Hydroplane Gold Cup Race @ Seafair 2024

📆 Friday, August 2nd – Sunday, August 4th
⏰ 9 am – 6 pm
📍 Lake Washington
🎟️ More info here

“Seafair” has a magical ring to it. To newbies, it might sound like Seafair involves carnivals on Puget Sound or clowns juggling on jet skis. That’s not exactly what Seafair is—although it’s not far from that.

Seafair Weekend happens yearly in Seattle (except for the pandemic years when it didn’t). It’s older than the Space Needle, and it’s become a collection of citywide parties that celebrate Seattle and its “seas,” AKA Lake Washington and Elliott Bay. The fest is technically ten weeks long, with events throughout the summer—but when many people say “Seafair,” they’re referring to the roaring Blue Angels and racing hydroplanes and docked Navy ships. All of that goes down the first weekend of August.

While the Boeing Seafair Airshow has people’s heads in the clouds, the show’s hydroplane racing has them craning their necks across Lake Washington. Culminating with the HomeStreet Bank Gold Cup Race, hydroplanes race at over 220 MPH during shows throughout Seafair Weekend. Peep the schedule below.

H1 HYDROPLANE RACING SCHEDULE

FRIDAY
9 AM – H1 Unlimited Hydroplane Testing
10:35 AM – Vintage Hydroplanes
10:55 AM – J Hydro Heat 1
11:10 AM – US Army Golden Knights
11:40 AM – H1 Unlimited Hydroplane Qualifying
1:05 PM – US Navy EA-18G Growler
1:35 PM – US Air Force C17
1:50 PM – US Air Force F35A
2:15 PM – PBY-5A Catalina
2:30 PM – US Coast Guard Search and Rescue Demo
2:40 PM – Boeing Air Show
2:50 PM – Vintage Hydroplanes
3:10 PM – US Marines F35B
3:35 PM – US Navy Blue Angels

SATURDAY
9 AM – H1 Unlimited Hydroplane Testing
10:30 AM – J Hydro Heat 2
10:50 AM – Boeing Air Show
11 AM – PBY-5A Catalina
11:15 AM – US Coast Guard Search and Rescue
11:35 AM – Vintage Hydroplanes
11:55 AM – US Army Golden Knights
12:25 PM – H1 Heat 1A 5 Minute Gun
12:30 PM – H1 Heat 1A
12:45 PM – H1 Heat 1B 5 Minute Gun
12:50 PM – H1 Heat 1B
1 PM – US Navy EA-18G Growler
1:30 PM – US Air Force C17
1:45 PM – US Air Force F35A
2:15 PM – Vintage Hydroplanes
2:35 PM – H1 Heat 2A 5 Minute Gun
2:40 PM – H1 Heat 2A
2:55 PM – H1 Heat 2B 5 Minute Gun
3 PM – H1 Heat 2B
3:10 PM – US Marines F35B
3:35 PM – US Navy Blue Angels

SUNDAY
9 AM – H1 Testing
10 AM – J Hydro Heat 3
10:20 AM – H1 Testing
11 AM
• Opening Ceremonies
• King County Helo Flag Presentation
• National Anthem Singer
11:10 AM – US Coast Guard Search and Rescue
11:20 AM – J Hydro Final
11:40 AM – Vintage Hydroplanes
12 PM – US Army Golden Knights
12:25 PM – H1 Heat 3A 5 Minute Gun
12:30 PM – H1 Heat 3A
12:45 PM – H1 Heat 3B 5 Minute Gun
12:50 PM – H1 Heat 3B
1 PM – US Navy EA-18G Growler
1:30 PM – US Air Force C17
1:45 PM – US Air Force F35A
2:10 PM – PBY-5A Catalina
2:40 PM – Apollo Mechanical Cup Final 5 Minute Gun
2:45 PM – Apollo Mechanical Cup Final
3:05 PM – Boeing Flyover
3:10 PM – US Marines F35B
3:35 PM – US Navy Blue Angels
4:35 PM – H1 Awards Ceremony

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