Schneider.  They chatted for a bit, talking about Dad's race car, and racing, and mentioned they were running a limited hydroplane.  They hit it off, and before they left, they invited Dad to come to the hydroplane races that weekend.  John owned a 280 class hydroplane called the Calypso Too and Frank was his driver.  Brian was curious and loved any kind of racng, so he decided to go, taking his oldest son, Tim, with him.

When they got there, John and Frank met up with them, and gave them the VIP treatment, showing them the boats, introducing them to the hydroplane family, as having them watch all the races.  Forbes had hinted that he was in need of another crew member, and was impressed with Brian's one-man stock car racing team.  Well, Brian saw the family atmosphere at the boat races that was missing from the car racing and realized this was a way to be part of racing and include his family, too.  Within a couple of weeks, Brian sold his stock car and joined the Calypso Racing Team.

Brian crewed on the Calypso Too for about a year.  During that time, the boat was running a 265ci Chevy engine - the engine of choice for the 280 class back then.  But he and Frank were convinced that the Plymouth 273 engine was the way to go.  So, Forbes purchased a brand new 273 and let them work their magic.  After months of work, they finally felt as though they had perfected it.

One Saturday morning, Forbes called Brian convinced him to go for a ride with him.  He took Brian to his warehouse north of Seattle, where while inside, pointed at a hydroplane hull up in the rafters and said, "We'll put your Plymouth in that boat and see how it does." Brian didn't know there was another boat.  Then John said, "And you can drive it."  It took about a half second for Brian to accept, and thus was the beginning of the E-291 Calypso.

With some fine tuning and a little trial and error, the Plymouth was a success in the Calypso.  The boat was an older hull, but with the new 273 power plant, it was very competitive.

Brian drove the Calypso competitively for about 2 years, with more than a few podium finishes.  His hull was older and wasn't really designed to do the speeds it was hitting, so it was a challenge to drive.  But he loved it - every minute of it!  He said many times, it was his addiction.  And it wasn't just the driving, but all the people involved in the sport and the way everyone was "family".  In 1970, Brian and his family moved away and he was forced to quit racing.

A few years back, Brian had been fortunate enough to reconnect with Frank, Donny Benson, and George Henley - his hydroplane racing heroes - as well as a few more of the "old gang".  He also found out in October of 2008 that his old boat had been found and purchased by Don Kelson with plans to restore her as the Calypso E-291.  He was so excited...His dream was to drive that boat one more time.


Unfortunately, Brian passed away in February of 2009.  But his family's commitment to see the dream of the Calypso running on the water again, and the amazing generosity of Don Kelson, who has let us be a part of it from the beginning, brought the Calypso to life in 2010, running the Region 10 Vintage circuit.  In 2011 Brian's children purchased the Calypso from Don and have been running it in Brian's honor, vowing to keep the dream alive for years to come!



Jeff Schneider

   Bio coming soon...



Steve Parker

Born: October, 1960
Attended: Mead Sr High School, Spokane Community College
Married: Sharleen Parker (1983 - present)
Children: Peter Termer (Andrea), Heidi O'Day (Jonathan), Michael Parker, 5 Grandchildren
Career: Quality Assurance - Software


Home    History    Restoration    Events    Bios    Gallery    What's New



*All pictures are property of the Calypso Racing Team.