Bill Seebold Sr.

Team Seebold Inc., Seebold Racing Inc. and Seebold Sports Inc. evolved from Bill Seebold Sr.’s passion for really, fast motorboats. Born in 1916 in Granite City, Illinois, he began racing in 1941. His wife, Pauline, was his mechanic. Bill Sr. built a speedboat in 1949 that roared up the Mississippi at 58 mph. By the 1950s, he was winning races nationwide. In 1956 he won the National Championship in C Runabout. In 1957 he won the National Championship in C Hydro. Bill Sr. retired from active outboard racing when his son Bill Jr. (Billy) began his racing career. Soon, Bill Seebold Jr. joined his father’s marine supply business started in the family basement. In later years Bill Sr. became well known for his Seebold Propellers, turning out as many as 450 a year. Bill Sr. (known to all as Grandpa) passed away in 2007 at the age of 91.

Seebold Props
	Article from Hydroplane Quarterly, summer of 1970 issue, by Tim Chance.

Seebold Props - page 2

Bill Seebold, Jr.

Bill Seebold, Jr. was born on February 23, 1941, in Granite City, IL. At the tender age of 11, Bill Jr. won his first boat race, starting his career in stock-engined outboard boats that hit top speeds of about 26-miles-per-hour. Seebold, Jr. claimed his first American Power Boat Association national points title just six years later in 1958…a title that launched arguably the most successful powerboat racing career in the history of the sport. The bulk of his 46-year career was spent racing in “tunnel-hull” outboard boats, which fly over the water on a cushion of air. Upon retiring in 1997, he had accumulated 69 World and National Championships with over 900 racing victories. At the age of 57 he won the sport’s North American Championship and his seventh St. Louis Grand Prix, one of the most prestigious events in powerboat racing. Seebold, Jr. won the Paris 6-Hour Race in 1974 and six Union Internationale Motonautique (UIM) world championships from 1975 to 1990. He won the Duke of York Trophy at Windsor, England, five times from 1978 to 1983. In North America, he was the champion of the FONDA circuit in 1981 and the International Outboard Grand Prix in 1989, 1993, and 1994. A hard-charging, late-season drive brought him from the middle of the pack to the 1997 PROP Tour title that allowed him to end his career as most of it was spent – as a champion. In 1999 he was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame in Detroit, MI, as the first Missourian and the 10th representative of powerboat racing to enter the Hall. He received the Union of International Motorboating’s Medal of Honor in 1992, was inducted into the Gulf Marine Hall of Fame when he was only 25, and was recognized as part of the St. Louis Sports Century honorees in 1999. The 2004 season represents Bill’s 53rd as a driver or team owner. It will be the 23rd season in which Team Seebold has been sponsored by the Bud Light beer brand of Anheuser- Busch. Much of Bill’s summer is consumed by making arrangements for the St. Louis grand Prix, a race he helped start 32 years ago. More than $2-million dollars in proceeds from the race have been donated to the charities supported by his Concord Village Lions Club. The St. Louis race was the first race to sign up the new Champ Boat Series, which was formed in 2002 and has become the lead organization for professional tunnel-hull boat racing in the western hemisphere. As the team owner, Bill has won three North American Championships. Bill and his wife Lynne have four children; Mike, Tim, Billy, and Kim.

1957 High Points

Billy Seebold -1961

Billy Seebold - 1961 World Champion

V45 - Bill Seebold
	This is a photo of Seebold being weighed before a race. The engine is a Quincy Looper.

1963-Billy Seebold, General Grant

Billy interviewed by CBS in 64

Best Driver of 1966

Best Driver of 1966 (photo)
	Billy Seebold with his championship winning Quincy Welding D Looper race engine.

Billy Seebold - 1970

Tim Seebold with dad, Bill in 2007

Driving a championship-caliber boat is a dream come true for Tim, who grew up watching his father, Bill, win the biggest boat races in the world. Tim won his first championship at the age of 17, driving a Mod 50 boat to a Mod 90-class Marathon Nationals victory and world record at Lake Alford, Florida. In 1990 he earned the SST-140 championship in the Outboard Performance Craft Nationals at Kankakee, IL. Tim Seebold has won 4 North American powerboat racing championships in the past 7 years. Over the past decade Tim has earned 20 victories, the second-best record in the sport. Career Highlights include: World record holder, Mod 90 1982 - Marathon Nationals champion 1982, 1990, 1991 - SST 140 National champion 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994 - PROP Tour Formula One champion 1998, 1999 - Champ Boat Series champion 2002, 2004 - Second, Champ Boat Series points 2003 - Second, U.S. Formula One points 1993, 1995, 2000 - Third, U.S. Formula One points 2001 - Mount Fuji, Japan, UIM race winner 1994 - Pittsburgh Three Rivers Regatta winner 1995, 1996 - Sault Ste. Marie River winner 2004 - Saskatoon winner 2004 - Bud Light St. Louis Grand Prix winner 2004 - Roar of the Rockies winner 2004 . Tim Seebold owns Seebold Racing, which fabricates the boats he drives in “ChampBoat” class events. Tim bought the firm from his father in 1998. In racing season, Tim constantly travels but lives in Osage Beach. In 1993, he founded Seebold Sports, which sells motorcycles, ATVs and watercraft.

Young Tim Seebold - Future Boat Racer

Mike Seebold

Bill Jr.’s son, Mike, is also a boat racer. Mike started racing in 1974. For years Mike raced for Team Seebold, but now drives for another sponsor. Mike Seebold has won the Bud Light Grand Prix in St. Louis 6 times. Mike Seebold, previously raced for Bud Light, and was Formula One's driver with the most wins in 2001. In 2005, Mike had the most wins in the ChampBoat racing series. In the fastest of the vee-bottom classes, Superboat V Unlimited, David Knight and Michael Seebold piloted the 44’ Fountain “Shogren Performance Marine” to the 2007 US National Championship, leading every lap of the event. Mike Seebold has over 50 Formula One wins in the US and around the world. The Marco Island, Florida resident continues to hold the mark for most wins in a career with 28 Grand Prix victories.