Bob Hayward

Robert D. Hayward (October 28 1927 - September 10 1961) was a Canadian powerboat racer who was a three-time winner of the Harmsworth Cup as the pilot of "Miss Supertest III".

From Embro, Ontario, Hayward was raised on his family's chicken farm and joined the Supertest racing team as a mechanic in 1957. Piloting "Miss Supertest III", Hayward won the Harmsworth Cup in 1959, 1960, and 1961. A month after winning his third Harmsworth Cup, Hayward was killed while racing "Miss Supertest II" at the Silver Cup regatta on the Detroit River. The boat flipped over at 175 mph, breaking Hayward's neck. He was 33 years old. After his death, the Supertest team retired from racing.

Hayward was inducted in the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame in 2000. A YMCA in London, Ontario, where he lived at the time of his death, is named after him. A stretch of water at the Bay of Quinte near Deseronto, Ontario is known as "Hayward Long Reach".

References

* [http://www.lesliefield.com/personalities/bob_hayward_tributes.htm Tribute from the Hydroplane History site]

* [http://www.lesliefield.com/races/1959_harmsworth_trophy_us_loss_good_for_boating.htm Article about Hayword's Harmsfield win]

* [http://abrahydroplanes.com/index.cfm?page=Bob-Hayward-Remembered "Bob Hayward Remembered" at American Boat Racing Association]

* [http://abrahydroplanes.com/index.cfm?page=Unlimited-History-QA-March-2005 Q&A about Miss Supertest at the American Boat Racing Association]

* [http://www.londony.ca/bob/ Bob Hayward Branch YMCA]