Restoration
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Thank You! To Bob Bolam of Hayden Idaho.
Bob is the long-time owner of the N-22 Bolam's Express hull, a member of the Diamond Cup Hydromaniacs, and a supporter of everything hydroplanes.
Bob's $1,000 donation to the restoration effort Brings the major donations total to $7,000, and is another nice step in the direction of bringing back the Lilac Lady.
Thank You Julie Heerensperger Warren!
On the heels of the anonymous $1000 donation last week, we received a message from Julie Heerensperger Warren with some big news. She had decided to help with the Miss Spokane Restoration effort with a generous donation of $5,000 towards the cause!
Needless to say, we are beyond thankful for her generosity! While it is well short of the estimated $100,000 needed to complete the job, it certainly moves us forward in being able to begin to secure the needed materials.
Julie's father, David Heerensperger, sponsored the former Miss Spokane for the 1963 and 1964 seasons as the first Miss Eagle Electric.
On Friday, October 3, Julie and her family were in Chelan for Mahogany and Merlot, so a check presentation was arranged where Julie handed over the check to Kent 'Pancho' Simonson, team manager of the restoration. This brings the total from button sales and donations to nearly $8,000.
Restoration Update Photos
September 9 - Steven Shepperd paid a visit on Tuesday, September 9, to Pancho’s boat shop to deliver another restoration check. The check presented was for $500, bringing the total donated so far to the project from button sales to $2000.
Pancho shared receipts from Bob Moore’s Spokane Lumber Company that indicate that he has so far spent $1,346.34 of the first $1,500 donated. That money purchased the fourteen 12-foot-long white oak boards that can be seen in the attached picture. A supporter of the project, Moore donated $300 of his own money towards the purchase, making the overall actual cost $1,646.34 for the wood. Sadly, money doesn’t go as far as it used to back in the day.
Pancho reports that he will soon begin cutting some of the oak and begin the process of replacing some of the frames and stringers in the bow end of the boat. His efforts to make the two sides of the hull level and to reduce sag in the portside stringers and frames appear to have been successful.
The bow spoiler was recently removed from the boat. Bow spoilers were common during the time that Les Staudacher built Miss Spokane, and its purpose was to create turbulence under the leading edge of a three-point hydroplane. The spoiler was typically a flat metal structure like the one shown in the picture. Commonly, just one spoiler was used and it was situated in the front portion of the tunnel between the unlimited’s sponsons. It is not likely that the bow spoiler will be reinstalled as part of the restoration.
Pancho sends thanks to everyone for your financial support.
July 1 - The most recent activity has focused on gathering needed materials, particularly wood, and determining the best path to follow to get the center section of the hull realigned so that the left side no longer sags lower than the right by roughly 1".
It may not look like there has been much progress but Pancho has also been evaluating the ease of use and effectiveness of two different types of epoxy, and has met with the manager of a Spokane lumber yard to research the availability of white oak, plywood, and other types of wood that will be needed for the project. - Stephen Shepperd
Limited number of Booster Buttons still available
May 7 - Steve Compton flew up from the Tri-Cities to look at the Miss Spokane hull and offer suggestions to Pancho about how he might proceed with the project and to discuss the needed materials to effectively restore the hull.
Steve brought examples of the types of woods that he and the 1955 Miss Thriftway replica team used to construct that boat. I have included a collage of the wood samples that he carried in his cardboard box to show Pancho. It shows an example of the process of laminating white oak and spruce to create a strong yet lighter weight board ate used and evidence from one boards used in constructing the Miss Spokane that shows the same process was used roughly 69 years ago when the boat was built by Les Staudacher and his team. - Stephen Shepperd
March 28 - Poncho and Tim drove over to Chelan to deliver the Rolls Royce Merlin crankshaft. Mitch will send it off to get it “tuned up”. Poncho brought a piece of wood out of the Miss Spokane hull.., very intriguing how the hull was assembled.
March 14 - New hull support fixture built by Pancho Simonson
This hull-support fixture is made of dry and stable recycled lumber. It supports the engine stringers, as when the boat was originally constructed. The hull will be laser-leveled and shimmed straight. The main support beams were the original floor timbers from Kent Simonson’s cabinet shop in Spokane
March 8, 2025 - Meanwhile...over in Chelan...Mark and Mitch Evans have sorted through all the Merlin parts and boxed up the extras for storage.
March 3, 2025 - Stephen Shepperd and Pancho Simonson give us a tour of Pancho's shop in the Spokane Valley where Pancho is working on the overturned center section. Use arrow to scroll and click images to enlarge.
February 20, 2025 - Mark Evans photos of Mitch Evans with Miss Spokane's Merlin engine.
Mitch mounted the engine block onto the roll over stand. The center main bearing is damaged. It needs to be sent out to be welded and “line-bored”
Roll over stands are mandatory to be able to work on big V-12 engines.
We’re not sure this carburetor will work.., Mitch will be looking for a different version.
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Sorting out parts to use.., lots of extras. The gold colored cylinder banks and blower are from The Chuck Hickling camp. Probably from the Tunnel Hull I drove for him in 1988.
Gotta be a good one in here somewhere.
Miss Spokane Merllin Engine rods and bearings.
Older Photos
First photos by Penny Simonson
January 28 - Pancho, Mark, Mitch, Tim Donery, Chris Bekel of Chelan, and Stephen Shepperd loading Rolls Merlin engine parts, gearboxes and parts, blower casings, and other equipment from Pancho's storage for transport to Chelan.
