ED COOPER, SR., REMEBERED

ED COOPER, SR., REMEMBERED By Fred Farley - ABRA Unlimited HistorianEd Cooper, Sr., who co-owned the U-3 Racing Team with his son, Ed Cooper, Jr., passed away on December 13, 2005, at King's Daughters' Hospital in Madison, Indiana. He was 86.In a category dominated by Lycoming turbine engines, the father-and-son team was unique. They used the time-honored Allison V-12 piston power plant, originally intended for use in World War II fighter planes. The Coopers started their racing careers in the 1960s as crew members for the community-owned MISS MADISON. In 2002, the U-3 team became the first to turn a lap at over 160 miles per hour with an internal combustion engine. U-3 Team victories include: (1) 1989 - Tri-Cities, WA (Columbia Cup); driver-Mitch Evans (2) 2003 - Evansville, IN (Thunder On The Ohio); driver-Mitch Evans (3) 2003 - Detroit, MI (APBA Gold Cup); driver-Mitch Evans (4) 2003 - San Diego, CA (Bill Muncey Cup); driver-Mitch Evans The elder Mr. Cooper served on the board of directors of Madison Regatta, Inc., in the 1970s. In the early 1980s, he and Ed, Jr., helped on the crew of MISS KENTUCKIANA PAVING, owned by Graham Heath and Bill Cantrell of Madison.In 1985, the father and son pooled their resources and started their own team. They purchased Chuck Hickling's former TEMPUS, which they debuted in 1986. They built new boats in 1988, 1997, and 2002.The Cooper team's supreme achievement has to be the 2003 Gold Cup at Detroit. They were the first piston-powered winners in twenty years of APBA racing's Crown Jewel. Running under the sponsorship of FOX HILLS CHRYSLER-JEEP/SUN COATINGS, the U-3 and driver Mitch Evans defeated the defending Gold Cup champions Dave Villwock and MISS BUDWEISER in the Final Heat, 144.152 miles per hour to 141.488.Ed Cooper, Sr., was a great friend and admirer of the late Bill "Pappy" Cantrell who, together with Graham Heath, taught the Coopers everything they knew about the Allison engine.In an interview with this writer, Ed, Sr., revealed his greatest thrill in racing. That was the time when he tested the former TEMPUS hull on the Ohio River: "I always admired 'Pappy' Cantrell and wanted to be like him. That time when I drove the boat, I felt like I really was 'Pappy' Cantrell."