Pinto Express Has a Winning History

November 22, 2024 - 4:06pm

Alan Ganger holding the boat for his dad, John, in 1986 on the Ohio River (neither of them can remember now exactly where). It was the first season he had the boat. Photo by Mary Ganger

By Craig Fjarlie
Alan Ganger of Spokane, Washington, is the current owner of Pinto Express, a 145 inboard originally built for Tom Jeannette of Michigan. Tom D’Eath and Jeannette graduated from high school together in 1962, and D’Eath helped him develop an interest in boat racing. Jeannette campaigned three boats in the 145 class, all named Buckshot, S-31. The first two boats were built by Ron Jones. “Jeannette ordered a new boat from Jon Staudacher for the 1980 season, because he was getting beaten,” recalls Richard Harris, owner and driver of a rival 145 named Rapid Transit.

These photos show the entire family of boats that Tom Jeannette owned and drove.
Buckshot#1 and #2 show Tom Jeannette, pilot. Richard Harris photos
Below, Buckshot#3 was a brand-new boat. Photo courtesy of the Brault family

Jeannette and D’Eath tested the boat at Fairhaven, Michigan, before the 1980 season. Jeannette intended to take the boat to a June race in Columbiaville, Michigan. “I told him, ‘Don’t run this boat, it’s way too loose,’” D’Eath remembers. Jeannette went ahead and took the boat to Columbiaville in spite of D’Eath’s advice. It was a cold day for racing. “We had run elimination heats,” Harris says. “In the first heat of the finals, I was right on the transom of Jeannette’s boat. Going into the second turn, I said to myself, I’m going to get wet.” Just then, Buckshot started lifting and went over. “He wasn’t more than six feet away from me.”
The hull sustained minor damage; only the cowling was broken. D’Eath began helping make changes to the boat. “It was way too light on its feet,” he explains. “We needed to get the weight to the center of aerodynamic lift.” The fuel tank was moved forward, the strut was deepened, and the shaft angle was changed.
Jeannette made some test runs in the boat while D’Eath watched carefully. “It didn’t accelerate very well, and it was dragging the left sponson.” D’Eath says. “We took the boat to my shop and turned it upside down. I widened the left sponson considerably and made a skid fin change. We tested again and the boat added nine miles an hour to its top speed.”
Jeannette was running a Ford Pinto engine, and other winning drivers in the 145 class, including Willard Wilson and Stu Shane, told him he would never be a winner with the Pinto. They told him he should be running a Falcon engine instead. “I dyno’d his Pinto engine,” D’Eath confirms. “Then he went out and beat Willard Wilson.”

Valleyfield 1982: Tom Jeannette at the wheel. The other boat in the photo belongs to Gilles Couillard. This Marc Giasson photo was the cover photo for a Canadian Facebook group.

Jeannette went on to win the Nationals in 1981 and 1983. He almost won in 1982 as well. “He was leading the final heat, but on the last lap someone else crashed and the race was red flagged,” Ganger explains. “He didn’t win the re-run.”
D’Eath has fond memories of Buckshot. “It was a little ahead of its time. We made it a contender.” He had a chance to drive the boat near the end of the 1983 season. “I drove it at New Martinsville, in the kilo trials on Saturday, and one heat on Sunday.” D’Eath’s speed was just shy of breaking the kilometer straightaway record.

Valleyfield 1982. Photo courtesy of the Brault family

After the 1983 season, Jeannette sold the boat to Wally Snyder. “He sold the boat and the number, but not the name,” recalls Ganger. Snyder named the boat Pinto Express. “I think he chose that name because he was running a Pinto engine,” Ganger says, then admits he isn’t certain if that was the reason. “He only had the boat for a year or two. He ran it in 1984 at a few races.”
In late 1985, Snyder sold the boat to John Ganger, the father of Alan Ganger. “He was living near Dayton, Ohio, at the time,” the younger Ganger says. “He started racing it in 1986.” The boat was damaged in late 1986 and sat out the 1987 season while undergoing repairs. In 1989, at Steubenville, Ohio, John Ganger was pitched out of the boat and suffered a broken leg. “The battery was located in the cockpit and his foot was wedged in by the battery. That’s what caused his injury.” In 1990, Ganger took the boat to a test session where he tried different propellers, but he was still dissatisfied with the boat. He gave up racing and put Pinto Express in his garage.
While the boat was sitting, Alan Ganger moved to Spokane, Washington. “In 2014, we decided it was time to do something with the boat,” he says. “I hauled it out to Spokane. Now I run it two or three times a year at Vintage events.”
Because Pinto Express had been stored inside, no significant restoration was needed before it was ready to run. “Only a few repairs were needed,” Ganger says. “The engine is the last race engine. The paint is exactly the same as when it raced. The cowlings are original.” Ganger is glad he didn’t need to repaint the boat. “It has some delicate pinstripes that would be hard to re-create. I want to keep them the way they are.”

On display at Lake Chelan, October 2024. Alan Ganger photo

Pinto Express was at Lake Chelan in October for Mahogany and Merlot, but it was just on static display. The Hydroplane and Raceboat Museum had so many rides owed to people that only Unlimited hydroplanes were on the water. A number of vintage inboard boats were in the upper pit area, but were unable to run.
When Pinto Express runs in 2025 Vintage events, spectators will see a boat with a winning record. Well-known racers helped it reach the top of its class.
There is one other interesting aside to the story. Tom D’Eath won the APBA Gold Cup at Detroit in 1976. Jeannette was a crew member on the winning Unlimited hydroplane, Miss U.S. It’s another proof that boat racing friendships are lasting and run deep. Unfortunately, Jeannette passed away a few years ago, but his contribution to racing will stand.