Bernie Little
Bernie Little was an American businessman, beer distributor, and the most successful owner in Unlimited Hydroplane racing history. Based in Lakeland, Florida, he was best known as the longtime owner of the Miss Budweiser unlimited hydroplane team, which under his leadership became one of the most successful and recognizable teams in the history of the sport. Over four decades, his boats won 134 of the 354 races they entered, including 22 national championships and 14 Gold Cups. Little was widely credited with popularizing the sport through major sponsorships, television exposure, and safety innovations, and was regarded by contemporaries as one of its most influential figures.
Early life and career
Little was born in McComb, Ohio, on October 7, 1925. He left school during the Great Depression and worked various jobs including delivering newspapers and caddying, before joining the Merchant Marines and later the U.S. Navy during World War II. On New Year’s Eve 1943, he married Jane Cunningham; the couple remained married for 59 years until his death.After the war, Little worked in his family’s restaurant and then in car sales, before moving into aviation where he sold airplanes and operated as a fixed-base operator in Tampa and St. Petersburg. He was also an avid pilot, flying aerobatic stunt shows. By the 1950s, he had become a successful entrepreneur with ventures in hotels, nightclubs, hardware, and aircraft sales.
In 1972, encouraged by August Busch III of Anheuser-Busch, Little took over a vacant Anheuser-Busch distributorship in Polk County, Florida, and moved to Lakeland, where he became the exclusive wholesaler for multiple counties.
Hydroplane Racing Career
Founding of ''Miss Budweiser''
In 1962, while operating his aviation business in St. Petersburg, Little acquired his first hydroplane by trading a cabin cruiser for it. He kept the boat near his hangar, where it caught the attention of August Busch III of Anheuser-Busch. After taking Busch for a ride, Little suggested that Budweiser sponsor the boat — an offer Busch accepted. The partnership created Miss Budweiser, beginning a sponsorship and ensuing sport-wide dominance that would last four decades and transform unlimited hydroplane racing.Rise to Prominence
Little’s first major win came at the Columbia Cup on the Columbia River in 1966, when driver Bill Brow won at an average speed of 98 mph. In 1969, Miss Budweiser, driven by Bill Sterett, won the Dixie Cup Regatta in Guntersville, Alabama.Safety and Tragedy
From the beginning, Little's teams were affected by the dangers of unlimited hydroplane racing. In June 1966, Little’s Miss Budweiser was part of the deadliest day in unlimited hydroplane racing history. At the President’s Cup Regatta on the Potomac River in Washington, D.C., three drivers were killed in two separate accidents. In the final heat, Miss Budweiser, driven by Don Wilson, collided with Rex Manchester’s Notre Dame on the backstretch, killing both men instantly. Earlier the same afternoon, three-time national champion Ron Musson had died when Miss Bardahl exploded at high speed. The triple fatality was the worst tragedy in the sport’s history. For Little, who had entered the sport only a few years earlier, the accident was a devastating early setback. Miss Budweiser was noted at the time as the lightest boat in the fleet and among the fastest under calm conditions, but Wilson had only recently begun driving the craft. Despite the disaster, Little remained committed to hydroplane racing, and in later years became a leading advocate for improved driver safety, including the adoption of enclosed cockpits.In 1979, driver Dean Chenoweth survived a 220 mph crash while attempting to break the straightaway world speed record. Little credited “the flak jacket and the Lord” with saving Chenoweth’s life, noting that the protective vest had been crushed in the wreck.
Chenoweth returned to racing but was killed in 1982 during qualifying at the Columbia Cup in Pasco, Washington, when Miss Budweiser flipped after encountering a gust of wind. Following the accident, Little’s team pioneered the enclosed cockpit for hydroplanes, which has since been credited with saving drivers’ lives.