Stanley Sayres

Stanley St. Claire Sayres (1896 - 17 September 1956) was a hydroplane racer who broke the world water speed record with his "Slo-mo-shun IV" boat.

Sayres was born in Dayton, Washington in 1896, and studied in Walla Walla, Washington at the Whitman College. He entered the army in 1917. After World War I, he ran his own car dealerships in Walla Walla and a second one in Pendleton, Oregon. By 1931, when he moved to Seattle, he owned 5 dealerships.

His Chrysler-Plymouth dealership was located on the corner of Broadway and Madison Street in Seattle. Together with Harry Jensen he founded the successful company Jen-Cel-Lite, which made sleeping bags using cellulose for insulation. Harry's brother Tony owned Jensen Motor Boat Company, and this sparked the interest in motor boat racing Sayres would have for the rest of his life.

Usually, he let others drive the boats, but in 1950 he piloted the Slo-mo-shun IV to the World Unlimited water speed record. Malcolm Campbell had set the record in 1939 to 141.740 mph (228.108 km/h) with his Blue Bird K4. On 26 June 1950, Sayres broke that record when he reached 160.323 mph (258.015 km/h). He again improved this record on 7 July 1952 to 178.49 mph (287.25 km/h). This record stood until July 1955 when Donald Campbell, son of the former record holder, reached 202.32 mph (325.60 km/h) in the Bluebird K7.