Canadian Motorsport Hall inducts Theoret
From The Madison Courier:
Jean Theoret, the only Canadian to win the American Power Boat Association Gold Cup, was inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame on Saturday in Toronto.
Theoret, who is the winningest driver in the Grand Prix class, also has six Unlimited wins to his credit, all with the U-8/U-37 racing team.
Theoret, of Maple Grove, Quebec, was born into a hydroplane family. He joins his brother, boat racer Robert, as hall inductees. Robert Theoret was inducted in 2006.
Jean Theoret built engines for his father Gerald Theoret, a noted hydroplane driver and boat owner, and started his racing career in 1983 in the 2.5-liter class where he was named was rookie of the year.
For the next nine years, Theoret raced in the Grand Prix class and racked up 43 wins. He set a World Closed Course record of 122.4 mph at Aylmer, Quebec, and in 1994 he won the Canadian Boating Federation Championship, the U.S. National Championship and U.S. High Point Championship in American Power Boat Association competition. He also won the Canadian, North American, and U.S. National championships in 1995 and the World Championship in 1996, 1997 and 2001.
In 2005 at the age of 43, Theoret was hired by Bill Wurster to drive the U-8 LLumar Window Film. He won two races that season, the first Canadian since Bob Hayward in the 1960s to win an Unlimited race.
Billy Schumacher purchased Wurster’s operation the next season and the wins kept coming. Theoret won three more races for the newly renamed U-37 Shumacher Racing Team, including the Gold Cup in 2006.
Theoret’s last win came at Evansville in 2008. He nearly died in a blowover accident at Madison in 2009 but returned to the cockpit later that season.
Theoret walked away from the U-37 team after the 2009 season and, although not officially retired, he has not driven an Unlimited since.
Canadian Motorsport Hall inducts Theoret
From The Madison Courier:
Jean Theoret, the only Canadian to win the American Power Boat Association Gold Cup, was inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame on Saturday in Toronto.
Theoret, who is the winningest driver in the Grand Prix class, also has six Unlimited wins to his credit, all with the U-8/U-37 racing team.
Theoret, of Maple Grove, Quebec, was born into a hydroplane family. He joins his brother, boat racer Robert, as hall inductees. Robert Theoret was inducted in 2006.
Jean Theoret built engines for his father Gerald Theoret, a noted hydroplane driver and boat owner, and started his racing career in 1983 in the 2.5-liter class where he was named was rookie of the year.
For the next nine years, Theoret raced in the Grand Prix class and racked up 43 wins. He set a World Closed Course record of 122.4 mph at Aylmer, Quebec, and in 1994 he won the Canadian Boating Federation Championship, the U.S. National Championship and U.S. High Point Championship in American Power Boat Association competition. He also won the Canadian, North American, and U.S. National championships in 1995 and the World Championship in 1996, 1997 and 2001.
In 2005 at the age of 43, Theoret was hired by Bill Wurster to drive the U-8 LLumar Window Film. He won two races that season, the first Canadian since Bob Hayward in the 1960s to win an Unlimited race.
Billy Schumacher purchased Wurster’s operation the next season and the wins kept coming. Theoret won three more races for the newly renamed U-37 Shumacher Racing Team, including the Gold Cup in 2006.
Theoret’s last win came at Evansville in 2008. He nearly died in a blowover accident at Madison in 2009 but returned to the cockpit later that season.
Theoret walked away from the U-37 team after the 2009 season and, although not officially retired, he has not driven an Unlimited since.