Our Team

Mike Hanson has a long history as a hydroplane racer, crew chief and builder. He first qualified as an unlimited class driver in 1986 driving Fred Leland’s U-100. He moved to Ritchie Sutphen’s U-66 Sutphen Spirit in 1988, but when the team disbanded mid-season due to a crash, he became available to drive for Miss Madison Racing. Mike was with Miss Madison from that time until 1998. He had one win driving Miss Madison at San Diego in 1993. In unprecedented fashion, Mike drove from trailer position at the start of the race to take the win. Mike collected 3 additional unlimited victories. As back-up driver for an injured Chip Hanauer, he drove Miss Budweiser to victory at the 1994 Texas Hydrofest. After moving to Jones Racing in 1999, he won the 2001 A.P.B.A. Gold Cup on the Detroit River and the 2002 Bill Muncey Cup in San Diego.

After a request from then Miss Madison, Inc. Chairman, Bob Hughes, Mike returned to Miss Madison Racing in 2004 as Crew Chief. With the Oberto sponsorship and a new Miss Madison hull in 2007, Mike led the team to numerous victories and 4 National Championships before his departure following the 2013 season. In 2018, Mike along with his brother, Larry, led the completion of building the team’s new racing hull introduced in Tri-Cities, WA in August of that year. Mike returned as Crew Chief in 2019, adding National Championships in 2019 and 2021. He continues to lead the Miss Madison crew.

Mike lives in Bonney Lake, WA with his wife, Tonya. Mike and Tonya have two grown children, Trevor and Aubrey, who have worked alongside their Dad on hydroplane crews throughout the years.

Charlie Grooms has been with the Miss Madison Racing Team for over 40 years.

He started washing parts when his uncle, Jon Peddie, was named the team’s driver in 1977. Over the years, he graduated through the ranks to become Crew Chief. Currently, Grooms is the President, Team Manager and Owners' Representative. He oversees all aspects of the team including: sponsorships, logistics, budgeting, personnel and other administrative duties.

When not racing, Charlie and wife Nancy reside in Madison, Indiana and manage The Bottle Shop. Nancy along with their daughters, Codi, Cati, and Cortni manage the Miss Madison team merchandise sales.

Jimmy Shane joined the Miss Madison Racing Team in 2014 as the 21st driver of the community owned hydroplane. Since being named American Power Boat Association Region 4 "Rookie of the Year" in 2001, Jimmy has won countless races and awards as he gained experience in the Limited Classes. An accomplished fabricator, he has also designed and built record-setting hydroplanes and runabouts.

Jimmy first test-drove an Unlimited hydroplane in 2006 in Celina, Ohio and entered Unlimited competition as a substitute driver at Tri-Cities, WA in 2007 racing his first full season in the Unlimited series in 2012 with Porter Racing. Jimmy has quickly accumulated 21 race wins including back-to-back U.I.M. World Championships in 2012 and 2013. Jimmy has captured 6 (2013-17 & 2019) H1 Unlimited Season Driver Championships and 5 APBA Gold Cup victories (2014, 15, 17, 19 & 21). He has accumulated 7 H1 Unlimited Season Team Championships (2013-17, 19 & 21), 6 of those with Miss Madison Racing.

Jimmy is employed as an Integration Engineer/Test & Flight Operations at Blue Origin, LLC in Van Horn, TX. He comes from a boat racing family. His parents and sister have all competed in various APBA racing classes. Jimmy has two sons, Colton and Hudson.

Jeff Bernard is a 4th generation boat racer and has been racing powerboats since he was 9 years old.

Jeff’s first ride in an unlimited hydroplane was in 2005 at 20 years old, driving Fred Leland’s U-99 Miss Lakeridge Paving at Seattle Seafair. In 2006, he joined the Precision Performance Engineering team at the Seattle race taking over the U-5 Formula Boats and remained with the team through the 2011 season.

Bernard’s 1st unlimited race victory was the 2008 Indiana Governor’s Cup in Madison, Indiana, in the U-5 FormulaBoats.com. Later that season, he won the Bill Muncey Cup in San Diego. His 3rd career win came in 2009 at Evansville, Indiana. Jeff has finished 2nd in H1 Unlimited National Driver High Points 3 times.

Jeff has additional driving experience with the U-7 Spirit of Detroit in 2018, U-7 Graham Trucking in 2016, U-21 Fox Plumbing & Heating in 2014, and U-17 Miss Red Dot in 2012. He also has been the back-up driver and radio spotter for the Spirit of Qatar racing team in 2013 and for Miss Madison Racing in 2015. He drove the U-1918 Oberto Specialty Meats hydroplane in 2019 for Miss Madison Racing and shared Miss Madison driving duties with Jimmy Shane in the 2021 U-1 Goodman Real Estate presents Miss HomeStreet.

Bernard holds 14 National Championships in limited hydroplane racing, 15 Regional Championships, 4 Summer National titles, 2 World Championships, 6 Western Divisional titles, 2 Eastern Divisional title, 1 North American Championship, and 10 World Records in various classes on APBA Inboard Racing. He has been inducted into the APBA Hall of Champions 4 times.

Jeff is a native of Allen Park, Michigan and currently resides in Kent, WA with his wife, Christabelle and their daughters, Blakely and Rilynn. He is an Aircraft Structures Mechanic at the Boeing Company.

A 20+ year member of the crew, Dunn handles the boat setup when it arrives and services the skid fin and wing on the boat. He also is the team’s alternate truck driver.

Richard is a commercial truck driver with Pyle’s Transportation, In addition to his experience racing with Miss Madison, he was a part of the U-8 EXECUTONE in 1984. He enjoys boat racing because of the speed and competition. In his free time he enjoys model building and spending time with Joyce.

Paul Floyd joined Miss Madison Racing in 2019 as a member of the U-1918 Oberto Specialty Meats crew. He is currently working on the deck of the U-1 Goodman Real Estate presents Miss HomeStreet as an Engine Technician.

Paul retired from Bennett Industries in Tacoma, WA after 42 years working as a machinist, estimator and job planner. He began volunteering at the Hydroplane & Raceboat Museum in Kent, WA. He was a part of the restoration team for the 1973 Pay 'N Pak "Winged Wonder" and is currently working on the restoration of the Tahoe Miss. His unlimited hydroplane experience also includes working with the Ellstrom Racing Team starting in 2015.

Paul lives in Tumwater, WA and has 5 children and 12 grandchildren.

Pat Furnish is Snake to most everyone who knows him. He has been a volunteer with the Miss Madison team since 1985. Pat helps with many tasks at the shops in Madison, Indiana and Tukwila, WA as well as at the race sites.

Snake loves riding motorcycles and golfing when he gets the chance. His Shi tzu, Chester, is his best friend and he enjoys being a grandpa.

A retired NASA senior scientist, Gilbert is the team's Technical Performance Engineer and is in charge of the team’s computer systems, electrical and radios.

While at NASA, Gilbert worked on the onboard computers on the Apollo missions. He worked on the computers on the Command Module and later on the Lunar Module guidance computer. He also worked on Skylab and before retiring worked on the data processing system in Mission Control that monitored the Shuttle’s flight (trajectory, energy management and system telemetry). His NASA experiences are a great value to the Miss Madison Racing Team. Prior to joining the Miss Madison crew, Gilbert raced with U-25 SUPERIOR RACING, U-9 JONES RACING, U-1 MISS BUDWEISER, U-100 LELAND UNLIMITED. As an avid runner, Jimmy, reached the milestone of running 100,000 miles.

He and his wife Sue live in Houston. They have one daughter, Laura, and two grandchildren, Rhett and Madeleine.

Julie Hooton is the team photographer, manages the team’s social media, and is website administrator. She is also responsible for set-up of the crew area in the pits and procuring supplies needed for supporting the crew during race weekends.

Along with her husband Mark, Julie was a member of the PPE, LLC Racing U5-U7-U57 crew from 2006 to 2011.

Trey joined the Miss HomeStreet crew in 2017 working in the race shops in Madison, IN and Tukwila, WA. Traveling with the team to the test sessions and race sites, his primary responsibilities are on the deck working on gearboxes and engines.

Trey was introduced to boat racing by his father, Rob Holt, who is a founding member of 5 to the 5 Vintage Hydros, Inc. which is now the National Boat Racing Heritage Center in Madison, IN. Trey is an active part of this effort to bring a museum to Madison. He currently owns a vintage hydroplane, the E-322 Natural High.

Mark Hooton has been around the sport for many years as a fan, photographer and crew member. He joined Jim Harvey Motorsports as a crew member on the U2 at the Norfolk, VA race in 1997. In 2006, he moved to PPE, LLC Racing as a crew member on the National Champion U7. From 2008 to 2011 he served as Team Manager for PPE, LLC Racing managing the 2, then 3 boat team and leading the team to 5 races wins including 2 U.I.M. World Championships. Mark joined the Miss Madison Racing Team as Marketing Manager focusing on sponsor development and marketing opportunities in 2012. In 2016, Mark added Technical Director to his team responsibilities.

Mark is Program Purchasing Manager for the Corvette, Camaro & Malibu Program Teams with General Motors. His favorite Miss Madison racing moment was being present in 1983 for the U6's win in Lake of the Ozarks, MO. He is excited to be part of an iconic team in the sport of unlimited hydroplane racing.

Mike began racing as a crew member on various Huey Newport Grand Prix teams. In 2003, he joined Kim Gregory’s USA Racing Partners unlimited hydroplane crew. Since that time he has worked with unlimited owners Dave Bartush, Nate Brown and Charley Wiggins. He began as a skin fin and rear wing specialist before moving to work on propellers. Mike joined Miss Madison Racing in 2019 as propeller specialist.

When he is not racing, Mike enjoys playing hockey and training dogs with his fiancée Megan and her daughters, Sam and Sydney.

John began working in unlimited hydroplane racing with Brian Keogh’s U-9 automotive team in the early 1990s. In 1993, he joined the 2 boat Exide unlimited team as a propeller specialist. He moved to Miss Madison Racing in 1996 as a propeller specialist and worked on boat maintenance through 2006. John joined Ted Porter’s U-7 crew in 2008 and continued to work as a propeller specialist. During his tenure with Porter racing, the team won one A.P.B.A. Gold Cup and two National Championships. He returned to Miss Madison Racing in 2018.

John is a professional truck driver and owns his own trucking business.

Cindy has been a member of the Miss Madison crew for 17 years. In 2018, she served as Crew Chief, but due to increasing work obligations, she stepped back from that role. She is currently responsible for the cockpit and driver safety systems as well as communicating with the driver as he leaves and returns to the dock. Cindy is a boating enthusiast and competitive in nature. Being part of the race team gives her an outlet for that competitive spirit.

When she is not racing, Cindy is the Director of the Office of Sponsored Research at the University of Washington Bothell. Her favorite memories with the team include the 1st win in Seattle. “Everyone was high-fiving and hugging all the way from the start/finish line to the pits,” she recalled. Her 1st win as Crew Chief at the 2018 Madison Regatta in front of the hometown crowd was very special.

James joined the Madison Regatta Committee in 2018 to work on Pit Operations with his uncle. While working at Regatta, he heard that Miss Madison Racing might be in need of a truck driver for the last race of the season. James is now the primary truck driver for the racing team. At race sites, he assists with pit set-up and in any area where he can be of help. In addition to driving the truck and trailer, on the road he is an ambassador for the team and unlimited hydroplane racing. He talks with fellow travelers and hands out team autograph cards.

James drives trucks professionally and lives in Madison, Indiana.

Matt first joined the Miss Madison Racing Team in 1995 and after a stint working with U9 Jones Racing, he returned to the Miss HomeStreet crew in 2016. Matt's primary responsibility on race weekends is propellers. His favorite racing moment occurred in Detroit in 2011 as the crew worked to ready the U9 back-up hull to run as Oh Boy! Oberto Miss Madison in just a few hours. The boat qualified at 150 mph.

Matt enjoys spending time with his three sons,, Nathan, Claytin, and Jackson. He also enjoys representing the City of Madison around the country.

Since 1971, Gary Spanner has had a wrench is his hand as a volunteer crew member with the Miss Madison Racing Team, starting with supercharged Allison engines. Spanner works mostly on the team’s engines and gearboxes, although over the years he has handled props, sponsons, fuel and other components.

When not racing, Gary crews for a team of vintage Indy cars, consults for small businesses, performs a variety of volunteer work and generally “messes about in boats”. He lives with his wife Cody in Pasco and Seattle, Washington.

As a native of Madison, Indiana, Abigail has been around hydroplane racing her entire life. She has assisted Miss Madison crew member, Trey Holt, with his vintage hydroplane as well as at the Miss Madison Racing shop in Madison. She officially joins the crew for the 2021 season.

Abigail attends the University of Indianapolis where she is studying Nursing. She lives in Madison with Trey and their dog, Trooper, and works as a Patient Care Tech in the Emergency Room at King's Daughters Hospital.