Valley man was stunt driver for hydroplane movie

Published 5:28 pm Thursday, October 2, 2008

SNOQUALMIE VALLEY – Mark Evans, 48, may be the biggest daredevil in the Valley. The unlimited hydroplane boat racer, who was once told by Evil Knievel to “be careful,” performed stunts in the recently released MGM film “Madison.”

Evans, with 10 race wins to his credit, also created the first turbine four-seat unlimited hydroplane in history called the “American Maid.”

“Madison” is based on the true story of the small town of Madison, Indiana, struggling to survive in 1971. When the town hosts a gold cup hydroplane race that is broadcasted on national television, the town is saved. The film is directed by William Bindley and stars Jim Caviezel, Mary McCormack, Paul Dooley, Chelcie Ross, Jake Lloyd, Bruce Dern and Brent Brisco. It opened in Seattle on April 22.

“Madison” was Evans’ first real gig as a stunt driver, he said. He spent a month filming in Madison, Indiana, before shooting segments in Los Angeles and Chicago.

The unlimited hydroplane is basically a race car on water. Drivers must wear air masks and travel at dangerous speeds. In the film, Evans drives the vintage unlimited hydroplane “The Cat’s Pride” and “Miss Madison.”

“It’s just like a race car on water, but it goes a lot faster than a race car goes. It’s the world’s fastest boat,” said Evans, who has been a regular racer in Seattle’s annual Sea Fair event until recently. He’s slowly retiring.

Hydroplane racing began in 1904 and is one of the oldest forms of motor sports racing in the world. The unlimited hydroplane is 31-feet long, weighs about 7,000 pounds and has 3,000 horse power. The flat-bottomed boats travel 200-220 miles per hour and have turbines like helicopter engines.

Evans’ father was also a well known racer in hydroplane circles during the 1950s and 1960s. Evan’s brother Mitch races as well. At age 12, Evans participated in his first race.

Evans is not easily star struck, being a regular in the lime light himself. He wasn’t familiar with all the actors on the set of “Madison” and said he’s not a big movie fan. But he did get a kick out of meeting Jim Caviezel, a Mount Vernon native and the star of “The Passion of the Christ.”

“Now I can say I had my picture taken with Jesus,” Evans said.

Evans hopes to do more stunt work in the future and is officially a member of the Screen Actors Guild. Since “Madison,” Evans has passed up two other stunt opportunities (one with actor Tim Allen) for his racing career.

“I’m on standby,” Evans said.

Even though Evans suffered severe injuries from a crash while racing in Detroit in 2003, he has never considered giving up on racing.

“It gets in your blood, like a disease. I’ve been racing since I was 12 years old. Ask anyone who’s racing, they’ll say it’s addictive.”

Evans broke his back, right leg, four ribs, elbows, suffered two major infections and had a rod put in his leg following the accident, which he recovered from 18 months later.

The danger of the sport is scary for Evans’ wife, Elaine Gordon Evans, but she said she doesn’t worry because “he’s one of the best.”

“It’s pretty intense as a wife before he goes onto the boat,” she said. “It’s like a slow-motion movie to me … He gets in the boat, shuts the lid and that’s it. I hold my breath and say a prayer for the next two minutes until he comes back to the dock.”

Evans did meet Evil Knievel once. The legendary stunt master had an ironic message for Evans. “He told me to be careful. That was a real shocker,” Evans said.

Evans even makes a living working on boats. He ran a fiberglass business in Chelan before he sold it and moved to the Valley three years ago. Evans defied traditional hydroplane engineering when he installed three passenger seats into a craft five years ago. The “American Maid” was named after Evans’ wife’s housecleaning service “Maid for Life,” which gives away complimentary housecleaning to women with cancer. Maid for Life also employs women in need of work and teaches them how to run their own businesses.

Evans helps raise money for Maid for Life. His mother had breast cancer and the couple used to help her keep her house clean, which sparked the idea for Maid for Life.

“People all around us were dying from it,” Evans said. “There are so many things in the world to try to help with, I guess this is ours.”

To learn more about Maid for Life, visit www.u4hydro.com or call (425) 868-5091.