Dragboat Racer Killed When His Craft Flips : Alta Loma Driver Was Attempting to Establish Speed Record; His Father Vows to Carry On

Bill Thomas Jr. of Alta Loma became the latest victim of drag-boat racing Sunday when he died after his speedboat flipped during a world-record attempt at Puddingstone Reservoir in Frank G. Bonelli County Regional Park in San Dimas, authorities said.

Thomas, 33, known on the drag-boat circuit as Chilly Willy, was pronounced dead at San Dimas Community Hospital at 12:40 p.m., said Bill Wehner of the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department.

Thomas was going about 160 m.p.h. along a quarter-mile course during the International Hot Boat Assn. Summer Nationals when he lost control of the boat in front of about 15,000, said the victim’s father, Bill Thomas Sr.

“The boat just got loose at the finish,” Thomas said. “We really don’t know what happened. We had a good pass. It was just one of those things.”

Thomas said his son set a world record in the blown-alcohol flatbottom category Saturday and was in the process of making it official with a back-up run when the boat flipped and landed on him near the finish. According to IHBA rules, all records must be backed up with a second run.

The driver, who suffered a broken neck and was submerged for about 1 1/2 minutes, was killed instantly, his father said.

“He drove for four years and never had an accident,” Thomas said. “This is the first time he ever got wet.”

Thomas said his son was the country’s No. 1-ranked driver in the alcohol-flatbottom category. The family owns Foolish Marine Pleasure, an Upland store specializing in drag-boat equipment.

Thomas said the run looked smooth until the finish, when the front of the boat raised.

“With alcohol flats it doesn’t take much to get them loose,” Thomas said.

The death was the latest in one of sports’ most dangerous events. At least a dozen drivers have died from crashes in the past five years. Thomas said his son’s was the first fatality in about a year.

“There’s always concern when you race,” Thomas said. “You just try to put it out of your mind when you do it. We just try to be as safe as we can.”

In 1985, the Irvine Co. banned drag races at its Irvine Lake after a boat careened into a shoreline crowd and killed a 9-year-old girl.

Most accidents involve driver fatalities, including champion Billy Todd, who died in a 1986 crash at Castaic Lake.

Jerry Fulgham of Whittier, a driver who lost an arm after crashing at Puddingstone Reservoir in September, 1987, said Sunday that safety precautions need improvement.

Fulgham said all boats should be equipped with cages that stop drivers from being thrown when boats flip. He said that more drivers, particularly in the top-fuel hydro category, are using cages.

“But they need to make it safer,” he said. “Top fuel is the only one required to have a cage. They should require them for all boats.”

Fulgham said he was the first driver to use a cage, and that it saved his life when he crashed two years ago.

“It just doesn’t seem to be getting any safer,” he said.

Funeral arrangements for Thomas, who is survived by his wife, Karen, will be made today, his father said.

Thomas also said he plans to complete a hydro boat that his son was building.

“It’s his dream boat,” Thomas said. “It’s something he wanted to see finished. We’re going to put that boat back in the water. We don’t know who will drive it yet.”